YALLA VOTE ‘08 Our Voice. Our Future.

Hop on over to Kabobfest for an interesting article about the Arab American Vote… “A recent Zogby International poll suggests that Senator Obama leads Senator McCain by a three-to-one margin among Arab Americans in both the two-way match-up and the four-way match-up.

Obama earns the greatest support ever recorded for a Presidential candidate among Arab American voters. In the two-way race, Obama leads 64/23, while in the four-way race (adding Barr and Nader), Obama leads 62/22. The poll projects that 68% of Arab American voters will vote for Obama on Election Day. These findings may be significant because 30% of Arab American voters live in five battleground states - Michigan, Florida, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Virginia. (McCain in effect conceded Michigan by re-directing staff and ending television advertising.)”

The two polls, conducted by Zogby International on behalf of the Arab American Institute in September and October, can be found by clicking here.

The Yalla Vote campaign is truly grateful to all of the sponsoring organizations that endorse it, and lend support. Recently, a Yalla Vote volunteer named Thomas Zraick paid a visit to one of our endorsers, the American Mideast Leadership Network at their Astoria office. The occasion was a pair of workshops for Arab Americans looking for help getting their resumes together, and making some networking connections. A number of the attendees were recent immigrants, and Yalla Vote was there stressing the importance of civic engagement and voting in the upcoming election. The event was very successful, and allowed for some great collaboration between the AMLN and Yalla Vote in building a strong and prosperous Arab American community. It’s always gratifying to see a Yalla Vote representative getting hands on with the community, but it’s even better when it’s one of our volunteers…and it’s EVEN BETTER when it’s a volunteer representing Yalla Vote in conjunction with one of our amazing sponsoring organizations. Bravo all around.

At last week’s Outlandish concert, I had the pleasure of meeting Sarah Malaika, who hosts Radio Tahrir on 99.5 FM WBAI in New York at 7:00PM on Tuesdays. She invited me to be a guest on her program, discuss the Arab American Institute, the Yalla Vote campaign, and my thoughts on Arab American political empowerment as a whole. The interview went very well, and I got the opportunity to spread the petition to the masses via the airwaves. Today WBAI, tomorrow CNN.

The experience was very exciting, and really got me thinking about the importance of involving our community in the media. Too often we are misrepresented or underrepresented, and it is long past time for the articulate voices of our community to speak for themselves. Sure, we are encouraging Arab Americans to use their figurative voice through voting, but it is also of the utmost importance that we use our literal voices to speak up for ourselves in the media. When we fail to do so, the job is left to false interlocutors who do little but create misconceptions about our community and perpetuate hostility and stereotypes. I mean come on, if there were more silky smooth voices like mine representing the Arab American community in the mass media, surely we would be better able to represent our issues, our concerns, and our cultures. Incidentally, I’m just kidding about my silky smooth voice. It’s more like velvet.

Signing off,
Matt Ellias

I’m writing today about two fantastic groups of people to which my Yalla Vote travels have led me. First, I was lucky enough to attend NAAP’s Summer BBQ kickoff hafli in Prospect Park, Brooklyn. NAAP is an incredible organization that brings together Arab American professionals for networking, socializing, and of course, fun. It was approximately 200 degrees the day of the BBQ, but everyone came out in full force, with enough charcoal for both the grills and the numerous argilehs. I was able to get a whole slew of signatures, recruit some volunteers, and engage in some solid political discussion. I remember in particular talking to one man who was very impressed with the Yalla Vote campaign, and echoed the sentiment that the only way for the Arab American community to gain representation from our elected officials is to get out and vote!

One couple I was talking to was made up of a wife who was a citizen, and her husband who had his green card. I approached the wife about the petition, and she was slightly hesitant to sign, but immediately her husband spoke up and said that she had to vote because it is the most important right that citizens of this country possess. In fact, he was envious of her ability to participate in the voting process whereas he could

not. It’s good to know that even the members of the Arab American community who are not eligible to vote understand the seriousness of our project, and are eager to get involved. I’m trying to get my hands on some pictures of the event, but here’s beautiful Prospect Park to but the NAAP event in context for you.

The second event I want to tell you about, was a meeting of Fort Hamilton High School’s Muslim Students.

I attended their end of year meeting, and was blown away by the enthusiasm for Yalla Vote that these kids had. Firstly, they are extremely organized, serious about helping their community, and serious about their faith. All good things. Ironically, I was around on a day when they were doing some self-examination about ways they could remain productive during the summer months. Heh. Little did they know that I had PLENTY of volunteer work to keep them thoroughly occupied. We had pizza, laughed at how bad my Arabic is, and I recruited some wonderful volunteers from the Bay Ridge community. Yet another indicator that there is a large, active, intelligent group of Arab Americans waiting to be tapped in New York. I can feel momentum starting to build. Every connection that I make, contact I add to my growing database, volunteer I recruit, and signature I get is taking our community one step closer to realizing its own hidden strength, and cooperating in a way heretofore unheard of. Game time, baby.

I have a big weekend ahead, dj’ing parties as my non-AAI alias, and then back to Yalla Vote on Sunday for the big New York Outlandish concert at the New Balance Track Center. In fact, I think I have a volunteer or two to join me. Does it get any better? I submit that it does not. If you’re there, find me for T-shirts and buttons and scintillating conversation. You may even end up on the blog with your smiling face next to mine. Til’ then…

-Matt

Hassan Abraham was born and raised in Dearborn, Michigan, where he has been a committed community activist and student leader. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor in 2005, and he obtained his J.D. From Wayne State University Law School in Spring 2008. Hassan has previously interned with the Arab-American Anti-Discrimination Committee, and he was a Vice-Chair for Students Allied for Freedom and Equality, a social justice student organization at the University of Michigan. Recently, Hassan has been active in the presidential primary, traveling to several states to campaign on behalf of his preferred candidate. He has also worked in legal aid in Detroit, providing family law and disability law services to indigent clients.

If you’d like to email Hassan, he can be reached at: aai-michigan@yallavote.org

Hear what Hassan has to say:

Hail to the Voters: Michigan Campaign Begins

Well, the Michigan staff of AAI is back in our Dearborn office this week, energized and fired up for an exciting summer and fall in Michigan. Our office is now fully operational, preparing the groundwork for a successful Yalla Vote campaign, and planning ways to make a powerful presence in the largest Arab community outside of the Middle East.

The training we experienced in Washington D.C. was incredibly informative, and we’ve already incorporated many of the great ideas that we learned at out training sessions in D.C., including the creation of a goal thermometer for the National Petition, and posting photos of our volunteers in our office.  We look forward to developing this office much further, so that it becomes a true community hub, where activists, students, local leaders, and residents stop by and utilize the resources of the Yalla Vote campaign. Help make this office yours, come by to chat, pick up signs, tshirts or buttons, give us feedback, or sign the petition… this is your campaign, Yalla Vote!

There is only one week left to apply for a paid Field Organizing internship position!

The AAI is looking for a few good full and part-time students, graduate students and recent college graduates. We are looking for individuals who can hit the ground running! Applicants should be highly motivated, flexible and excited about working for the Arab American campaign, “Our Voice, Our Future: Yalla Vote 2008”. Interns must be available to work at least ten weeks for 40 hours per week during summer months, and 20 hours per week from Labor Day through the general elections in November.

The Arab American Institute’s Yalla Vote ‘08 campaign is an effort to bring the issues that matter most
to our community–civil liberties, immigrant rights, Middle East peace and cultural tolerance–to the
forefront of debate for the 2008 election season. Help us make our voices heard this November!

For full details, please visit the AAI’s Student Resource Center and apply today!