Growing up Arab in America is an experience, to say the least, and we owe our identity complex to growing up between two worlds. Here are 27 struggles that Arab-Americans will relate to:
1. You had to explain your lunches
2. “So long as you live in my house you live in the balad”
3. The only way you were going to prom was with your cousin
4. You had to (reluctantly) shake hands and kiss all your “aunties” and “3amos” at the church/mosque
5. Your version of summer camp was going “back home” for three months
6. You have a room in your house that you’re not allowed to sit in known as the “salon”
7. “Take your brother/sister” wasn’t a suggestion
8. You couldn’t wait to get your license so you could leave boring 3ezoumas early
9. At least one of your costumes was some sort of traditional Arab garb
10. You had a white nickname in school because your real name is apparently too complicated to pronounce
11. Strangers will stop you on the street to tell you, “I remember when you were this little”
12. You may be in your 20s with a college degree and spouse, but you still have to sit at the kids table
13. When you show up late to class
14. You still giggle every time your parents spell anything with the letter H in it
15. When your mom tells you to clean before the cleaning lady comes
16. You’ve frequently had to use the library/group projects as an excuse
17. You would never dream of telling your parents you want to study liberal arts
18. You had an extra day of school called “Arabe school”
19. Regardless of your economic status there is at least one Benz in the driveway
20. Your weekends were booked with your neighbor’s aunt’s husband’s nephew’s cousin’s wedding/azza
21. You went to protests as a kid
22. You constantly had to explain to your parents that anyone of the opposite sex was just a friend
23. Your parents always asked you if you were on drugs
24. You pretty much knew every other Arab within a 100-mile radius
25. You never bought anything “haram” from liquor stores because the owner probably knows your parents
26. You’ve had to explain to your friends why you have a flowering pot by your toilet
27. The only time you’re ever early is when going to the airport
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