Afghan American Artists and Writers Association

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Do you call yourself a refugee? Do you ever feel invisible or hypervisible? Excerpts from Viet Thanh Nguyen’s (@viet_t_nguyen) beautiful introduction to the book “The Displaced: Refugee Writers on Refugee Lives.” Contributing writers include: Joseph Azam @joseph_m_azam David Bezmozgis Fatima Bhutto (@fbhutto) Thi Bui (@teabuoy) Ariel Dorfman Lev Golinkin Reyna Grande (@writerreynagrande) Meron Hadero Aleksandar Hemon Joseph Kertes Porochista Khakpour Marina Lewycka Maaza Mengiste Dina Nayeri Vu Tran Novuyo Rosa Tshuma Kao Kalia Yang #refugee #viet #pulitzer #vietnam #displaced #displacedpersons #immigration #migration #invisible #borders #citizen #citizenship #stereotype #specter #un #unitednations
The “American Superhero” project by @nategowdy includes Afghans, Rafi and Ali Samizay. Swipe to read their interview and more about the project! #superhero #american #immigrant #portraiture #photography #nategowdy #VishavjitSingh #SikhCaptainAmerica #afghan #afghanamerican #afghanistan #dukeellington #diversity #inclusion #america #usa #marvelcomics #africanamerican #captainamerica
"Growing up in the United States, I often hear that my name is “hard” to pronounce: N’Jameh (IPA: ˈndʒeɪ me or 'njeɪ meɪ). It is a Gambian name conferred by my father, whose lyrical, West African accent rounds the vowels and punctuates the consonants into inertia. And yet, the syllables that tether my heritage to The Gambia seem strangely unable to make the voyage to my American life[...]My parents did not name me with evil grins and hands wringing: “We are going to make her name hard for everyone to utter!” They named me out of boundless love. In that love is a pride of culture and heritage. And yet, my name is treated like a white elephant in society — an exotic interruption to the conversation among Kristins and Emilies, whose names may be forgettable, but most assuredly don’t make a stir. There is a moment in time when it is no longer the responsibility of a person to teach their name. The choice made by many not to learn my name renders me invisible […] Like so much in American life, the experience of being named and known is also bound up with issues of race, class and gender. It exists in the systems of how we socialize and interact with each other. For a white person to suggest that a colleague of color adapt their name to make it easier for others in the work environment (“Oh, your name is Masahiko? Mind if we just call you Hiko?”), is an aggression that infers it is socially acceptable for one individual to put a nickname upon another for their convenience. This kind of aggression can largely fly under the radar because our country was built on the backs of people whose names were shortened or erased. The suggestion to shorten Masahiko’s name does not come from the intention of love or respect. It comes from the notion that it’s two syllables too long, an inconvenience for the mouth. If Masahiko changed their name to “Sandra,” this upholds a kind of white supremacy, displayed in ethnocentrisms, that can largely go unquestioned. If anything, it can be encouraged. This is more insidious and socially acceptable than white hoods and neo-Nazi graffiti, but communicates clearly that “white names” are easier and more desirable..."
⛅️ #ralphwaldoemerson
#hafiz
#Repost @yallapunk with @get_repost ・・・ Advance weekend pass tickets are now on sale! We’re across four venues this year in #Fishtown (10 minute walk apart) Will we see you this year?? www.yallapunk.com . . . . #SWANA #southasian #northafrican #punk #punx #lgbtq #arts #culture #tranasffirming #fest #workshop #comedy #film #poetry #middleeastern #northafrican #feminist #intersectional #philadelphia #poetry #music #experimental #tickets #onsale #weekend #sale
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