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{{Infobox ethnic group
{{Infobox ethnic group
| group = Yemeni-American <br /> {{lang|ar|أمريكيون يمنيون}}
| group = Yemeni-American <br /> {{lang|ar|أمريكيون يمنيون}}
| population = 2020 US Census:<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/library/stories/2023/09/2020-census-dhc-a-mena-population.html|title=2020 US Census Bureau: 3.5 Million Reported Middle Eastern and North African Descent in 2020}}</ref><br>'''''91,288'''''<br /><br>Yemeni-born, 2023<ref name="USCB">{{cite web|title=PLACE OF BIRTH FOR THE FOREIGN-BORN POPULATION IN THE UNITED STATES, Universe: Foreign-born population excluding population born at sea, 2023 American Community Survey Estimates|url=https://data.census.gov/table/ACSDT1Y2023.B05006?q=B05006:%20Place%20of%20Birth%20for%20the%20Foreign-Born%20Population%20in%20the%20United%20States}}</ref><br>'''''71,471'''''
| population = {{Plainlist|
* '''29,358''' (Yemeni descent. 2006 - 2009 US Community Survey)<ref name=yemenancestry2010>{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov|title=CITIZENSHIP STATUS IN THE UNITED STATES: Total population in the United States, 2006-2010 American Community Survey Selected Population Tables|access-date=April 12, 2016|publisher=U.S. Census Bureau}}</ref>
* '''40,731''' (Yemeni-born. 2014 US survey) <ref name="USCB">{{cite web|title=PLACE OF BIRTH FOR THE FOREIGN-BORN POPULATION IN THE UNITED STATES, Universe: Foreign-born population excluding population born at sea, 2010-2014 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates|url=http://factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?pid=ACS_14_5YR_B05006&prodType=table|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=April 12, 2016|archive-url=https://archive.today/20200214060946/http://factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?pid=ACS_14_5YR_B05006&prodType=table|archive-date=February 14, 2020|url-status=dead}}</ref>
}}
| popplace = [[New York (state)|New York]], [[Michigan]], [[Virginia]], [[Illinois]], [[California]]
| popplace = [[New York (state)|New York]], [[Michigan]], [[Virginia]], [[Illinois]], [[California]]
| languages = [[Yemeni Arabic|Arabic]] • [[American English|English]]
| languages = [[Yemeni Arabic|Arabic]] • [[American English|English]]
| religions = Mostly [[Islam]], also a minority practicing [[Judaism]]
| related-c = [[Arab American|Arabs]]
| related-c = [[Arab American|Arabs]]
}}
}}
{{Americans}}
{{Americans}}


'''Yemeni Americans''' are [[Americans]] of [[Demographics of Yemen|Yemeni]] ancestry.
'''Yemeni Americans''' are [[Americans]] of [[Yemenis|Yemeni]] ancestry. According to an estimate in 2010, more than 100,000 Yemenis live in the United States.


== History ==
== History ==
Although it is unknown when Yemenis first arrived, it is believed that Yemenis were immigrating to the U.S. after 1869, and are recorded in the 1890s. Some Yemenis gained U.S. citizenship by fighting in [[World War I]] and [[World War II]]. Yemeni immigrants settled in existing [[Lebanese Americans|Lebanese]] communities in cities like [[New York City|New York]]. They were outcast as Muslims, as the Lebanese communities were predominantly Christian, as were [[Syrian American|Syrian]] and [[Palestinian American|Palestinian]] communities. After becoming situated, many Yemenis traveled westward for better job opportunities.<ref name="Everyculture">{{Cite web|title=Yemeni Americans - History, Modern era, The first yemenis in america|url=http://www.everyculture.com/multi/Sr-Z/Yemeni-Americans.html|access-date=2022-02-26|website=www.everyculture.com}}</ref> In many places of United States, such as [[Chicago]], [[Brooklyn]] (New York), and [[Dearborn, Michigan|South Dearborn]] ([[Michigan]]), the first Yemeni entrepreneurs were owners of cafes and liquor stores. However, these companies are not characteristic of Yemeni culture, and it is likely that they have been owners of cafes under the influence of Lebanese and Palestinian communities longer.<ref name="ECHY">{{cite news|author=Manfred Wenner|url=http://www.encyclopedia.chicagohistory.org/pages/1392.html|title=Encyclopedia of Chicago: Yemeni|publisher= Encyclopedia of Chicago|access-date= 21 June 2012<!--, 2.20 am-->}}</ref>
Although it is unknown when Yemenis first arrived, it is believed that Yemenis were immigrating to the U.S. after 1869, and are recorded in the 1890s. Some Yemenis gained U.S. citizenship by fighting in [[World War I]] and [[World War II]]. Yemeni immigrants settled in existing [[Lebanese Americans|Lebanese]] communities in cities like [[New York City|New York]]. They were outcast as Muslims, as the Lebanese communities were predominantly Christian, as were [[Syrian American|Syrian]] and [[Palestinian American|Palestinian]] communities. After becoming situated, many Yemenis traveled westward for better job opportunities.<ref name="Everyculture">{{Cite web|title=Yemeni Americans - History, Modern era, The first yemenis in america|url=http://www.everyculture.com/multi/Sr-Z/Yemeni-Americans.html|access-date=2022-02-26|website=www.everyculture.com}}</ref> In many places of United States, such as [[Chicago]], [[Brooklyn]] (New York), and [[Dearborn, Michigan|South Dearborn]] ([[Michigan]]), the first Yemeni entrepreneurs were owners of cafes and delis (a well-known example being internet personality Khalid Attaf).<ref>{{Cite web |title=Khalid Attaf - YouTube |url=https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkQk5fTUQ4IW1rqQ63SchWg |access-date=2024-05-04 |website=www.youtube.com}}</ref> However, these companies are not characteristic of Yemeni culture, and it is likely that they have been owners of cafes under the influence of Lebanese and Palestinian communities longer.<ref name="ECHY">{{cite news|author=Manfred Wenner|url=http://www.encyclopedia.chicagohistory.org/pages/1392.html|title=Encyclopedia of Chicago: Yemeni|publisher= Encyclopedia of Chicago|access-date= 21 June 2012<!--, 2.20 am-->}}</ref>
Many Yemeni-Americans also worked in factories in the [[Rust Belt]] of the upper Northeast and Midwest. During the Great Depression of 1929 and until 1945, end of World War II, Yemeni immigration to United States slowed dramatically. Immigration then increased afterward. When in 1965 the quota system for immigration was eliminated, Yemenis could more easily gain visas to reside in and gain employment in the United States. This prompted a great increase in the numbers of Yemeni immigrants. Another feature of Yemeni immigrants in the U.S. is that in the years of immigration that occurred to 1970, nearly all immigrants from Yemen were adult males.<ref name="Everyculture"/>
Many Yemeni-Americans also worked in factories in the [[Rust Belt]] of the upper Northeast and Midwest. During the Great Depression of 1929 and until 1945, end of World War II, Yemeni immigration to United States slowed dramatically. Immigration then increased afterward. When in 1965 the quota system for immigration was eliminated, Yemenis could more easily gain visas to reside in and gain employment in the United States. This prompted a great increase in the numbers of Yemeni immigrants. Another feature of Yemeni immigrants in the U.S. is that in the years of immigration that occurred to 1970, nearly all immigrants from Yemen were adult males.<ref name="Everyculture"/>


== Demography ==
== Demography ==
Although the overwhelming majority of Yemeni Americans are Muslim, there are also some [[American Jew]]s of [[Yemenite Jews|Yemeni ancestry]], mostly whose parents or ancestors came to the U.S. via [[Israel]]. Significant Yemeni communities exist in [[The Bronx, New York]] (especially around [[Morris Park, Bronx|Morris Park]] in an enclave called [[Little Yemen]]); the [[Buffalo metropolitan area]] (especially in [[Lackawanna, New York]]); <ref>{{Cite web|title=Lackawanna’s Yemeni community again reacts to unwelcome spotlight &#124; Crime News &#124; buffalonews.com|url=https://buffalonews.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/lackawanna-s-yemeni-community-again-reacts-to-unwelcome-spotlight/article_345e6ddf-bc2e-5728-acfc-a32bf049aeee.amp.html|access-date=2022-02-26|website=buffalonews.com|language=en}}</ref>[[Dearborn, Michigan]]; [[Hamtramck, Michigan]]; [[Falls Church, Virginia]]; [[Chicago, Illinois]]; [[Bakersfield, California]]; [[Oakland, California]]; and [[Fresno, California]]. Over 30,000 Yemeni Americans live in Michigan. A significant population of Yemeni Americans live in the southside of [[Dearborn, Michigan|Dearborn]] (Salina area). A few Yemenis had arrived in Michigan around 1900 but a much larger group came to work in the [[Ford Motor Company]]'s [[Ford Rouge Plant|Rouge Plant]] in the 1920s.<ref>[http://www.arabdetroit.com/arabamericans.php The Detroit Arab American Community] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111006000703/http://arabdetroit.com/arabamericans.php |date=2011-10-06 }}, Arab Detroit, 2011</ref> Immigration to Michigan is still occurring. A survey of Arab Americans in the Detroit area after [[September 11, 2001 attacks|9/11]] found that Yemenis made up 9% of the area's Arab population and that Yemenis had the largest families, the lowest rate of business ownership (3% compared to 20% for other Arab groups), and a high rate of employment in "trades" as opposed to services, administration, professional or sales (43 percent in trades compared to 7 to 17 percent for other Arabs groups).<ref>[http://ns.umich.edu/Releases/2004/Jul04/daas.pdf PRELIMINARY FINDINGS FROM THE DETROIT ARAB AMERICAN STUDY], Wayne Baker, Sally Howell, Amaney Jamal, Ann Chih Lin, Andrew Shryock, Ron Stockton, Mark Tessler, University of Michigan, July 4, 2004</ref> Anthropologist Loukia K. Sarroub while investigating the Dearborn Yemeni culture through the perspective of 6 high-school age girls noted that the community was a "'Yemeni village' in the United States" where "this community continued to live much as they did in Yemen".<ref>{{Cite web|title=All American Yemeni Girls &#124; Loukia K. Sarroub|url=https://www.upenn.edu/pennpress/book/14092.html|access-date=2022-02-26|website=www.upenn.edu}}</ref>
Although the overwhelming majority of Yemeni Americans are Muslim, there are also some [[American Jew]]s of [[Yemenite Jews|Yemeni ancestry]], mostly whose parents or ancestors came to the U.S. via [[Israel]]. Significant Yemeni communities exist in [[The Bronx, New York]] (especially around [[Morris Park, Bronx|Morris Park]] in an enclave called [[Little Yemen]]); [[Brooklyn|Brooklyn, New York]]; the [[Buffalo metropolitan area]] (especially in [[Lackawanna, New York]]);<ref>{{cite web |title=Yemeni Immigrants in Western New York |url=https://hdl.handle.net/1813/73496 |publisher=[[Cornell University Library|Cornell University Libraries]] |access-date=6 September 2024}}</ref> <ref>{{Cite web|title=Lackawanna's Yemeni community again reacts to unwelcome spotlight &#124; Crime News &#124; buffalonews.com|url=https://buffalonews.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/lackawanna-s-yemeni-community-again-reacts-to-unwelcome-spotlight/article_345e6ddf-bc2e-5728-acfc-a32bf049aeee.amp.html|access-date=2022-02-26|website=buffalonews.com|language=en}}</ref>[[Dearborn, Michigan]]; [[Hamtramck, Michigan]]; [[Falls Church, Virginia]]; [[Chicago, Illinois]]; [[Bakersfield, California]]; [[Oakland, California]]; and [[Fresno, California]]. Over 30,000 Yemeni Americans live in Michigan. A significant population of Yemeni Americans live in the southside of [[Dearborn, Michigan|Dearborn]] (Salina area). A few Yemenis had arrived in Michigan around 1900 but a much larger group came to work in the [[Ford Motor Company]]'s [[Ford Rouge Plant|Rouge Plant]] in the 1920s.<ref>[http://www.arabdetroit.com/arabamericans.php The Detroit Arab American Community] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111006000703/http://arabdetroit.com/arabamericans.php |date=2011-10-06 }}, Arab Detroit, 2011</ref> Immigration to Michigan is still occurring. A survey of Arab Americans in the Detroit area after [[September 11, 2001 attacks|9/11]] found that Yemenis made up 9% of the area's Arab population and that Yemenis had the largest families, the lowest rate of business ownership (3% compared to 20% for other Arab groups), and a high rate of employment in "trades" as opposed to services, administration, professional or sales (43 percent in trades compared to 7 to 17 percent for other Arabs groups).<ref>[http://ns.umich.edu/Releases/2004/Jul04/daas.pdf PRELIMINARY FINDINGS FROM THE DETROIT ARAB AMERICAN STUDY], Wayne Baker, Sally Howell, Amaney Jamal, Ann Chih Lin, Andrew Shryock, Ron Stockton, Mark Tessler, University of Michigan, July 4, 2004</ref> Anthropologist Loukia K. Sarroub while investigating the Dearborn Yemeni culture through the perspective of 6 high-school age girls noted that the community was a "'Yemeni village' in the United States" where "this community continued to live much as they did in Yemen".<ref>{{Cite web|title=All American Yemeni Girls &#124; Loukia K. Sarroub|url=https://www.upenn.edu/pennpress/book/14092.html|access-date=2022-02-26|website=www.upenn.edu}}</ref>


Sally Howell, author of Howell, "Competing for Muslims: New Strategies for Urban Renewal in Detroit", wrote that Yemeni people had a presence in the [[Metro Detroit]] area since the late 1960s and "they have participated more actively in transnational practices than have other Arab Americans".<ref>{{Cite book|last=Shryock|first=Andrew|url=https://books.google.com/books?id&#61;QdamRHJ3dxUC&pg&#61;PA210|title=Islamophobia/Islamophilia: Beyond the Politics of Enemy and Friend|date=2010-06-30|publisher=Indiana University Press|isbn=978-0-253-00454-3|language=en}}</ref>
Sally Howell, author of Howell, "Competing for Muslims: New Strategies for Urban Renewal in Detroit", wrote that Yemeni people had a presence in the [[Metro Detroit]] area since the late 1960s and "they have participated more actively in transnational practices than have other Arab Americans".<ref>{{Cite book|last=Shryock|first=Andrew|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QdamRHJ3dxUC&pg=PA210|title=Islamophobia/Islamophilia: Beyond the Politics of Enemy and Friend|date=2010-06-30|publisher=Indiana University Press|isbn=978-0-253-00454-3|language=en}}</ref>


== Language and religion ==
== Language and religion ==
Yemeni Americans speak both English and Arabic. They speak many different dialects of Arabic, including: Sanaani or [[Yemeni Arabic|Northern Yemeni dialect]], [[Ta'izzi-Adeni Arabic|Ta'izzi-Adeni]] or Southern Yemeni dialect, [[Hadhrami Arabic|Hadrami dialect]], [[Mehri language|Mehri dialect]], and [[Judeo-Yemeni Arabic|Judeo-Yemeni dialect]]. Most of them are [[Muslim]].<ref name="Everyculture"/> But some are also [[Jewish]].
Yemeni Americans speak both English and Arabic. They speak many different dialects of Arabic, including: Sanaani or [[Yemeni Arabic|Northern Yemeni dialect]], [[Ta'izzi-Adeni Arabic|Ta'izzi-Adeni]] or Southern Yemeni dialect, [[Hadhrami Arabic|Hadrami dialect]], [[Mehri language|Mehri dialect]], and [[Judeo-Yemeni Arabic|Judeo-Yemeni dialect]]. Most of them are [[Muslim]],<ref name="Everyculture"/> though some are also [[Yemenite Jews|Jewish]].


== Politics ==
== Politics ==
Yemeni Americans have supported the Democratic Party in recent elections. Majority of the community backed Hillary Clinton in the 2016 presidential election and Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Harb|first=Ali|date=29 October 2020|title=Yemen war and Trump's Muslim ban drive Yemeni-American support for Biden|url=http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/yemen-war-and-trump-muslim-ban-drive-yemeni-american-support-biden|url-status=live|access-date=2021-07-01|website=[[Middle East Eye]]}}</ref> In recent years, Yemeni Americans have become more politically active and have increasingly run for political offices.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Harb|first=Ali|date=1 November 2021|title=Yemeni Americans push for representation in key US Arab community|url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/11/1/yemeni-americans-push-for-representation-key-us-arab-community|url-status=live|access-date=2021-12-10|website=www.aljazeera.com}}</ref> Several Yemeni American politicians have won local and state elections.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Albaugh|first=Simon|date=2020-11-21|title=Abraham Aiyash sworn in as first Yemeni American State Rep.|url=https://yemeniamerican.com/en/abraham-aiyash-sworn-in-as-first-yemeni-american-state-rep/|url-status=live|access-date=2021-12-10|website=[[Yemeni American Net|The Yemeni American]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|date=9 December 2021|title=Amer Ghalib: First Yemeni Muslim Becomes Mayor of an American City|url=https://www.albawaba.com/editors-choice/amer-ghalib-first-yemeni-muslim-becomes-mayor-american-city-1458277|url-status=live|access-date=2021-12-10|website=[[Al Bawaba]]|language=en}}</ref>
Yemeni Americans have supported the Democratic Party in recent elections. Majority of the community backed Hillary Clinton in the 2016 presidential election and Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Harb|first=Ali|date=29 October 2020|title=Yemen war and Trump's Muslim ban drive Yemeni-American support for Biden|url=http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/yemen-war-and-trump-muslim-ban-drive-yemeni-american-support-biden|access-date=2021-07-01|website=[[Middle East Eye]]}}</ref> In recent years, Yemeni Americans have become more politically active and have increasingly run for political offices.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Harb|first=Ali|date=1 November 2021|title=Yemeni Americans push for representation in key US Arab community|url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/11/1/yemeni-americans-push-for-representation-key-us-arab-community|access-date=2021-12-10|website=www.aljazeera.com}}</ref> Several Yemeni American politicians have won local and state elections.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Albaugh|first=Simon|date=2020-11-21|title=Abraham Aiyash sworn in as first Yemeni American State Rep.|url=https://yemeniamerican.com/en/abraham-aiyash-sworn-in-as-first-yemeni-american-state-rep/|access-date=2021-12-10|website=[[Yemeni American Net|The Yemeni American]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|date=9 December 2021|title=Amer Ghalib: First Yemeni Muslim Becomes Mayor of an American City|url=https://www.albawaba.com/editors-choice/amer-ghalib-first-yemeni-muslim-becomes-mayor-american-city-1458277|access-date=2021-12-10|website=[[Al Bawaba]]|language=en}}</ref>


== Media and organizations ==
== Media and organizations ==
The [[Yemeni American Net]] was established in June 2007 as a web-site dedicated to bring a view to the world on the Yemeni Americans. One year later, a newspaper was established as the Yemeni American News. The American Association of Yemeni Scientists and Professionals promotes Yemenis in technical fields and provides a college scholarship program.<ref>[http://www.aaysp.org/j2/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=22&Itemid=45 American Association of Yemeni Scientists and Professionals] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110724220042/http://www.aaysp.org/j2/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=22&Itemid=45 |date=2011-07-24 }}, website, 2011</ref> The Yemeni American Association and the Yemeni American Benevolent Association also provide scholarships.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2010-11-03|title=Arab American Scholarships|url=https://www.adc.org/arab-american-scholarships/|access-date=2022-02-26|website=ADC|language=en}}</ref><ref>[http://www.uspolicy.be/headline/yemeni-americans-pillar-support-michigan-community Yemeni Americans Pillar of Support for Michigan Community], M. Scott Bortot, U.S. Embassy in Belgium, 10 March 2011</ref>
The [[Yemeni American Net]] was established in June 2007 as a web-site dedicated to bring a view to the world on the Yemeni Americans. One year later, a newspaper was established as the Yemeni American News. The American Association of Yemeni Scientists and Professionals promotes Yemenis in technical fields and provides a college scholarship program.<ref>[http://www.aaysp.org/j2/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=22&Itemid=45 American Association of Yemeni Scientists and Professionals] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110724220042/http://www.aaysp.org/j2/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=22&Itemid=45 |date=2011-07-24 }}, website, 2011</ref> The Yemeni American Association and the Yemeni American Benevolent Association also provide scholarships.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2010-11-03|title=Arab American Scholarships|url=https://www.adc.org/arab-american-scholarships/|access-date=2022-02-26|website=ADC|language=en}}</ref><ref>[http://www.uspolicy.be/headline/yemeni-americans-pillar-support-michigan-community Yemeni Americans Pillar of Support for Michigan Community], M. Scott Bortot, U.S. Embassy in Belgium, 10 March 2011</ref>

The Yemenite Jewish Federation of America was founded in 1995. American Yemeni Jews took an active role in rescuing European Jews during the holocaust. <ref>{{cite web |title=Records of the Yemenite Jewish Federation of America |url=https://www.jta.org/archive/yemenite-jews-in-u-s-in-echo-call-for-inquiry-into-missing-children |publisher=70/Faces Media |access-date=4 March 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Yemenite Jews in U.S. in Echo Call for Inquiry into Missing Children |url=https://www.jta.org/archive/yemenite-jews-in-u-s-in-echo-call-for-inquiry-into-missing-children |access-date=4 March 2023}}</ref>


==Notable people==
==Notable people==
{{further|:Category:American people of Yemeni descent}}
{{further|:Category:American people of Yemeni descent}}
*[[Abraham Aiyash]], Majority Leader Michigan House of Representatives
*[[Sadam Ali]], boxer
*[[Sadam Ali]], boxer
*[[Hakim Almasmari]], journalist
*[[Hakim Almasmari]], journalist
*[[Sharifa Alkhateeb]], writer and teacher
*[[Sharifa Alkhateeb]], writer and teacher
*[[Amer Ghalib]], politician
* [[Debbie Almontaser]], Muslim schoolteacher and community activist.
* [[Isra Girgrah]], Yemeni-born American professional world champion female boxer.
*[[Isra Girgrah]], Yemeni-born American professional world champion female boxer.
*[[Adam Saleh]], YouTuber and musician
*[[Adam Saleh]], YouTuber and musician


Line 57: Line 56:
{{Yemeni diaspora}}
{{Yemeni diaspora}}
{{Arab diaspora}}
{{Arab American}}
{{Arab American}}
{{Middle Eastern American}}
{{Middle Eastern American}}
{{Asian Americans}}
{{Asian Americans}}
{{Demographics of the United States}}


[[Category:American people of Yemeni descent|*]]
[[Category:American people of Yemeni descent|*]]
[[Category:Arab American]]
[[Category:Yemeni diaspora in the United States| ]]
[[Category:Yemeni American| ]]
[[Category:Middle Eastern diaspora in the United States]]
[[Category:Middle Eastern American]]

Latest revision as of 15:59, 7 November 2024

Yemeni-American
أمريكيون يمنيون
Total population
2020 US Census:[1]
91,288

Yemeni-born, 2023[2]
71,471
Regions with significant populations
New York, Michigan, Virginia, Illinois, California
Languages
ArabicEnglish
Related ethnic groups
Arabs

Yemeni Americans are Americans of Yemeni ancestry. According to an estimate in 2010, more than 100,000 Yemenis live in the United States.

History

[edit]

Although it is unknown when Yemenis first arrived, it is believed that Yemenis were immigrating to the U.S. after 1869, and are recorded in the 1890s. Some Yemenis gained U.S. citizenship by fighting in World War I and World War II. Yemeni immigrants settled in existing Lebanese communities in cities like New York. They were outcast as Muslims, as the Lebanese communities were predominantly Christian, as were Syrian and Palestinian communities. After becoming situated, many Yemenis traveled westward for better job opportunities.[3] In many places of United States, such as Chicago, Brooklyn (New York), and South Dearborn (Michigan), the first Yemeni entrepreneurs were owners of cafes and delis (a well-known example being internet personality Khalid Attaf).[4] However, these companies are not characteristic of Yemeni culture, and it is likely that they have been owners of cafes under the influence of Lebanese and Palestinian communities longer.[5] Many Yemeni-Americans also worked in factories in the Rust Belt of the upper Northeast and Midwest. During the Great Depression of 1929 and until 1945, end of World War II, Yemeni immigration to United States slowed dramatically. Immigration then increased afterward. When in 1965 the quota system for immigration was eliminated, Yemenis could more easily gain visas to reside in and gain employment in the United States. This prompted a great increase in the numbers of Yemeni immigrants. Another feature of Yemeni immigrants in the U.S. is that in the years of immigration that occurred to 1970, nearly all immigrants from Yemen were adult males.[3]

Demography

[edit]

Although the overwhelming majority of Yemeni Americans are Muslim, there are also some American Jews of Yemeni ancestry, mostly whose parents or ancestors came to the U.S. via Israel. Significant Yemeni communities exist in The Bronx, New York (especially around Morris Park in an enclave called Little Yemen); Brooklyn, New York; the Buffalo metropolitan area (especially in Lackawanna, New York);[6] [7]Dearborn, Michigan; Hamtramck, Michigan; Falls Church, Virginia; Chicago, Illinois; Bakersfield, California; Oakland, California; and Fresno, California. Over 30,000 Yemeni Americans live in Michigan. A significant population of Yemeni Americans live in the southside of Dearborn (Salina area). A few Yemenis had arrived in Michigan around 1900 but a much larger group came to work in the Ford Motor Company's Rouge Plant in the 1920s.[8] Immigration to Michigan is still occurring. A survey of Arab Americans in the Detroit area after 9/11 found that Yemenis made up 9% of the area's Arab population and that Yemenis had the largest families, the lowest rate of business ownership (3% compared to 20% for other Arab groups), and a high rate of employment in "trades" as opposed to services, administration, professional or sales (43 percent in trades compared to 7 to 17 percent for other Arabs groups).[9] Anthropologist Loukia K. Sarroub while investigating the Dearborn Yemeni culture through the perspective of 6 high-school age girls noted that the community was a "'Yemeni village' in the United States" where "this community continued to live much as they did in Yemen".[10]

Sally Howell, author of Howell, "Competing for Muslims: New Strategies for Urban Renewal in Detroit", wrote that Yemeni people had a presence in the Metro Detroit area since the late 1960s and "they have participated more actively in transnational practices than have other Arab Americans".[11]

Language and religion

[edit]

Yemeni Americans speak both English and Arabic. They speak many different dialects of Arabic, including: Sanaani or Northern Yemeni dialect, Ta'izzi-Adeni or Southern Yemeni dialect, Hadrami dialect, Mehri dialect, and Judeo-Yemeni dialect. Most of them are Muslim,[3] though some are also Jewish.

Politics

[edit]

Yemeni Americans have supported the Democratic Party in recent elections. Majority of the community backed Hillary Clinton in the 2016 presidential election and Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election.[12] In recent years, Yemeni Americans have become more politically active and have increasingly run for political offices.[13] Several Yemeni American politicians have won local and state elections.[14][15]

Media and organizations

[edit]

The Yemeni American Net was established in June 2007 as a web-site dedicated to bring a view to the world on the Yemeni Americans. One year later, a newspaper was established as the Yemeni American News. The American Association of Yemeni Scientists and Professionals promotes Yemenis in technical fields and provides a college scholarship program.[16] The Yemeni American Association and the Yemeni American Benevolent Association also provide scholarships.[17][18]

The Yemenite Jewish Federation of America was founded in 1995. American Yemeni Jews took an active role in rescuing European Jews during the holocaust. [19][20]

Notable people

[edit]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  • Howell, Sally. "Competing for Muslims: New Strategies for Urban Renewal in Detroit". Located in: Shryock, Andrew (editor). Islamophobia/Islamophilia: Beyond the Politics of Enemy and Friend. Indiana University Press, June 30, 2010. ISBN 0253004543, 9780253004543.

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ "2020 US Census Bureau: 3.5 Million Reported Middle Eastern and North African Descent in 2020".
  2. ^ "PLACE OF BIRTH FOR THE FOREIGN-BORN POPULATION IN THE UNITED STATES, Universe: Foreign-born population excluding population born at sea, 2023 American Community Survey Estimates".
  3. ^ a b c "Yemeni Americans - History, Modern era, The first yemenis in america". www.everyculture.com. Retrieved 2022-02-26.
  4. ^ "Khalid Attaf - YouTube". www.youtube.com. Retrieved 2024-05-04.
  5. ^ Manfred Wenner. "Encyclopedia of Chicago: Yemeni". Encyclopedia of Chicago. Retrieved 21 June 2012.
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