Latest from Anna Lekas Miller
‘The Swimmers’ Adapts the Mardini Sisters’ Story Into a Feel-Good Film
In the same way the film draws attention to the journey more than 1 million people have taken to seek refuge in Europe, a series that dug further into the contrast between the two swimmers could have shone light on the way humanitarian workers are criminalized and mobilized global solidarity to drop the charges against Sara Mardini.
Cracking Down on the Right To Love in Palestine
While falling in love with a Jewish citizen of Israel would be straightforward — marrying an Israeli citizen entitles one to a residency permit and eventual citizenship — falling in love with a Palestinian in the occupied West Bank is a different story.
Strange Bedfellows: Abortion and White Supremacy
Historically in the U.S., controlling immigration and access to abortion went hand in hand, reinforcing racial hierarchies. Nowhere is this more evident than in eugenics, where advocates pushed the idea that access to contraception could keep poor and “unfit” women from having more children.
‘Mo’ Reveals the Lighter and Darker Sides of the Palestinian Experience in the U.S.
This isn’t just a show about being Arab or Muslim American and caught between two worlds. It is also about a broken immigration system and the unnecessary hardship it causes thousands of people who call the United States home.
Many Arab Americans Fight to Be Counted Differently
It might seem strange that Arabs, like Mexicans before them, want to stop being counted on the census as “white.” But with everything from political districts to federal funds depending on being in a particular box, to be white is merely to be invisible.
How Islam Settled Roe v. Wade Centuries Ago
In Islam, abortion is permissible in many cases, like fear of not providing for the child. Sex outside of marriage also falls into this category. One fatwa states that abortion is fine for a single mother, maybe even better if she will face social stigma.
The Invisible Lines that Break Our Hearts
Five years, three countries, and a pile of immigration paperwork later, I can honestly say that borders have shaped, challenged, and strengthened our love for one another. Still, I know that borders could have just as easily broken us.