In fact, Arab American literature suffers only one plague. It is issue-driven and it often originates from an academic discipline. There is nothing wrong with issue-driven or academic literature. It's important to a full rounding of ethnic literary product. But it should only be a part.
Academic literature is rich in research, analysis and clinical detail.
Yet these qualities are the very reason why they fail in achieving what other ethnic literature strives to achieve. It is wrong when issue-driven or academic literature dominates our literary output. Not only dominates, but overshadows. This is not a criticism of either, but a challenge to the status quo of the Arab American literary community to set its sites beyond the self-imposed limitations that have dominated our writings since the first Arab immigrant stepped foot on American shores. You need not define an audience in literary creation, but audience often establishes its place in society.