Photography in the Ottoman and Mandate Eras

Photography in the Ottoman and Mandate Eras by Dr. Issam Nassar will be held on Saturday, October 10 at 10:00 am PST/1:00 pm EST via Zoom. Register Here!

Many of us have posed portraits and other photographs of our families tucked away in albums, boxes, or family collections. We may also come across historical photographs in books, archives, and on social media that show the people and places where our families once lived. These images can offer important clues about individuals, families, communities, and everyday life. But what do we know about the history of photography in the region itself?

In this presentation, Professor Issam Nassar will discuss his book Camera Palaestina: Photography and Displaced Histories of Palestine and the history of photography during the late Ottoman and Mandate periods, with particular attention to Palestine. He will invite us to consider the photographers, studios, portraits, and photographic collections that documented people and communities during this period. The presentation will also help us think about family photographs not simply as images of individual relatives, but as historical sources that can place family stories within a broader social and historical context.

Dr. Issam Nassar is Professor of History and Chair of the History Program at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies in Qatar. A historian of the modern Middle East, his work focuses on cultural history and visual culture, particularly photography. He is the author of Camera Palaestina: Photography and Displaced Histories of Palestine, along with numerous other books, articles, and book chapters.

 

Making Memories Visible: Family Stories as Community History

Making Memories Visible: Family Stories as Community History by George Harb will be held on Saturday, August 22, 2026, at 10:00 am PST/1:00 pm EST via Zoom. Register Here.

Family photographs, stories, and memories can help preserve more than one family’s history. They can also document the experiences of a broader community. George Harb will explore how family-held materials can make these histories visible and preserve stories that might otherwise be lost.

George Harb is Director of Exhibitions and Programs at the Museum of the Palestinian People in Washington, D.C. A second-generation Palestinian American, he is an artist, digital archivist, curator, and community historian whose work focuses on preserving Arab American and Palestinian American narratives and making historical archives accessible to future generations.

Previously, George served as a Community Historian at the Arab American National Museum in Dearborn, Michigan, where his work included oral histories, national community outreach, family history preservation, and the digitization of archival materials. He is also the founder of the Zaman Project, an initiative rooted in his own family archives and dedicated to preserving Palestinian family archives and diaspora narratives.

Almond & Fig: Food, Family Stories, and Identity

Almond & Fig: Food, Family Stories, and Identity by Mai Kakish will be held on Saturday, November 15 at 10:00 am PST/1:00 pm EST via Zoom. Register Here.

Mai Kakish, Palestinian American food blogger, will share how recipes carry stories, identity, and tradition across generations.

Mai Khader Kakish is a Palestinian-born marketing professional, storyteller, and content creator. She holds a master’s degree in marketing and public relations from DePaul University in Chicago, where she currently resides with her three daughters.

Mai serves as a marketing consultant for Ziyad Brand, the largest Middle Eastern food brand in North America. Beyond her professional work, she is deeply committed to community engagement, advocacy, and preserving Palestinian heritage through food and storytelling.

She is the founder and director of TEE, a long-running community program dedicated to teaching Arab American children Arabic language and culture. For over 18 years, she has led this initiative, using food, music, and immersive experiences to nurture cultural identity. She also serves on the board of the Seraj Library Project, a non-profit organization that establishes libraries and vibrant community centers in Palestinian villages and refugee camps.

Mai is a public speaker and advocate, sharing her firsthand experience of growing up under Israeli occupation in Palestine. Through storytelling and fundraising, she raises awareness about Palestinian history and supports initiatives that rebuild and empower Palestinian communities.

Her deep longing for home led her to create Almond and Fig, a platform that shares the history, injustices, and beauty of Palestine through food and personal narratives. More than just a food blog, Almond and Fig is a family memoir told through recipes, honoring her grandparents’ traditions and preserving the flavors of her homeland. Through @almondandfig, Mai hopes to inspire others to cook and appreciate the rich culinary heritage of Palestine, using food as a bridge to memory, culture, and conversation.

Arab American Migration and Communities: A Historical Lens for Family Research

Arab American Migration and Communities: A Historical Lens for Family Research by Dr. Nina Shoman-Dajani will be held on Saturday, August 23 at 10:00 am PST/1:00 pm EST via Zoom. Register here.

Understanding historical context is an essential part of family history research, including immigrants to the United States from Arabic speaking countries. Dr. Shoman-Dajani will walk attendees through the history of Arabs in the United States, while sharing stories of local Arab American communities.  

Dr. Nina Shoman-Dajani is the Assistant Dean of Learning Enrichment and College Readiness at Moraine Valley Community College where most of her work is focused on managing Adult Education programs and grants that serve marginalized and immigrant communities. In addition, Dr. Shoman-Dajani works as an adjunct professor in Middle Eastern Studies at Saint Xavier University and has served as a visiting lecturer at the University of Illinois in Chicago (UIC), where she taught Arab American studies.

She is a member of the National Advisory Council for the National Conference on Race and Ethnicity in Higher Education (NCORE), and co-chairs the Transnational-International committee and also serves as the co-chair for the MENA/SWANA Caucus. She is a former board member for the Syrian Community Network, a refugee resettlement agency in Chicago and also previously served as a board member for the Arab American Studies Association. She is currently the Executive Director of the Chicago Palestine Film Festival. Dr. Shoman-Dajani is a student and community advocate who has also volunteered as the advisor to the Arab Student Union at Moraine Valley Community College for the last 15 years.

Dr. Shoman-Dajani is currently partaking in the Cultivate: Women of Color Leadership Fellowship program which brings together women and nonbinary leaders of color engaged in social, economic, and racial justice movements in the Chicago region and is the recent recipient of two leadership awards, the Vernon O. Crawley Leadership Award (Moraine Valley Community College, April 2025) and the Change Agent Social Justice and Equity Award (NCORE, May 2025).

She received her Bachelor of Arts in Sociology with a minor in Middle Eastern Studies and her Master of Arts in International Affairs with a focus on U.S. Foreign and Domestic Policy from California State University, Sacramento. She earned her Doctor of Education degree at Benedictine University in Higher Education and Organizational Change. Her doctoral research focused on the racial identity construction of Arab American college students. She is one of the authors of the Arab Community Report titled Beyond Erasure and Profiling: Cultivating Strong and Vibrant Arab American Communities in Chicagoland published by the Institute for Research on Race & Public Policy at the University of Illinois at Chicago. This publication includes an extensive study on the racial discrimination experienced by the Arab community of Chicago.