Here’s our 2014 year-in-review of the most important news and developments as reported by The Arab American News locally, nationally and internationally.
Detroit water crisis makes international headlines
The Detroit water crisis has received international attention since it first began in March when the city’s Water and Sewerage Department announced it would issue shut-off notices to customers with unpaid balances that exceeded $150. More than 15,000 customers had service cut between March and June.
Floods cause devastation across metro Detroit
More than 10,000 homes in Dearborn were severely damaged by the August 11 floods that devastated. Many residents were denied assistance from FEMA after applying. More than $1 billion in damages were reported throughout the tri-county area. President Obama issued a flood disaster declaration making federal funding available.
Dearborn falsely accused of terrorist ties
According to classified government documents published by “The Intercept”, Dearborn has the second highest number of “known or suspected terrorists” in the country. Activists and leaders responded to the disproportionate presence of Dearborn residents on the list and defended the community.
Settlement reached with Crestwood School District
The civil rights division of the Department of Justice, working closely with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan, reached a comprehensive settlement agreement with the Crestwood School District in Dearborn Heights to improve educational services for students who are English Language Learners, establish a system for recruiting and hiring faculty and staff and ensure that individuals who complain about discrimination do not face unlawful retaliation.
The Arab American News commemorates 30th anniversary
The Arab American News celebrated its 30th anniversary on Sept. 7. Although the paper did not publish its first issue until Jan. 23, 1985, the publication was incorporated on Sept. 7, 1984. For the following three decades, this newspaper has been chronicling the stories of the Arab American community and amplifying its voice to make its concerns heard.
Rasmea Odeh convicted, later released on bond
Rasmea Odeh was released from jail on Thursday, Dec. 11 after a judge ruled to reinstate her bond. The Palestinian American activist was convicted of immigration fraud on Nov. 10 for not disclosing a conviction in a military court in Israel on her U.S. citizenship application. The Arab American News covered the trial closely for months.
Suicides impact the community
In 2014 a series of suicides rocked the Arab American community. The Arab American News reported on all four of the suicides and broke the silence on the taboo issue for the first time in its 30-year history.
Snyder re-elected
Governor Snyder won a second term during the November gubernatorial election. Snyder narrowly defeated his opponent former Democratic Congressman Mark Schauer.
Detroit exits bankruptcy
In December Emergency Manager Kevyn Orr announced that Detroit was posed to exit bankruptcy. In July 2013, the city filed for bankruptcy. Orr said the city is starting 2015 with a deficit of $58 million. The city’s debt was projected at $18 billion when the city first filed for bankruptcy.
Dingell retires
After 58 years in Congress, U.S. Representative John Dingell (D-MI), the longest serving member of Congress, announced that he would not seek reelection in November, drawing the curtain on 29 Congressional terms. His wife, Deborah Dingell, ran for his seat and won.
Peters elected to senate
The Michigan Democratic Party celebrated U.S. Rep. Gary Peters’ win over former Republican Secretary of State Terri Lynn Land for the U.S. Senate seat vacated by the retiring Democratic Sen. Carl Levin.
Peters defeated Land by 13 percentage points and took office this week.
Ficano loses re-election bid during primary
Wayne County Executive Robert Ficano lost this summer’s primary election to former Wayne County Sheriff Warren Evans, who went on to win the general election in November. Ficano first assumed the office of Wayne County executive in 2003 and had served in public office for more than three decades.
Severstal receives controversial permit
In May, the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality issued a controversial emissions permit to the former steel company Severstal, located in Dearborn’s South End. Residents sued to get the permit reversed. The permit would reportedly allow the facility to emit higher levels of pollutants.
Top national stories
U.S.-Cuba make progressive move
In December, the Obama administration announced it was normalizing relations with the communist island nation of Cuba after more than five decades of tensions grown out of the Cold War. The decision came after 18 months of secret talks hosted by Canada and which included the influential support of Pope Francis. The announcement heralded a new era with the Caribbean country that will include opening an embassy in Havana.
Ebola outbreak
The Ebola outbreak that began in West Africa soon turned into an epidemic when the deadly virus came in contact with U.S. citizens providing assistance in the region. The country was in panic when a Liberian named Thomas Eric Duncan traveled to Texas and became the first man in the country to be diagnosed with the virus. The U.S. government began placing citizens who had visited the region in quarantine. Some of them were later confirmed to have the virus, while others had displayed false symptoms. In total, eight of the 10 U.S. patients who had Ebola were able overcome the virus and survive.
Obama takes action on immigration
In November, President Obama announced a long-awaited executive actions on immigration. His plans sought to increase border security and improve the legal immigration system. A controversial aspect of the plan was to expand relief from deportation to millions of undocumented immigrants, including parents of U.S. citizens and permanent residents. Latinos and other minority groups strongly backed Obama’s position on immigration, while Republicans showed strong opposition.
Freezing temperatures and record snow fall impacts the country
The U.S. began 2014 under freezing temperatures from coast to coast, with record-breaking snowfall in many of the northeast and midwest regions. In the Detroit metro and Chicago metro areas, residents faced the harshest winter since 1977, with temperatures falling below -15 degrees. Snowfall had impacted southern states such as Texas and Georgia, catching local governments by surprise and causing deaths and injuries for commuters.
Police brutality re-emerges, law agencies urged
to use surveillance
Outrage erupted nationwide following the deaths of African American males Mike Brown in Ferguson, MO and Eric Garner in New York City, at the hands of local police officers. The incidents prompted law enforcement agencies to consider placing surveillance cameras on their police force. In late December, a gunman who was upset with a grand jury decision to not indict a police officer, ambushed and fatally shot two NYPD police on duty.
Cyber attacks against Hollywood studio
In November, a cyber attack against Sony Entertainment exposed countless documents and data regarding the company’s private affairs. The attack was eventually lined to their film “The Interview”, which involves a plot to assassinate North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. Under pressure, Sony cancelled the release of the film after receiving threats from an anonymous group that claimed they would terrorize movie theaters that screened it. The film was eventually made available online and released in a limited theater run.
FBI arrest ISIS supporters in the U.S.
Once ISIS emerged as a threat in the Middle East, the FBI announced that it would closely monitor and use surveillance against U.S. residents who are suspected of having ties to the group. Dozens of arrests were made across the country, ranging from teenagers to men and women. Several residents who allegedly booked flights to the Middle East to fight for ISIS were also intercepted at national airports.
CIA torture report released
In December, the Committee Study of the Central Intelligence Agency’s Detention and Interrogation Program released a 6,000 page report detailing abuse actions by CIA officials regarding detainees between 2001-2006. It revealed details about tortured prisoners and false information about CIA programs that was distributed to the public and media. The report caused controversy and put a negative spotlight on the Bush administration.
Marijuana legalized and decriminalized
The legalization of marijuana took its biggest leap forward after the state of Colorado allowed the sale of recreational cannabis from legally licensed businesses. Other states also took measures to either decriminalize recreational use or approve medical marijuana measures.
Secret Service scandal
It was a tough year for the secret service, which faced scrutiny from reports that members were involved in a prostitution ring. Secret Service Director Julia Pierson also stepped down in October following controversy regarding a White House security breach.
Record breaking year for auto recalls
It was a record-breaking year for automobile recalls, as GM, Ford and Chrysler all sent out notices to customers about faulty parts on specific car models. Controversy brewed over GM’s recall of over 800,000 vehicles regarding a faulty ignition switch that could have been corrected more than 10 years earlier. The auto company faced a $10 billion class action lawsuit. Midway through the year, more than 40 million vehicles had already been recalled, the largest since 2004.
Republicans sweep U.S elections
Republicans took the Senate majority in a commanding sweep in the November elections, winning nearly every contested race across the country. They also gained on gubernatorial races and added to their majority in the House of Representatives.
Noteworthy deaths
2014 saw the deaths of Arab American broadcasting legend Casey Kassem; comedian Robin Williams, who died in an apparent suicide; and comedian Joan Rivers, who was amidst controversy weeks before her death when she said Palestinian victims of war deserve to die.
The Islamic State rises
In an abrupt offensive at the beginning of June, the “Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham” captured most of northern Iraq, including Mosul, the country’s second biggest city. On June, 29, the brutal group declared a caliphate over the areas it controlled in northern Iraq and eastern Syria, rebranding itself as “The Islamic State.”
In the territories under their reign, IS militants have driven entire religious communities out of their homes, taken young women as sex slaves, beheaded dissidents and executed foreign hostages.
International coalition starts aerial campaign against extremists in Syria
After the frightening rise of the “Islamic State” the United States and its Western and Arab allies started an aerial campaign to “degrade, and ultimately destroy” the terrorist group. While the air strikes have slowed down the advances of the militants, the coalition forces have yet to reclaim territories captured by the group.
Israeli war on Gaza kills more than 2,000 civilians
On July 8, Israel launched a military offensive on Gaza that killed more than 2,000 civilians. The war, which ended on Aug. 26, claimed the lives of at least 513 Palestinian children. The Israeli forces targeted schools that sheltered refugees and residential neighborhoods in what UN secretary general Ban Ki-moon described as “a clear violation of international law.” Throughout the war, Palestinian rocket fire persisted on Israeli territories. Sixty-six Israeli soldiers and five civilians were killed in the conflict.
Assad elected in Syria
The year did not bring an end to the bloodshed in Syria. While the government forces made advances around Damascus and negotiations led to rebel militants’ leaving Homs, the fighting continued to claim the lives of thousands of Syrians and produce unprecedented waves of refugees. A political solution failed to materialize, but President Bashar al-Assad won a landslide victory in presidential poll on June 4, in an election that was dismissed as illegitimate by the opposition.
The pope visits the Holy Land
Pope Francis visited the Palestinian territories and made an unscheduled stop to pray at the separation wall in Bethlehem. The pope’s gesture was seen as a nod of support to the Palestinian people. The pontiff was photographed visiting sections of the wall where statements like “Free Palestine” and “Bethlehem looks like the Warsaw Ghetto” had been graffiti-sprayed.
Lebanon remains without a president
Lebanon remained without a president throughout the entirety of 2014. But lawmakers who could not elect a new head of state extended their own mandate until 2017, in the absence of an electoral law for the people to vote to a new Parliament. Meanwhile, in August, militants connected to extremist groups in Syria, including al-Qaeda and the “Islamic State”, kidnapped about 30 Lebanese soldiers from the army and the internal security forces. Four servicemen have been executed by the extremists while the rest remain hostages.
Tunisia elects veteran secularist Essebsi as president
On Dec. 22, Tunisians elected Beji Caid Essebsi in the country’s first ever free presidential election. The election of Essebsi, 88, came three years after a popular revolution ousted long-term dictator Zine el Abidine Ben Ali. However, the new president, who defeated human rights activist interim president Moncef Marzouki, is seen as stable choice connected to the old order. Marzouki was backed by moderate Islamist Ennahda Party. Essebsi had served in the government of Ben Ali.
Sisi elected president of Egypt
On May 28, Egypt elected Abdel Fattah el-Sisi as its sixth president. Sisi, a military chief who overthrew the country’s first democratically elected president a year earlier, received 96.91 percent of the vote, a figure that reminded Egyptians of “elections” held in the Hosni Mubarak-era. As president, Sisi continued his crackdown against the Muslim Brotherhood as well as opposition activists, as the military courts handed hundreds of death sentences to supporters of former president Mohamad Morsi.
Mubarak Acquitted
On Nov. 29, an Egyptian court acquitted former dictator Hosni Mubarak of charges connected with the deaths of protesters during the 2011 uprising.
Ailing Boutaflika reelected in Algeria
Algerian President Abdelaziz Boutaflika was reelected on April 17. Concerns about Boutaflika’s health were a topic of debate. The 77-year-old has made few public appearances this year. The election was boycotted by six opposition parties.
Houthi militants turn the table in Yemen
In September, Houthi militants shocked the Arab World when they captures Sanaa with little resistance from government forces. Under Houthi pressure, a new Yemeni government was sworn in last month. But instability continues to rock the Arabian Peninsula nation, whose weak central government is struggling to quell the Houthis, southern separatists and al-Qaeda-linked extremists.
Saudi Arabia, UAE and Bahrain withdraw ambassadors from Qatar
Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates recalled their ambassadors from Doha on March 5. The hostilities between Qatar and its neighboring Gulf nations were mainly a result of its backing of the Muslim Brotherhood, which Saudi Arabia sees as a threat to its regional power.
Germany wins the World Cup
The German national team defeated Argentina 1-0 on July 13 to claim its fourth world cup title. The highlight of the tournament occurred when Germany shockingly humiliated the Brazilian hosts in a 7-1 defeat.
Scotland votes down independence
On Sept. 18, Scotland voted to remain a part of the United Kingdom. More than 55 percent of the voters answered “no” on the poll asking, “Should Scotland be an independent country.”
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