What began 17 years ago as a simple family vacation for Iraq native Rana Abdul-Aziz ended as a drastic and unexpected move across an ocean to Boston.
"I was young," Abdul-Aziz said. "When Iraq invaded Kuwait in 1990, my family happened to be in the States. We actually arrived the day before the invasion."
Abdul-Aziz, who currently teaches both elementary and intermediate Arabic at Tufts, couldn't have guessed that she would make a nearly permanent move to America at such a young age. "It was all an accident," she said. "My dad was working for an American company and our visa was for six months. It was supposed to be temporary. We were hoping it was going to be [only] a couple of months before things became clear in terms of what happened [with the war]."
Persistent warfare in Iraq, however, prevented the family from following through on this plan. Abdul-Aziz's childhood in Iraq was a far cry from the changes she would experience at the beginning of her 17-year vacation.
"I think things that I remember in my childhood [are] Saddam Hussein, being part of a dictatorship ... My parents would complain about things that were happening at our house, but we were told that we couldn't repeat [them] because everybody was really afraid," she said, recounting the bomb drills that frequently served as reminders of violence in her community. "There was a school during the Iran-Iraq war that was hit and I remember that it was a big deal at school. It was just feeling a lot of anxiety and stress growing up."
The family's accidental move across the globe may have been for the better. "My father's American company sponsored him here so we were allowed to stay. Otherwise, I think, had we not had that, we would be back there and I don't know how we would have survived," Abdul-Aziz said.
Seventeen years later, the situation is still incredibly difficult for Iraqi citizens. "Everybody that we know has left," she said. "There are no jobs. Before the war, there was a 50 percent unemployment rate and after the war it's up to something like 70 now."
But despite growing up in turbulence as part of the war generation, the young language lecturer showed nothing but pride for her home country. "Looking back, I don't necessarily think I had a bad childhood," she said. "I really enjoyed living close to my family and with a lot of friends. It was just a very loving, caring environment and I really was raised to love my country so much."
Abdul-Aziz, who last had the opportunity to go back to Iraq to visit in 2003, was sentimental toward her Iraqi roots. "I think that's why I miss it so much. I never felt like I lived in a place that made me feel disadvantaged in any way," she said.
Abdul-Aziz added that she would someday like to give back to the Iraqi community by working with some of the thousands of refugees who are located in various countries throughout the world.
Since the move to America, Abdul-Aziz has made significant strides in bringing her cultural roots to the Tufts community.
"When I was in high school, my school started an internship program," she said. "I knew that I was interested in international relations, and they put me in touch with a professor at the Fletcher School, and I interned with him during the summer of my junior year. I knew after I finished that I really wanted to come to Tufts."
The Iraqi immigrant would go on to graduate from Tufts with a degree in international relations and Middle Eastern studies. Today, she is simultaneously a lecturer and a graduate student.
Since her arrival at Tufts, Abdul-Aziz has noticed that, unlike many romance languages, there has been a remarkable increase in the number of students interested in both Arabic language and Middle Eastern culture, perhaps as a direct result of Sept. 11 and recurring conflict in the Middle East.
With six sections of first-semester Arabic alone being taught during fall 2006, the language is quickly becoming one of the most popular studies at Tufts and at a growing number of universities across the country. Abdul-Aziz noted that, for the first time, an intensive first-year Arabic course will be offered this summer at Tufts.
"I'm so impressed with the freshman class this year," Abdul-Aziz said, pleased with the work she has seen her students do. "They're really smart and very motivated, and they take the language very seriously," she said. "It's really refreshing to see that. People can do whatever it is they want to do, but I hope to try to show them that you can do much more than just join [the] government."
