Not only Muslims: Last week, allies became casualties, too
June 2nd, 20170 Rick Best, 53, Taliesin Myrddin Namkai-Meche, 23, and Micah David-Cole Fletcher, 21, took a brave stand against bigotry and assault last Friday when they stepped in to defend two teenage girls from the verbal assault and abuse of a bigot whose best defense was that they "looked Muslim." Both 16-year-old Destinee Magnum and her...
Trump in Saudi Arabia: King of hypocrisy
May 26th, 20172 Trump's affinity for all things "yuge" and slathered in gold was manifest in his choice of visits. Instead of taking the opportunity to make a diplomatic stride through his first foreign visit since taking office, Trump rather reinforced the commitment to power and money shared between the two warmongering governments through a...
Nakba was 69 years ago, but Arab complacency keeps it going
May 19th, 20170 May 15 marked the 69th year of systematic expulsion and pillaging of Palestinian communities, in addition to the centennial of the Balfour declaration that began the travesty. In May of 1948 alone, after the Israeli militiamen of the Haganah, Irgun and Palmach liquidated entire villages via massacres, forcing the spared from their...
Firing Comey will haunt Trump’s presidency
May 12th, 20171 In another display of power overreach, Trump played Nixon when he fired FBI director James Comey. Or perhaps he thought he was still on the Apprentice, with "You're fired" as his only misguided attempt at wielding power. Here, in firing Comey, the ends do not justify the means; the Americans are paying attention to the cause of...
Trump’s 100 days: A reign of error
May 5th, 20170 President Trump's first 100 days were characterized by attempts to reject every act of President Obama's in his eight years in office. In other words, this is also known as "Whitelash"; a rejection of everything passed by the first Black president by a reactionary reputed bigot. In fact, the entirety of Trump's 100 days in office...
Stand up for justice, support the Palestinian prisoners
April 29th, 20170 Since mid-April, more than 1,200 Palestinian prisoners have been conducting a hunger strike led by Palestinian leader and notable prisoner Marwan Barghouti. After Barghouti's well-publicized April 16 New York Times op-ed calling for humane conditions, regular family visits and due process, this hunger strike has reinvigorated the debate...
The only campaign promises Trump keeps are those that harm immigrants
April 21st, 20170 Donald Trump, having run an inflammatory campaign salvaged only by promises of non-interventionism, reneged upon multiple campaign promises by bombing two nations, unprovoked, in a span of one week. Despite his repugnant rhetorical exterior, Trump struck a chord with the average American as far back as 2013 with tweets advising the...
United apology isn’t enough; corporate arrogance requires scrutiny
April 16th, 20170 Immigrants and people of color, it seems, can't catch a break on holiday. There are the issues with flying while Arab. There are the proven problems with driving while Black. Apparently there's also boarding while Asian. One of the most brutal metaphors for crass capitalism played out Monday as fellow passengers on United Airlines...
Who benefits from the horrific chemical attacks in Syria?
April 8th, 20170 The deadliest chemical attack in Syria in years killed dozens of people in the rebel-held northern Idlib province on Tuesday morning, including children, and sickened scores more. The alleged "chemical airstrikes" are said to have taken place in the town of Khan Sheikhoun, about 50km south of the city of Idlib. Predictably, the...
Hubbard’s statue has no place under the Dearborn sun
April 8th, 20172 Former Mayor Orville Hubbard's statue stood in front of the Dearborn City Hall on Michigan Avenue and Schaefer Road from 1989-2015. After much community debate, the sale of the building and national events like the Charleston massacre in 2015, the statue was removed and placed into storage. Many said it was for good reason. Hubbard...
DHS secretary should apologize for shutting out community leaders
March 31st, 20170 In a meeting Wednesday at the Arab American National Museum in Dearborn, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials arranged to meet with Arab and Muslim community activists and leaders under the pretext that those communities would be represented and heard. The subtext that unfolded throughout the course of the contentious...
CAIR-OK releases report showing dramatic increase in Anti-Muslim hate incidents
March 30th, 20170 OKLAHOMA CITY-The Council for American Islamic Relations in Oklahoma released its 2016 Civil Rights report Thursday showing a dramatic increase in complaints regarding vandalism and property damage to Islamic centers. A similar report showed an increase in hate crime-related incidents that involved violence. A few key findings of...
Khalaf should be commended for UN’s Israel apartheid report
March 24th, 20170 The trepidation journalists, officials, and workers of non governmental organizations (NGOs) have to operate under in reporting on Palestine and Palestinians under occupation is not a phenomenon limited to the United States. Worldwide, Israel's hegemonic hold on an international political narrative leaves officials tasked with defending...
Muslim Ban 2.0: An equally appalling sequel
March 17th, 20170 Trump's doctrine propels the U.S. into a perpetual war waged against the very fabric of a diverse America. If Donald Trump should learn one thing, it's that sequels to bad movies are usually, if not always, equally as abysmal. The blocking of the president's latest executive order by two federal judges— Derrick K. Watson of Hawaii...
What happened to the Arab identity?
March 10th, 20170 Being an American doesn't mean that one should surrender his or her identity and culture. Let us be proud Arab Americans. The Arab Spring somewhat rectified Nasser-era nostalgia that pined for a strong pan-Arab identity that complemented, rather than contradicted, the rich diversity of Arab speaking peoples. The strong sense of......
America is not innocent: If we bomb you, we ban you
March 10th, 20170 In a Fox News interview that aired on Sunday, Feb. 5, President Trump defended Russian President Vladimir Putin when host Bill O’Reilly asked him why he respects him so much if he’s a killer. "There are a lot of killers," Trump replied. "Got a lot of killers. What, do you think our country's so innocent?" No, our country...
America’s greatness was on display everywhere— except the White House
March 10th, 20170 On Friday, Jan. 27, President Trump signed an executive order banning entry from seven predominantly Muslim countries— Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen— for 90 days, which seamlessly led to waves of protests and condemnations across the country. Former President Obama, federal workers, politicians, leaders of......
Sterling Heights settlement an opportunity for reconciliation
March 6th, 20170 At the nation's heart is a civil rights struggle that refuses to die. It manifests among varying communities at different times, yet conjures the distinct tones of ignorance and fear that has set the American story apart. While that story regrettably holds true in defining Arab and Muslim American experiences, we can be proud of...
The right to bear arms should not impede others’ right to live in peace
February 27th, 20170 On Sunday, February 19, five armed demonstrators were spotted walking down Schaefer Road towards Warren Ave. in Dearborn's heavily populated Arab and Muslim part of the city, allegedly in support of open carry gun laws. The incident occurred less than three weeks after two armed fanatics, from communities nowhere near Dearborn, walked...
Trump’s actions have roots in American political discourse
February 11th, 20170 Donald Trump’s executive orders were no doubt an overt assault on the character and integrity of not only the Arab and Muslim community, but also of the rich framework of immigrants of diverse backgrounds and nationalities that construct the backbone of this nation. His measures against Arabs and Muslims, however, did not occur in...
Courts schooled Trump about America’s greatness
February 11th, 20170 It has been a mere three weeks since real estate mogul Donald Trump took the oath of office as the U.S. president, and the country has already suffered the detrimental effects of poorly-implemented policy. On Friday, Jan. 27, our president exposed seemingly shrouded, but wide-spread insensible and xenophobic sentiments among the powerful......
Trump disregards boundaries, bullies neighbors during first week
January 29th, 20170 President Trump's inauguration— connoting hostility, invoking fear and uncompromising in its rhetoric— paled in comparison to President Obama's in size, strength and substance. Yet, it paved the way for Trump to carry out more austere executive actions in six days than Obama had in passing reasonable and —at times – relatively...
Obama’s legacy: Achievements marred with disappointments
January 19th, 20170 President Obama spent his final hours as president boasting approval ratings nearing 60 percent—comparable to those he had when he entered the White House in 2009. His popularity is a reflection of a legacy of many monumental precedents set by the Harvard Law School graduate and University of Chicago law professor as the first......
Congress sabotaging peace, U.S. foreign policy
January 13th, 20170 Last Thursday, the U.S. House of Representatives overwhelmingly supported a proposal condemning a recent U.N. Security Council Resolution reprimanding Israel for its illegal settlement activities in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem. The U.N. Security Council resolution passed 14-0, with the U.S. abstaining, citing that...
Build bridges, not walls
December 2nd, 20160 The Lebanese authorities are building a wall around the country's largest Palestinian refugee camp. The one square kilometer (.385 mile) Ain Al-Hilweh is home to more than 80,000 refugees. Residents of the camp have likened the 14 ft. high wall and the four watchtowers to Israel's infamous apartheid wall in the occupied West Bank and......
