reem assil: my hope is that when people walk into the reem's space and they experience our food and they experience the hospitality that surrounds our food maybe something shifts. we're creating some alchemy in people's consciousness that when they walk out the door they're just a little bit different in the way that they relate to the world. salti: arab americans post 9/11 started feeling singled out, started feeling different, started feeling shunned, ostracized. it changed the whole idea, the whole experience of being an arab in america. kiswani: it was actually physically dangerous to be seen or understood as an arab walking through the streets of anywhere in the u.s. there were hate crimes happening all over the country. assil: there was a time in my life in which i felt like maybe my life was at stake being outspoken about my arab identity. i really wanted to educate people, but i didn't know how to find my voice. i feel like i lost it. for me, the backlash against me being palestinian led to a deeper calling. kiswani: i remember in that while she was a leader at aroc she talked ab