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PROPOSED RESOLUTION
COMMEMORATING ARAB AMERICAN HERITAGE MONTH IN COOK COUNTY
WHEREAS, April is National Arab American Heritage Month, which celebrates the history, culture, and diverse population and the many contributions Arab Americans have made to our country; and
WHEREAS, Arab America and the Arab America Foundation launched the National Arab American Heritage Month initiative in 2017; and
WHEREAS, an estimated 3.7 million Americans have Arab roots, according to the Arab American Institute, with ancestries traced to 22 countries in the Middle East and North Africa; and
WHEREAS, Arab Americans have diverse backgrounds and faiths, vibrant traditions, bold innovation, hard work, and a commitment to community and country; and
WHEREAS, Arab Americans, both Muslim and Christian, are proud veterans of wars from the American Revolution to the Civil War to World War I and II to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq; and
WHEREAS, Arab Americans are serving proudly throughout different levels of government, bringing a diversity of expertise that helps make this country stronger, more prosperous, and more just; and
WHEREAS, Arab immigration to the United States began as early as the 1800s, with Arab Christians fleeing the Ottoman Empire; and
WHEREAS, today Arab Americans live in all U.S. states, with two-thirds residing in 10 states: California, Florida, Illinois, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas and Virginia; and
WHEREAS, the State of Illinois is home to more than 450,000 citizens who are of Arab heritage, originating from Palestine, Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt, Syria, Iraq, Yemen and 15 other Arab World countries, with the largest concentration living in Cook County; and
WHEREAS, in 2022, Illinois passed permanent legislation designating April as National Arab American Heritage Month, and President Biden became the first U.S. President to declare April as National Arab American Heritage Month eloquently proclaiming, "Ours is a Nation s...
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