In April, BUSD celebrates Arab American & South West Asian North African (SWANA) Heritage Month, lifting up and honoring the contributions of Arab Americans and South West Asian North African (SWANA) Americans in our school community, our extended communities, and our country. BUSD’s Ethnic Studies Department provides family guides (found below), in English, Spanish, and Arabic, that encourage us to Listen, Learn, and Lift Up the experiences, histories, and the culture of Arab Americans and SWANA Americans in our community.
LISTEN
Listen to the Lived Experiences of Arab American People
- VIDEO Fireworks at Sea: The Power of Yemeni American Women
- VIDEO “Takalam! Oakland Arab Youth Speaking Up!”
- PODCAST The Queer Arabs Podcast
- VIDEO Arab, How You See Me
LEARN
Learn About Arab American History & Local Arab American Organizations
- OVERVIEW TEXT Arab Americans: History, Culture, and Contributions
- MINI BIOS 15 Notable Arab Americans
- ARTICLE 5 Influential Black Arab Women You Should Know About
- LIST of 12 Amazing Arab American Women
- VIDEO the Islamic Golden Age of Science
- VIDEO about the world’s oldest university, The University of Al-Qarawiyyin in Morocco, which was founded by Fatima al-Fihri
- Arab Resource and Organizing Center
- Middle East Children’s Alliance
- American Association of Yemeni Students and Professionals
- Center for Middle Eastern Studies at UCB
LIFT UP
Lift Up and Celebrate Arab American Culture With Your Family
- VISIT the virtual gallery tours at the Arab American National Museum
- WATCH videos of Zawaya, Arabic Arts organization ASWAT concerts
- ENJOY videos of English and Arabic story time from the Arab American National Museum
- MUSIC VIDEO “Love Them Anyway” by student activist, Faiza Almontaser (Sign up for a free account to access this powerful video)
- ARABIC & FRENCH songs by Leila Milki
- READ books with your family
Reading Lists
Berkeley Unified School District is proud to support Arab American Heritage Month with this reading list, organized by grade level. These reading lists represent recently published books by Arab American authors that are devoted to celebrating the culture and uplifting the valuable contributions of Arab Americans.
Click on each book to access the associated list.
Family Resources
Family Guide for Arab American History Month (English)
Family Guide for Arab American History Month (Arabic)
Family Guide for Arab American History Month (Spanish)
Educator Resources
Lifting Up Arab American and SWANA Staff Voices
In celebration of our Arab American and SWANA community, this year BUSD has introduced “Lifting Up Arab American and SWANA Staff Voices,” a campaign to share our Arab American and SWANA staff’s narratives with our students and community by creating posters featuring their stories and experiences. These posters will be displayed at schools, work sites, on the BUSD website, and in district publications. Sharing these narratives with our students will allow them to deepen connections with Arab American and SWANA staff across the district.
Please click on each image to see a full-sized poster.