Yusra Tekbali

Hi, I'm Yusra. I'm the middle child of 7. I'm lucky to have two wonderful Libyan parents. I was born and raised in the United States which makes me a first-generationer. Anthropologists, sociologists and people who are fond of Arab memes are likeley to understand me. Narrow-minded people are likeley to misinterpret me--with animals it's hit-or-miss (cat claws ouch!)

Although I might seem lazy I've actually done a few cool things in another life. I went on a Libyan delegation to help Syrian refugees in Jordan in 2012. Before that I visited refugee camps along the Libya/Tunisia border and participated in political discussions, workshops and women's rights groups in the Middle East. I've written articles for major news outlets and was a blogger for Muslimah Mediah Watch, a site whch critically examines the portrayal of Muslim women in the media and pop culture. I'm one of the contributing authors of a really cool book called "I Speak For Myself: American Women on Being Muslim" and spoke about women in the media at Georgetown University and the American University of Sharjah in the UAE. I've travelled quite a bit and I plan to continue to travel the world until I leave this Earth. I'm an Ibn Batutta fan and a former Miss Arab USA finalist. I speak fluent Arabic and conversational Spanish and want to learn some French.

I'm currently working as English editor of a soon-to-be-launched news website. Be sure to check my website www.yusratekbali.com for details.