'Discrimination': Arab American event moved from Amazon headquarters

Amazon refused to host an event celebrating Arab American culture at the eleventh hour, prompting fears that the move was “discriminatory” and part of a broader systemic effort to suppress Arab American voices and visibility.

The National Arab American Heritage Month Commemoration was scheduled to take place on 9 April at Amazon East Coast headquarters in Arlington, Virginia (known as HQ2), to honour the achievements of people from the Arab-American community.

Organisers had been planning the event for six months and began working with Amazon’s employee resource group, Arabs at Amazon, in mid-February to coordinate logistics. The group has 4,000 members worldwide.

Then, on 7 April, 48 hours before the event was due to take place, Amazon announced that it was "postponing" the event.

One of the key organisers of the event was Warren David, co-founder of the Arab America Foundation (AAF). He established National Arab American Heritage Month in 2017, commemorating Arab American heritage and culture each April. 

Read more: 'Discrimination': Arab American event moved from Amazon headquarters