$10,000 in prizes for young American and Middle Eastern writers Winners from previous years featured in critically acclaimed book: Arab Spring Dreams WASHINGTON, October 22, 2013 – The American Islamic Congress (AIC) announces its eighth annual The contest, which annually awards $10,000 in prizes, is open to young thinkers and writers from the Middle East and United States. A…
Read More“[Arab Spring Dreams is] a collection of essays written by very real people who live in the unfree parts of the Middle East. They take everyday risks on behalf of the very “values” that so many privileged and proper people in the free world arrogate as exclusively their own. The essays are a potpourri of…
Read MoreArab Spring Dreams scratches well beneath the surface of the societies concerned and probes into their psychological and social fabric. And in doing so, it proves that contrary to the claims of so many Arab politicians, not everything that is wrong with the region is someone else’s fault. Read the rest of the review of AIC’s…
Read MoreThe Times Literary Supplement recently reviewed “Arab Spring Dreams”, edited by AIC’s Nasser Weddady and activist Sohrab Ahmari, along with five other books analyzing the Arab Spring. From the review: ‘Arab Spring Dreams was written by those with the most at stake, people under the age of twenty-six living in places where conformism and obedience…
Read MoreWASHINGTON, July 16, 2012 – As the Middle East continues to face political and social transition, it is critical for the U.S. to advocate for the safety and security of religious minorities in the region and highlight how respect for pluralism contributes to strong civil societies. The American Islamic Congress (AIC) is at the forefront of these issues and is joining…
Read MoreWASHINGTON, April 30, 2012 – The American Islamic Congress (AIC) today celebrated the publication of Arab Spring Dreams: The Next Generation Speaks Out for Freedom and Justice from North Africa to Iran. With a foreword by Gloria Steinem and praise from Nobel Laureate Lech Walesa, the collection is a testament to the aspiration for freedom…
Read MoreWASHINGTON, March 13, 2012 – AIC has compiled the most exceptional entries to its annual “Dream Deferred” contest into an anthology of essays penned by young Middle Eastern dissidents entitled “Arab Spring Dreams.” The book, which includes a forward by activist and author Gloria Steinem, will be published by Palgrave Macmillan on May 8.…
Read MoreLess polished than Reading Lolita in Tehran, but more immediate and raw, the essays in this collection were written by activists age 25 and under and culled from 8,000 entries submitted over five years for the Dream Deferred Essay Contest on Civil Rights in the Middle East, conducted online and sponsored by private foundations, including…
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