Philadelphia Citizen Writes On Refugee Meet & Greet

We Were All The Snake: Al-Bustan puts a face and a story to refugees in Philadelphia

Al-Bustan’s mission is not only to create a community for refugees, but to show the world who they are. They are Adnan and Abdullah, who play soccer, they’re the kids who run around the Friends Center, and the moms and dads who drink coffee and sing along with folk songs.

January 5th, 2017 | Philadelphia Citizen | Quinn O'Callaghan

Hazami Sayed, executive director of Al-Bustan seems to be thrilled with how it all turned out. This was, after all, a joint effort; American Friends Service Committee; Germantown Friends School’s Human Rights Club, Penn Arab Student Society (PASS); Greenfield Intercultural Center; Pan-Asian American Community House (PAACH); and the Nationalities Service Center all pitched in.Al-Bustan was started in 2002 as a way for Sayed’s children and other children of Middle Eastern descent to explore their heritage and learn Arabic. It started modestly, as a part time project for Sayed, but has grown steadily since 2002. “We now have programs in schools, in the community and at the University of Pennsylvania. We do concert series, we have a presenting arm, an ensemble and two education arms, as well as a summer camp,” Sayed says.