March 31st, 20200DEARBORN — State Rep. Isaac Robinson (D-Detroit) passed away from a suspected coronavirus infection on Sunday morning at a Detroit hospital. Robinson was beloved and respected by many in the Arab American community in Metro Detroit.
Friends and colleagues called Robinson an advocate ally of working class residents of the Fourth...
March 13th, 20200DETROIT — On Friday, a Wayne County judge upheld the dismissal by a Hamtramck judge in the sexual assault case of Hamtramck Yemeni community leader Ibrahim Aljahim and denied the Wayne County Prosecutor's appeal.
Wayne County Circuit Court Criminal Division Judge Bruce Morrow upheld Friday morning the November 2019 order of dismissal...
March 11th, 20200HAMTRAMCK — As of Wednesday evening, election results for the March 10 Michigan presidential primary in key Arab American precincts in Hamtramck, Dearborn and Dearborn Height show Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders to be the overwhelming favorite among voters in the community.
While election results in many of these precincts are...
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 13th, 20190DETROIT — The Wayne County Prosecutor's Office is appealing the dismissal of charges of criminal sexual conduct against Yemeni community leader Ibrahim Aljahim.
A claim of appeal was filed in the Wayne County Third Circuit Court on Thursday. Wayne County prosecutors will have to submit a brief 28 days after it receives notice from...
October 18th, 20190Detroit — New research from New American Economy (NAE), in partnership with the office of the Wayne County executive and Wayne United, reveals that immigrants contributed more than $10.5 billion to Wayne County’s GDP in 2017.
In addition to their financial contributions, including $430.5 million to Social Security and $110.6...
October 10th, 20190HAMTRAMCK – At a preliminary examination for Ibrahim Aljahim at the 31st District Court in Hamtramck on Thursday, both prosecutors and defense were unable to pin down for the court an accurate description of what occurred on the day of an alleged sexual assault by Aljahim on a student at the Oakland International Academy High...
October 3rd, 20190HAMTRAMCK –Embattled Yemeni American and Oakland International Academy Community Liaison Ibrahim Aljahim appeared in the 31st District Court in Hamtramck on Thursday for a probable cause hearing.
The appearance is Aljahim’s second since being arraigned on two charges of criminal sexual conduct involving a mentally disabled victim....
September 25th, 20190HAMTRAMCK - Vermont senator and presidential candidate Bernie Sanders was in Detroit to picket with striking UAW workers at the gigantic General Motors Detroit-Hamtramck Assembly Plant on Wednesday.
The labor strike is now in its 10th day. UAW members and supporters can be routinely seen picketing outside of the 4...
September 23rd, 20190HAMTRAMCK – The city of Hamtramck is expected to see three new two-family homes as part of a refugee resettlement project.
The project, dubbed Freedom Village, will provide refugees affordable transitional housing. Construction is underway and is expected to be complete by the summer of 2020.
Wayne County will utilize funds from...
September 13th, 20190HAMTRAMCK – A 2019 study has ranked Hamtramck, Michigan as number three among five best cities to live in the United States to build good credit rating.
Apartment Guide’s 2019 Best Cities to Repair Credit study reveals ideal cities based on a number of key factors, including cost of living, average credit card debt and eviction...
August 3rd, 20190HAMTRAMCK — Nine Hamtramck City Council candidates, including six Muslims, will face off on Aug. 6 for three seats, with the top six vote getters going on to compete in the November 5 general elections.
The six Muslim candidates are Nayeem Choudhury, Mohammed Alsomiri, Anam Miah, Abu Musa, Saad Almasmari and Mohammed...
May 31st, 20190DETROIT — A Bangladeshi American father of seven was shot and killed while driving his cab Saturday morning.
Hamtramck resident Joynul Islam, 60, was a cab driver for Checker Cab. The incident occurred as he was dropping a passenger off on the 600 block of Collingwood Street, near Woodward, around 2 a.m. Saturday.
According to...
November 30th, 20180DETROIT — General Motors announced Monday it will close three assembly plants by the end of 2019.
A total of 1,500 jobs in Hamtramck are at stake at the plant where the Chevrolet Volt and Impala, the Cadillac CT6 and the Buick LaCrosse are made. Those vehicles are to be terminated.
GM said it will reduce its North American...
October 29th, 20180HAMTRAMCK — Elevated lead levels in tap water tested in two homes in the city called for educational outreach to customers in the city.
Every three years the city of Hamtramck tests tap water in homes for lead and copper as required by the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ).
Over the summer the city collected...
October 22nd, 20180HAMTRAMCK - The city will install a new stop sign at the intersection of Gallagher and Belmont, creating a three-way stop.
The city plans to place traffic signs and flags along both Gallagher and Belmont to alert drivers of the new stop sign.
“This intersection is heavily travelled, especially during the school year,” said...
October 19th, 20181HAMTRAMCK ― An organization promoting cultural visibility in Hamtramck is sponsoring another mural highlighting the vast diversity of the city's neighborhoods.
A mural dedicated to the Bangladeshi community of Hamtramck appeared this week, painted by the Boston-based Mexican American artist Victor Quinonez, also known as...
August 12th, 20180HAMTRAMCK – Two Arab American candidates lost in the Democratic primary election in Hamtramck on August 7.
Abraham Aiyash ran for State Senate in the Second District, while Saad Almasmari campaigned for the Fourth District seat in the Michigan House of Representatives.
Aiyash earned 5,764 votes while his primary opponent,...
July 22nd, 20180DETROIT— Among the seven Democratic candidates seeking to fill a Detroit-area State Senate seat left open by a term-limited incumbent who pleaded guilty to federal theft and conspiracy charges, two have histories involving crime and controversy.
Former State Sen. Bert Johnson (D-Highland Park) resigned after pleading guilty to...
July 21st, 20180HAMTRAMCK — On Thursday, July 19, the Hamtramck Historical Museum held an official dedication of the “Coming to Hamtramck” mural installed inside the museum’s main gallery walls.
The 150-foot-long by 6-foot-high mural was made possible by a grant from the Michigan Humanities Council amounting to $15,000.
Since Hamtramck's...
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 18th, 20180DETROIT — The number of Frontier International Academy (FIA) students applying to universities is increasing every year and the class of 2018 has brought the school to its peak in college and university acceptances.
Frontier International Academy has won the grand prize in the Race to the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student...
March 9th, 20180By Farah Harb
The Arab American News
HAMTRAMCK — The financial emergency in Hamtramck has been resolved, putting the city out of emergency management and under the guidance of a transition board.
In the past 14 years, Hamtramck has overcome two financial crises, under the direction of an emergency manager.
In June 2013,...
March 3rd, 20180State Oversight Board Abolished, Full Local Control Re-Established
LANSING, Mich. – Michigan Treasurer Nick Khouri today announced the city of Hamtramck has been released from receivership under the Local Financial Stability and Choice Act and dissolved the Hamtramck Receivership Transition Advisory Board (RTAB).
The state...
March 2nd, 20180DEARBORN — The conversation around upgrading an aging infrastructure is taking center stage around the nation and especially in Michigan, where lead-contaminated water pipes have poisoned an entire city, mold grows in middle school classrooms and bad weather makes for deadly potholes.
Weak roads, coupled with drastic thawing of...
February 9th, 20180
HAMTRAMCK — When Saad Almasmari made history in Nov. 2015 by receiving the most votes in the Hamtramck City Council race— making it the first City Council with a Muslim-majority in the U.S— he pledged to ensure proportional representation and that the city would handle resources well enough to move on from emergency...
January 26th, 20180By Farah Harb
HAMTRAMCK — Members of a Hamtramck family claim the police treated them pitilessly during a traffic stop on Jan. 3 in which the father was pulled over for an expired tag and ticketed for having no insurance.
Nasser Almasmari had his pregnant wife, 10-year old son and 2-year-old and 11-month-old daughters with him when...
January 19th, 20181HAMTRAMCK — Hani Omasan loves cooking. Although he has worked in different realms of the auto industry for more than 20 years, he's found cooking burgers to be a great hobby.
Last November, Omasan made his hobby a business when he opened California Burgerz, which sells 100 percent halal USDA premium angus beef.
The restaurant,...
