The Arab American News
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Arab American’s film makes its way to Toronto International Film Festival
Arab American film director and writer Rola Nashef's new film, Detroit Unleaded, is expected to premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival this September. Detroit Unleaded chronicles the life of Arab American gas station owners in metropolitan Detroit, the dangerous work environments they are placed in, and the daily...Proceeds from Eid Festival go towards funding college scholarships
DEARBORN — Since the annual Eid Festival first launched in 2010, its proceeds have gone towards funding college scholarships to assist the youth. “That is one of our main goals. Part of the reason we have the festival to provide college students with financial assistance,” Eid Festival coordinator Hassan Hakim said. Last year...
UN report: Gaza will be ‘unlivable’ by 2020 unless immediate action taken
August 28th, 20120 Gaza will no longer be “livable” by 2020 unless urgent measures are taken to improve the area’s water supply, power, health and schooling, according to a UN report.“Action needs to be taken right now on fundamental aspects of life: water sanitation, electricity, education, health and other aspects,” UN humanitarian...Christian missionaries attract mixed reactions on Warren Avenue; say they’re not against Muslims
DEARBORN — A group of five men demonstrated peacefully along Warren Avenue here Thursday drawing mixed reactions from drivers and others who found it hard to avoid them, considering one man held up a large wooden cross featuring Christian teachings written in Arabic. Domenic Danesi says he's not against Muslims or any faith, and...President Obama’s and Senator Stabenow’s leads in Michigan slip away
Republican Presidential Candidate Mitt Romney and Republican Senate Candidate Pete Hoekstra have pulled in front by a small margin in the Presidential and Senate contest. So far, Congressman Ryan is a hit in Michigan. In what can only be termed as a significant turn of events, Mitt Romney’s selection of Wisconsin Congressman Paul...Detroit Police Department focuses more on preventing crime at gas stations
DETROIT — The Detroit Police Department is giving more attention to placing greater security measures at gas stations here where they say statistics show a high number of carjackings takes place. Recently The Arab American News published a piece chronicling a typical day for gas station owners in the city, and learned more about...Muslims in wealthy Detroit suburb seek a mosque, and friends join them to fight the bigotry
The public turnout for the projected conversion of an existing closed public school building, slated for demolition, into a private cultural center, school, and mosque was announced by the Planning Commission to be the largest ever in its history. The place was West Bloomfield Township, Michigan, a western suburb of Detroit....Due process under duress: Detaining citizens under NDAA
Activists retaliate against the U.S. government by suing them for signing a bill they say goes against the ConstitutionThe U.S. government seems determined to have the power to do away with due process and Americans' right to a trial.I am one of the lead plaintiffs in the civil lawsuit against the National Defense Authorization Act,...Republican lawmaker skinny-dipped on Israel trip
REUTERS — A group of Republican lawmakers and staff jumped into Israel's Sea of Galilee last year after a night of dining and drinking, and one freshman congressman swam naked, Republican aides confirmed late on Sunday.The incident, first reported by Politico on Sunday, was investigated by the FBI and led Republican leaders in the...Syrian Army recaptures heart of Aleppo
The Syrian Army recaptured three Christian neighborhoods in the historic heart of Aleppo from rebels Thursday, but fierce clashes continued in other parts of the northern city, residents said.Loyalist forces also battled rebels in Damascus after launching a ferocious assault to try to reinforce their hold on the capital, activists...
Washington’s war drums drown out opportunities for peace in Syria
August 26th, 20120 WASHINGTON - As violence in Syria spikes after a short lull, the prospect of international military intervention appears to be growing by the day. Earlier this week, almost exactly one year after President Barack Obama first called on Syrian president Bashar Al-Assad to step down, Obama warned of “enormous consequences if we start...Local organizations tackle hunger issues during Ramadan interfaith event
DETROIT — On Wednesday United Way for Southeastern Michigan held a reception tilted "Ramadan 2012: Fight Against Hunger" at their headquarters in downtown with co-sponsorships from the Michigan Muslim Community Council, Muslims for Humanity, Zaman International, and No Kid Hungry Michigan. The reception addressed the current state of...
U.S. Vice President discusses plight of Iraqi Christians with local Chaldeans
August 26th, 20120 WEST BLOOMFIELD - U.S. Vice President Joe Biden made a stop at the Shenandoah Country Club here Tuesday where he discussed the plight of Iraqi Christians with members of the Chaldean community.Chaldeans are Iraqi Catholics, and the largest concentration in the United States resides in metro Detroit. More than half of Iraq’s...
Dearborn middle school program paves the way for future Arab American journalists
August 26th, 20120 DEARBORN — In the 2010-2011 school year, McCollough-Unis School allowed the Asian American Journalism Association (AAJA) to launch a project from the AAJA’s Executive Leadership Program for Unis Middle School students titled “The Living Textbook.” Jim Finkelstein, news editor for digital at the Detroit Free Press, talks...U.S. aircraft carrier heads to Mideast
U.S. Defense Secretary cites ‘threats’ from Iran, Syria in deploying USS John Stennis, its strike groupWASHINGTON — Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said Wednesday that the United States was preparing for "threats" from Iran and Syria's turmoil as an aircraft carrier headed to the region ahead of schedule.The USS John Stennis and its......
Poll: GOP really dislikes Muslims
August 26th, 20120 A new survey shows just how uncomfortable the Republican base is with Muslim and Arab peopleAnyone wondering why Rep. Michele Bachmann would launch a witch hunt against Muslims or why the Republican Party would add a plank to its platform opposing Sharia law need look no farther than a new poll conducted by the Arab American...
Lebanese Army given green light to end Tripoli violence
August 26th, 20120 TRIPOLI – Lebanon Prime Minister Najib Mikati said Thursday that the Lebanese Army has been given the “green light” to restore order in the northern city of Tripoli after three days of clashes left at least 12 dead and 70 wounded, including 11 soldiers, according to a report by The Daily Star. Mikati, who chaired a meeting of......
Rebuffing Israel, U.N. chief heads to Iran for summit meeting
August 26th, 20120 UNITED NATIONS — Brushing aside a warning by the Israeli government and rebuffing a campaign by pro-Israeli lobbying groups in the United States, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has decided to visit Iran next week to participate in the summit meeting of the 120-member Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), described as the world’s largest...
The human cost of war on Iran
August 26th, 20120 In late 2002, just prior to the launch of the U.S. “shock and awe” campaign against Iraq, I was invited to join a gathering of intelligence analysts at the U.S. Army War College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, to participate in an Iraq “war games” exercise. We were assigned specific roles and asked to “play out” various political...
Assessing the real risks in Syria
August 26th, 20120 For some time, Sen. John McCain and the Wilsonian neoconservatives have been beating the drum to escalate the U.S. intervention in Syria. Now, from the other side of the political spectrum, the Wilsonian progressives are calling for the same solution. The hawks on the left and right abhor each other on most policy issues, but in foreign...
Innovative educator Nawal Hamadeh: A pillar of the Arab American community
August 26th, 20120 Nawal Hamadeh had just completed the 9th grade before emigrating to the United States from Beirut, Lebanon in October 1971.Despite arriving to a new country with limited knowledge of the language, she would grow to become a pillar in her community by creating a world-renowned charter school system in metro Detroit, making her a true......
City of Taylor under scrutiny for apartment fire, several families left dismantled
August 26th, 20120 TAYLOR — Last week a major fire at the Park Place Apartment complex in the city of Taylor located on Eureka Rd. left a total of seven families displaced and homeless after the fire was put out several hours later. The incident is the latest in a string of controversies for the city, who earlier this month had already been under...New Detroit, Inc. seeks leaders to join Multicultural Leadership Series
DETROIT — New Detroit, Inc. is currently seeking applicants for its 2012 Multicultural Leadership Series which provides participants an up-close experience to increase their cultural competency by focusing on the culture and history of six communities of color in Southeast Michigan. Sessions begin Thursday, September 20, 2012.“The......
Lebanese American Club Youth feeds the hungry in Ramadan
On Friday Aug. 17 the Lebanese American Heritage Club Youth Leadership Committee (LAHC-YLC) provided several unprivileged families with free meals at the Muslim Center in Detroit during Ramadan. "During an era of budget cuts, and with people losing their source of income and becoming vulnerable to facing hunger... such programs become...Lebanon needs a Spring of ideas
Lebanon and Syria are close and intertwined: demographically, geographically, culturally, politically and historically. Lebanon was carved partially out of Syria in 1920. Every other Lebanese person has a relative, a business partner or a friend in Syria.If the uprising in Syria is a process of genuine renewal, Lebanon is bound to......
