Rasmea Odeh should be honored, not imprisoned
I remember distinctly the experience that pushed me to decide I wanted to dedicate my life to making the world a better place. In 2009, I spent the year working at the Arab American Action Network in Chicago and had the opportunity to interact with so many amazing individuals who were committed to working for positive social...Our representatives insulted us
We are disappointed that most of Michigan’s congressional delegation attended Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's controversial and insulting speech on Capitol Hill. Their decision to stand and applaud for Netanyahu's lies as he undermines President Obama and pretends to care more about threats to world peace than our...
Chaldeans at AIPAC do not speak for the community
March 6th, 20150 Last week, Chaldean State Rep. Klint Kesto (R- Commerce Township) and California businessman Mark Arabo attended the national conference of the American Israeli Political Action Committee (AIPAC). Then, they filled their social media pages with expressions of fondness of Israel and calls to protect Iraqi Christians—sometimes in the...
City’s comments on Kroger incident call investigation into question
February 27th, 20150 Much has been made of the incident that took place at the Kroger at Michigan Ave. and Greenfield on Feb 12. While many facts may be in dispute, a separate controversy has been raised by members of the community. That controversy involves when and how public comments are made during what is expected and claimed to be an impartial...Netanyahu’s address to Congress is a decisive insult
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's upcoming address to Congress is an insult to all Americans. The Israeli right wing leader was invited to speak to a joint session of lawmakers on Capitol Hill by Speaker of the House John Boehner, who does not have the constitutional power to dwell in foreign policy. The Republican speaker...The media sensationalized Wayne County government corruption claims
After a tedious federal investigation that lasted more than three years, the FBI found no legal wrongdoing in the top leadership of Wayne County— an outcome the local media had a hard time processing. Former County Executive Robert Ficano left the county in dreadful shape with a budget deficit close to $100 million. But the county's...Top seven myths about Daesh
The self-styled “Islamic State” Group (ISIS or ISIL), the Arabic acronym for which is “Daesh”, is increasingly haunting the nightmares of Western journalists and security analysts. I keep seeing some assertions about it that strike me as exaggerated or just incorrect. 1. It isn’t possible to determine whether Daesh is a...To fight bigotry, we must unite
We live in critical times in the history of our country and community. The rampant bigotry, xenophobia and racism against Arabs and Muslims have turned violent. Three innocent lives were lost in Chapel Hill. The story of the victims has taunted families whose children look like Deah, Yusor and Razan and share their faith and...Students fight to keep affordable college from becoming extinct
My family's mantra is as American as apple pie and baseball: work hard, get an education and you'll succeed. It was clear, prescriptive and a fairly sound philosophy for those without great wealth or powerful connections. Like millions, I did what I was told. That recipe for success, however, comes with a very expensive price tag....Terrorism against Muslims
The horrific crime in North Carolina last week shocked our community. Did anybody expect it? Not really, as we thought , may be by illusion, that in we are safe in the U.S. Islamophobia is spreading in Europe. It has roots here, too. We did not expect that the words would translate to bullets so quickly, and the anger will shed...The origin of terrorist militias in the Middle East
Bashir Gemayel and William Hawi supervising training of Phalanges militiamen at Tabrieh, 1972.There is an attempt underway to make the case that Islam, the religion, inspired or spawned the creation of various jihadist groups. The fact that the U.S. itself was a major catalyst for the creation of such groups, as that was its plot...Why is it different when the bloodshed is that of American Arab Muslims
The college student who works as a cashier at the community bakery I walked into this morning looked different than she does on most mornings. She had a grieving and distressed look on her face. As she rang up my order I said, “It’s the UNC murders, isn’t it?” She nodded her head and she needed to say no more...
Amid deafening media silence, terror strikes Muslim students in North Carolina
February 11th, 20150 It took the mainstream media an entire day to report on a possible hate crime that claimed the lives of three Muslim students in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Deah Shaddy Barakat, 23, of Chapel Hill; his wife Yusor Mohammad, 21, of Chapel Hill; and her sister Razan Mohammad Abu-Salha, 19, of Raleigh, were all shot dead on Tuesday...
The ICA controversy is harming the community
February 6th, 20150 Ramzi Chammout addressing Sayed Qazwini.Discrimination against Arab an Muslim Americans is rampant at both the institutional and the social levels. Our local community is already facing vicious media attacks that link us to terrorists overseas, accuse us of living under Sharia law and overlook civil rights violations against us. Now,...Jordanian pilot’s murder shows the un-Islamic barbarism of IS
Lt. Muath Al-Kaseasbeh in a visit to Turkey.The videotaped murder of Jordanian pilot Lt. Muath al-Kaseasbeh by "Islamic State" terrorists is one of the most gruesome atrocities that the world has witnessed since the turn of the century. The 26-year-old pilot was placed in a cage in an orange jump suit drenched with a flammable......
Tort Law: The muscle of justice
The common law of torts, which originated from English common law, has been elaborated in tens of thousands of judicial decisions with one basic message: If a person suffers a wrongful injury or harm, he or she can seek remedy in court with a trial by jury. Through tort law, our civil justice system operates to compensate victims,...Gauging outrage: Media and the aftermath of the Paris attacks
Relatives of journalist Halid Ahmed who died during the attack of Israel, mourn near his funeral on July 20, 2014.Appropriately, thousands of comics have been published in response to the Charlie Hebdo attacks earlier this month. One of the most striking ones I’ve seen so far depicts the gunmen as they fire at the magazine’s office;...
Sayed Qazwini went too far
January 30th, 20150 Sayed Hassan Qazwini's resignation from the Islamic Center of America shocked the community. But those who are familiar with the state of the relationship between the imam and some members of the ICA Board of trustees were not surprised by the news. Qazwini had blasted the board with strong statements made to The Arab American News in...Benjamin Netanyahu: The anti-American obstructionist
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s acceptance of an invitation to address a joint session of the U.S. Congress in March is an unacceptable interference in our domestic political arena and must be challenged. It is simply not enough for the White House to indicate that there will be no meeting between President Obama......
Lessons that Hollande failed to learn from Bush’s blunders
Francois Hollande.Francois Hollande is not a popular president. No matter how hard the "socialist" leader tries to impress, there never seems to be a solid constituency that backs him. He attempted to mask his initial lack of experience in foreign affairs with a war in Mali, after his country enthusiastically took on Libya. While he...The Israeli strike against Hezbollah an act of aggression
When Israel killed five Hezbollah fighters on the Syrian side of the Golan Heights on Sunday, Jan. 18, the Zionist state violated several international treaties, beating the drums of war in a region already suffering from violence and chaos. The Israeli attack, which also claimed the life of an Iranian general, was a deliberate,......
Freedom of speech stutters when it comes to Israel
January 23rd, 20150 Freedom of speech is a prerequisite to all political rights in a democracy. Without it, "we may be led, like sheep to the slaughter," as George Washington once said. The terrorist attacks on the Charlie Hebdo office in Paris on Jan. 5 sparked countless statements in defense of freedom of speech, no matter how controversial or offensive...On Black-Palestinian solidarity: Can we dream together?
Activist Steven Pargett and rapper Tef Poe in Dheisheh Refugee Camp near Bethlehem.This week, a delegation of African-American activists returned from a 10-day trip to Palestine. Black organizers, artists, and journalists from organizations including the Florida-based Dream Defenders, Chicago’s Black Youth Project, and Ferguson’s......