January 24th, 20200
DEARBORN HEIGHTS — Last week, Governor Whitmer announced further appointments to several state boards and commissions. Important among them was the appointment of Siham Awada Jaafar to the Judicial Tenure Commission.
Jaafar, of Dearborn Heights, is the president and CEO of 3D Consulting and Communications. She is also the...
January 24th, 20201DETROIT — This week, U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Detroit) announced her bid to represent her district in Congress for the second time. As of now, no other Democrat has officially announced as an opposing candidate in the 13th Congressional District, where the 43-year-old Palestinian American will likely have strong support from...
January 17th, 20200DEARBORN HEIGHTS — The Michigan Center for Contextual Factors in Alzheimer's Disease (MCCFAD) is a newly formed Resource Center for Minority Aging (RCMAR), housed at the University of Michigan and funded by the National Institute on Aging.
The center partners with Michigan State University, Wayne State University and Eastern...
December 27th, 20190It has been another important year for Arab Americans and we have been fortunate to cover many of the more important issues affecting our vibrant community in Michigan. We hope that with this recap, our readers can gain a sense of the many ways Arab Americans continue to play an integral role in our state, its economy and its lifeways....
December 27th, 20190NORTHVILLE — Fine fabrics, stylish and often lavish suits, pants, jackets and shoes adorn a beautiful and classy interior at Alexander’s Custom Clothiers in a chic Northville shopping and commercial neighborhood.
Though miles away from the Arab American hubs of Dearborn and Dearborn Heights, the town has its own connections with...
December 21st, 20190This week, another prominent member of the Michigan government, Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, a Democrat and public figure who has shown support for the Arab American community, with the community reciprocating that support, took a publicized trip to Israel. After the outrage sparked by last month’s Israeli trip by Governor...
December 17th, 20190FLINT — The Arab American community lost one of its beloved and honored leaders last week. Former Genesee County Circuit Court Judge Anthony Mansour passed away on December 10 at the age of 93.
The Arab American Heritage Council (AAHC) of Flint was deeply saddened to announce the passing away of one of their founders, long-time...
May 3rd, 20190WASHINGTON, D.C. — On Tuesday, U.S. Reps. Bill Pascrell, Jr. (D-New Jersey), Donna Shalala (D-Florida), Debbie Dingell (D-Dearborn) and Rashida Tlaib (D-Detroit) joined together to introduce a resolution honoring Arab American Heritage Month, a month-long celebration of the contributions Arab Americans have made to the United...
January 18th, 20190This week Dearborn marked the 90th anniversary of what has become one of the largest and most diverse cities in the state.
But as the city moves forward with plans to turn west Dearborn into a modern business and entertainment hub, the age and neglect of its "other" parts is evident.
A lack of support has taken its toll on the east...
November 30th, 20180DEARBORN – Yemen is facing the worst humanitarian crisis in modern history, with more than 22 million people, 60 percent of the population, in urgent need of food, drink, clothing and shelter, according to the United Nations.
With the ongoing escalation of the armed conflict, the number of victims and displaced persons who find...
November 25th, 20180WASHINGTON — Hate crimes in the United States in 2017 saw the largest increase — to more than 7,000 — since a period immediately after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, new FBI data said Tuesday.
The 2017 data is the latest uniform crime reporting compilation of bias-motivated incidents from more than 16,100 U.S. law...
October 26th, 20180For too long the Arab American voice on Election Day in Southeast Michigan and in cities like Dearborn, Dearborn Heights and Hamtramck in particular has been muted. Proposal 3 is a statewide ballot measure that would reduce some of the barriers that prevent us as a community from fully participating in elections and we urge our readers...
October 21st, 20180DEARBORN — Over the past few decades, Dearborn has become the United States’ most densely concentrated Arab American city. One defining metaphor is a “melting pot” of immigrants from around the globe, but what does it mean to city officials to represent American Arabia?
Mayor Jack O’Reilly has represented the largest Arab...
October 4th, 20180DEARBORN – Jocelyn Benson sees the secretary of state as the chief guardian of our democratic process.
Benson, a former dean of the Wayne State University Law School, is the Democratic candidate for Michigan's secretary of state.
On September 28, Benson made a campaign stop at The AANews offices in Dearborn, where she met with...
September 22nd, 20180DEARBORN – Inconsistencies in ordinances have been causing confusion among city officials, as residents who have gazebos on their properties complain of excessive ticketing and press administrators struggling to iron out the enforcement language, to find a fix.
Although City Council members attempted to tackle this issue last...
September 15th, 20181On September 7, 1984, 34 years ago, The Arab American News was established with a mission to tell Arab Americans' and the Arab world's untold stories, but as it progressed and immersed in the field of journalism, it developed into something much more than that. In the last three decades The Arab American News has become a place to go...
September 15th, 20181DEARBORN – Democratic gubernatorial candidate Gretchen Whitmer has reaffirmed her “unwavering support” for Israel and said she is 100 percent opposed to BDS.”
In response to what Whitmer’s campaign calls “baseless smears” from her Republican opponent Bill Schuette's “partisan attack dogs” in the form of articles...
September 12th, 20180DEARBORN — Famed Palestinian activist Ahed Tamimi, held at an Israeli jail at 16 for slapping an Israeli officer, will be the keynote speaker at the Arab American Civil Rights League's (ACRL) seventh annual Fight for Justice Gala on October 11 at the Ford Community and Performing Arts Center.
If Tamimi, who had previously been...
September 8th, 20180BROOKLYN, NY — Ahmed Mansour’s film “Brooklyn, Inshallah” documents Khader El-Yateem’s 2017 campaign for New York City Council. Not only did El-Yateem’s position as a Lutheran pastor make him distinguishable from other candidates, his identity as a Palestinian American immigrant did so as well. From that, he was even...
September 8th, 20183DEARBORN – Between 1995 and 2012, thousands flocked to the capital of Arab America for a taste of their homeland’s culture, where nostalgia for music and food alike would meet their match at the Arab International Festival.
It was a kind of celebration one could only experience in a city in which nearly half its residents are of...
September 3rd, 20180DEARBORN — The Environmental Health Research-to-Action (EHRA) project under Healthy Dearborn is the first step in a long-term community-academic partnership to address environmental health disparities experienced by residents in Dearborn's Southend, a predominantly Arab American community. This program, which ran from July 23 to August...
August 31st, 20180LANSING – Michigan voters are gearing up to elect candidates for governor, attorney general and secretary of state, among others, on November 6.
Following the primary elections, which saw the defeat of progressive candidate Abdul El-Sayed to his rival and establishment Democrat, Gretchen Whitmer, elected officials and Arab Americans...
August 24th, 20180DEARBORN — The Arab American Women’s Business Council (AAWBC), a nonprofit organization that addresses the needs of Arab American women professionals and business owners, held a Women of Wisdom event at Mint 29 in west Dearborn on August 22.
The AAWBC, which was founded in 2007 in Dearborn, also helps cater to the needs of young...
August 18th, 20180DEARBORN – Not even a life-threatening disease could stop Mohamad Osman in his tracks.
It did for only a brief period, shortly after he noticed he was running slower than his usual pace while running cross country and track during his senior year at Dearborn High School in September 2017.
A blood test at Henry Ford Hospital’s...
August 10th, 20180DEARBORN/DETROIT – Abdul El-Sayed might have fallen short of the votes needed to win the Democratic gubernatorial primary on Tuesday, Aug. 7, and the possibility of going on to become the nation's first Muslim governor, but his platform’s momentum continues in full thrust among many progressives across the state. The 33-year-old...
August 10th, 20180DEARBORN— About 2.1 million people out of 7.4 million registered cast their votes in Michigan in the Aug. 7 primaries, with a nearly 28.6 percent voter turnout breaking records going as far back as 1978, according to state election officials.
The results of Michigan's gubernatorial race mirrored most polls that had former State...
July 30th, 20180WASHINGTON, D.C. — There were nearly twice as many hate crimes against Arab Americans in 2015 and 2016 than were reported by the FBI, underscoring the shortcomings of official statistics at a time of rising hate crime in the country, according to a comprehensive report on hate crime by the Arab American Institute in Washington.
Using...
July 27th, 20180This election is a defining event for America
This election, for many reasons, is perhaps the most important one in America’s modern history.
First, our democracy is in grave danger. During the last presidential election and since Donald Trump took office, there have been a systematic attack on our democracy at all levels. The...
