The Daily Tar Heel
Printing news. Raising hell. Since 1893.
Thursday, March 28, 2024 Newsletters Latest print issue

We keep you informed.

Help us keep going. Donate Today.
The Daily Tar Heel

Suehaila Amen: 'Muslims have been a part of the fabric of this nation since its inception'

Suehaila Amen speaks in the Student Union auditorium Thursday night.

Suehaila Amen speaks in the Student Union auditorium Thursday night.

Conversation was the order of the night. Suehaila Amen began her Thursday night presentation by establishing ground rules with the audience: this was not a lecture, she said, so much as an open dialogue. 

Amen is currently employed as the coordinator of international admissions and recruitment for the University of Michigan at Dearborn. She has worn many hats over her career, including fourth grade teacher, liaison for United States diplomatic relations and TLC reality star on the show “All-American Muslim." 

Amen talked extensively about her experiences growing up as a Muslim-American. She described incidents in which she has experienced hatred, judgment and misunderstanding from fellow American citizens.

“We’re allowed to have our feelings, we’re allowed to carry our negative perceptions,” Amen said. “When it becomes inappropriate is when you share those negative perceptions aloud. Then it’s not right, because you’re possibly offending another human being.”

She focused on some popular misconceptions about Muslim-Americans, emphasizing that Muslims have been in the United States for hundreds of years.

“Muslims have been a part of the fabric of this nation since its inception,” she said. “To the point that Thomas Jefferson had a Quran in the Library of Congress.” 

But the majority of her discussion was focused on developing interpersonal skills and relationships. She talked extensively about how networking has expanded her reach and involvement at the heart of Arab, American and Muslim communities.

“People are meant to work together,” Amen said. “It will change the way you see the world.”

She cited one incident in an airport, when a man insulted what she was wearing, telling her to “take the rag off her head.” Instead of responding in kind, Amen was able to diffuse the situation by initiating an intellectual discussion with the man.

“We ended up having an hour conversation while we were waiting for our flight,” Amen said. “And I ended up changing his perception. Till now he emails me with questions.”

Her comedic but no-nonsense approach engaged the students and staff in attendance.

“She was humorous and intriguing,” said first-year Morgan Hussey. “She made a heavy topic light and approachable.”

First-year Talia Smart came to the event because she said she's trying to understand the community more.

“I’m impressed by her trying to build relationships with people so hostile to her,” Smart said. “Personally I tend not to react well to that, so I think it’s something I’ll try to work on and overpower.”

Junior Laura Limarzi, a member of Student Government who is also on the executive board for the Campus Y, was primarily responsible for Amen’s appearance at the University. 

Limarzi volunteered at a youth leadership conference over the summer in Chicago, where she first heard Amen speak. http://www.cityofchicago.org/city/en.html

“Seeing her speech break the ice and open the conversation, I just thought UNC would be a really great platform for this as well,” Limarzi said.

She said her primary motivation in bringing Amen to the University was to open a dialogue among students.

“The goal is that everyone who heard this talk would leave and maybe ask a Muslim friend, like ‘Hey, has this kind of thing happened to you?'” Limarzi said. “And if we all start talking about these things, maybe we’ll see a really positive change come as a result.”

university@dailytarheel.com

To get the day's news and headlines in your inbox each morning, sign up for our email newsletters.