DETROIT — Crain’s Detroit Business has included 13 Arab and Chaldean American achievers among the “American Dreamers,” a list of 38 successful immigrants in Southeast Michigan.

On Sunday, June 1, Crain’s published profiles of every first-generation immigrant on the list, highlighting the nominees’ achievements, the year they immigrated to the United States and their country of origin. 

Chaker Aoun, founder and CEO of Michigan Bottling & Custom Pack Co. and Garden Food Distributor Inc., who was named as an “American Dreamer” by Crain’s, stressed the important role immigrants play in the region.

“Immigrants have made tremendous contributions to American society, particularly here in Michigan,” he told The Arab American News. “They added a lot of values to the culture and the economy. We live in an environment that gives everybody the opportunity to get ahead.”

Aoun added that his own achievements were driven by his assimilation into American society and the support of the Arab American Community.

The entrepreneur said he advises young immigrants to pursue education, live by the rules, work within the system and not be outsiders in society. 

“When you complete your education, you achieve 50 percent of your success,” he said. 

Haifa Fakhoury, the president of the Arab American and Chaldean Council (ACC), was critical of the magazine’s profile of her. 

“It was an inaccurate article,” she said, “They distorted the history of my long career.”

She said the article stated that she moved here as a refugee. However, the ACC president came to the United States as a student before she became a U.S. citizen, but she started working on refugee issues while attending Wayne State University.

Fakhoury said being an immigrant is “irrelevant” to success. “It is all about personal initiatives, commitment, dedication and ambitions,” she said.

Osama Siblani, publisher of The Arab American News, who was also named on the list, said immigrants add to the greatness of the United States.

“This country brings people together and they share their cultures and work hard to enrich this great nation,” Siblani said.

He recalled then-President Ronald Reagan’s speech at his naturalization ceremony at Cobo Hall in Detroit in October of 1984. Siblani said Reagan told the new citizens not to forget where they came from, urging them to preserve their culture and heritage and share it with the rest of the American people to enrich our nation.  

However, Siblani said the “American Dream” has taken a hit by the increased violations of American civil rights in the post-9/11 era and the United States’ “outdated and unfair immigration policies.”

He added that the number of Arab Americans in Crain’s shows the prosperity of his community. 

“It says that our community is so successful, even more than we can see sometimes, because we are on the inside,” Siblani said.

The list included people from a variety of professions, including journalism, law, engineering, finance, pharmaceuticals and education. 

“This was not a contest,” said Sherri Welch, senior reporter at Crain’s Detroit Business. “It was an opportunity to share some of the successes of first-generation immigrants from a range of different countries and different industries, under the same umbrella.”

Other notable Arab American names on the list include Dr. Radwan Khoury, president and CEO of Gateway community health; Attorney Joumana Kayrouz; ACCESS Executive Director Hassan Jaber; and Mohamed Sohoubah, president and CEO of Biomed Health Solutions LLC, PharMor Pharmacy and The Hammoud family as a model of the American dreamer family.