In Conversation: Ethnically Ambiguous
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In conversation: Ethnically Ambiguous
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Perspectives
Words by: Luc Hinson
Illustration: Tom Shotton
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Luc Hinson sat down with Anna Hossnieh & Shereen Lani Younes, friends and co-hosts of Ethnically Ambiguous. A podcast that tackles what it means to be brown in America today, tackling politics, stereotypes and discussing their own personal experiences. If you haven't listened before check out the latest episode of the pod embedded to your left, or visit their site below:
https://www.ethnicallyambiguouspod.com/podcasts/ea-archive.htm
Read our full Q&A discussion below:
BB: For those who don’t know already, tell us a bit about what Ethnically Ambiguous is?
EA: Ethnically Ambiguous is a podcast that sheds light on minority issues and Middle Eastern news that get overlooked in typical western media. We hope to bring the aliens of the world together, so that other weirdos like us feel less alone.
BB: What made you decide to start?
EA: We wanted to create a space for people like us. The original concept was that we, as immigrant children, are not alone, and have a lot more in common than we realize. It’s not something you come across every day as visibility for Middle-Eastern children of immigrants is drastically lacking. By starting the show we have met so many wonderful people who tell us how much they relate and that’s all we could ever hope for.
BB: And you two, when did you meet?
EA: We met in college at UC Davis; we happened to be studying similar artsy majors, but we were just acquaintances back then. We didn’t start really hanging out until we were both living in LA. Anna was running live comedy shows and Shereen would come hang and eventually started taking photos for the shows - so we ended up seeing each other at least once a week. As the weeks went by, we became closer and our friendship blossomed! The rest is history!
BB: What is the biggest contributing factor to your own identity?
EA: This answer rings true for the both of us: the fact that our parents are immigrants has shaped our identities immensely. They came to this country with hopes of providing their children with the best lives possible, raising us with love and respect for our cultures. Feeling “different” definitely made us feel like weird aliens growing up, but now it’s definitely a point of pride. And we have our amazing parents to thank for that.
BB: What do you view as the biggest obstacle to integration in the 21st Century?
EA: The podcast medium is a strange one. It’s an on-demand technology where people are receiving masses of information from anywhere, at any time that they want. This makes them more likely to be set in their own ways, and our podcast is competing with the content they’ve already catered to themselves. So we think our biggest obstacle is breaking through to a wider audience, not just minorities but also people who may be unfamiliar with the Middle East, immigrants, or people of color.
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Pictured: Shereen with her sister in Syria
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BB: How would you describe being a middle easterner living in America?
EA: You feel out of place. You don’t always feel welcome in America, but there’s also a feeling of still being a foreigner when you visit your parents’ country. So you’re this transient being constantly trying to figure out where you belong. You eventually get numbed to every media making your culture into a villain to be feared, but you fear for the safety of your family members - both overseas and in the states - because you never know what kind of ignorant person they may encounter. And that’s difficult. But being a Middle Easterner in America makes you strong and resilient.
BB: We’re living with the stark reality of Brexit; you’re going through Trump.... How can we remain optimistic about the future?
EA: It’s hard to remain optimistic because we truly don’t know what is going to happen. All we can hope for is that there will be a bounce back in the political sphere to a more liberal stance based off of frustrations in the Trump administration. We can only hope that the younger generations are more open and loving and willing to learn about other cultures without trying to hold them to a stereotype that has been manipulated in the mainstream media.
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"You feel out of place. You don’t always feel welcome in America, but there’s also a feeling of still being a foreigner when you visit your parents’ country. So you’re this transient being constantly trying to figure out where you belong"
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BB: How have your lives changed since starting the pod?
EA: Our lives haven’t changed that much, other than we are both more open and honest than ever before. We’re more open to hearing other people’s stories and understanding where people are coming from. We’re more likely to speak up and stand up for ourselves. I think we’re less likely to let blatant misogyny, Islamophobia, or racism just wash by us without trying to educate and use our knowledge and experiences to help lessen the hate.
BB: What does ‘Americanness’ mean to you in the 21st Century?
EA: It doesn’t mean a whole lot anymore. We live in such a melting pot of cultures that the concept of America has faded a little. Especially with the Trump administration, it’s hard to see it as anything but just a word, or a propaganda tool. What is it to be American? It isn’t what it used to be. Now we think it’s better to just be unapologetically yourself, work hard, and create the community you need to strive.
BB: What do you (the pod) and you two hope to achieve in the rest of 2018?
EA: We hope to continue building out show to get more media awareness about Middle Eastern issues and to show that Muslims and Middle Easterners are not what the stereotypes lead people to believe. We just want true visibility for immigrants and children of immigrants in America.
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If you want to hear more from Anna and Shereen subscribe to them on the Itunes store, Google Podcasts, or wherever you download your pods from!
Check them out on social media here:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/EthnicallyAmb
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ethnicallyambig/
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Words By: Luc Hinson, 16th April 2018
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CONTEMPORARY CONVERSATIONS
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