I am Lebanese-American/The Story of Nadine Saliba

I am Lebanese-American. I am part of what is known in Lebanon a the war generation - because we were born with the outbreak of the war and we came of age during its fifteen long years. Growing up, we did not know our country except at war. We did not get to enjoy its beauty and prosperity during its more peaceful days. Needless to say, this experience shaped me in many ways. I was politicized from an early age and so were most people around me. War and politics served as the ever-present background to our lives, its imprint on our consciousness undeniable.

We talked politics, we thought politics. Our childhood and innocence were stolen from us. War and the news of war haunted our daily existence.

To Be Continued

Nadine Saliba, born and raised in Lebanon, attended the University of Beirut. She immigrated to San Antonio, Texas in 1993, receiving a B.A. in Political Science from UTSA (University of Texas at San Antonio), and an MA from the University of Massacusetts at Amherst in Political Science.

Nadine's story was first published as Dardasha in La Voz de Esperanza, July/August 2006.

Photo Credit: by Mia Kang. Arab-Americans Protest the Invastion of Lebanon at the Federal Bldg in San Antonio, today, July 28, 2006 in 101 degree-calor

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