The Arab American News
Author's Posts
Banks’ discriminatory account closures are pervasive and widespread
Last week, my firm, Jaafar & Mahdi Law Group, along with the firms of Nabih H Ayad & Associates and Barry A. Seifman, filed a class action lawsuit against Huntington Bank for closing large numbers of bank accounts in a discriminatory manner. Huntington targeted members of the Arab, Middle Eastern and Muslim communities for...Trustees vote to include HFCC millage proposal on November ballot
DEARBORN — During the last Dearborn School Board of Trustees meeting, a millage renewal was approved, in a 5-1 vote, to include on the November ballot. The decision will allow voters to decide on whether, or not, to approve a 3-mills renewal, along with a 1-mill increase, over the span of 10 years for Henry Ford Community College...Dearborn Public Library receives grant for reading series on Islam
DEARBORN – Henry Ford Centennial Library recently received a $3,500 grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) and the American Library Association (ALA) to host a five-part reading and discussion series about the Muslim faith, culture, history and people.The project, which seeks to familiarize the public with Islam in...Gas station attendant receives up to 17-year prison sentence for killing customer
Saleh.A local gas station attendant, who fatally shot a customer after a dispute last year, was sentenced to 4 years, 5 months to 17 years in jail by a Wayne County Circuit Court judge on July 11.The shooting occurred on March 10, 2011 at a BP gas station in Detroit, after Michael Haynes, a 24-year-old customer, argued with the...Happy’s Pizza owner, four others indicted for tax fraud
Happy Askar, the owner of the popular pizza chain, Happy’s Pizza and four others, who work for him, were indicted by a grand jury with tax fraud and obstruction, along with other charges in U.S. District Court on Tuesday. The names of the other four are Maher Bashi, Tom Yaldo, Arkan Summa and Tagrid Summa Bashi. Bashi and...Christian group asks local Muslims to donate books to women’s library in Yemen
NORTH CAROLINA — A Christian volunteer group is reaching out to southeast Michigan's Muslim community, during the holy month of Ramadan, in an effort to upstart a women's library in Yemen. Impact International has volunteered at the Arab International Festival in Dearborn for 14 years and returned this year, despite its...Tawheed Center holds annual food drive
FARMINGTON HILLS — Volunteers for the Tawheed Center Annual Food Drive are needed. Over six trucks of food will be delivered to at-need families across Michigan. You can donate to this effort online, or you can help pack the thousands of boxes and load the trucks on Saturday, Aug. 3 at Sam’s Club, 32625 Northwestern Hwy, Farmington...TSA says not to be alarmed by Muslims practicing rituals in Ramadan
WASHINGTON - The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) issued a statement at the beginning of Ramadan, urging security agents and travelers not to be alarmed by Muslims practicing religious rituals at airports and on airplanes."TSA has reminded its security workforce that traveling passengers may be observed at various areas in...MMCC starts Ramadan with fight against hunger campaign
MICHIGAN — The Michigan Muslim Community Council (MMCC) began Ramadan with a successful start to its “Ramadan Fight Against Hunger” Campaign. A team of energetic, hard working volunteers came together and helped to package food on the first day of the holy month at Forgotten Harvest. A number of other volunteer opportunities...Elahi meets with Congressman Dingell, discusses U.S.-Iran relations
DEARBORN HEIGHTS - Last week, Imam Mohammad Ali Elahi and Congressman John Dingell met to discuss U.S.- Iranian relations. The discussion centered on the election of the new moderate Iranian president and the opening of a new chapter in the relationship between the two countries. Imam Elahi (right) pictured with Congressman...Why teaching kids about the environment matters
Learning about saving energy and the environment will do more than just help kids save money as adults -- it can help them develop math and science skills, and foster a sense of responsibility.From which appliance to buy to save the most energy, to what temperature to set the thermostat, we are faced with choices that can impact us...Tips to reduce paper waste
Want to go green? One great area to focus on this year is reducing, reusing and recycling the paper waste you generate.In America alone, we use about 71 million tons of paper a year, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.But with a few tweaks to your daily routine, you can reduce your contributions to this problem. Here are...BCBSM website educates consumers on impact of health care reform
DETROIT — Beginning this October, Michigan residents may be affected by the federal health reform law. What health insurance covers, where people can buy it and whether people qualify for government financial assistance are questions many people in the State will be asking. To help people in Michigan understand the new law and its...
Man found dead inside Family Dollar Store in Dearborn, woman missing
July 16th, 20130 DEARBORN-- A 20-year-old man was shot dead in a robbery at the Family Dollar store, located at 22631 Michigan Ave., on the evening of Monday, July 15. According to police, Brenna Kathleen Machus, 20, of Romulus, who was working at the store on the same evening, is believed to be abducted and may be "in danger." Employees who opened...
Russia: Syrian rebels likely behind Aleppo chemical attack
July 12th, 20130 Russian scientific analysis indicated a deadly projectile that hit a suburb of the Syrian city of Aleppo on March 19 contained the nerve agent sarin and was most likely fired by rebels. The incident at Khan al-Assal in the northern province of Aleppo killed more than two dozen people. Both the government and rebels have blamed each......
Study: Corruption worsens in Arab countries since uprisings
DUBAI — Corruption has worsened in most Arab countries since the 2011 revolutions, even though anger with corrupt officials was a major reason for the uprisings, according to a public opinion poll released on Tuesday.The survey by Transparency International, a global non-governmental body, which studies bribery around the world,...Egypt faces potential wheat shortage
Egypt has less than two months' supply of imported wheat left in its stocks, ousted President Mohamed Morsi's minister of supplies said, revealing a shortage more acute than previously disclosed.Speaking to Reuters on July 11 in a tent at a vigil where thousands of Morsi supporters are protesting against the Islamist president's removal,...Gulf countries pledge billions to post- Morsi Egypt, U.S. to maintain aid
In the aftermath of the military ouster of President Mohamed Morsi, Saudi Arabia approved $5 billion in aid to Egypt on Tuesday, July 9, and the United Arab Emirates has offered $3 billion in desperately needed support for the economy.In addition, the Obama Administration sent a clear message that it would continue its foreign aid to...Saudi princess charged with human trafficking in California
Prosecutors in Southern California charged a Saudi Arabian princess on Wednesday, July 10, with human trafficking and accused her of bringing a Kenyan woman to the United States and holding her against her will as a servant.The accused woman, Meshael Alayban, 42, brought the Kenyan to the United States in May and paid her $220 a month......
Violence across Iraq kills at least 44
July 12th, 20130 Bombers and gunmen attacked policemen and a wake in Iraq among other targets, killing at least 44 people across the country on Thursday, July 11.Gunmen opened fire on two checkpoints, guarding oil installations on the road between Haditha and Baiji, 111 miles north of the capital, killing 11 people, police said.In the town of Muqdadiya,...Israel’s indigenous invaders
On June 24th, the "Prawer Plan for the Arrangement of Bedouin-Palestinian Settlement in the Negev" passed its first reading in the Israeli parliament. If implemented, the Plan will constitute "the largest single act of forced displacement of Arab citizens of Israel since the 1950s", expelling an estimated forty thousand Palestinian......
A message to Washington: There’s no room for failure
In the Republican-controlled House of Representatives, many legislators are positioning themselves to, not only resist, but also undermine immigration reform. Speaker John Boehner has said that he will not bring a bill to the floor unless a majority of Republicans support it.Immigration reform has been on hold for more than a decade,...ElBaradei’s democracy: How Egypt’s ‘revolution’ betrayed itself
“The revolution is dead. Long live the revolution,” wrote Eric Walberg, a Middle East political expert and author, shortly after the Egyptian military overthrew the country’s democratically elected President Mohammed Morsi on July 3.But more accurately, the revolution was killed in an agonizingly slow death, and the murders were......