Zainab Al Suwaij

Biography

Suwaij was born in Basra, Iraq in 1971 and was raised in the home of her grandfather, the Ayatollah of Basra. In 1991, she participated in the guerilla uprising against Sadam Hussein. Shortly after the uprising she fled Iraq and came to the United States. She became a United States citizen in 1996.

Career

After arriving in the United States, Suwaij taught Arabic at Yale University and worked resettling Sudanese refugees in the United States. In 2001, following the terrorist attacks of September 11, she co-founded the American Islamic Congress to "represent those American Muslims who cherished the freedoms of the U.S. after living under repressive regimes." Suwaij was a prominent public supporter of the 2003 U.S. war with Iraq. In 2004, she spoke at the Republican National Convention, restating her support for the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq.

Suwaij has served as AIC's Executive Director for eleven years. Under her leadership, the Muslim organization has trained young Middle Eastern activists in the methods of non-violent protest and social media mobilization, empowering them to challenge regimes during the Arab Spring. Suwaij frequently speaks at universities, think tanks and panel events. She has testified before Congress and briefed the White House and the State Department. Her writings have been published in New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today and others.

Recognition

Suwaij was named an "Ambassador of Peace" by the Interreligious and International Peace Council, received a Dialogue on Diversity’s Liberty Award in and was recognized as “2006 International Person of the Year” by the National Liberty Museum.

In 2012, Suwaij received the East West Vision of Peace Award from the Levantine Cultural Center for her work to bridge political and religious divides between the United States and the Middle East and North Africa.