"Sen and Mamdouh have written a wonderfully illuminating book. By focusing on the concrete experiences of particular people caught up in the whirlwind of changes associated with immigration, they show us an overlooked aspect of the global changes that have set contemporary immigration in motion. And because they also show us the resilient efforts of these ordinary people to act together to control the forces that are shaping all our lives, they tell a story that is essentially hopeful and, indeed, the only story that in the end matters."
–Frances Fox Piven, Distinguished Professor, The Graduate Center, City University of New York and author of Challenging Authority: How Ordinary People Change America

"Through the eyes of a Muslim World Trade Center restaurant worker, Sen and Mamdouh tell the dramatic story of immigrants struggling to organize in the hardened climate after September 11th. With precision and insight, they reveal why the current debates over immigration to the global North are largely wrong-headed and argue we must embrace our nation's cultural diversity and our globalized future."
–Jeff Chang, author of Can't Stop Won't Stop: A History of The Hip-Hop Generation and editor of Total Chaos: The Art and Aesthetics of Hip-Hop

“Rinku Sen has brilliantly depicted the new stage in America’s immigrant saga. She explores the shadowy corners of our modern global economy, the courageous battle for survival of low-wage migrant laborers and the furious rise of anti-immigrant feeling here and in Europe. By organizing to improve their working conditions, she reminds us, those immigrants are changing our nation for the better.”
–Juan Gonzalez, New York Daily News columnist, author of Harvest of Empire: A History of Latinos in America and cohost of Democracy Now

"If you have ever had to struggle as an outsider or a newcomer (and all of us have), this book will touch your heart. It is a poignant story that points the way forward for us all. "
–Van Jones, President and Founder of Green For All

“You can read piles of stultifying position papers on immigration and globalization or you can read Rinku Sen’s story of Fekkak Mamdouh. I recommend the latter. Yes, it’s a much more compelling tale, but it will also get you much closer to the heart of the both the challenges we face and their solutions.”
–Jared Bernstein, senior economist, Economic Policy Institute and author of Crunch: Why Do I Feel So Squeezed?

"What distinguishes The Accidental American from the crowded field of books on the contentious issue of immigration is its examination of the subject from a number of distinct scales and perspectives. Sen and Mamdouh provide a unique and engaging narrative that is attentive to both the structural inequalities generated by globalization and the ways these inequalities are experienced, and challenged, by individuals. Taken as a whole, the book highlights creative possibilities at the local, national, and global levels that help us move beyond the current policies of criminalizing immigrants."
–Michael Omi, Associate Professor, Ethnic Studies Department, University of California, Berkeley