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...
July 22nd, 20181LANSING — State Reps. Abdullah Hammoud (D-Dearborn) and Robert Wittenberg (D-Huntington Woods) have introduced House Bills 6119 and 6120, which would revise kosher and halal food service laws in Michigan to increase transparency and address fraud.
“The goal of my bill is to increase transparency and promote truth in...
July 21st, 20180By Tamara Ajjour
The Arab American News intern
Dearborn — Dearborn has long been known as the hub for all things Middle Eastern. From Lebanese, Iraqi and Yemeni restaurants and grocery stores to cafes, bakeries, mosques and a museum highlighting Arab culture and way of life, many Arab Americans find everything they're looking for...
July 21st, 20183DEARBORN – After a successful ousting of ISIS insurgents and a democratically-held election, Iraq’s situation seemed to be on an uptick. But in the midst of a transition in government, ongoing political corruption, a worsening economy, few jobs and scarce electricity have sparked massive protests across the oil-rich county’s south,...
July 19th, 20180BROOKLYN, NY - Sunday, July 9, Arab Americans celebrated their heritage at the 12th annual Arab American Bazaar in Bay Ridge, sponsored by the Arab American Association of New York.
Attendees enjoyed a wide variety of regional foods and entertainment, with many dressed in traditional outfits from countries such as Egypt, Syria,...
July 6th, 20180Human rights organization advocates for building longer tables, not walls
DEARBORN – About 80 percent of people surveyed worldwide say they would welcome refugees in their country, community or home, according to a 2017 Amnesty International survey of 27,000 people across 27 countries. Yet, most leaders of those nations...
July 6th, 20180Progressive and unorthodox candidates for Congress have been racking up major victories in the past few months, sending shockwaves and turning heads in a political arena long-dominated by White Republican men with deep pockets.
On June 26, 28-year-old Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez defeated a 10-term Democratic incumbent in the primaries...
July 1st, 20180DEARBORN HEIGHTS — The high school graduating classes of Hamadeh Educational Services (HES) achieved high grade point averages and have been awarded more than $32 million in scholarships.
In a safe and respectful environment, HES educators lay the foundation of a lifetime of learning, inspiring students to academic excellence while...
June 29th, 20180HAMTRAMCK — Mu’ath Bin Jabal Mosque in Detroit is a focal point for the growing population of Yemeni immigrants who live along the border of Hamtramck and Detroit and is located on a social and economically successful avenue that caters to Yemeni Americans and other community members. On June 24, the mosque awarded 12 Yemeni American...
June 29th, 20180CORRECTION: Although its unfortunate to make errors in a story, The AANews cares deeply about reporting the facts and issue corrections when necessary.
This article has been updated to attribute quotes to the names of two current City Council members, instead of members who left the Council earlier this year.
An earlier version also...
June 29th, 20180DEARBORN – On June 27, Plymouth-based attorney Dana Nessel, who won the Michigan Democratic Party’s nomination for attorney general in April, spoke to Arab American supporters and local officials at a fundraising event held at La Pita Restaurant in Dearborn, reaffirming her commitment to “tenaciously” champion civil and immigrant...
June 24th, 20180DETROIT – Giving back pays off. The Hasan family, owners of the Detroit discount store Nice Price, has received the Southwest Detroit Business Association’s (SDBA) Bagley Award for Generational Investment.
Since its doors opened in 1998 by Khalid Hasan, an immigrant from Jordan, the family-owned business has thrived as a staple...
June 24th, 20180TROY — The Arab American Chaldean Council (ACC) awarded a total of $30,000 in scholarships to 30 students of leadership and good academic standing during the 16th annual Golf Outing and Scholarship Awards Dinner on June 20.
ACC is a premier non-profit human service organization providing services in Southeast Michigan and it...
