[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 1155 Introduced in House (IH)]

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118th CONGRESS
  2d Session
H. RES. 1155

  Expressing support for the recognition of April as ``National Arab 
  American Heritage Month'' (NAAHM) and celebrating the heritage and 
            culture of Arab Americans in the United States.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 17, 2024

Ms. Tlaib (for herself, Mrs. Dingell, Ms. Schakowsky, Mrs. Ramirez, Mr. 
Carson, Mr. McGovern, and Mrs. Watson Coleman) submitted the following 
   resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Oversight and 
                             Accountability

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
  Expressing support for the recognition of April as ``National Arab 
  American Heritage Month'' (NAAHM) and celebrating the heritage and 
            culture of Arab Americans in the United States.

Whereas today the Arab American Institute estimates that roughly 3,700,000 Arab 
        Americans are living in the United States from a variety of faith 
        backgrounds, including both Christians and Muslims originating from any 
        of the 22 Arabic-speaking countries;
Whereas persons of Arab descent have throughout their history in the United 
        States generously shared their culture, music, and food with their 
        fellow Americans and contributed disproportionately to their numbers to 
        the economy and society of the United States, having brought with them 
        to the United States their resilient family values, strong work ethic, 
        dedication to education, and diversity that have added strength to 
        United States democracy;
Whereas Arab American entrepreneurs from the first door-to-door peddlers, to 
        owners of restaurants, bakeries, and stores, to large manufacturers of 
        men's and women's clothes (Farah and Haggar, for example) have been 
        hard-working, self-sufficient contributors to the United States economy;
Whereas the first recorded Arab in America was the Moroccan Mostafa (Estanaico) 
        Zemmouri in 1527, and Arab Americans, including the early Syrians and 
        Lebanese, began arriving in significant numbers to the shores of the 
        United States in the 1870s, including Antonio Bishallany, who arrived in 
        Boston in 1854, and another early wave arrival, Dr. Joseph Arbeeley, who 
        became American citizens, and waves of other Arab Americans that 
        followed;
Whereas Arab Americans have served the United States as first responders, in the 
        public sector, and as public servants from both political parties, past 
        and present, in the United States Government, the Congress, the Senate, 
        as exemplified by James Abourezk, the first Arab American Senator who 
        was raised by Lebanese immigrant parents in South Dakota, and as 
        ambassadors, cabinet members, as well as all other Arab Americans in 
        uniform today;
Whereas Arab Americans have and continue to play a critical role in America's 
        social justice and human rights movements, such as the civil rights, 
        labor organizing, and environmental justice movements;
Whereas recently Arab Americans' activism continues to play a key role in 
        present day struggles for social justice and human rights such as the 
        movement for Black lives, the ceasefire movement to end the genocide of 
        Palestinians, and many more;
Whereas Arab Americans have excelled in science, engineering, medicine, 
        education, scholarship, and architecture, including--

    (1) organic chemist Elias James Corey (Nobel Prize 1990);

    (2) Ahmed Zewail, a chemist investigating transition reactions (Nobel 
Prize 1999);

    (3) Mostafa El-Sayed, a chemical physicist and leading nanoscience 
researcher, a member of the National Academy of Sciences and a United 
States National Medal of Science laureate who sat on the President's 
National Medal of Science Committee in 2014;

    (4) Dr. Farouk El-Baz, a pioneer in space photography; and

    (5) Dr. Michael DeBakey, a cardiovascular surgeon and inventor of 
ventricular assist devices and aorta repair procedures;

Whereas, in 1959, Mohamed Atalla, an Egyptian-American engineer who was an 
        important pioneer and contributor to the early field of modern 
        electronics, invented the metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect 
        transistor, which is the most-frequently manufactured device in history 
        and hailed by the United States Patent and Trademark Office as one of 
        the most important inventions in electronics;
Whereas Arab Americans have excelled in sports, like quarterback and Heisman 
        Trophy winner Doug Flutie, and in entertainment, including actors, 
        singers, comedians, and musicians such as actor, singer, and founder of 
        St. Jude's Children's Hospital, Danny Thomas, Emmy-winner Tony Shalhoub, 
        comedian, and commentator Dean Obeidallah, gifted musician Dr. Ali Jihad 
        Racy, award-winning violinist Simon Shaheen, and so many others;
Whereas, according to Census Bureau data, Arabic is one of the fastest-growing 
        languages in the United States, and Arab American journalists, newspaper 
        editors, and writers have informed their communities and others in 
        Arabic and English, adding to the body of American literature and 
        reporting beginning with Nabeeb and Ibrahim Arbeely, editors of the 
        first Arab American newspaper, Kawkab Amirka, the distinguished writer 
        of the first Arab American novel, ``The Book of Khalid'', Ameen Rihani, 
        the renowned poet, writer, and artist, author of ``The Prophet'', among 
        his other numerous writings, and founder of the Pen Bond writers, the 
        beloved writer Kahlil Gibran, the late New York Times reporter Anthony 
        Shadid, White House Press Corps Correspondent Helen Thomas (recognized 
        by the World Almanac as one of the 25 most influential women in 
        America), poet and writer Naomi Shihab Nye, novelist Diana Abu-Jaber, 
        and hundreds more;
Whereas Arab American women have provided excellent role models such as Emmy-
        winning actor Marlo Thomas, actress Kathy Najimy, Secretary of Health 
        and Human Services Donna Shalala, artist and poet Etel Adnan, National 
        Public Radio host Diane Reim, and the doctor who raised awareness that 
        children were being poisoned by lead in Flint, Michigan, Dr. Mona Hanna-
        Attisha, plus all the women previously mentioned and thousands of other 
        accomplished women not herein listed;
Whereas ``National Arab American Heritage Month'' (NAAHM) is necessary to 
        address the misconceptions, misinformation, Arabophobia, anti-Arabism, 
        and discrimination against Arab Americans by celebrating their 
        accomplishments and providing factual information about Arab American 
        culture and persons and the need for public education, awareness, and 
        policies that are culturally competent when describing, discussing, and 
        addressing the impacts of being Arab American in all aspects of American 
        society;
Whereas, in 2017, Arab America established NAAHM, and President Biden recognized 
        the celebration of NAAHM in an April 19, 2021, letter to the Arab 
        America Foundation, making him the first sitting United States President 
        to do so, and the Department of State recognized April as NAAHM in 2021;
Whereas last year at least 48 States and territories have taken steps to 
        recognize April as NAAHM, including the governments of--

    (1) Alabama;

    (2) Alaska;

    (3) Arizona;

    (4) Arkansas;

    (5) California;

    (6) Colorado;

    (7) Connecticut;

    (8) Delaware;

    (9) the District of Columbia;

    (10) Georgia;

    (11) Hawaii;

    (12) Illinois;

    (13) Indiana;

    (14) Iowa;

    (15) Kansas;

    (16) Kentucky;

    (17) Louisiana;

    (18) Maine;

    (19) Maryland;

    (20) Massachusetts;

    (21) Michigan;

    (22) Minnesota;

    (23) Mississippi;

    (24) Missouri;

    (25) Montana;

    (26) Nebraska;

    (27) Nevada;

    (28) New Jersey;

    (29) New Mexico;

    (30) New Hampshire;

    (31) New York;

    (32) North Carolina;

    (33) North Dakota;

    (34) Ohio;

    (35) Oklahoma;

    (36) Oregon;

    (37) Pennsylvania;

    (38) Rhode Island;

    (39) South Carolina;

    (40) South Dakota;

    (41) Texas;

    (42) Utah;

    (43) Vermont;

    (44) Virginia;

    (45) Washington;

    (46) West Virginia;

    (47) Wisconsin; and

    (48) Wyoming;

Whereas numerous cities, towns, and counties across America have taken steps to 
        recognize April as NAAHM, including--

    (1) Los Angeles, California;

    (2) Orange County, California;

    (3) San Francisco, California;

    (4) San Diego, California;

    (5) Gainesville, Florida;

    (6) Orlando, Florida;

    (7) Atlanta, Georgia;

    (8) Chicago, Illinois;

    (9) Cook County, Illinois;

    (10) Baltimore, Maryland;

    (11) Dallas, Texas;

    (12) Detroit, Michigan;

    (13) Wayne County, Michigan;

    (14) Dearborn, Michigan;

    (15) Dearborn Heights, Michigan;

    (16) Flint, Michigan;

    (17) Yonkers, New York,

    (18) Westchester County, New York;

    (19) Raleigh, North Carolina;

    (20) Cuyahoga County, Ohio;

    (21) Cleveland, Ohio;

    (22) Toledo, Ohio;

    (23) Portland, Oregon;

    (24) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania;

    (25) Dallas, Texas;

    (26) Alexandria, Virginia;

    (27) Richmond, Virginia;

    (28) Milwaukee, Wisconsin; and

    (29) Madison, Wisconsin;

Whereas 4 States have passed permanent legislation designating the month of 
        April as NAAHM, including Illinois, Oregon, Virginia, and California, 
        and several States are considering permanent legislation, including 
        Ohio, Michigan, and Rhode Island; and
Whereas the incredible contributions and heritage of Arab Americans have helped 
        to build a better Nation: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) supports the designation of ``National Arab American 
        Heritage Month'';
            (2) esteems the integral role of Arab Americans in the 
        economy, culture, and identity of the United States; and
            (3) urges the people of the United States to serve National 
        Arab American Heritage Month with appropriate programs and 
        activities that recognize and celebrate the unique 
        contributions of Arab Americans.
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