Afaf Humayun
Afaf is a reporter, poet, activist, and artist who works to preserve and expand the future of the Humanities while staying engaged on issues of inclusion. She can be reached at afafhumayun@gmail.com
Author's Posts
Shady Srour sells “Holy Air”, his Nazareth-based film debuting in select American theaters
November 17th, 20170 NAZARETH—“You see them, you love them; they are human like you,” Shady Srour, writer and director of the film “Holy Air”, said about the movie’s two main characters, Adam and Lamia. “They are modern, they want to live.” Srour is a self-described minority inside a minority. He grew up an Arab living in Nazareth. He...
#UMDivest resolution passes at University of Michigan
November 17th, 20171 ANN ARBOR — On November 15 at 3 a.m., a historical moment took place at the University of Michigan when the Students Allied for Freedom and Equality (SAFE) passed a resolution at the Central Student Government (CSG) meeting regarding U of M's investment ties to companies involved in human rights violations. The investigation of...
University of Michigan CSG passes divestment resolution
November 15th, 20171 ANN ARBOR--The University of Michigan (UM) Central Student Government (CSG) passed a resolution to have the University's Board of Regents form an ad hoc committee to investigate companies that are tied to human rights violations against Palestinians. The meeting began at 7:45pm and the vote took place at almost 3:00am. There was an...
Simon Shaykhet and WXYZ-TV honored with “Fairness In Media” award
November 10th, 20170 DETROIT— In a world where the news has become corporatized and out of touch, honest and fair reporting is hard to come by, but on November 5, the Michigan Muslim Community Council (MMCC) presented Simon Shaykhet and WXYZ-TV with the “Fairness In Media” award by at its 31st annual banquet. The MMCC Unity Banquet is held each year...
Student group launches #UMDivest campaign
November 10th, 20170 ANN ARBOR— On November 7, University of Michigan students held their central student government meeting at the campus square, the Diag. At the meeting, more than 250 people stood in support of the UM-Divest resolution and in solidarity with Palestinians. Students Allied for Freedom and Equality (SAFE) is a campus...
Dearborn Heights Mayor Dan Paletko wins re-election, Bazzi joins City Council
November 10th, 20170 DEARBORN HEIGHTS — It looked to be a close race between Mayor Dan Paletko and City Councilwoman Lisa Hicks-Clayton in Tuesday's election, but once the absentee votes were counted, Paletko won by 1,143 votes. Paletko won with 4,467 votes, which was 55.83 percent of the total votes for mayor, and Hicks-Clayton received a total of...
Roasting Plant coffee shop offers high-end java for a low-end price
November 3rd, 20170 DEARBORN HEIGHTS—“It picks up something from the ocean around it, from the humidity, from the surrounding trees,” said Mohamad Zeitoun, manager of the Roasting Plant coffee shops in Dearborn Heights and Ann Arbor, about the flavor profile of the Jamaica Blue Mountain coffee bean. The Dearborn Heights location opened in June;...
Dearborn Heights City Council set to see new faces; Arab Americans hope to expand representation
October 27th, 20170 DEARBORN HEIGHTS — The main races in the November 7 election are between incumbent Mayor Dan Paletko and challenger Lisa Hicks-Clayton, and also for the four open City Council seats. Paletko has been mayor since 2004. He came in first in the Aug. 8 primary election, with about 1,000 votes more than Hicks-Clayton. In the City...
Native and Arab American filmmaker talks film and politics
October 20th, 20170 BROOKLYN, NY — "We say we're Ojibtian." Adam Khalil and his younger brother Zack use that term when referring to their maternal indigenous Ojibway roots, and their paternal Egyptian heritage. Khalil's mother is Native American, and his father is Egyptian. Khalil, 29, grew up in Sault Ste. Marie in Michigan's Upper Peninsula...
October is Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month
October 20th, 20170 DEARBORN — Miscarriage and infant loss are not easy subjects of discussion for anyone, and especially not for those experiencing bereavement firsthand. October is Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month, and there are initiatives in the Metro Detroit area and online to bring the conversation of pregnancy and infant loss out in the...
The cost of death can get in the way of grief
October 13th, 20170 DEARBORN—After you’ve hit the snooze on your alarm clock a few times, picked yourself up and showered, had your breakfast, put on your coat and shoes and reached for your keys, how many times did you think about your mortality? In the commotion of daily life we often forget about something that happens to us...
The AANews reporter Zahraa Farhat receives UM-D Mentor of the Year award
October 13th, 20170 DEARBORN—Although she’s written nearly 100 articles during more than a year as a staff writer for The AANews, Zahraa Farhat never planned to be a journalist. "I actually only minored in journalism, so becoming a reporter was never my ultimate goal,” Farhat said. “I earned my bachelor’s degree in English.” In 2013,...
Novelist Mohsin Hamid on migration, love and his latest book, “Exit West”
October 13th, 20170 DEARBORN— Can you imagine a borderless planet? Where people are free to roam from one region to another? Where knowledge is easy to access and everyone’s desire to travel can be satiated without barriers or lines at airport security? Or can you imagine your daily routine of family time, work, dinner and prep for the next day of...
Jeremy McLellan: Comedian goes viral in Arab, Pakistani and Muslim communities
October 6th, 20171 DEARBORN — A U of M-Dearborn campus officer approached him outside an event hall and began aggressively and suspiciously questioning why he, a White American, was outside a majority-Arab and Muslim event. "I had just gotten a haircut, so I looked like a fresh Nazi," he said. "I had a camo shirt and I was pacing outside of this...
‘Listen to America’ bus tour stops in Dearborn, hears from Arab and Muslim Americans
October 6th, 20170 DEARBORN — East coast media outlets have been accused of being out of touch with middle America, so The Huffington Post embarked on a multi-city bus tour on September 12 titled "Listen to America." In each city, HuffPost partnered with a news organization to host an event so that it could record stories from local residents. The......
Muslim American psychiatrist runs for state senate
September 29th, 20171 NORTHVILLE— Dr. Ghulam Qadir has announced his run for the open seventh district seat in the Michigan State senate for 2018; locals are well-aware of Qadir as he knocked on nearly 10,000 doors during his run for Northville Board of Trustee last year. Qadir, a Democrat, has lived in Michigan since 1978 and practices psychiatry. He...
Dearborn’s Qahwah House brings authentic Yemeni coffee to America
September 29th, 20174 DEARBORN—A cup of Joe is readily available at almost every intersection in the metropolitan area, especially Dearborn, where coffee shops, diners, hookah bars and gas stations all boast a bold and strong coffee. But quick access to caffeine doesn’t necessarily equate to a high quality bean. This month, Ibrahim Alhasbani had a......
Kalkaska peace group hosts interfaith event, denounces village president’s anti-Muslim remarks
September 22nd, 20170 KALKASKA — In the wake of several anti-Muslim sentiments posted by Kalkaska Village President Jeff Sieting, a group of Kalkaska County residents have formed a nonprofit organization to promote education and understanding. Established in July, Kalkaska for Peace (KFP) came about because of the negative image the village received,...
Plymouth hosts presentation on Muslims and their contributions
September 22nd, 20170 PLYMOUTH — The city of Plymouth invited the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding (ISPU) to present its Muslims for American Progress (MAP) project research findings and photo series at the Plymouth Cultural Center Sept 18-20. Prior to the event, Plymouth Mayor Dan Dwyer released a statement saying the city was looking...
9/11 town hall addresses Japanese internment camps and targeting of Muslims
September 14th, 20170 DEARBORN—The Arab American National Museum (AANM) hosted a town hall on September 8 to commemorate the 75th anniversary of Japanese American detainment in internment camps and the 16th anniversary of the September 11 World Trade Center attacks in New York City. In 1942, President Roosevelt signed executive order 9066, which entailed...
Huffington Post partners with The Arab American News as bus tour comes to Dearborn
September 14th, 20170 DEARBORN —The Huffington Post has partnered with more than 20 cities around the U.S. for its “Listen to America” bus tour, which is a platform for Americans to share stories that are local to them and their communities. The AANews has partnered with the Huffington Post to hold a forum on October 3 at Byblos Banquet Center in......
‘1001 Inventions’ exhibit comes to Detroit
September 8th, 20170 On October 7, the award-winning exhibit "1001 Inventions" will return to the U.S. after a five-year hiatus from the States and it will be open to the public at the Michigan Science Center in Detroit. Previously, the exhibit was hosted at museums in New York, California and Washington, D.C. Detroit will be the fourth U.S. location to...
Detroit rally shows strong support for ‘Dreamers’
September 8th, 20170 DETROIT — "I'm 16 years old and I am undocumented," said a young Detroit woman at the Defend DACA rally at Clark Park on Tuesday. Jose Franco, a founding member of One Michigan, organized the event as a response to President Trump's executive order to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. DACA was enacted......
Report spotlights Muslim American contributions in Michigan
September 3rd, 20172 DEARBORN, MI— “Ten percent of Michigan Muslims are physicians.” This was a myth that the Muslims for American Progress (MAP) project powered by the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding (ISPU) was able to debunk. “We kept hearing that rumor,” said MAP Principal Investigator Rebecca Karam about Muslim physicians in...
Islamic fund offers media scholarships for Muslims
September 3rd, 20171 BERKELEY, CA — The Islamic Scholarship Fund (ISF) was founded in 2009 in response to the low number of Muslims in media and policy fields. ISF provides funding and mentorship to its awardees. Before ISF was launched, Dr. Hamid Rezapour, the founder and president, was frustrated by the negative depictions of Islam and Muslims in the......
