To C or Not to C
June 5, 2018
This past week, fans of Roseanne nationwide reached for their smelling salts because Samantha Bee called complicit Barbie the c-word. They immediately grabbed their tiki torches and insisted that like racist Roseanne, Sam Bee be fired. I performed at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland…
Before Beyonce
April 16, 2018
Before there was Beyonce, there was Tiger, Cherri, Sandy, and Lucy. Tiger, the cat pranced into our lives when I was seven. Her name was less than original but absolutely fitting. She looked like a tiny Tony the Tiger down to her big blue eyes.…
Ramadan in the Deep South
April 16, 2018
In 2011, Dean Obeidallah my trustworthy co-producer at the New York Arab American Comedy Festival approached me with what seemed like a brilliant idea. He had partnered with an Iranian-American filmmaker and wanted to take a band of Muslim comics to the Deep South in…
My Origin Story
April 16, 2018
I often meet parents of kids with Cerebral Palsy who are afraid to let their children try to walk. When I ask them why they won’t just let their kid give walking a shot, the overwhelming response is that they are afraid their child will…
Fight For Your Right to Carpet
August 21, 2017
Fight For Your Right to Carpet I am one of those people who has always dreamt of waltzing down the red carpet at an awards show. My first red carpet memory was Cher in her Bob Mackey gown at the 1988 Academy Awards. I decided…
Wedding Waste
The Unhappiest Day of Your Life
June 10, 2016
Weddings are the worst and even worse, they are a waste. I have been a bridesmaid 17 times and a bride myself. What I learned is that no one is ever happy at a wedding, except for those swindling the future Mr. and Mrs. out…
Lightbulbs and Losers
Based on a true story
One name has been changed to shame the evil.
June 20, 2015
I have been a bridesmaid 17 times. After spending $28,000 on my friends weddings, I decided it was time to make my money back. Gollum was one of those guys who’s just always around until you're like best friends. After years of working together in…
Flashback: Visit Palestine 2006
Welcome to Palestine
August 22, 2015
Before I ever went to Palestine, I knew Palestine. It was all my dad ever talked about. Every summer my parents would send us back to our village Deir Debwan to live with my grandparents; because my mom hated kids and my dad was afraid…
Nine Lives: 2 Down Croaking in Cairo
Snow White and the Seven Pharaohs
June 20, 2015
In 2009 while on tour with Arabs Gone Wild, I booked my first Egypt show. I had grown up watching National Geographic specials about King Tut and the curse of the pyramids so I was super excited. I couldn’t wait to finally see the Sphinx up…
If You Can’t Fast, Give
June 20, 2015
I was born and raised in the United States. I spent my school days in beautiful New Jersey and my summers in the war zone known as the West Bank. The first Ramadan I ever fasted was no joke. I was 8 years old and…
Nine Lives: 1 Down at the Daytime Emmys
June 20, 2015
I have been addicted to soap operas since I was five years old. Yes, five. Although my parents were super strict and conservative, they missed the boat on monitoring our television consumption. As a tot I spent a summer wondering “Who shot JR?” I memorized…
Somewhere Over the Separation Barrier
December 18, 2013
Article originally written for The Daily Beast, published on December 18th, 2013. I tweet too much. When tweeps follow me, I immediately warn them that I am super annoying and won’t take it personally if they unfollow me for flooding their feed. My addiction to…
‘Omar’ and the Oscars
December 16, 2013
Article originally written for The Daily Beast, published on December 16th, 2013. On Friday the 13th, the movie “Omar” won Best Film at the Dubai Film Festival. There is very little I could tell you about the plot of Palestinian filmmaker Hany Abu Assad’s new…
Gaza to Jersey: A Star is Born
November 25, 2013
Article originally written for The Daily Beast, published on November 25th, 2013. On Friday, November 15, I put on my favorite Palestinian-themed T-shirt and shimmied over to the Ritz Theatre in Elizabeth, New Jersey to witness Mohammed Assaf perform live. I first stumbled upon Assaf, dubbed the…
Ovaries on Overdrive in the Saudi Kingdom
October 9, 2013
Article originally written for The Daily Beast, published on October 9th, 2013. A defiant group of women have pledged online to hit the road and go for a little drive in Saudi Arabia on October 26, 2013. This is not the first time the women…
Watching Anthony Bourdain in Palestine
September 19, 2013
Article originally written for The Daily Beast, published on September 19th, 2013. I am a hardcore foodie, which means I love to eat. I was also born with Cerebral Palsy, which means I shake all the time—so cooking is not my thing, as I am…
Israeli Bypass Roads: Separate But Unequal
August 12, 2013
Article originally written for The Daily Beast, published on August 12th, 2013. I have spent every single summer of my life hanging out in Deir Debwan, the Palestinian village both my mom and dad were born in. I was born in New Jersey and while…
If You Build It, They Will Skate
July 17, 2013
Article originally written for The Daily Beast, published on July 17th, 2013. Skating may not be the first thing that pops into your head when you hear the word Palestine, but it's the only thing 29-year-old Palestinian barber Sajed Abu Ulbeh ever thinks about. He…
Mohammed Assaf: From Underdog to Idol
June 25, 2013
Article originally written for The Daily Beast, published on June 25th, 2013. And the winner is … On the eve of the summer solstice, Arab satellite mega-station MBC broadcast the finale of the second season of Arab Idol. For those unfamiliar with the phenomenon known as Arab Idol, it…
Alicia Keys: Come Visit Palestine
June 11, 2013
Article originally written for The Daily Beast, published on June 11th, 2013. Alicia Keys is going to play Israel, and no one is going to stop her. When Keys announced Tel Aviv would be one of the stops on her “Set the World on Fire”…
Google ‘Palestine’—It Exists, And So Do Palestinians
June 4, 2013
Article originally written for The Daily Beast, published on June 4th, 2013. On May 4, Google did something President Obama didn’t have the guts to do: they recognized Palestine as a state and gave us our very own homepage. This is far better than being…
The Next Arab Idol: Palestine’s Boy Wonder and Stereotype Buster
May 22, 2013
Article originally written for The Daily Beast, published on , 2013. A phenomenon is sweeping the Middle East. Arabs young and old are voting in record numbers—and this time it's not for the Muslim Brotherhood. Armed with nothing but their cellphones, they have set aside…
No Place Like Home
May 15, 2013
Article originally written for The Daily Beast, published on May 15th, 2013. A rusty, iron key to the past sits on a windowsill in my home. Three years ago, when the man I married left the refugee camp he was born and raised in to…
What Hawking and Jerusalem Day Have in Common
May 13, 2013
Article originally written for The Daily Beast, published on May 13th, 2013. On May 8th, Israelis marked the 46th anniversary of Jerusalem Day. For those of you unfamiliar with the holiday, this annual love fest features angry mobs of Israelis of all ages, marching through the…
No, Most Palestinians Aren’t Anti-Semites
May 9, 2013
Article originally written for The Daily Beast, published on May 9th, 2013. My first name is one of those names that makes folks being introduced to me instantly ask, "Where are you from?" and New Jersey is not the answer they are looking for. They…
Don’t Tread On My Hair, Hamas
April 4, 2013
Article originally written for The Daily Beast, published on April 4th, 2013. In the interest of full disclosure, let me state that I hate Hamas. They embody everything that I, as a human being, am fighting against: oppression, religious rule, and patriarchy. They empower Israel…
Welcome To Palestine: What’s Your Faith?
March 20, 2013
Article originally written for The Daily Beast, published on March 20th, 2013. President Barack Obama is going to Bethlehem for Easter. When I heard this my first instinct was to book a flight from Newark to Tel Aviv to join him. My apartment in Bethlehem…