The Arab American News
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Celebrating mothers: Amira Kassem
Amira KassemAmira Kassem is a teacher at home as much as she is a mother in the classroom, according to her daughter Julia Kassem, who teaches advanced English at Dearborn High School. Julia Kassem was taught the dual nature of the Arab American identity by her mother, who embraced American values without forgetting her...Celebrating mothers: Ensaff Sabbagh Jawad
Ensaff Sabagh JawadEnsaff Sabagh Jawad lost a husband and two sons during her lifetime. But she never let setbacks dictate her life.Ensaff Jawad was the mother of nine children, including Ali Jawad, the founder of the Lebanese American Heritage Club. The resilient mother, who passed away earlier this year, was born in the southern...Celebrating mothers: Fatima Elabed
Rashida Tlaib and Fatima ElabedThey say it takes a village to raise a child. Fatima Elabed has raised 14— seven boys and seven girls. She is the mother of former State Rep. Rashida Tlaib and prominent activist Rachid Elabed. Tlaib said humor was her mother's secret to achieve the difficult task of caring for so many children."My...Celebrating mothers: Zinat Shatila
Zinat ShatilaShatila Bakery is a symbol of the Arab American dream— a far reaching entrepreneurial success that stems from a mix of innovation and tradition. Zinat Shatila, widow of the legendary Riad Shatila, is the president of the company. She is also a hard-working mother who helped raise three women: Nada, Tanya and Batoul.Nada...John Kasich drops out of the Republican race
KasichWASHINGTON — Donald Trump's last remaining challenger for the Republican Party presidential nomination, John Kasich, dropped out of the race on Wednesday, leaving the presumptive nominee with the task of uniting a fractured party around his White House bid.Even before winning his home state of Ohio in March, Kasich was facing...Obama visits Flint as questions linger
President Barack Obama on Wednesday visited Flint, as questions linger over whether his environmental regulators could have acted more urgently to address the lead poison water crisis.Obama will get updates from federal officials on the response in Flint, a mostly African-American city where more than 40 percent of the city's 100,000...
Sanders wins Indiana
May 4th, 20160 Bernie SandersINDIANAPOLIS — Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders won the Indiana primary in an upset over Hillary Clinton, who had led the Hoosier State in polling.Sanders led 53 percent to 47 percent, with 92 percent of precincts reporting, according to The Associated Press."The past few weeks the corporate media has...Community celebrates passing of $35 million Crestwood School District bond
Dearborn Heights community members celebrate following the announcement of a passing resolution of the Crestwood School District bond. DEARBORN HEIGHTS — The efforts of community members involved in engaging residents to vote "yes" on a ballot to revamp the Crestwood District schools has paid off – and their cheerful celebration...Did the Arabs betray Palestine?
At the age of 21, I crossed Gaza into Egypt to pursue a degree in political science. The timing could not have been worse. The Iraq invasion of Kuwait in 1990 had resulted in a U.S.-led international coalition and a major war, which eventually paved the road for the 2003 U.S. invasion. I became aware that Palestinians were...
Ted Cruz drops out of presidential race, clears Trump’s path
May 4th, 20160 INDIANAPOLIS — Senator Ted Cruz of Texas announced Tuesday that he was ending his presidential campaign, bowing to the reality that his crushing loss in Indiana all but assured the nomination of Donald J. Trump. “From the beginning, I have said that I will continue on as long as there is a viable path to...California high school selects Muslim student as prom queen
Zarifeh Shalabi SAN BERNARDINO - A California Muslim student, who lives a few miles from the site of the deadly San Bernardino shooting, received the symbol of teenage acceptance after she was crowned prom queen at Fontana's Summit High School.The Muslim prom queen attributed her victory to...
Canton Urgent Care doctor charged with 22 counts of fraud
May 3rd, 20160 CANTON- A doctor at Canton Urgent Care is facing 22 fraud charges for allegedly billing Medicaid and Blue Cross Blue Shield for services he didn't provide.On Tuesday, Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette announced the charges against Dr. Bassel Altantawi, 45, of Farmington Hills. Altantawi is facing nine counts of Medicaid...Six killed in Palestine, Texas floods
PALESTINE, TEXAS - A grandmother and four of her grandchildren were killed and another person also died in floods in Texas caused by storms that unleashed tornadoes, damaging hail and torrential rains on several central U.S. states, officials said on Saturday.The woman and her grandchildren died in Palestine, Texas, 100 miles (160 km)...Judge kicks Muslim woman out of courtroom for wearing Hijab
Louisiana - An unidentified Muslim woman said she was humiliated by being told to wait outside a Louisiana courtroom to pay a ticket at a traffic hearing this week because she refused to remove her headscarf. However, Judge Raylyn Beevers, who confirmed the Tuesday incident at Jefferson Parish Traffic Court, said it resulted from a...
Trump supporter attacks Muslim woman at D.C. Starbucks
April 30th, 20160 WASHINGTON — The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) is asking the Metropolitan Police Department to preserve any surveillance video they may have of a Trump supporter attacking a Muslim woman. According to CAIR, a Muslim woman - who is African-American - was wearing a hijab outside of a Starbucks in Northwest, Washington on......
Answers needed from the Dearborn Police Department
April 29th, 20160 Police recruits with city officials - Photo: City of DearbornAs journalists, our responsibility is not to fix the government, but to point out the areas that need repairs. We can't patch the potholes in the streets. However, we can raise concerns about decaying roads.When we point to an issue and those in charge ignore it, the voices we...Local Arab actor lands key role in new “Criminal Minds” spin-off
New Criminal Minds spin-off features local actor Atif HashwiHOLLYWOOD— In his first major television role, Atif Hashwi, a Dearborn native, will guest star in the CBS series “Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders”, airing on May 4.The show, which debuted in March, is a spin-off of the popular “Criminal Minds”, now in its 11th......
Iranian Americans: Rich culture, common challenges
Iranian Americans gather at a Taste of Iran event in Detroit.DEARBORN — As local Arab Americans go about their lives, they may or may not be aware of a smaller and equally rooted neighboring community that shares their struggles, but strives to retain its unique identity – Persian Americans. The Arab and Iranian cultures are...
Survey reveals turmoil within Dearborn Police Department
April 29th, 20160 DEARBORN- A survey reported by 7 Action News, is painting an ugly picture of life inside the Dearborn Police Department.The survey was mailed out to 180 officers, lieutenants and sergeants who work for Dearborn police. Of the 180, 124 responded to the 78-page document. 109 members of the department...Michigan House votes to study marijuana limit for drivers
LANSING - Lawmakers are tackling the topic of driving while high. They're aiming to determine how much marijuana is safe in a person's system, while behind the wheel. The House is expected to vote next week to create a commission to research the threshold of THC for driving. Currently, a bill is up...Proposal to turn unfinished Wayne County jail into soccer stadium
DETROIT — Quicken Loans founder Dan Gilbert and Pistons executive Arn Tellem announced a $1 billion plan to turn Wayne County's unfinished jail site into a project that includes a Major League Soccer stadium. Detroit does not have a team the competes in the MLS. The planned site is essential for Detroit to secure an MLS franchise,......
ACCESS honors Flint-area notable Arabs at annual dinner
Ghassan and Manal Saab (c ) with ACCESS officials.DETROIT — ACCESS recognized notable Arab Americans from the Flint area at its 45th annual dinner on Saturday, April 23. The social services organization gave its first "Champion of Justice" award to Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha, the pediatrician who discovered elevated lead levels in the...
ADC-MI annual MLK banquet calls for unity, end to silence
April 29th, 20160 Dr. Mona Hanna Attisha accepts and award from ADC-MI and friends.DEARBORN — The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee of Michigan's (ADC-MI) 17th annual Martin Luther King Jr. Scholarship Banquet reflected on an overwhelming year of hate rhetoric targeting minority groups across the country. The event, held Wednesday,......
Local artist wants to present Bible verses in Arabic calligraphy
Fidel Charaf.With religious restrictions on various forms of artistic expressions, including music, sculpting and painting, calligraphy became the Islamic art. The walls, columns and domes of the world's biggest mosques are decorated by skillfully crafted words and sentences. Lebanese American artist Fadel Charaf is presenting bible...Fordson students win state contest, to compete in Boston for nationals
Aya Beydoun and Mariam Makki.DEARBORN — Two Fordson High School seniors won a state contest in Grand Rapids for displaying their Arab American heritage during a broadcast production assignment; and will now be moving forward to a national contest in Boston. Aya Beydoun and Mariam Makki submitted their assignment for the......
