When the conflict between Israel and Gaza started last year, Sahar Razavi realized Sacramento State needed a place that provided support and cultural awareness for students who were closely impacted by the war.
In response, the university ramped up the creation of the Southwest Asian and North African Center, a “home base of support” for students from that region, according to its website.
“We just knew we had to make it happen now rather than letting it be a process that was going to be another three years,” Razavi, faculty school advisor for the center, said during the opening ceremony last week.
Razavi explained that although the university has a lot of SWANA students on campus, it doesn’t have racial and ethnic data on them because of how the U.S. Census and the school intake racial information. Both do not differentiate between being White and being from the Middle East or North Africa, so students from these regions are lumped into groups that Razavi said “they are in fact othered from.”
“We have to check the box saying we’re white on the U.S. Census, whereas we are never treated as White by society,” she emphasized. “We never really know where to turn, where we’ll be safe and where we’ll belong. Having a SWANA center in a place like Sac State that has more than 30,000 [students] in one of the most diverse campuses in the country… is super critical.”
Recently, the U.S. Census announced a Middle Eastern and North African category will be added to the choices available for questions about race and ethnicity. According to PBS, results from the 2020 census suggested that 3.5 million residents identify as Middle Eastern and North African.
Amna Salemeh, a faculty coordinator for the new center, said she learned about the project after working as adjunct faculty for Sac State for 7 years.
As a Palestinian born and raised in Louisiana, she said she understands the identity struggles students from similar backgrounds deal with daily, especially at school. She decided to start wearing her hijab around the time she began attending Louisiana State University, but she said her experience doing so made her feel like she didn’t belong.
“When I went to counselors for advice, I didn’t feel like they were helping me,” she recounted. “It just felt like I was navigating everything on my own.”
She hopes that with this center, students at Sac State will never feel like they don’t belong and that they have a support system they can utilize not only to feel seen but also to get ahead on their career goals.
“When I’m looking at students, I’m looking at building their confidence,” she said. “You don’t need to be ashamed of who you are. For me, it’s a place of opportunity, of growth, of building the person’s character, of seeing that could be for them.”
A classroom located in the center Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024, at Sacramento State.Gerardo Zavala/CapRadioCommunity impact
The SWANA Center will provide several services for students including program and cultural events, mentorship, community advocacy and wellness support, among other things.
Razavi explained that the center’s college and career ambassador will work with local organizations, like the Refugee Enrichment and Development Association, to provide students with professional development opportunities while also enriching the Sacramento community.
“For example, [the association] has clients with children,” Razavi said. “They come to the tutoring center, the new childcare center, the after-school programs and they need to have a pipeline established to show them how to get from where they are to a university.”
Razavi noted that this partnership will lead to internship opportunities for students to serve as tutors for the association’s tutoring and after-school programs.
Maryam Sheikh is the youth programs supervisor for the association. She explained that they partner with UC Davis — and now Sac State — to get tutors who teach young refugee students struggling in their academics.
Maryam Sheikh, youth programs supervisor for the Refugee Enrichment and Development Association, speaks to a student during the Southwest Asian and North African Center grand opening ceremony Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024, at Sacramento State.Gerardo Zavala/CapRadio“Interns come and help with their math, English, history and any other subjects they need help with,” Sheikh said. “After the kids are done with their homework because most of them are facing some challenges at school like bullying, we provide a youth center, which is a safe space for them to come to socialize, make friends and be in their same culture.”
She argued that the new center is “ unique” and said she is glad students have a place where they can express their culture.
Jack, a 19-year-old Sac State student majoring in Political Science who did not want to share his full name, noted that the Southwest Asian and Northern African demographic is sizable at his university.
“It’s just good to let people have their own space where they can feel at home, where they can feel a sense of community, make new friends and just kind of have a safe spot to exist,” he stressed. “I’m probably just going to use it as a place to hang out when I have free time.”
Hafsa Omer is a psychology major at Sacramento State. The 22-year-old argued that the center will help people feel seen and that they are being acknowledged.
“The acknowledgement is enough validation to them,” she remarked. “Now another group is being recognized amongst the other ones.”
That, according to Razavi, is what the center is all about.
“Our goal, among others, is for students to walk into the center and feel that they are at home… [and] to create a campus environment where we are all one very interconnected and integrated family,” Razavi said.
