Friends, Peace, and Sanctuary Journal

The Friends, Peace, and Sanctuary (FPS) Journal aims to uplift the legacy of the first Arabic newspaper ever published in the United States called Al-Hoda. The newspaper began in Philadelphia in 1898 before being relocated to New York. The new FPS Journal was founded by a group of people who came together during a book arts project that engaged archives in the contemporary exploring arts capacity to increase empathy and sense of belonging at Swarthmore College with the same name. The FPS Journal is a free, quarterly community newspaper that is currently distributed across Philadelphia and Allentown. It is published in Arabic and English with stories reflecting on living in the diaspora, arts, culture, food, and places from home. The Journal is currently designed and managed by Yaroub Al-Obaidi and Nora Elmarzouky who were also involved in the Pew Center for Arts and Heritage funded project with the same name at Swarthmore College.