AL-BUSTAN NEWS
Covering Philadelphia’s Southwest Asian and North African Communities
‘English at School, Turkish at Home’: How Immigrant Families Balance Language, Culture and Community
By Gawhara Abou-eid
Maintaining heritage language fluency is not only a personal effort but also a community challenge. Limited language programming in schools and mosques means families often bear the burden alone. That’s where Bilingual Counseling Assistants become vital.
Local Rock Climbing Group Promotes Palestine Solidarity to Raise Funds for Gaza
By Ben Bennett
The three organizers of Philly Climbers for Palestine want to continue fundraising and directly support the people in Gaza.
Immigrant Families Find More Than Green Space at Bucks County Park (Video)
By Kenza Bousseloub
What makes Neshaminy State Park such a popular gathering place for SWANA families?
Football Season Is Underway, and These Arab–American Superfans Are All In
By Ragad Ahmad
Every Sunday night, Fatih Ahmed commits what locals consider football treason. From his Doylestown living room, deep in Eagles territory, he roots for the Giants with the kind of blind devotion that none of his friends can understand.
The Destruction of Hebron’s Seed Bank and the Area Growers Helping to Preserve Palestine’s Agricultural Heritage
By Gawhara Abou-eid
The Hebron facility had long played a crucial role in preserving heirloom seed varieties critical to Palestinian foodways and climate resilience. With preservation in the West Bank increasingly endangered, diaspora-based efforts have stepped in to continue the work.
Art as Resistance | Vox Populi’s ‘Acts of Resistance’ Refuses to Look Away
By Lauren Abunassar
Community gatherings like “Acts of Resistance” become a way to reject the notion that our grief or our desires for freedom and witness are singular—an understanding that is a key piece of reclaiming agency.
Al-Bustan News Team
Editor
Nisa Qazi
Current Journalism Fellows
Gawhara Abou-eid
Amna Khalafalla
Columnists
Lauren Abunassar
Joseph Fahim