About afikra | عفكرة

This is a question we get a lot. It is pronounced a’fikra (عفكرة or 3afikra) which means “on second thought” or "come to think of it" in colloquial Levantine Arabic. The name is appropriate given that our mission is to cultivate curiosity. In other words, afikra is all about collectively taking a moment to spend a second to explore topics that we are curious about.

afikra started in 2014 when afikra Founder, Mikey Muhanna, was living in New York City. The idea came to him at a small rooftop event on a September evening in Brooklyn, when he decided to establish a community for him and his friends to explore Arab histories and cultures.

The desire to form this community was born out of Mikey's internal frustration that he engaged with the Arab world in two ways: either through cultural celebrations with family and friends (weddings, reunions, holidays, etc.) or through engaging in activism (attending rallies, watching documentaries, protesting, etc.). He and his friends felt a need to create another way to engage with the region.

After the first event, more people began to attend, first from all over New York, and then they started to fly in from other parts of the world. It became clear that this need wasn't unique to a small group of friends. From there, afikra began to grow and launch chapters all over the world. Farah Assir, Leen Sadder, and Rami Abou-Khalil were among the original team members whose contributions helped shape our mission, brand, and NYC chapter. Other early contributors include Malek Rasamny, Kareem Salman, Dina Mahmoud, Tala Mansi, Dalia Hamati, Olivia Shabb, Yazan Kopty, Laila Mokhiber, & Fady Atallah.

We do three things:

1) COMMUNITY: We host community in-person events all over the world that bring people together to learn about the Arab world’s histories and cultures. These events are led by afikra volunteers and feature talks by members of the community. Every speaker gets coached on their presentation by the afikra Learning team.

2) LEARNING: We develop and offer courses for high school students, schools, universities and corporations all about Critical Thinking, Critical Inquiry, and Expanding Our Understanding of the Arab World.

3) MEDIA: We publish daily podcasts and video featuring interviews with experts whose work is shaping how we think about the region’s histories & cultures.

Absolutely Not! This is a community of ANYONE who feels like they have an authentic interest in the Arab world and want to grow their connection to the region. We focus on your interests, not your identity.