U of M students launch divestment campaign
March 27th, 20150 ANN ARBOR — A Palestinian solidarity group at the University of Michigan launched a campaign to divest from companies that profit from the Israeli military. Students Allied for Freedom and Equality (SAFE) proposed the divestment resolution to the Central Student Government (CSG) on Tuesday, March 24. The resolution asks the...
Elementary school students raise money for Down Syndrome organization
March 27th, 20150 DEARBORN — Students at Iris Becker Elementary School recently pooled their resources to raise $900 for the Down Syndrome Guild of Southeast Michigan. According to Paulette Duggins, the executive director of the DSGSM, the money will be used to send students with Down Syndrome to camp this summer. Down Syndrome is a set of physical...
ICA ranked in top 10 beautiful mosques by French magazine
March 27th, 20150 DEARBORN — The popular French news outlet Infotourisme ranked the Islamic Center of America (ICA) one of the world’s top 10 most beautiful mosques. The ICA was the only mosque in the United States to make the list. The institution was ranked number eight on the list, and is believed to be the largest mosque in North America....
Head of Detroit FBI reads to Dearborn students
March 27th, 20150 DEARBORN — Paul Abbate, special agent in charge of the FBI’s Detroit Division, joined Samia Hamid Sareini, the Arab American Civil Rights League field director, on Monday, March 23, at William Ford Elementary School in Dearborn, where the two read to students as part of the National Reading month. Celebrities and public...
Second annual Autism Awareness event in Dearborn to be bluer and brighter
March 27th, 20150 DEARBORN — Blue Hands United of Dearborn is gearing up for its second annual lighting ceremony taking place at the Ford Community Arts Center on April 2. The objective of the organization, started in 2013 by local parents, is to spread autism awareness in the Arab American community and beyond. The latest studies indicate that...
Superintendent Whiston to share Dearborn experience across Michigan
March 27th, 20150 Whiston.DEARBORN — Dearborn Schools S uperintendent Brian Whiston, who has accepted the job as the next state superintendent, said he will use his experience in the district to improve schools across Michigan. As state superintendent, Whiston will have oversight on the school districts' operations and expenditure. He will also make...
Sadr Foundation celebrates 50 years at ICA
March 27th, 20150 The foundation tends to the social, economic, educational and health needs of thousands of men and women in Lebanon's underserved areas. ISF was established in 1965 by Imam Musa al-Sadr, a Lebanese religious and political leader. Sadr disappeared in Libya in 1979 and is presumed dead after several former Libyan officials claimed...
New bill would require Michigan police officers to wear body cameras
March 27th, 20150 DETROIT — A new bill introduced by State Rep. Rose Mary Robinson (D- Detroit) would require all police officers to wear body cameras. “Every law enforcement officer should wear it on duty,” Robinson told The Arab American News. “I am asking the state to mandate it.” On Monday, March 23, Robinson held a press...
Deadline to nominate your favorite Dearborn teacher April 2
March 26th, 20150 DEARBORN—The clock is ticking and time is running short to nominate your favorite Dearborn Public Schools teacher for the 2015 Alberta Muirhead Teacher of the Year Award. The deadline for submitting applications is Thursday, April 2, 2015. Entry forms can be found by visiting www.dearbornschools.org or may...Mother who killed her children and put them in the freezer charged
DETROIT—Prosecutor Kym L. Worthy has charged Mitchelle Angela Blair, 35, of Detroit, in connection with two children discovered in a freezer in her home in the 800 block of on St. Aubin Street in Detroit. On March 24 at 10:45 a.m., Detroit Police Officers were called to Blair’s apartment because two...
Dearborn soldier on ISIS hit list
March 25th, 20150 The "Islamic State" released a list of 100 U.S. soldiers with their names and home addresses, urging its followers to attack them. The list prompted cautions for heightened security measures in the cities where the military members reside. A Dearborn soldier is on the "hit list."The Associated Press reported that the Pentagon is...Students seek donations to create two community gardens in heart of East Dearborn
DEARBORN—Fordson High School's (FHS) Political Science Club has received permission from the City of Dearborn to create two community gardens in the heart of East Dearborn. “As we are just now starting this project, we have not yet collected enough donations to begin building,” said FHS senior Sara...
Suspect caught on camera stealing waitress’ cell phone at Dearborn restaurant
March 24th, 20150 The suspect is the man in the hat to the rightDEARBORN— On Saturday, Mar. 21 at around 12:30 p.m. a male suspect was observed stealing a waitress’ cell phone from behind the cash register at a local restaurant. The suspect is described as being a heavyset, white male with light-complexion in...
Muslim family is shocked to discover cemetery buried a stranger in their purchased plot
March 20th, 20150 PLYMOUTH — Last week, while visiting a loved one’s grave at United Memorial Gardens, a local Muslim family was devastated to discover that the cemetery had buried a stranger's body in a plot purchased by the family years ago. Abdul Charara visited the grave of his wife, Mahassen Charara, on March 17, the anniversary of her death,...
Local experts weigh in on Israeli elections
March 20th, 20150 Netanyahu.DEARNORN — Benjamin Netanyahu won his fourth term as Israeli prime minister comfortably Tuesday, shocking many political and media observers who were expecting an administration shakeup. His victory follows a slew of backlash about his racist and fear-mongering rallying cry, that some critics say stole him the......
Dearborn’s alleys an eyesore for residents and business owners
March 20th, 20150 An alley in east Dearborn with visible trash and potholes.DEARBORN — While efforts have gone underway to repair roads across the city, the same cannot be said about the alleys behind businesses and alongside residential streets. Over the years, alleys in several neighborhoods have slowly deteriorated due to little to no maintenance...
Al-Ajami West embodies the transformation of West Dearborn
March 20th, 20150 DEARBORN — After years of struggles with the recession and poor planning, West Dearborn is starting to attract new businesses, but one new establishment is already a familiar name to residents. Al-Ajami West will open this weekend, bringing more than 13 years of experience in upscale Middle Eastern cuisine to the west side of......
Century 21 honors broker Sam Baydoun
March 20th, 20150 Sam Baydoun displaying the award with his family.DETROIT — Real estate associate broker, Sam Baydoun received the Grand Centurion Award, which is the highest recognition within the Century 21 system. During his career of 25 years with Century 21, Baydoun has sold over 300 million in residential and commercial sales. Baydoun...
Whiston offered state superintendent position
March 20th, 20150 DEARBORN — The State Board of Education conducted its final interviews for State Superintendent on Wednesday afternoon and selected Dearborn Public Schools Superintendent Brian Whiston as the one to take the job. The State Board and Whiston need to work out the details of a contract before he officially accepts the...
Students center of attention at Dallo Martial Arts
March 20th, 20150 Dallo training one of his students.SOUTHFIELD — Jalal Dallo's students call him “Sifu.” The traditional Chinese term is used to refer to a highly respected martial arts instructor. A sifu is not only your teacher, but also your father. “Si” means teacher and “fu” means father. Dallo, an attorney, is the owner of the...
Court denies Judge Somers’ request for a rehearing
March 20th, 20150 Somers.CINCINNATI — On Friday, March 13, the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals denied 19th District Court Judge Mark Somers’ request for a rehearing in the $1.2 million judgment against him in the case of former deputy court administrator Julie Pucci. The court unanimously affirmed the judgment on Feb. 13 and Somers filed a motion for......
Florida parents dissatisfied with five-day suspension teacher received for calling student “Taliban”
March 20th, 20150 14-year-old Deyab Houssein Wardani, a freshman at Cypress Bay High School in Weston.WESTON, Fla. — A Muslim family is demanding that a local public school properly discipline a teacher for humiliating their son during class when she called him a "rag head Taliban." Youssef Wardani, the Lebanese father of 14-year-old Deyab...
Business owners applaud eliminating paid parking in west Dearborn
March 20th, 20150 A no-longer-enforced parking meter in west Dearborn.DEARBORN — The parking meters in downtown west Dearborn covered with plastic bags are not out of order; they were rendered useless by the decommissioning of paid parking— at both meters and structures— that started on March 15. Downtown business owners are hoping that just......
FHS students participate in 64th annual Michigan District of Key Club Service Leadership Conference
TRAVERSE CITY—Members of Fordson High School’s Key Club participated in the 64th annual Michigan District of Key Club Service Leadership Conference in Traverse City March 13-15. This year’s theme was service around the world. Key Club members from all over the state came together to celebrate the year...SMART to pay more than $500,000 in damages to Iraqi former bus mechanic
DETROIT— Years after the Suburban Mobility Authority for Regional Transportation (SMART) began appealing a Michigan Civil Rights Commission ruling in favor of an Iraqi former bus mechanic who’d endured discrimination, SMART has decided to forego any further appeals. SMART now must pay Mazyn Barash, 57, of......
