The Arab American News
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Discrimination lawsuit filed against American Airlines
DETROIT — Six Michigan men, who in August were escorted off an American Airlines flight and then detained, filed a race discrimination lawsuit this week against the airline, saying the incident was a clear case of racial profiling, false imprisonment and a violation of civil rights. Filed in U.S. District Court by Allen Brothers PLLC...AAI, NNAAC conferences coincide
DEARBORN — This weekend, two major national networks are holding their annual conferences in Dearborn. One is an organization promoting electoral participation and greater Arab American involvement in the American political system. The other is a broad network of Arab community groups and service-providers. The participants from both...Arabs get Ontario funding to improve communication
The National Council on Canada-Arab Relations has been funded by the Trillium Foundation, an organization of the Ontario government, to create a network of organizations to serve the Arab-Canadian community in the province. The work is to be completed by June, 2008. This network will facilitate communication among the groups and is...Canadian Conservatives seek minority votes
The Conservatives are reaching out to increase their support among various ethnic and religious groups. An internal party document makes this effort clear. The document also suggests that there is no hope in making inroads with some. Where do Muslims stand in this strategy? Prime Minister Stephen Harper sent out Rosh Hashanah greeting...Veil: French Arabs more targeted than Jews
Simone Veil, speaking at a luncheon in Montreal sponsored by the Azrieli Foundation, said that "Anti-Arab sentiment is much stronger in France than anti-Semitism." Veil, a Holocaust survivor from Auschwitz, served in cabinet positions in various French governments and was president of the European Parliament. The Azrieli Foundation is a...ADC honors ‘Guardians of Justice’
6th annual judges night The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) Michigan honored judges and their contribution to civil rights at its 6th Annual Judges Night Reception on Tuesday, October 16, at the Bint Jebail Cultural Center in Dearborn. Among the invited guests were distinguished judges, attorneys, community leaders,...Only Congress can declare war
If anyone doubts that the republic created by the U.S. Constitution is dead, he or she only has to watch the Republican presidential debates. Save for Dr. Ron Paul, all of the candidates believe a president can take the country to war on his own, though most concede it might be a good idea to "consult" attorneys and even...Prisoner swap: Marwan for Gilad?
Ramallah — More than 11,000 Palestinian prisoners are in Israeli jails. One Israeli soldier, captured 16 months ago, is being held by Palestinians in Gaza. Behind the new push for Israeli-Palestinian reconciliation are reports of talks about a possible controversial trade-off that could see the release of two of those prisoners. Such...State Department recruiting minorities
WASHINGTON — Representatives of the U.S. State Department, including ambassadors and other senior-level members, will be visiting Detroit in an effort to recruit more Arab Americans, African Americans, Latinos and other people of color. The Detroit event will be the 10th held in this series since the U.S. DoS and the Minority...
AAPAC makes election endorsements
October 20th, 20070 DEARBORN — Members of the Arab American Political Action Committee (AAPAC) voted Monday to make endorsements for items on the Dearborn ballot in the upcoming Nov. 6 election. The group chose to support proposed revisions to the City Charter, to support giving permission to City Council to sell the Dearborn Towers in Florida, and to...1001 events in Dearborn this week!
DEARBORN — An extraordinary number of events and conferences related to Arab Americans are scheduled in the Detroit area at the end of October and beginning of November. The Arab American Institute's National Leadership Conference, set for Oct. 25-28, at the Doubletree hotel in Dearborn, is expected to feature presidential...Diversity conference tackles misperceptions
DEARBORN — For the fifth year in a row, speakers and community members are gathering this week in Dearborn to address the "Images and Perceptions of Arab-Americans." This cultural workshop will tackle some of the community's most pressing needs, while providing much-needed education on topics such as discrimination, culture, and media...
Principal of Arabic school fights back
October 20th, 20070 NEW YORK — At 5 p.m. on Tuesday, October 16, Debbie Almontaser appeared on the steps of the New York City Hall and responded publicly for the first time since she was victim of a torrent of anti-Arab, anti-Muslim racism. A Yemeni-American with an extensive record of educational and community work in Brooklyn, Almontaser was the founding...Film sparks revival of Jenin theater
Hamtramck—Years after the release of the award-winning, heart-crushing documentary "Arna's Children," the film's creator is traveling the world to raise money to rebuild the Palestinian youth theater that the movie centers around. Footage of smiling, hopeful faces of a group of Jenin refugee camp children juxtaposed with later images...Will Lebanon get a next president?
It is presidential election countdown time in Lebanon but the parliament that votes is a divided house. Will the legislature finally vote or will it demolish the house instead? What is wrong in Lebanon? There is political paralysis. A handicapped cabinet duels robotically with a dizzy opposition. Sectarian governance power sharing is......
Explosion of freedoms brings responsibilities too
We are living in an era of remarkable world-wide transformation, which has accelerated dramatically in just the last few decades. The collapse of communism led to the emergence of free market democracies throughout Eastern and Central Europe. Previously marginal economies in the Arab Gulf and South and Southeast Asia have emerged as...Regime change begins at home
Wesley Clark's new memoir casts more light on the Bush administration's secret strategies for regime change in Iran and elsewhere.While the Bush White House promotes the possibility of armed conflict with Iran, a tantalizing passage in Wesley Clark's new memoir suggests that another war is part of a long-planned Department of...Inquiry urged on Hunt Oil contract in Iraq
Democrats say Bush ties may have led to Iraq oil contract Washington — Democratic lawmakers moved Monday toward investigating Hunt Oil's oil exploration contract in Iraq, saying the company's ties to President Bush raised questions about whether it had insider information that helped it reach the deal. U.S. Rep. Henry Waxman,...NCC execs welcome Muslim leaders’ letter
NEW YORK — "We welcome the letter of these Islamic leaders and scholars," said the Rev. Michael Livingston, president of the National Council of Churches USA (NCC), in response to a document, "A Common Word between Us and You," released by 138 moderate Muslim leaders on the occasion of Eid-al-Fitr, the concluding day of Ramadan, the......
Clinton outlines foreign policy positions
October 20th, 20070 WASHINGTON (IPS) — In her most comprehensive — if characteristically cautious — foreign policy pronouncement to date, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton stressed a clear preference for diplomacy and "soft power" in pursuing U.S. interests abroad, but added she would not hesitate to use military force unilaterally if she deemed it necessary....In Lebanon, a comeback for cannabis
Bekaa Valley — Ali plucks a sprig of the cannabis sativa plant and sniffs its distinctive leaves with appreciation. This Lebanese farmer's field of marijuana, a splash of bright green on the sun-baked plains of eastern Lebanon's Bekaa Valley, will yield around 15 kilograms (33 pounds) of cannabis resin, or hashish, which he will sell for......
Local boxer to appear in EMU match
Undefeated professional boxer Brian Mihtar, currently 6-0 with 5 knockouts, is scheduled to fight on Oct. 26th at the Eastern Michigan University Homecoming Boxing Event in Ypsilanti. A junior middleweight at 154 pounds, Mihtar is known to draw large crowds because of his knockout ability and interest from the Arab American...Ladies only CCW classes
DETROIT — Women who wish to obtain a permit to carry a concealed weapon (CCW) will have a chance to receive their required safety training as a group when the Wayne County Sheriff's Office in partnership with the Wayne County Community College District offers a "for women only" CCW gun safety class on October 27th and November 3rd,......