“But Why Do We Need the Bomber to be Studying for a Science Test?”: Racialized Arab Femininities and Masculinities

Abstract

In order to understand the schooling experiences of Saudi students and their families across gender and age in the U.S., this article draws on a multi-sited, multi-age ethnographic study with an Arab family from Saudi Arabia living in the Midwestern region of the United States.  Through this study, I empirically illustrate the impact of gendered racialization of Arab femininities and masculinities in educational settings through the stories of Sarah, a 40-year-old undergraduate student, and her 14-year-old son, Ayman. The results of this study highlight the ways these gendered racialized experiences differ based onage and gender as well ashow the participants respond to them.  The discussion and implications sections focus on the importance of exposing the hierarchies of violence of complicit anti-Arab racisms as well as areas for improvement for school administrators, policymakers, and teacher education programs.