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Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur to Participate in Townhall Meeting with Ohio Arab Americans

Posted on Tuesday August 8, 2006

Crises in Lebanon and Palestine to dominate discussion

TOLEDO — The crisis in the Middle East and the U.S. role in the region are expected to dominate an Arab American town hall meeting with local Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur (D-OH) Wednesday (9 August) in Toledo.

The event, which will be held at 1 p.m. at the University of Toledo’s Health Science Campus at the Dana Center will be moderated by Arab American Institute (AAI) President James Zogby. Members of the local Arab American community are expected to voice their concerns about the spiraling violence in the Middle East to Congresswoman Kaptur. At the meeting, Toledo Arab Americans will share stories of how the current violence in Lebanon has affected their lives and families, some of whom were in Lebanon when the war began. They are also expected to urge Kaptur to stand with the community and call for an immediate ceasefire.

Organized by AAI, a Washington, D.C.-based political empowerment and advocacy group, the town hall meeting represents a concerted effort to help grassroots activists set up meetings with their representatives in their home districts to speak about the situation in the Middle East.

“This is an opportunity for the Arab American community in Toledo to articulate their concerns about the ongoing violence in the Middle East to their representative,” Zogby said. “It’s critical that Arab Americans make their voices heard during these very difficult times in the Middle East. It is only through engagement with our public officials, can we begin to address the necessary changes in U.S. policy that are needed to create a safer and more stable Middle East.”

Ohio ranks ninth among the states with the largest concentration of Arab Americans, with roughly 185,000 people tracing their roots to the Arab world. More than one half of the state’s Arab community claim Lebanese and Syrian descent.