The Arab American News
Author's Posts
Principal of Arabic school fights back
October 20th, 20070 NEW YORK — At 5 p.m. on Tuesday, October 16, Debbie Almontaser appeared on the steps of the New York City Hall and responded publicly for the first time since she was victim of a torrent of anti-Arab, anti-Muslim racism. A Yemeni-American with an extensive record of educational and community work in Brooklyn, Almontaser was the founding...Film sparks revival of Jenin theater
Hamtramck—Years after the release of the award-winning, heart-crushing documentary "Arna's Children," the film's creator is traveling the world to raise money to rebuild the Palestinian youth theater that the movie centers around. Footage of smiling, hopeful faces of a group of Jenin refugee camp children juxtaposed with later images...Will Lebanon get a next president?
It is presidential election countdown time in Lebanon but the parliament that votes is a divided house. Will the legislature finally vote or will it demolish the house instead? What is wrong in Lebanon? There is political paralysis. A handicapped cabinet duels robotically with a dizzy opposition. Sectarian governance power sharing is...Explosion of freedoms brings responsibilities too
We are living in an era of remarkable world-wide transformation, which has accelerated dramatically in just the last few decades. The collapse of communism led to the emergence of free market democracies throughout Eastern and Central Europe. Previously marginal economies in the Arab Gulf and South and Southeast Asia have emerged as...Regime change begins at home
Wesley Clark's new memoir casts more light on the Bush administration's secret strategies for regime change in Iran and elsewhere.While the Bush White House promotes the possibility of armed conflict with Iran, a tantalizing passage in Wesley Clark's new memoir suggests that another war is part of a long-planned Department of...Inquiry urged on Hunt Oil contract in Iraq
Democrats say Bush ties may have led to Iraq oil contract Washington — Democratic lawmakers moved Monday toward investigating Hunt Oil's oil exploration contract in Iraq, saying the company's ties to President Bush raised questions about whether it had insider information that helped it reach the deal. U.S. Rep. Henry Waxman,...NCC execs welcome Muslim leaders’ letter
NEW YORK — "We welcome the letter of these Islamic leaders and scholars," said the Rev. Michael Livingston, president of the National Council of Churches USA (NCC), in response to a document, "A Common Word between Us and You," released by 138 moderate Muslim leaders on the occasion of Eid-al-Fitr, the concluding day of Ramadan, the...
Clinton outlines foreign policy positions
October 20th, 20070 WASHINGTON (IPS) — In her most comprehensive — if characteristically cautious — foreign policy pronouncement to date, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton stressed a clear preference for diplomacy and "soft power" in pursuing U.S. interests abroad, but added she would not hesitate to use military force unilaterally if she deemed it necessary....In Lebanon, a comeback for cannabis
Bekaa Valley — Ali plucks a sprig of the cannabis sativa plant and sniffs its distinctive leaves with appreciation. This Lebanese farmer's field of marijuana, a splash of bright green on the sun-baked plains of eastern Lebanon's Bekaa Valley, will yield around 15 kilograms (33 pounds) of cannabis resin, or hashish, which he will sell for...Local boxer to appear in EMU match
Undefeated professional boxer Brian Mihtar, currently 6-0 with 5 knockouts, is scheduled to fight on Oct. 26th at the Eastern Michigan University Homecoming Boxing Event in Ypsilanti. A junior middleweight at 154 pounds, Mihtar is known to draw large crowds because of his knockout ability and interest from the Arab American...Ladies only CCW classes
DETROIT — Women who wish to obtain a permit to carry a concealed weapon (CCW) will have a chance to receive their required safety training as a group when the Wayne County Sheriff's Office in partnership with the Wayne County Community College District offers a "for women only" CCW gun safety class on October 27th and November 3rd,...Michael A. Guido Theater to be dedicated
DEARBORN — The late Mayor Michael A. Guido will be honored on Friday, Nov. 16, when the theater at Dearborn's Ford Community & Performing Arts Center will be dedicated in his name during a gala affair. As appropriate for a festive opening night, fireworks and a champagne toast will kick off the evening as the new Michael A. Guido...Accent reduction services
DEARBORN — Unlike some providers of accent reduction services, clients of Dearborn Speech and Sensory Center work with certified speech-language pathologists who are able to address other issues as well, including articulation, grammar, voice disorders and help with public speaking. "Our speech language pathologists come from diverse...ACCESS director selected for premier leadership program
Dearborn — Hannan Deep, ACCESS Communications Director, is among 65 of Detroit’s top professionals selected to participate in the upcoming Leadership Detroit program, the Detroit Regional Chamber's premier leadership development and training program. More than 1,600 regional leaders have completed the program, including such notables...Briton killed while clearing IDF cluster bombs in southern Lebanon
BEIRUT — A British man was killed on Thursday while clearing cluster bombs dropped on southern Lebanon by Israel during its war with Hizbullah guerrillas last year, a United Nations spokeswoman said. He was the 13th person to be killed during work to clear unexploded ordnance from the war in July and August, 2006, said Dalya Farran of......
Election 2008: Too early to predict party candidates
Despite the musings of pundits, spin from the campaigns and the results of respected national polls, the U.S. presidential primaries are not over. In fact, they have not even begun. National polls showing Senator Hillary Clinton and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani maintaining (and in Clinton's case, increasing) leads over their...Sadr Foundation to hold women’s breakfast
DEARBORN — The Sadr Foundation-USA Chapter will be holding its 4th Annual Women's Day Breakfast on Saturday, Oct. 20, at 11 a.m. at Byblos Banquet Center here to raise funds for orphans in Lebanon. The goal of the event is to ensure the livelihood of local Dearborn businesses while simultaneously raising funds to feed, clothe, house......
Rachel Corrie story to be told in Lansing
LANSING — The Peace Education Center of Greater Lansing will anchor its 2007 fall schedule with the dynamic one-person play, "My Name is Rachel Corrie." There will be eight shows in October at the Woldumar Nature Center's Olds Anderson Rotary Barn in Lansing. The production is in conjunction with Sunsets with Shakespeare, a local theater...Fordson Tractors run over rival Dearborn High
Fasting doesn't stop the players from doing their best DEARBORN — When a football team loses a game, it's only natural for both fans and outsiders to point fingers. Everyone wants to know what went wrong and what's being done to fix the problems. That's just the way it is in today's media-saturated sporting culture. But when a...Empire State Building to be lit up green for Eid
NEW YORK (AFP) — New York's iconic Empire State Building is to be lit up green from Friday in honor of the Muslim holiday of Eid, the biggest festival in the Muslim calendar marking the end of Ramadan, officials said. "This is the first time that the Empire State Building will be illuminated for Eid, and the lighting will become an...Zionist pressure puts press in jeopardy
ANN ARBOR —For four years, the University of Michigan’s publishing house has distributed books from the catalog of Pluto Press. Pluto’s books are critical, often challenging the ideas of those in power. Their catalog examines issues of Israel-Palestine, globalization, foreign policy, and many other topics. The new book, "Overcoming......
Conference will prolong agony in Arab world
After spending many hours trying to reach Jerusalem, a trip which took twenty minutes before the imposition of the humiliating Israeli checkpoints, a Palestinian woman said: "I am dying to pray in Al-Aqsa Mosque, but after so many hours of being harassed at so many checkpoints, I was not allowed to pray and I am hungry and thirsty...Evaluating the Iraq war
This week marks the fifth anniversary of Congress's vote to authorize the Bush Administration to overthrow the government of Iraq by military force. The Nation opposed the war authorization. In "An Open Letter to Congress," which we published on the magazine's cover on the eve of the vote, we argued that it would have "a significance......
Secular Tunisia may face Islamist challenge
Analysts say a growing number of young fundamentalists are increasingly restless in a country that bans all religious parties. Zarzis, Tunisia — While a potent Islamic movement once challenged this country's ruling elite, today political Islam has all but vanished here. This kind of dissent has been quashed to near extinction. But even...U.S. aid dependency: The road to ruin
Since Israel's July 2006 war on Lebanon, and up to the current deadlock over electing Lebanon's next president, the Bush administration has gone out of its way to express its commitment to Lebanese "democracy" and to building a strong and sovereign country that can "stand up" to allies of Syria and Iran which exist within Lebanon's......
