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  » Leading Egyptian Filmmaker Mourned
  » Membership Match Update

E V E N T S
  » August 15: Arab-American Comedy Show
  » August 16: AANM Book Club Meeting

I N  T H E  G A L L E R I E S 
  » Extended Through August 31: Fragmentation & Unity: The Art of Sari Khoury
  » Through August 31: Concert of Colors: Exposed

Summer Camp Promotes Diversity

Detroit-area middle school students became amateur cultural anthropologists earlier this month as they took part in the CU.SAME (Cultural Understanding Students and Adults Museum Education) summer camp. The Arab American National Museum partners with the Shalom Street Museum, The Henry Ford, Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History and the Michigan Roundtable for Diversity and Inclusion on this innovative weeklong program, in which students visit each of the partner institutions to explore the racial, ethnic and cultural diversity of metro Detroit. This year, the week concluded with the creation of a Cultural Community Wall mural, a portion of which is pictured at right.

Leading Egyptian Filmmaker Mourned

Beloved director Youssef Chahine is being remembered for his "cosmopolitan, humanistic sensibility" and his abiding interest in Arab World history and society in the wake of his death Sunday in Cairo at age 82. Chahine's wide-ranging body of work enchanted filmgoers and film critics both inside and outside the Arab World, while also earning him the wrath of conservative government and religious leaders. The prestigious Cannes Film Festival gave Chahine a special recognition award in 1997, almost 50 years after his Nile Boy screened at Cannes. He's also widely credited as the person who discovered the actor Omar Sharif. Click HERE to read the New York Times obituary.

Membership Match Update

There's still time to get in the game! The AANM is closing in on a $75,000 matching grant from the McGregor Fund that will be triggered when the Museum has recruited 3,000 new members. Museum Membership begins at just $25 and your Membership benefits, including discounts on event tickets and Museum Store purchases (online included), will help you recoup your Membership fee in no time at all. A Membership purchased now will make a significant impact. Don't wait! Click HERE to become a Member online.

August 15:
Arab-American Comedy Show

Mizna Entertainment presents its 2nd annual Arab-American Comedy Show at 7 p.m. Friday, August 15, at the Ford Community and Performing Arts Center in Dearborn, MI. This evening of sketch comedy and short films is designed to break down barriers and demystify stereotypes while showcasing "Arab American culture in all its richness, beauty and hilarity." Mike Mosallam, at right, is the show's producer. For more information about the show, click HERE to buy tickets, call 313.943.2354. To sample Mizna's comic sensibilities, click HERE.

August 16:
AANM Book Club Meeting

Evelyn Shakir's Remember Me to Lebanon is next up for discerning readers in the AANM Book Club. It's a short-story collection about the lives of first- and second-generation Lebanese American women and their struggle to forge a new identity while retaining their heritage or in some cases, rejecting it. Bring this book along on your summer travels, then meet fellow book lovers and engage in a fascinating discussion about Remember Me to Lebanon at the next Book Club meeting at the AANM at 11:30 a.m. Saturday, August 16. Meetings are free and open to all. Call 313.624.0224 for details.

Through August 31:
Fragmentation & Unity: The Art of Sari Khoury

Sari Khoury's abstract art and profound thinking have left a significant imprint on the minds of viewers as well as the many students he nurtured in the Department of Art at Central Michigan University. More than two dozen of Khoury's later works, including his previously unseen final work, are on display. Khoury's words share the gallery with his artwork; an online companion exhibit features the artist's personal artifacts. In the Main Floor Gallery. Read more HERE. Sari Khoury self-portrait, circa 1967, right.

Through August 31:
Concert of Colors: Exposed

The annual Concert of Colors is a free music festival celebrating the ethnic and cultural diversity of metro Detroit. Concert of Colors: Exposed is a multimedia exhibition of action-packed in-concert photographs from the event's first 15 years. View performers, including Little Richard, Ani DiFranco, Angelique Kidjo, Son Seals and Hugh Masekela, and the late Bo Diddley, in 30 never-before-exhibited photos. A musical soundtrack, projected images and percussion instruments to play with help recreate the festival vibe generated by the artists and their adoring audiences. Click HERE for more information. At right, SLINGER FRANCISCO-THE MIGHTY SPARROW at Chene Park, 1996. Bruce Harkness, photographer.

The AANM Membership Challenge is on...

The McGregor Fund is offering the AANM $75,000 if we can recruit 3,000 Museum Members this year. Act today to join the winning team!

You will receive the following Membership benefits:

• Free AANM admission plus advance notice and invitations to upcoming events
• Reduced ticket prices for AANM events
• 10% discount at the Museum Store
• 10% discount on Museum facility rentals
• Free guest passes
• Checkout privileges in the Museum's Library & Resource Center
• Membership gifts are tax deductible; consult your tax advisor for details

Call (313) 624-0202 or click HERE to become a Museum Member.

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