Zainab Al-Suwaij (

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic languages, Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C ...

: زينب السويج)(b. 1971) is an

Iraqi American Iraqi Americans (Arabic: أمريكيون عراقيون) ( Kurdish عێراقییە ئەمریکییەکان, Îraqiyên Amerîkî) are American citizens who originate from Iraq. As of 2015, the number of Iraqi Americans is around 145,279, accord ...

activist and the co-founder and executive director of the

American Islamic Congress Founded late in 2001, the American Islamic Congress (AIC) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization based in the United States. AIC is a non-religious, civil rights organization whose stated goal is to build interfaith and inter-ethnic understanding ...

. She advocates for women's equality, civil and religious rights, and interfaith understanding.

Biography

Suwaij was born in

Basrah Basra ( ar, ٱلْبَصْرَة, al-Baṣrah) is an Iraqi city located on the Shatt al-Arab. It had an estimated population of 1.4 million in 2018. Basra is also Iraq's main port, although it does not have deep water access, which is ha ...

in 1971 and was raised in the home of her grandfather, the

Ayatollah Ayatollah ( ; fa, آیت‌الله, āyatollāh) is an Title of honor, honorific title for high-ranking Twelver Shia clergy in Iran and Iraq that came into widespread usage in the 20th century. Etymology The title is originally derived from ...

of Basra. In 1991, she participated in the guerilla uprising against Sadam Hussein. Shortly after the uprising she fled Iraq and came to the United States. She became a United States citizen in 1996.

Career

After arriving in the United States, Suwaij taught Arabic at

Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...

and worked resettling Sudanese refugees in the United States. In 2001, following the terrorist attacks of

September 11 Events Pre-1600 * 9 – The Battle of the Teutoburg Forest ends: The Roman Empire suffers the greatest defeat of its history and the Rhine is established as the border between the Empire and the so-called barbarians for the next four hu ...

, she co-founded the

to "represent those American Muslims who cherished the freedoms of the U.S. after living under repressive regimes." Suwaij was a prominent public supporter of the 2003 U.S. war with Iraq. In 2004, she spoke at the

Republican National Convention The Republican National Convention (RNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1856 by the United States Republican Party. They are administered by the Republican National Committee. The goal of the Repu ...

, restating her support for the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq. Suwaij has served as AIC's Executive Director for eleven years. Under her leadership, the Muslim organization has trained young Middle Eastern activists in the methods of non-violent protest and social media mobilization, empowering them to challenge regimes during the

Arab Spring The Arab Spring ( ar, الربيع العربي) was a series of Nonviolent resistance, anti-government protests, Rebellion, uprisings and Insurgency, armed rebellions that spread across much of the Arab world in the early 2010s. It began in T ...

. Suwaij frequently speaks at universities, think tanks and panel events. She has testified before Congress and briefed the White House and the State Department. Her writings have been published in ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'', ''

The Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' is an American business-focused, international daily newspaper based in New York City, with international editions also available in Chinese and Japanese. The ''Journal'', along with its Asian editions, is published ...

'', ''

USA Today ''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgini ...

'' and others.

Recognition

Suwaij was named an "Ambassador of Peace" by the Interreligious and International Peace Council, received a Dialogue on Diversity's Liberty Award in and was recognized as "2006 International Person of the Year" by the National Liberty Museum. In 2012, Suwaij received the East West Vision of Peace Award from the Levantine Cultural Center for her work to bridge political and religious divides between the United States and the Middle East and North Africa.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Suwaij, Zainab American nonprofit executives 1971 births Living people American Muslims Iraqi emigrants to the United States People from Basra 20th-century Muslims 21st-century Muslims 21st-century American non-fiction writers 21st-century American women writers American women non-fiction writers