The pox on our house
July 27th, 20220 — This article by Abdul El-Sayed originally appeared in the newsletter The Incision. It has been edited for style. Subscribe to The Incision here: incision.substack.com Over the weekend, World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus declared monkeypox a “Public Health Emergency of International...
County in Maryland removes resolution that conflates criticism of Israel with anti-Semitism
July 25th, 20220 MARYLAND — A civil rights organization is welcoming the decision by the County Council in Maryland to remove a resolution that would have redefined anti-Semitism to include any criticism of well-documented human rights abuses by the Israeli occupation in Palestine. Montgomery County, located just outside of Washington, D.C., is...
How much extra oil can Saudi Arabia pump?
July 19th, 20220 SAUDI ARABIA — President Biden's visit in recent days to top oil exporter Saudi Arabia ended without any announcements that the kingdom would raise oil production to help lower fuel prices which are spurring the highest U.S. inflation in four decades. Top U.S. energy envoy Amos Hochstein told a television program on Sunday that...
Poll: Biden’s approval ratings hit all-time lows
July 16th, 20220 A new CNBC poll, conducted by the same polling firms that helm the NBC News poll, finds President Biden’s overall approval rating sinking to 36 percent among all adults, while his approval rating for handling the economy has fallen to 30 percent — both all-time lows for the president in CNBC polling. What’s more, Biden’s ratings...
CDC alerts parents and health providers of parechovirus, can cause severe illness in infants
July 14th, 20220 A virus known to cause severe illness in children is putting health authorities on high alert. The parechovirus (PeV) is a common childhood virus and is currently spreading across the U.S., the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in a health alert. The CDC says that since May it has received reports from healthcare...
Biden will push for greater oil output on Mideast trip
July 12th, 20220 WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. President Biden will make the case for greater oil production from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) nations to bring down gasoline prices when he meets Gulf leaders in Saudi Arabia this week, White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said on Monday. Biden leaves Tuesday...
Community leaders, federal officials discuss “watchlist” and profiling at ports of entry
July 9th, 20220 DEARBORN – Members of the Arab American community met with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officials to discuss ongoing efforts to improve the treatment of Arab and Muslim American communities at ports of entry. The roundtable discussion at the Lebanese American Heritage Club (LAHC) on Friday, June 24, was also attended by...
Survey: Almost half of Muslim Americans disapprove of Biden; majority to stick with Democrats in midterms
July 8th, 20220 A new report by a Muslim civil rights and political organization shows significant disapproval among Muslim voters of President Biden’s performance, but a projection that voters will prefer Democrats in the coming midterm election. The report was released this week by the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) — which calls...
Biden says he won’t directly ask Saudi Arabia to produce more oil
July 1st, 20220 President Biden said on Thursday he would not directly press Saudi Arabia to increase oil output to curb soaring crude prices when he sees the Saudi king and crown prince during a visit later this month. Biden also said at a news conference in Spain that Americans will have to stomach high gas prices for "as long as it takes" to beat...
Sanders endorses Tlaib, Levin; criticizes pro-corporate, pro-Israeli funds targeting primaries
July 1st, 20220 With primary races for Congressional seats heating up in Metro Detroit, some candidates have seen now unprecedented amounts of outside campaign funds pumped into their coffers. Most notably, those funds, raised by pro-Israeli occupation and pro-big business entities, have been directed to mainstream, pro-Israel Democrats in order...
Summer tips for travelers during heavy border traffic, loosened COVID restrictions
June 30th, 20220 DETROIT — With the summer in full swing, and borders experiencing high traffic due to loosened COVID-19 restrictions, customs officials are offering tips to make travel smoother. These tips come from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Detroit field office and are for people traveling by air, land or sea. Ensure travel...
State officials react to Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade
June 24th, 20220 WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Supreme Court has officially overturned the 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling that recognized women's constitutional right to abortion. The court, in a 6-3 ruling powered by its conservative majority, upheld a Republican-backed Mississippi law that bans abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy. The vote was 5-4 to...
Biden calls for gas tax pause, with little likelihood of passage in Congress or of major relief at pump
June 22nd, 20220 WASHINGTON, D.C. — With resentment and desperation growing among Americans amid soaring fuel costs, the Biden administration is scrambling to ease the pain at the pump, and made a largely symbolic attempt to do so on Wednesday. In a move that economists believe will make little difference if any on actual prices at the pump,...
A teacher asked students their thoughts about the Middle East. The answers were stunning.
June 20th, 20220 By Ahlam Yassin Tell me the first words that come to mind when you think of the Middle East. My usually talkative class was quiet. I, their visibly Muslim, Arab American teacher looked around the classroom during a dramatic pause and in the moment I realized how strange this may have seemed to them. After a minute or so, a brave soul...
Arab Americans’ history in Indianapolis told in documentary
June 20th, 20220 A local professor spent the last few years documenting the history of Arab Americans in Indianapolis. WFYI’s Taylor Bennett spoke with Edward Curtis, chair of Liberal Arts and professor of religious studies in the School of Liberal Arts at IUPUI, about the project — Arab Indianapolis: A Hidden History — and why it was......
Biden to visit Saudi Arabia, Israel amid a backdrop of the two nations’ terrible human rights record
June 17th, 20220 WASHINGTON, D.C. — The White House confirmed dates and some details on President Biden’s July trip to the Middle East, including Saudi Arabia and Israel, amid concerns over the human rights records of both countries. Human rights advocates are critical of Biden’s July 13-16 trip, which will include a meeting with the...
Tlaib continues push for MENA category in census and federal data
June 14th, 20220 DETROIT — U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Detroit) is continuing her effort to include the Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) category in federal population and health data, as well as the 10-year federal census. Talib joined U.S. Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) in leading the House Committee on Oversight and Reform to send......
Michigan GOP gubernatorial candidate Kelley arrested for role in Capitol riots
June 9th, 20220 ALLENDALE — The FBI arrested Michigan Republican gubernatorial candidate Ryan Kelley on Thursday over misdemeanor charges stemming from his role in the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol by throngs of then-President Trump's supporters, the Justice Department said. Kelley, 40, of Allendale, is one of five Republicans in the...
Abortion access: A matter of life and death
June 8th, 20220 By Dr. Yahya Mossa Basha Although 60 years have passed since I last saw my mother alive, the memory of her bleeding profusely as she was rushed to the hospital while in labor remains hauntingly vivid. Making the pain of her loss even harder to bear is the fact her death could have easily been prevented. She died because she could...Biden should not visit Saudi Arabia, meet crown prince, Democratic Rep. Schiff says
June 5th, 20220 WASHINGTON, D.C. — President Biden should not visit Saudi Arabia or meet its Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who approved an operation to capture or kill murdered journalist Jamal Khashoggi, according to U.S. intelligence, a leading Democratic lawmaker said on Sunday. Khashoggi, a U.S. resident who wrote opinion columns for the...
Pro-Israel, pro-corporate outside funds thrown at campaign opposing Talib in 12th District primary
June 5th, 20220 A new political action committee, raising funds from wealthy, pro-Israeli occupation groups and individuals, is mounting attacks against U.S. Rep. Rashida Talib (D-Detroit), in her bid to represent the newly formed 12th District. Urban Empowerment Action is planning to spend upwards of $1 million in campaign funds on one of Tlaib’s......
Maker of Pillsbury products divests from Israel, after multi-year boycott campaign
June 3rd, 20220 After two years of calls by human rights campaigners, General Mills, the company that produces the popular Pillsbury brand of products, has divested its Israeli business. The calls came from a diverse set of organizations and interests, including the Quaker organization American Friends Service Committee (AFSC), which promotes "a...
Muslim family intentionally given bacon by McDonald’s employee files discrimination complaint
June 2nd, 20222 CHICOPEE, MASS — A Muslim woman in Massachusetts has filed a legal complaint against a McDonald’s restaurant whose employees purposefully stuffed bacon into a fish sandwich she and her son bought. "McDonald's made my children and me feel unwanted and worthless by intentionally stuffing a fish sandwich full of bacon for no other......
Biden administration seeks Lebanese intelligence chief’s help in freeing Americans held in Syria
May 28th, 20221 BEIRUT — Lebanon’s intelligence chief said Thursday that he met with Biden administration officials this week to discuss ways he could help secure the release of six Americans who are being held prisoner or are missing in Syria, including Austin Tice, a freelance journalist who contributed to The Washington Post. Maj. Gen. Abbas...
Police waited an hour outside Texas school, restraining parents, before tactical team took out gunman
May 27th, 20220 UVALDE, TEXAS — New details emerged this week about a horrific Texas school massacre that left 19 children and two teachers dead. Videos from Tuesday’s mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde show desperate parents outside pleading with officers to storm the building, and some fathers restrained by police brandishing......
