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.
