Ethnicities

Written byOmid Memarian Soraya Sharghi, ‘Rising with the Song of Nymphs,’ 2021. Acrylic on canvas, 152,4 x 236,2 cm (60 x 93 in). Photo courtesy of the artist. ( GlobalVoices.org ) – In her most recent exhibition, “Sculpture and Painting,” presented at 24 Avenue Matignon in Paris during Art Basel’s October 2025 week, Iranian-American artist […]

Academic Freedom

MESA Board Statement concerning the detention of Dr. Vahid Abedini

Middle East Studies Association

Middle East Studies Association | – Update: Dr. Abedini has been released from detention. The Middle East Studies Association (MESA) was disturbed to learn of the detention of Dr. Vahid Abedini, the Farzaneh Family Assistant Professor of Iranian Studies at the University of Oklahoma (OU). Dr. Abedini was detained on November 22 by U.S. Immigration and […]

African-Americans

When Zohran Mamdani campaigned in Arabic, He was Speaking an old American Language

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani made a campaign ad in quite passable colloquial Arabic for the some 180,000 Arab residents of New York, who live primarily along Steinway Street in Queens and in Brooklyn. Mamdani’s wife, artist Rama Duwaji, is a Houstonian whose family hails from Syria. Some observers are suggesting […]

Asian-Americans

Zohran Mamdani’s last Name reflects Centuries of intercontinental Trade, Migration and cultural Exchange

The Conversation

By Iqbal Akhtar, Florida International University (The Conversation) – When Zohran Mamdani announced his candidacy for mayor of New York City, political observers noted his progressive platform and legislative record. But understanding the Democratic candidate’s background requires examining the rich cultural tapestry woven into his very surname: Mamdani. He takes the name from his father, […]

Asian-Americans

After Mamdani Victory, Progressives Call for Primary Challenges to Democratic Establishment

Common Dreams

“The establishment has never been more weak than they are now,” one advocate told potential progressive candidates. “You need to run.” By Julia Conley | – ( Commondreams.org ) — New York state Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani’s victory over disgraced former Gov. Andrew Cuomo in New York City’s Democratic mayoral primary was quickly dismissed by some […]

Iranian-Americans

Iranian-Americans Opposed US Attack on Iran, Visa Ban: NIAC Poll

contributors

These are the top-level findings of a poll conducted by the National Iranian American Council and YouGov of views of Iranian-Americans. However, note that it was conducted before the Israel-Iran 12-Day War that began on June 12, so some views may have changed. NIAC is the most sensible and best organized of the Iranian-American community […]

African-Americans

This Federal Budget Will Widen the Racial Wealth Divide

OtherWords

By LaToya B. Parker, Dedrick Asante-Muhammad | ( Otherwords.org) – The House recently passed a massive Trump budget bill that will cut trillions in taxes for the ultra-wealthy while eviscerating Medicaid, SNAP, and other services for working Americans. It now moves to the Senate. This bill has been called a massive transfer of wealth from […]

African-Americans

African American History and the Black Civil Rights Movement teach us how to Confront Trump

Tomdispatch

By Douglas H. White ( Tomdispatch.com ) – Recently, in an executive order, President Trump directed the removal of “improper, divisive, or anti-American ideology” from the Smithsonian Institution. That order was, in essence, an attempt to rewrite history on race and gender. One-hundred-and-one-year-old Colonel James H. Harvey, one of the last of the famed Tuskegee […]

African-Americans

Making America White Again: The Deafening Silence of Trump’s Black Supporters

Clarence Lusane

( Tomdispatch.com ) – During the 2024 election campaign, candidate Donald Trump’s most controversial rally occurred at New York’s Madison Square Garden. A comedian on the program referred to the island of Puerto Rico — and by implication Puerto Ricans — as garbage. He and the Trump campaign were rightfully pilloried and called out for […]