“Karama Has No Walls” offers powerful and touching glimpse into Yemen’s Friday of Dignity
Karama Has No Walls recounts the gruesome attacks that unfolded on Mar. 18, 2011, now referred to as the Friday of Dignity, when pro-government forces killed more than 50 peaceful anti-government civilians and injured hundreds more using snipers on Change Square in Yemen's capital of Sana'a. To many, the event redefined the Yemeni...“The Square”: The revolution’s idealism attacked with bullets and politics
From Jan. 25, 2011 until Hosni Mubarak's ouster 18 days later, Tahrir Square in Cairo became an international symbol of freedom, democracy and change. But as the head of the Egyptian regime fell, the army and the Muslim Brotherhood emerged as the potential successors. Jehane Noujaim's Oscar-nominated documentary “The Square” tells...“Omar” depicts a harsh, but accurate reality of Palestine
Nominated for Best Foreign Film at this year's Oscars, 'Omar' follows a young Palestinian man who struggles to balance his love life with his disastrous political surroundings. Shot in the West Bank, the opening scene of ‘Omar’ sets the tone for the entire film. The title character, played by Adam Bakri, is seen climbing over...Social media campaign urges Arabs to stop using derogatory terms when referring to African Americans
“Drop the A-Word” is a social media campaign launched by a new Muslim-American group, and co-founded by metro Detroiters, that urges Arabs to stop using Arabic racial terms when referring to blacks.The terms are Abed and Abeed. Abed is Arabic for slave or servant, and Abeed is the plural form of it. The campaign calls on people...Federal court awards Arab American $1.1 M over employment discrimination by Washtenaw County
DETROIT - On Thursday, Feb. 27, a jury at the Eastern District Federal Court awarded $1.1 million to a former Arab American Washtenaw County employee for being wrongly denied promotion and terminated by the county.Ali Aboubaker, a Tunisian American, was fired from his job at Washtenaw County in 2008, a few months after "expressing...Abbas, Israel, and the right of return
This week, the Palestinian right of return made a special news appearance. For some time, the issue has been a sticking point in negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians. Refusal to budge on the right has been the cornerstone of any Palestinian position. Refusal to recognize it has been at the heart of any...
Free and affordable services make it easier to become a U.S. citizen
February 21st, 20140 Wojciech Zolmowski, Executive Director of the International Institute of Metropolitan Detroit informing guests about the new citizenship application that will be 21 pages long beginning May 5, as opposed to the current 10 page application. Both applications are being held up to compare the difference in length. PHOTO: Anthony...Final reading for garage ordinance set, Mayor prepares State of the City address
DEARBORN — The Arab American News published an error in the last issue, stating that the City of Dearborn had finally passed its much debated garage ordinance. However, the ordinance is still up for one more reading at the next city council meeting on Tuesday, March 4. Per city rules, an ordinance must be read twice in the same...
Pressure on Arab American women to get married young can be frustrating
February 21st, 20140 DEARBORN — Discussing the pressure that many Arab American women experience to get married by a young age, Angela, a 22-year-old student at the University of Michigan - Dearborn who didn’t want to be identified, said, “There shouldn’t be an age limit. It shouldn’t be like once you are 25 that is it, you are too old, and you...
Arab parents often hesitant in acknowledging children with autism
February 21st, 20140 DEARBORN — One in 88 children have Autism Spectrum Disorder, making it one of the most common disabilities amongst children in the U.S. At Dearborn Public Schools, however, just 91 children have been diagnosed with autism, a low figure for a district with over 18,000 students. According to some local Arab American parents with...
State Rep. Rashida Tlaib blames opponent for scrutiny over Dearborn property tax issue
February 21st, 20140 DEARBORN — State Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Detroit), who is running for the Michigan Senate, has come under media scrutiny after the discovery that she wrongly received a tax break on a house she owns in Dearborn.Tlaib and her husband improperly claimed a homestead tax exemption on a rental property in Dearborn while residing in Detroit. A...
Arab American girl demands ban for man who racially insulted her at Dearborn library
February 21st, 20140 DEARBORN — A young Arab American woman and her family are demanding that Dearborn's Henry Ford Centennial Library temporarily ban a middle-aged man who directed racial insults toward the girl at the library last month. Alia Sareini, 17, said an older white man told her, "Your heritage is all about terrorism" while she was heading...
Henry Ford Hospital of West Bloomfield donates $11,000 to Detroit based HUDA Clinic
February 21st, 20140 Local residents at HUDA Clinic listen to a representative discuss the Clinic’s many services. DETROIT — Henry Ford Hospital of West Bloomfield showed its support recently to a Detroit clinic that provides free medical care to the needy. Representatives of the hospital presented a check for $11,000 to...Israel and Saudi Arabia’s priorities in Syria
Current developments both inside and outside of Syria have shown that the primary sponsors of the extremist-dominated insurgency – namely, the United States, France, the United Kingdom, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Israel and Turkey – aren’t quite ready to throw in the towel.One may be forgiven for thinking the Obama administration...
Dearborn residents can order trees through city program
February 21st, 20140 DEARBORN – Dearborn residents can now order affordable trees to be planted on the easement in front of their homes. The city encourages the planting of trees as a way to keep neighborhoods attractive, reduce energy consumption and support a healthier environment. The annual spring tree-planting program is open to Dearborn......
Attorney Ali Hammoud named co-chair of BRIDGES
February 21st, 20140 DEARBORN — On Wednesday, Feb. 12 Attorney and Arab American Political Action Committee Vice President Ali Hammoud was named co-chair of Building Respect in Diverse Groups to Enhance Sensitivity (BRIDGES). Dr. Yahya Basha of BASHA Diagnostics was named co-chair-elect of the group. On the day of the announcement, 13 steering...18-year-old high school senior in need of kidney donor
DEARBORN — Zeinab Atwi, 18, is in need of a kidney donor. The Dearborn resident and Edsel Ford High School senior has been on dialysis for 10 years. Atwi has type B blood. A suitable donor may have type B or O blood. If you are interested in becoming a donor, or to reach out to the family, call Saeed Atwi at 313.209.2688. ......
Death of Dearborn man ruled a suicide by police and Wayne County Medical Examiner
February 21st, 20140 DEARBORN — Dearborn Police and the Wayne County Medical Examiner have ruled that the recent death of Shady Bazzi was a suicide. Family members of Bazzi, who was found dead at his home here Feb. 7 of a gunshot wound to the right temple of his head, are refuting the findings, and say he accidentally shot himself. Before the...Law corner: A government office’s decision is not the final word on your rights
Anyone who has run into a difficult government employee understands how frustrating it can be trying to accomplish seemingly simple tasks. For example, it should be no problem to walk into a city’s building department and obtain a permit to erect a fence around your property if you live in a city that generally allows fences....MDOT announces plans to repair about 1,300 lights by end of summer
SOUTHFIELD — An investigation by WXYZ-TV into broken highway lights in southeastern Michigan has prompted the Michigan Department of Transportation to announce a sweeping effort to repair approximately 1,300 lights by the end of the summer."We're going to spend four million dollars to address this problem in the next 6 months,” MDOT...AIPAC’s lost invincibility
The defeat of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee’s ill-advised push for new sanctions on Iran in the midst of successful negotiations is nothing short of historic. The powerful and hawkish pro-Israeli lobby’s defeats are rare and seldom public. But in the last year, it has suffered three major public setbacks, of which the......
Will Tunisia be a model for political reform in the Arab world?
February 14th, 20140 The sociopolitical context for political reform in the Arab world is immensely challenging. As a result, few Arab countries have an easy way to democracy. But miraculously, Tunisia has already shown the start of a genuine Arab awakening.This homogeneous North African Arab country was the first to mobilize public dissent peacefully, to...
Dating: Does it break the rules?
February 14th, 20142 DEARBORN — Valentine’s Day is a time to celebrate love and display affection. However, the way individuals and communities perceive and pursue romance differs among cultures and religions, and the Arab American community is no exception. Arab Americans’ views on dating are somewhat different from those of the American......
Local designer’s online boutique on the path to success
DEARBORN — An online fashion boutique for women who wear the Islamic headscarf that was established by a local Arab American designer has gained thousand of followers. The website was launched in November, but it has already turned into a recognizable brand, according to its founder Malak Ouza.HijabLouvre.com offers dozens of items,...
Super Bowl coach honored at city council meeting, first garage ordinance reading approved
February 14th, 20140 DEARBORN — This week's city council meeting started out on a positive note as the city honored former Seattle Seahawks assistant coach and Dearborn native Robert Saleh for his recent Super Bowl victory. However, the atmosphere at City Hall took a bizarre turn after a local Arab American confronted the council on what he said were......
