ArabCon 2025 Registration
Join us in Dearborn, Michigan, September 25 to 28, 2025. ArabCon gathers at a critical moment and invites you to turn lessons from our collective past into grounded, decisive action. We honor Arab American resilience, creativity, and service while building real pathways for impact today.
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We’ve Been Here Before—but history doesn’t define us; it propels us forward. ArabCon 2025 gathers at a critical moment calling us to turn lessons from our collective past into grounded, decisive action.
From defending our right to say “Free Palestine!” in the face of relentless censorship, to resisting our erasure from classrooms and history books, to standing with our families enduring endless wars in the Middle East—we draw strength from the past to power today’s movements.
ArabCon is also a proud celebration of Arab American resilience, creativity, and service. Our community shapes America’s story through art, music, film, business, politics, and education – underscoring our essential place in the nation’s cultural, civic, and economic fabrics.
Drawing strength from family, community, and faith, we come together to transform shared adversity into lasting progress.
Join us in Dearborn, Michigan, September 25–28.
ArabCon’s speaker lineup brings together nationally recognized journalists and media voices like Mehdi Hasan, Ana Kasparian, and Cenk Uygur; lawmakers and civic leaders such as U.S. Rep. Ro Khanna, Mayor Abdullah Hammoud, and State Rep. Alabas Farhat; artists and culture-makers including Bassem Youssef, Ahmed Al-Kadri, and Mosab Abu Toha; plus scholars and advocates like Dr. Rabab Abdulhadi, Khaled Beydoun, Zahra Billoo, and Abed Ayoub. Expect keynotes, town halls, and skills sessions that connect lived experience to strategy and action.
ArabCon 2025 — Speakers
Thursday, Sept 25
- Abdullah Hammoud
- Dr. Safa Rifka
- Abed Ayoub
- Machhadie “Micho” Assi
- Hamza Ali
- Mahmoud Khalil
- Valentina Pereda
Friday, Sept 26
- Rep. Alabas Farhat
- Mo Baydoun
- Eman Ali
- Amy Greer
- Amir Makled
- Edward Ahmed Mitchell
- Amer Zahr
- Dr. Samia Shoman
- Aida Salah
- Dr. Marwan Issa
- Colette Cavanagh
- Dana Salah
- Eddy Mack
- Dr. Ed Hasan
- Céline Semaan
- Hamza Ali
- Ahmed Al-Kadri
- Farid Nassar (FredWreck)
- Tamir Khalil
- Linda Sarsour
- Hazami Barmada
- Ana Kasparian
- Said Durrah
- Bassem Youssef
- Mehdi Hasan
Saturday, Sept 27
- Rep. Ro Khanna
- Cenk Uygur
- Ana Kasparian
- Tariq Habash
- Josh Reubner
- Zahra Billoo
- Manar Waheed
- Tom Hall
- Issam Hijazi
- Haris Tarin
- Dr. Abdul El-Sayed
- Suehaila Amen
- Dr. Lara Sheehi
- Dr. Karen Suyemoto
- Dr. Sawssan Ahmed
- Medea Benjamin
- Mahmoud Khalil
- Hazami Barmada
- Chris Smalls
- Rep. Abraham Aiyash
- Rhana Natour
- Dr. Mohammed “Mo” Mustafa
- Khaled Beydoun
- Linda Sarsour
Sunday, Sept 28
- Hani Almadhoun
- Anthony Aguilar
- Rania Khalek
- Ali Abunimah
- Mosab Abu Toha
- Abdelhamid Siyam
- Dr. Rabab Abdulhadi
- Said Arikat
Dr. Rabab Abdulhadi
Scholar & Founding Director of AMED, SFSU
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Dr. Rabab Abdulhadi is the founding Director and Senior Scholar of the Arab and Muslim Ethnicities and Diasporas (AMED) Studies Program at SFSU and founder/Principal Investigator of Teaching Palestine: Pedagogical Praxis and the Indivisibility of Justice. She is a lead editor, author of over 80 publications, co-founding Editorial Board member of the Islamophobia Studies Journal and the Chicana/Latina Studies Editorial Colectiva. A Yale Ph.D., she has received awards from MESA, ASA, AAUP, ADC, NWSA, and others. She taught at 8 universities, including Birzeit and UM-Dearborn, where she directed the Center for Arab American Studies. She advises Al-Shabaka, co-chairs the PAM Caucus, and serves on boards including USACBI and California Scholars for Academic Freedom.
Ali Abunimah
Co-Founder & Executive Director, The Electronic Intifada
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Ali Abunimah is a journalist and the co-founder and executive director of The Electronic Intifada, a nonprofit, independent online publication focusing on Palestine. Based in the U.S., he has been an active part of the movement for justice in Palestine for 20 years. His books include The Battle for Justice in Palestine(Haymarket Books, 2014), and One Country: A Bold Proposal to End the Israeli-Palestinian Impasse (Metropolitan Books, 2006). He also contributed the foreword to Against Apartheid: The Case for Boycotting Israeli Universities by Ashley Dawson and Bill V. Mullen (Haymarket Books, 2015). A graduate of Princeton University and the University of Chicago, he is a frequent speaker and commentator on the Middle East, contributing regularly to numerous publications.
Mosab Abu Toha
Poet & Pulitzer Prize-winning Essayist
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His first collection of poetry, Things You May Find Hidden in My Ear, was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award for Poetry and won the Palestine Book Award, the American Book Award, and the Walcott Poetry Prize. His second collection, Forest of Noise, was longlisted for the Dylan Thomas Prize. Abu Toha is also the founder of the Edward Said Library in Gaza, which he hopes to rebuild. He recently won an Overseas Press Club Award for his “Letter fromGaza” columns for The New Yorker.
Eman Ali, EdS
Principal, Salina School; Founder, UHF Relief
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Ms. Ali has been a passionate educator for over two decades, teaching at both the elementary and secondary levels. She currently serves as the proud principal of Salina Intermediate School in Dearborn, Michigan.
In 2021, Ms. Ali was appointed to Mayor Abdullah Hammoud’s transition team, helping interview and transition new directors for the City of Dearborn. She also serves as a board member of the Dearborn Education Foundation, which has raised over $2 million to support classrooms and extracurricular opportunities for students across the district.
Beyond education, Ms. Ali is deeply engaged in community and humanitarian work. She is the volunteer Executive Director of United Humanitarian Foundation (UHF Relief), a nonprofit dedicated to promoting peace, education, development, and humanitarian relief. Through UHF, she has supported efforts in Yemen, Lebanon, and Palestine, as well as local initiatives in Michigan.
Hamza Ali
Co-Founder, Watermelon Pictures
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Hamza Ali is President of MPI Media Group and Co-Founder of Watermelon Pictures, a Palestinian-owned film label amplifying underrepresented voices. His career began alongside his father Malik and uncle Waleed, founders of a leading indie film distribution company in 1976. Hamza and his brother Badie now oversee MPI and its subsidiaries: MPI Home Entertainment, Dark Sky Films, and MPI Stock Footage Archive. In 2024, they launched Watermelon Pictures to honor their family’s legacy and promote storytelling for change. Hamza lives with his wife Reem and their four children: Hedaya, Jude, Maryam, and Waleed.
Ahmed Al-Kadri
Comedian
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Ahmed Al-Kadri is a Yemeni-American comedian based in Los Angeles whose stand-up blends his cultural upbringing, everyday absurdities, and straight-up goofy fun. His relatable and high-energy style has taken him around the world—from America to Asia and everywhere in between. You may have seen him on the series David Diamondhands, Buzzfeed, or in his YouTube comedy special Special Not Special.
Suehaila Amen
Community Engagement Consultant, ADC
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For nearly three decades, Suehaila Amen has worked to build bridges between governments, academic institutions, and grassroots communities through programs centered on student empowerment, social justice, and community building. She has participated in global public diplomacy missions for the U.S. government and nonprofits, leading DEI trainings and discussions on leadership and civic engagement. A national and international speaker, she shares insights on Islamophobia, xenophobia, faith, and service. Amen is active in numerous nonprofits in Michigan and across the U.S. and was featured with her family on TLC’s All-American Muslim (2011–2012).
Said Arikat
Washington Bureau Chief, Al Quds
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Said Arikat is a Palestinian journalist and political analyst with decades of experience covering Middle East affairs and U.S. politics. He is the Washington Bureau Chief for the Jerusalem-based newspaper Al-Quds and is known for his incisive questions at U.S. State Department briefings. Arikat has taught at American University and served as spokesperson for the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (2005–2010). In 2023, he received ADC’s Courage in Journalism award for his strength, integrity, and impact in the field.
Program
All events take place at the Ford Community & Performing Arts Center unless otherwise noted
ArabCon 2025’s program blends policy, culture, and organizing into a weekend arc that opens with a welcome reception and documentary screening, builds through Friday and Saturday with high-impact panels on law, education, digital censorship, and creative resistance, plus the signature Layali evening showcase and ADC’s 45th Anniversary Dinner, and concludes Sunday with independent media voices and a reading by Pulitzer winner Mosab Abu Toha. Expect marquee conversations anchored by figures like Mehdi Hasan, Bassem Youssef, Linda Sarsour, Ana Kasparian, Rep. Ro Khanna, and Dr. Abdul El-Sayed, alongside skill building, networking, and moments of celebration that turn shared history into action.
ArabCon 2025 — Program Schedule
Thursday, Sept 25
ArabCon Welcome Reception
Watermelon Productions Presents: Encampments
Friday, Sept 26
ArabCon Welcome
Can Law Confront Power?
Defending the Right to Teach the Truth
Sumud Podcast Live
Creative Resistance
Unfiltered
ArabCon Layali
Saturday, Sept 27
TYT & ArabCon Present: The Great Political Realignment
Policy vs. the People
Palestine vs. the Algorithm
Meet the Candidate: Dr. Abdul El-Sayed
The Psychological Warfare of Zionism
Bodies on the Line
ADC 45th Anniversary Dinner
Sunday, Sept 28
Welcome Remarks
Bearing Witness: A Soldier and a Survivor
Beyond Propaganda
A Reading with Mosab Abu Toha
Under Siege
ArabCon Closing Remarks
Press Registration
ArabCon welcomes members of the press and media outlets to cover the largest gathering of Arab-Americans in the country. Journalists, producers, photographers, and digital media professionals are invited to apply for press credentials to access ArabCon programming, speakers, cultural events, and expo spaces.
For questions, contact:
media@adc.org
Become an ArabCon Sponsor
Sponsoring ArabCon means more than brand exposure — it’s a direct investment in community impact, cultural empowerment, and meaningful dialogue. As a sponsor, you’ll be part of a unique platform that celebrates innovation, elevates Arab-American voices, and fosters new connections across business, civic, and cultural spaces.
ArabCon Vendors
The ArabCon BizSouk is more than just a vendor marketplace — it’s a vibrant hub for Arab-owned businesses, creators, entrepreneurs, and community organizations to connect with thousands of attendees from across the country. BizSouk offers a diverse showcase of businesses that reflect the richness of our community.
