This is a panel I particiated in on Nov. 20, 2013, The Art of Resistance, with LMU political science professor Feryal Cherif and Fadia Alhallak, a Syrian international student at Loyola Marymount University.
The subject of this "Art of Resistance" event had an interesting premise—looking at the U.S. role in the region with a critical eye, and having Arabs/Middle Easterners at the heart of the discussion. While I am of Moroccan heritage, I'm also an American citizen, and feel it's my responsibility to be keenly aware and critical of our foreign policy.
Since World War II the United States has been a war economy. Our Middle East foreign policy has been constructed around that. And while the C.I.A.'s early history was replete with Arabists—with analysts who were favorable toward the Muslim world—that has been replaced by obedience to the belief that Israel is America's best friend in the region.