---

          This assignment was definitely the hardest assignment of the semester for me. The assignment itself was not hard part, for me the hardest part was identifying my community. I realized after I had a hard time associating myself with “communities” because I never spent the time to identify myself. I decided to identify my community as Muslim American Arab Teen.   Even though I had a hard time identify with my community, once I figured it out, I tried my hardest to complete this essay as best I can. 

          The purpose of this essay was to identify your community, speak on problems within your community, include research, and suggest a solution. My purpose of writing this essay was to highlight the issues Muslim Arab Teens face in America. This essay was the first essay we have written this semester that required outside research from multiple sources, which is what made it difficult for me. I was required to find and cite credible sources in my essay to support my claim. Using a study done on Muslim Arb Teens post 9/11 shed light on the problems this community faces. The essay is an exploratory essay because I had to research different articles and use that information to support my claim.

          I believe that I was able to state my stance throughout my essay. My stance is how I feel about the topic, and I feel like Muslim Arab parents’ values and expectations conflict within their children’s, but it also creates a conflict between the need to assimilate versus the desire to live up to parental expectations through the practice of their religion.

          However, both of these external pressures Arab teens face are a result of misinformation, and my objective was to inform. My audience is anyone Arab American Muslim Teens, Arab Parents, and anyone trying to learn more about this community. I was able to use many different databases and online resources to help me write this essay; CCNY Database, Google Scholar, and Google were the three main tools that I used to help me complete this essay. Writing a rough draft and having it reviewed by my peers helpful me focus on narrating the information better.

          I chose to write about this community because I identify with it; I have felt the pressure myself and have encountered the dual identity firsthand. There doesn’t seem to be a lot of research or statistics being done on Arabs in America, specifically Muslim Arab teens. This exploratory essay showed me how difficult it is to shuffle through research and select appropriate evidence; however, it is a good learning experience to help me write research papers in the future.