Your singular representation of Arabs bores us.
In a political moment when Islamophobia, Orientalism, and xenophobia are on the rise and Arab narratives in mainstream media are portrayed as one dimensional, Karmel Sabri and Lamia Abukhadra are interested in embracing the complexities of their first generation Palestinian American identities. Arab and Arab American artists are expected to engage with their identities contextualized only within acts of terror, refugee crises, death, trauma, and struggle. Yet Arab American identities, embedded with stories, memories, traditions, food, literature, fandoms, and unique experiences, are so much more. In an act of radical humanization, Sabri and Abukhadra’s photo series explores the nuances and dualities of Arab American identity through humor, frivolity, and just plain weirdness.
Models: Karmel Sabri & Lamia Abukhadra
Image Credit: Samson Melkamu & Nextdimentional
2018