Muslim woman in hijab becomes officer at Wayne County Jail
June 7th, 20160 Wayne County Deputy Chief Mike Jaafar (left) Marzana Ali (center)and Wayne County Sheriff Benny Napoleon (right.) DETROIT - A Muslim woman in hijab is now a full time Deputy Police Officer at the Wayne County Jail Systems, a first for the Sheriff’s office. Warren resident Marzana Ali, 27, was among 12 officers who graduated...
Dearborn toddler dies after drowning in neighbor’s pool
June 4th, 20160 DEARBORN - A two-year-old girl is dead after drowning in her neighbor’s pool on Friday morning. The incident occurred around 10:25 a.m., when Dearborn Police responded to the 2600 block of Boldt to a report of a child falling into a swimming pool and was unresponsive. Officers arrived on scene and assisted the caller,...
Residents uncertain about Dearborn Heights’ plans to merge emergency dispatch
June 3rd, 20160 DEARBORN HEIGHTS - The possibility of contracting the city of Dearborn Heights' emergency dispatch services with Dearborn is leaving some residents concerned. A city faced with budgeting setbacks, the merger would save an estimated $243,000 annually, according to Mayor Dan Paletko. Councilwoman Lisa...
Arab American awarded national teaching fellowship
June 3rd, 20160 Fadlallah with a student.DETROIT — Dilapidated and moldy classrooms and poor student achievement have afflicted the Detroit Public Schools for decades. Recently, many Detroit school teachers are opting not to show up to work, protesting low wages. Despite a plethora of problems troubling the quality of education in the city, one...
AAPAC announces endorsements in two key local races
June 3rd, 20160 DEARBORN — The Arab American Political Action Committee (AAPAC) has selected its endorsements in two key local races for the primary election, which will take place on Tuesday, August 2. Formed in 1998, AAPAC's membership consists of a diverse group of Arab American professionals who work to organize and encourage the political...
Major public transit plan aims to shape region’s future
June 3rd, 20160 A rendering of the RTA's transit planDEARBORN — While the convenience of public transportation is second-nature to many people in other states, Michigan is notorious for the absence of such transit systems. As it revealed at Lawrence Technological University on Tuesday, the Regional Transit Authority of Southeast Michigan (RTA) has...
Local women break stigmas of studying abroad
June 3rd, 20160 Maliha Rafiq with her students. DEARBORN — At this time of year, many female college students in Dearborn contemplate the option of studying or working abroad. But in most cases, the deciding factor comes down to the parents. The first question parents ask their daughters is "Why?", followed by statements like, "A...
Detroit to attract tourists this summer
June 3rd, 20160 DETROIT- The State of Michigan is spending $1 million of a $12 million national ad purchase for its continuous “Pure Michigan” campaign to attract people to Detroit this summer.Many Michiganders, mostly Detroiters, think it’s a risky proposal. The city has the second highest murder-rate in the U.S., went...
Detroit police officer in need of assistance
June 3rd, 20160 DETROIT- The Detroit Police Lieutenants and Sergeants Association is hosting a fundraiser dinner at the Gaelic League on June 9 for Aref Algarrafi, a Detroit detective who suffers from leukemia, to help him cover medical expenses. Back in December of 2015, Algarrafi went to urgent care for a severe ear...
Local 4 announces “Arab in America” news series
June 3rd, 20160 DETROIT—WDIV-Local 4 announced an ongoing series of news reports, called “Arab in America,” that brings viewers personal stories of Arab Americans and a look at the culture of Arab families in Metro Detroit. “Arab in America” is part of Local 4’s commitment to telling the true and often untold...
Attorney General Bill Schuette backs Trump
June 3rd, 20160 LANSING — Attorney General Bill Schuette has officially announced that he plans to support Donald Trump for president. With the announcement, Schuette joins a growing list of Michigan Republicans, including Lt. Governor Brian Calley, who are supporting Trump. While at the Mackinac...
Arab Student Union off to rocky start at Crestwood High School
June 2nd, 20160 The ASU at Crestwood High School.DEARBORN HEIGHTS — Tensions are growing between a group of students affiliated with the Arab Student Union (ASU) at Crestwood High School and its administration, as the school year draws to a close. ASU was officially introduced at Crestwood just a few weeks ago, following months of delays from the...
Life span for Detroit’s poor among shortest in nation
June 2nd, 20160 DETROIT — New research finds that Metro Detroit’s poor not only live shorter lives than other low-income people in the nation’s big cities, but Detroiters die up to 16 years sooner than their suburban neighbors. Wayne County had the lowest life span for a poor 40-year-old — 77 years — among the nation’s largest 100...
Splash pads, pools aim to attract families in Dearborn
June 2nd, 20160 DEARBORN –Two of the city’s neighborhood parks will be having quite the splash this summer.Hemlock Park and Crowley Park are now operating splash pads for the entire summer.Both splash pads provide outdoor aquatic fun daily from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m., weather permitting. Use of the splash pads is free and no...
Arab Americans turn out to Dearborn’s Memorial Day Parade
June 2nd, 20160 Photo credit: WWJDEARBORN – The city’s annual Memorial Day parade is the oldest continuous parade in Michigan, with the 92nd annual march having commenced this year. For the majority of that time, the route ended at what is now the former City Hall at Michigan and Schaefer, but this year, that was......
AAPAC begins endorsement process for upcoming elections
May 27th, 20160 AAPAC members interview a state rep. candidate, May 25.DEARBORN — The Arab American Political Action Committee (AAPAC) has begun its process of interviewing candidates to determine who will receive the organization's endorsement before the August 2 primary. Formed in 1998, AAPAC consists of a diverse group of Arab American...
Community supports Wayne County Sheriff Benny Napoleon at fundraiser
May 27th, 20160 DEARBORN HEIGHTS — Community members and local officials from across Southeast Michigan reaffirmed their support for Wayne County Sherriff Benny Napoleon at a fundraiser, Wednesday, May 25, at a hookah lounge. The venue was at full capacity as a sizable crowd stepped foot for the first time in the third iteration of The Lava......
Graduation Day: Ahmad Yaser Alnajjar
May 27th, 20160 Ahmad Yaser Alnajjar with family in Kansas.Ahmad Yaser Alnajjar, 22, a California resident, decided he wanted to move out of state for his undergraduate degree in political science, so he moved to Kansas, where he attended Kansas State University. "I did it because I wanted to experience life outside of home," Alnajjar said....
Lebanese Americans celebrate Liberation Day
May 27th, 20160 Community activists at the Liberation Day celebrationDEARBORN — Amal Movement in the United States, Message of Hope USA, celebrated the 16th anniversary of liberating south Lebanon from the Israeli occupation on Wednesday. Israeli forces occupied swathes of south Lebanon from 1982 until 2000. The Israeli army was driven out of...
ESL program helps immigrant youth become tomorrow’s leaders
May 27th, 20160 ESL students speak up at Crestwood School District meeting, May 24 - Photo by The Arab American NewsDEARBORN HEIGHTS — Mina Aldayyeni's least favorite class in eighth grade was gym. She was bullied, always picked last in sports and had no friends. One time, she found herself crying on the locker room floor, surrounded by her...
Arab Americans claim police brutality in Dearborn Heights
May 27th, 20160 A local woman gets arrested in front of her home.DEARBORN HEIGHTS — The Arab American community has reached a boiling point with the Dearborn Heights Police Department following a number of incidents where residents claim they were arrested without justification. This week, a video circulated on social media showing a local Arab......
Dearborn parents slam “explicit” sex ed curriculum
May 27th, 20160 DEARBORN — While some of city's public school teachers have recently called for a more comprehensive sex education curriculum, some parents have expressed outrage over "explicit" lessons taught in class. A local mother of a 15-year-old ninth grade student at Fordson High School, said her daughter and other classmates walked out of...
Authentic? — Arabic food evolving locally
May 26th, 20161 Chef Taher JaberDEARBORN — Do you get angry when your White friends add hummus where it doesn’t belong or use it as a dip for their chips?I do. I have often wondered if my draconian approach to Arabic food is irrational. Who is to say where hummus belongs? It is harmless if someone enjoys it with pizza or rice. But the......
Dearborn Board well represented at the National Association of Realtors
May 26th, 20160 Michigan Realtors meeting with Senator PetersWASHINGTON — From May 9 to May 14, the National Association of Realtors held its annual legislative meetings and expo, with the Dearborn Area Board of Realtors well represented. Sam Baydoun, the 2016 president of the organization, attended many of the legislative meetings along with...
Graduation Day: Hanan Yahya
May 26th, 20160 Hanan Yahya, a recent University of Michigan-Ann Arbor graduate, is the second of nine siblings to earn a college degree and daughter of immigrants with no formal education. To her, education is more than sitting in a classroom for hours on end and struggling her way through homework. She said education helped her find herself and......
