ABSTRACT
This chapter is something of a departure from the rest of the book, in that rather than focusing on how teachers in English-speaking countries can incorporate literature and information about the contemporary Middle East into their curriculum, here we will look at the rapidly growing groups of Middle Eastern and Islamic peoples now citizens in the West – and how to address misinformation about them and tell their stories to our students. A rich tradition of multicultural teaching and scholarship has emerged in English-speaking countries focused on people of African, Native, Hispanic, Jewish, and even Asian origin, whereas Muslim people of Middle Eastern background, regardless of their country of origin, have fallen through the curricular cracks. Despite increasing numbers in the English-speaking world, despite – especially since 9/11 – growing and well-documented cases of discrimination, and despite public disputes over veiling, mosques, and religious practices, the life and experiences of Middle Eastern and Islamic people living in the English-speaking West remain nearly invisible to the vast majority of students and teachers.
