Robert Saleh’s Firing is a Reminder of Arab American Reality

The former Jets coach has been fired after a 2–3 start, and it has led to many Arab Americans to speculate if there is more to his dismissal than meets the eye

Jeff George and John Elway have more in common than some fans might think, despite one being considered a bust and the other an all-time great. Both players are quarterbacks, were selected with the number one pick in the draft, led the league in passing yards for a season, and are in the top 100 in career passing yards (George sits at 71st while Elway is at 12th). But they have another thing in common that many fans may not know: they are both part Arab; Elway is part Lebanese while George is part Syrian.

As an Arab American, it is not often that I can look at the sports world and identify with an athlete or coach that shares my heritage. The only current example that comes to mind is Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray, whose mother is Syrian. Murray identifies as Jamaican-Canadian (a nod to his father’s ancestry and his home country of Canada), so even that connection feels relatively thin for me. So, when the New York Jets hired Robert Saleh to be their head coach in January of 2021, I felt a sense of pride.

Saleh is proudly Arab-American. He was born in the Arab community of Dearborn, Michigan to parents who were Lebanese…