May 8th, 20211DEARBORN — Longtime resident and social activist Samraa “Sam“ Luqman is seeking one of seven open seats in this year’s election for Dearborn City Council.
“As an active Dearborn resident, I have been advocating for years for my neighborhood of the Southend to be heard,” Luqman said. “To put it simply, I decided to run...
May 8th, 20211DEARBORN — Jon Akkari, an attorney born and raised in Dearborn, is vying for a position on the City Council this year. A primary election is set for Aug. 3, with a crowded field of Council and mayoral candidates.
Akkari is the son of a Lebanese immigrant father and third-generation Dearbornite mother. His father has been a blue...
May 7th, 20210DETROIT — Dearborn native and Fordson High School alum Mike Jaafar was promoted to undersheriff of Wayne County, making him second in command and the first Arab American to be appointed to this position.
In his new role, Jaafar will be overseeing both the jails and law enforcement and will be second in command under Wayne County...
May 4th, 20210WAYNE COUNTY — Mike Jaafar has been promoted to undersheriff of Wayne County, making him second in command at the Wayne County Sheriff's Department, under current Wayne County Sheriff Raphael Ray Washington.
Jaafar was previously appointed to chief of operations in 2016, following his previous position as deputy chief. Jaafar...
May 1st, 20210DEARBORN— In late February, Khalil Othman was among the first of 19 candidates to announce his bid for a seat on the Dearborn City Council.
“I can best serve the Council because I come from a problem-solver mindset and experience,” Othman said. “Every single issue we have here, I will be advocating for as a core principle I...
April 26th, 20210WASHINGTON, D.C. — On Monday, U.S. Reps. Rashida Tlaib (D-Detroit) and Debbie Dingell (D-Dearborn), introduced a resolution honoring Arab American Heritage Month, a celebration held in April to recognize the incredible contributions Arab Americans have made in the country.
"As a strong, proud and unapologetically Arab American...
April 24th, 20210DEARBORN — A local 12-year-old boy is using Rubik’s Cubes to display his creativity and is taking multiple social media platforms by storm.
Mohamed Charara, a student at Unis Middle School, started collecting Rubik’s Cubes a year ago.
“I once saw a video of someone doing it and I wanted to try it,” Charara said....
April 24th, 20210DEARBORN — With the filing deadline coming to a close, Kamal Alsawafy becomes one of 19 candidates vying for one of seven City Council seats up for grabs.
“What makes me a qualified and unique candidate for Dearborn City Council is my diversified and relevant experience,” Alsawafy said. “Dearborn is a great place to call...
April 23rd, 20211- Ali "Barber Al" Alhashemi withdrew from the race. There are now 18 candidates for the seven city council seats.
DEARBORN — While candidates had until April 23 to withdraw their names from the race, an unofficial list has been announced in Dearborn.
The primary election is scheduled for August 3.
With the retirement of...
April 20th, 20210DEARBORN — No appointment is needed to get a COVID-19 vaccination shot at Dearborn’s vaccination center Tuesday through Thursday, April 22.
The city of Dearborn is informing residents how easy it is for people 18 and older who live in Wayne County to get the shot in a convenient, quick way. Most people are out within 25 minutes,...
April 17th, 20210Since Governor Whitmer declared a state of emergency last March, Dr. Zafar Shamoon, chief of emergency services at Beaumont Hospital-Dearborn, has witnessed first-hand the precariously rising cases of COVID-19 in the community.
“Dearborn has been hit very hard," Shamoon told The Arab American News. "This is one of the busiest, if...
April 16th, 20210DEARBORN — Cheryl Salwa, a former employee of the city of Dearborn Engineering Division, is facing four felony charges stemming from accusations of embezzlement.
The division is part of the city’s Public Works Department. According to information available to The Arab American News, Salwa was accused of embezzlement approximately...
April 16th, 20210DEARBORN — An essential project related to the sewer separation project will cause construction noise for residents in the area of Chase and Donald.
The project is expected to bring noise from 7 a.m. until midnight from April 14 until June 16.
The construction project is being conducted by DTE, but is necessary in order for the...
April 15th, 20210DETROIT — U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Detroit) announced on Thursday that FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) has begun accepting applications for funeral assistance for Michiganders who’ve lost loved ones to COVID-19. Tlaib helped pass the funeral assistance program as part of the American Rescue Plan last...
April 15th, 20210One of the state’s biggest hospital networks is warning Michiganders that hospitals and staff have hit critical capacity levels. Health care workers are now pleading for Michiganders to personally take immediate steps to help stop the spread of the COVID-19 virus.
Michigan’s COVID-19 surge is the worst in the country, with even...
April 15th, 20210DEARBORN — Commander Houssain “Sam” Sareini of Dearborn has become one of the first Muslim Americans to command a U.S. naval ship.
On April 9, Sareini took command of the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Nitze (DDG 94) at a ceremony in Portsmouth, VA, according to a Navy press release.
Sareini has been in...
April 13th, 20210DEARBORN — April is National Arab American Heritage Month and the Dearborn Public Schools says it is proud to recognize the accomplishments and contributions Arab Americans have made to the Dearborn area, Michigan and the country.
During the April 12 Board of Education meeting, Superintendent Dr. Glenn Maleyko reminded attendees...
April 10th, 20210Dr. Maya Hammoud has been elected as an at-large member of the National Board of Medical Examiners' Executive Board.
Hammoud, originally from Dearborn, has chaired the NBME’s International Foundations of Medicine® (IFOM®) Committee since 2016 and currently serves on the International Oversight Committee.
The NBME is a leading...
April 10th, 20211DEARBORN — Council President Susan Dabaja kicked off her mayoral campaign with a fundraiser event at Byblos Banquet Center in Dearborn.
The event, which was held outdoors and observed CDC guidelines with mask requirements and social distancing, brought out supporters from all around the community.
Fellow Council member Leslie...
April 9th, 20211DEARBORN — Just one month after settling a $1.25 million lawsuit for the wrongful death of an unarmed Black man, the city investigated an excessive force case this week.
The activist group Accountability For Dearborn (A4D), has been going to City Council meetings for nearly a year, calling on police reform and action in the...
April 9th, 20210WASHINGTON, D.C. — Metro Detroit Yemeni and other activists have been leading a hunger strike for 11 days in front of the White House, protesting the U.S.-backed Saudi blockade during an ongoing six year war in Yemen. The Yemeni Liberation Movement (YLM) is calling for the Biden-Harris administration to withdraw all material and...
April 8th, 20210With COVID-19 cases continuing to rise to dangerous levels, Michigan officials have asked the Biden administration to increase supplies of life-savings vaccines, though a positive response has not come from the White House.
On Thursday alone, Michigan recorded 7,819 new cases, pushing officials, including U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell...
April 6th, 20211There’s no doubt, comic book fans are well aware of Geoff Johns' illustrious career.
Whether writing for some of the DC Comics' most iconic series, being the creative force behind some of the company’s biggest movie hits or serving in various executive capacities, Johns’ time in the industry is nothing short of...
April 6th, 20210DEARBORN — Residents can begin looking forward to the completion of the sewer separation project toward the end of the year, four years ahead of schedule.
The project was an alternative to mitigate the federally-mandated Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) Control and was originally not anticipated to end until 2025.
The project,...
April 3rd, 20210- From Nada Almawiri
My name is Nada and I am a Yemeni American student at the University of Detroit Mercy. My current instructor is Abbas Al Haj Ahmad, who is also a writer at The Arab American News. Mr. Abbas Al Haj Ahmad has been a great mentor, instructor and an active member of our community.
I am very saddened to see what...
April 3rd, 20211
It started at childhood. “Yemeni, Yemeni, shower is my enemy.” At 9-years-old, these unforgettable words, among others, were often muttered by my fellow Arab classmates. I painfully recall standing there, frozen stiff as tears of shame and confusion threatened to spill over. As a young Yemeniya, I could not comprehend why I was...
March 31st, 20210LANSING — Michigan will continue its upward trajectory in getting more and more residents vaccinated against the dangerous COVID-19 virus, as positive news came down the pipeline from Lansing in recent days.
On Wednesday, Governor Whitmer raised the state’s vaccination goal from 50,000 to 100,000 shots per day. The new...
March 30th, 20210DEARBORN — The Dearborn Consolidated Vaccination Clinic is extending its appointments once more in an attempt to vaccinate as many people as possible.
The clinic will now continue appointments through May 1 for people to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.
With eligibility opening up statewide on April 5, the clinic will also be...
