Steven Salaita is an American scholar, author, and public speaker known for his work on topics such as Arab Americans, Indigenous peoples, race and ethnicity, and literature.

He gained significant attention due to the Steven Salaita hiring controversy when the University of Illinois decided not to hire him as a professor of American Indian Studies. This decision followed objections to a series of tweets he made that were critical of Israel's bombardment of Gaza in 2014. Salaita also faced similar issues during the hiring process at the American University of Beirut in 2016.

He currently resides in Blacksburg, Virginia, where he teaches English at Virginia Tech. He lives with his beloved wife, a half-blind bichon frise, a nutty orange tabby, and his son, Ignatius, the fiery one.