Dream Deferred Essay Contest

Hands Across the Mideast Support Alliance (HAMSA), an American Islamic Congress initiative, holds an annual essay contest focusing on civil rights in the Middle East. The Dream Deferred Essay Contest[1] was inspired by a Langston Hughes poem, What happens to a dream deferred? [2] The poem helped inspire and motivate activists involved in the civil rights movement in the United States. HAMSA says The Dream Deferred Essay Contest will also be regarded as an opportunity for American and Middle Eastern youth to unite over the issue of advancing civil liberties in the Middle East.

Since HAMSA introduced its first contest in 2006, 4,500 essay entries have been submitted, resulting in the rewarding of $30,000 and 150 book rewards to top participants. Past celebrity judges include Gloria Steinem. The 2009 panel includes best-selling author Dr. Azar Nafisi, Egyptian-American comedian Ahmed Ahmed, and Iranian-American reality TV star, Parisa Montazaran.

The Dream Deferred Essay Contest has rewarded individuals from the United States, Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Iran, Morocco, and many other Middle Eastern countries. Topics of winning essays have ranged from dreams of a brighter future, analytic essays, a case study in Kuwait, and testimonies of overcoming struggle and oppression.[3]

Dalia Ziada, 2006 honorable mention, went on to open the North Africa Bureau of the American Islamic Congress in Cairo, Egypt. Ziada, whose essay was a reflection on growing up in a male-dominated society, made sure that her dream was not deferred.[4] Always an activist for civil rights in the Middle East, Ziada took her mission one step further when opening AIC's North Africa Bureau.

Americans and Middle Easterners, aged 25 and younger, can participate and enter the contest. They need to answer one of the questions on the contest website which pertain to civil rights in the Middle East. Entries can be submitted in English, French, Persian or Arabic.

In 2012, selected essays from the contest were recently compiled into the Arab Spring Dreams anthology edited by AIC's Nasser Weddady and journalist Sohrab Ahmari.[5]

References

  1. ↑ Dream Deferred Essay Contest
  2. ↑ What happens to a dream deferred?
  3. ↑ Winning entries
  4. ↑ "Honorable Mentions". Retrieved 4 March 2013.
  5. ↑ Golia, Maria. "Taking in the Arab Spring". The Times Literary Supplement. Retrieved 4 March 2013.

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