The Arab American News back issues from September 2007:
ADC Michigan announces new building plans
Sep 01, 2007; ... DEARBORN - What began as a dream is now becoming reality for the American- Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) Michigan, as they move ahead with plans to build the first-ever American-Arab Center for Civil & Human Rights (ACCHR). This ground-breaking education and resource center will ...
Group to hold community forum on charitable contributions
Sep 01, 2007; ... DEARBORN As the month of Ramadan approaches and the time for almsgiving begins, BRIDGES and the U.S. Attorney's Office will make an effort to alleviate concerns about charities in the Arab American community by holding a community forum on charitable giving. The gathering will attempt to provide ...
Egyptian blogger, Burmese reporter named 2007 Knight International Journalism Award winners
Sep 01, 2007; ... WASHINGTON - The International Center for Journalists (ICFJ) has named Egyptian blogger Wael Abbas and Burmese investigative reporter May Thingyan Hein as the 2007 Knight International Journalism Award winners. They will be honored along with Founders Award recipient Tom Brokaw at the ...
Doesn't anyone hear those awful cries from Gaza?
Sep 01, 2007; ... No one seems to hear the cries from Gaza enough to act, despite the reports that talk about imminent economic collapse, dangerous food shortages, total aid dependency and impending humanitarian disaster. Neither the cries nor the reports appear in the headlines or news alerts in our mainstream ...
In Iraq, sex is traded for survival
Sep 01, 2007; ... BAGHDAD - When Rana Jalil, 38, lost her husband in an explosion in Baghdad last year, she could never have imagined becoming a prostitute in order to feed her children. A mother of four, Jalil sought out employment, but job opportunities forwomen had decreased since the U.S. invasion. She begged ...
Palestine: A policy of deliberate blindness
Sep 01, 2007; ... Dennis Ross, formerly the United States envoy to the Middle East, admitted back in 2(XX) that mistakes had been made in the 1 978 Camp David accords: The diplomatic process had not taken enough account of developments on the ground, especially the settlements. The number of Jewish settlers in ...
Senator Levin pushes for Iraq withdrawal, al-Maliki replacement
Sep 01, 2007; ... Senator Carl Levin of Michigan came back from a trip to Iraq emboldened by a few new ideas. Significantly, he and Senator Hillary Clinton began calling for the Iraqi parliament to replace Iraq's Prime Minister, Nouri Al-Maliki. The purpose of Levin's trip was to get a better sense of the ...
No American president can stand up to Israel
Sep 01, 2007; ... "No American President can stand up to Israel." These words came from feisty Admiral Thomas Moorer, Chief of Naval Operations (1967-1970) and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (1970-1974). Moorer was, perhaps, the last independent-minded American military leader. Admiral Moorer knew ...
Muslims and anti-Semitism
Sep 01, 2007; ... The responsibility of the Muslims and the Jews in the West is tremendous: living together, both citizens of the same countries, they should raise their voices in the name of justice and mutual respect. In France, for example, one finds a unique situation; namely, the largest Jewish and Muslim ...
Arabic spoken? Plane grounded!
Sep 01, 2007; ... Woman's gripe over men speaking Arabic grounded plane bound to Chicago SAN DIEGO - A woman who complained that some fellow passengers spoke Arabic and "had odd behavior" prevented a Chicago-bound American Airlines flight from departing San Diego, police said Wednesday. Flight ...
Lebanon's only chance is the army
Sep 01, 2007; ... I had the opportunity to spend the last six weeks in Lebanon, making pleasure and working visits to different areas of the country and engaging in political and other discussions with local officials, academics and opposition activists. The experience has been instructive, simultaneously ...
Who are the Yazidis?
Sep 01, 2007; ... Iraqi Yazidis have been in the news lately, and not pleasant news. Back in April, Yazidis beat and stoned a 17-year-old girl to death because she had a Muslim boyfriend. Shortly after, gunmen forced a bus to empty out and separated the Christians from the Yazidis, killing all 23 Yazidis, ...
The new illiterate Orientalism
Sep 01, 2007; ... How do you defend an entire nation's literature and poetry in one small book? When the country to defend is Iran, and the people who need convincing are Americans, the question becomes particularly difficult. Books like Géraldine Brookes' "Nine Parts of Desire: The Hidden World of Islamic Women, ...
Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory opens in Dearborn
Sep 01, 2007; ... DEARBORN - Walking into Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory in West Dearborn is like walking into a childhood wonderland of goodies. The sweet aroma of over 300 varieties of chocolate and confections fills the air. From fresh-dipped caramel apples to chocolate-covered strawberries and marshmallows, ...
Arab American and Chaldean Council to mark 28 years of service
Sep 01, 2007; ... DETROIT - The Arab American and Chaldean Council (ACC) will host its 28th Annual Civic and Humanitarian Awards Gala at the Detroit Marriott Renaissance Center at 6 p.m. Sept. 8. Every year the non-profit human services organization sets the stage for a unique and prestigious event to honor ...
Wayne County Back to School Program at ACC
Sep 01, 2007; ... DETROIT - Wayne County Executive Robert Ficano will visit the Arab American and Chaldean Council's (ACC) Youth Recreation and Leadership Center, 62 W. Seven Mile Road, at 3 p.m. On Wednesday, Sept. 12, 2007. Coinciding with the start of the 2007-08 school year, the county executive is ...
Michigan Dems set new primary date
Sep 08, 2007; ... LANSING - The leadership of the Michigan Democratic Party this week announced their intention to comply with the new state law establishing a January 15, 2008 presidential primary, and to select their delegates to the Democratic National Convention on that day. This was in response to ...
Presidential hopeful visits Syria, Lebanon
Sep 08, 2007; ... BEIRUT - A Democratic candidate for the U.S. presidency, DennisKucinich, met separately ~th Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, Lebanese President Emile Lahoud and Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora on a six-day trip to the region over the Labor Day holiday. ThetripbeganinSyria. Inthe ...
Murder of Iraqi leader hurts Bush
Sep 15, 2007; ... Ten days after President George Bush clasped his hand as a symbol of America's hopes in Iraq, the man who led the U.S-.-supported revolt of Sunni sheikhs against al-Qa'ida in Iraq was assassinated. Abdul-Sattar Abu Risha and two of his bodyguards were killed either by a roadside bomb or ...
An important marker has been passed in global boycott effort against Israel
Sep 15, 2007; ... From a limestone hill rising above Qalandia refugee camp, you can see Jerusalem. I watched a lone figure standing there in the rain, his son holding the tail of his long tattered coat. He extended his hand and did not let go. "I am Ahmed Hamzeh, street entertainer," he said in measured English ....
Who are the fanatics?
Sep 15, 2007; ... President Jimmy Carter was demonized for pointing out in his book, Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid,' that there are actually two sides to the IsraeliPalestinian issue. Distinguished American scholars, such as John Mearsheimer and Stephen Walt have suffered the same fate for documenting the ...
New York: An intifada against common sense
Sep 15, 2007; ... Once again, the hard-hitting, no-nonsense journalists of the New York Sun, the New York Post, and Fox News, led as always by intrepid scholar Daniel Pipes, have struck a blow in the war against terrorism. I'm referring, of course, to the rooting out of the former principal of the Khalil Gibran ...
The common heritage between Bush and Stalin
Sep 15, 2007; ... The cover title of the Economist August 11-17, 2007 was "Is America Turning Left?" and the answer was 'Probably - but not in the way many foreigners (and some Americans) hope." The lead article discussed the negative impact of President Bush's foreign policy on the Republican Party and on the ...
Hizbullah and the promised president
Sep 15, 2007; ... Too much responsibility has been attached to the role of the next president of Lebanon who is due to be elected on September 25. This is why it is difficult to agree on who is going to be the next president. The opposition camp wants the candidate to be friendly to Hizbullah and its regional ...
Muslims scapegoated in Canada
Sep 15, 2007; ... Fear-mongering at the expense of Muslims is the. current political game in Canada. In Quebec we have a public consultation on what constitutes "reasonable accommodation" of minorities. That consultation grew out of the code of conduct adopted by the town of Héroux ville, which denounced such ...
Benamar Benatta sues Canada for torture
Sep 15, 2007; ... Benamar Benatta has decided to sue Canada for his treatment at the hands of Canadian and U. S officials. He is asking $35 million. His story begins back in his homeland. Benatta was in a tight spot back in Algeria. In 1992 he joined the air force, but that was the year that the military ...
Meeting with an Arab-Canadian priest and his daughter
Sep 15, 2007; ... Father Robert Assaly is an Anglican priest, bom in Ottawa to Lebanese parents. His grandparents were Orthodox immigrants to Saskatchewan, but since there was no Orthodox church within a convenient distance, they went to the Anglican church. Episcopalians are the U.S. branch of the Anglican ...
Community honors firefighters, police
Sep 15, 2007; ... DEARBORN - Members of the Arab American community came together to commemorate the sixth anniversary of the tragic events of September 11 on Tuesday, at the Byblos Banquet Hall in Dearborn. The event, organized by the Congress of Arab American Organizations (CAAO), served as a fitting ...
ADC announces new center for Arab American civil rights
Sep 15, 2007; ... DEARBORN - The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) Michigan gathered with members of the community for a special press conference on the first ever American-Arab Center for Civil and Human Rights (ACCHR) on Wednesday, September 12, at the Center site on Chase Road in ...
Humanitarian day event for the homeless in Detroit
Sep 15, 2007; ... SOUTHFIELD - Life for Relief and Development (LIFE), an American non-profit humanitarian relief organization based in South- field, Mich., is proudly sponsoring the Humanitarian Day Event for the Homeless in Detroit, in an effort to help ease the hardships of those less fortunate. The event is ...
Ashkar named to Leadership Detroit
Sep 15, 2007; ... DETROIT - Fouad Ashkar, manager, economic development and ethnic marketing for DTE Energy, was among 65 profession- als selected to participate in the upcoming Leadership Detroit pro- gram. Leadership Detroit is the Detroit Regional Chamber of Commerce's premier leadership development ...
Megabus.com first in United States to introduce intercity double-decker bus travel
Sep 15, 2007; ... DETROIT - Megabus.com, a daily express bus company that offers $1 fares, announced it will begin service of the first double- decker buses to carry passengers intercity in the United States with an inaugural trip from Chicago to Minneapolis on Sep- tember 7. Megabus.com, a subsidiary of ...
ACC's annual gala focuses on diversity
Sep 15, 2007; ... The Arab American and Chaldean Council's (ACC) 28th Annual Civic and Humanitarian Awards Gala on Sept. 8 celebrated a night of philanthropic endeavors and achievements. A sold out crowd gathered at the Detroit Marriott Renaissance Center to commemorate ACCs role in dedicating time and service to ...
Have a blessed Ramadan!
Sep 15, 2007; ... There are many reasons why Islam is the fastest growing religion in America. The unity and uniqueness of Allah is primary. There is a common misconception that Allah is simply the word lah, or god, with the definite article al in front of it. That is not the case. "The god" in Arabic is al ilah ....
The Essence of Ramadan
Sep 15, 2007; ... Ramadan is the ninth month of the lunar calendar followed by Muslims. The lunar calendar is 11 days shorter than the Western calendar and so Ramadan falls 11 days earlier every calendar year. Over the span of 33 years, a Muslim will have fasted during the short cold days of winter and the long ...
The great Muslim poet Jalal al-Din Rumi sang about Ramadan in the 13th century AD
Sep 15, 2007; ... "The month of fasting has come, the emperor's banner has arrived; withhold your hand from food, the spirit's table has arrived. The soul has escaped from separation and bound nature's hands; the heart of error is defeated, the army of faith has ...
The Health Benefits of Fasting
Sep 15, 2007; ... Mental and physical self-restraint are paramount Muslims do not fast for the health benefits of fasting, but because it has been ordained for them to do so in the Qur'an. Fasting has been practiced in many other faiths as well. However, there are health benefits to fasting, including ...
Even a Smile is Charity
Sep 15, 2007; ... Giving to others at heart of Islamic holiday There are two forms of charity in Islam - obligatory and voluntary, called zakat and sadaqah respectively. Zakat means purification. Giving up of a portion of the wealth one possesses in excess of what is needed for sustenance, is to "purify" ...
Iftar: Breaking the Fast
Sep 15, 2007; ... A joyous time to celebrate with family & friends The nightly breaking of the fast is called iftar. Congregational iftars are frequent throughout the month, from small extended family gatherings to huge banquet halls full of people. Special foods and sweets are made for Ramadan each ...
Fashion with a Flair
Sep 15, 2007; ... Samaher Mohammad's unique talent and love for fashion has changed her life in ways she's never dreamed of. It was that talent that led the 26-year old to Amman, Jordan, where she was able to design and produce her own fashion line, "Zaynini International". "Zaynini", which is the Arabic ...
Bush plans war on Iran
Sep 08, 2007; ... The Sunday Times of London is reporting that the Pentagon has plans for three days of massive air strikes against 1 ,200 targets in Iran . Last week, Alexis Débat, director of terrorism and national security at the Nixon Center , told a meeting of The National Interest, a conservative foreign ...
Even I question the 'truth' about 9/11
Sep 08, 2007; ... Each time I lecture abroad on the Middle East, there is always soameone in die audience - just one -whom I call die "raver." Apologies here to all me men and women who come to my talks with bright and pertinent questions - often quite humbling ones for me as a journalist - and which show that ...
Judge strikes down parts of PATRIOT Act
Sep 08, 2007; ... NEW YORK A fed eral judge struck down parts of the revised USA PATRIOT Act as unconstitutional Thursday, saying courts must be allowed to supervise cases where the government orders Internet providers to turn over records without telling customers. U.S. District Judge Victor Marrero said ...
Our 23rd anniversary
Sep 08, 2007; ... As we put this issue of The Arab American News to bed, on Friday, September 7, 2007, we solemnly remember that it is our 23rd anniversary. When we began The Arab American News 23 years ago, we had no idea a global information revolution was about to begin. Neither, of course, could we ...
Anti-discrimination work must go on
Sep 08, 2007; ... Six years after the horrific attacks of September 11, 2001, it is important to assess the condition of the Arab American community. Although the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) has repeatedly condemned the attacks on record, we note that the entire community is still feeling ...
Is a citizen-led boycott of Israel morally justified?
Sep 08, 2007; ... That question is raised by an expanding academic, cultural and economic boycott of Israel. The movement joins churches, unions, professional societies and other groups based in the United States, Canada, Europe and South Africa. It has elicited dramatic reactions from Israel's supporters. U.S ....
Examining the religion-building enterprise
Sep 08, 2007; ... Blaming Islam for the lack of democratic and scientific developments in Muslim countries is not a new idea but an old enterprise, rooted in the nineteenth and twentieth century European Orientalism. The late Edward Said succeeded, in the 1980s, in unmasking Orientalist notions within Western ...
The Shi'a power struggle: Not good news in Iraq
Sep 08, 2007; ... The decision made by Shi'a cleric Muqtada al-Sadr to halt his Mahdi Army's attacks on occupation forces and Iraqi security is likely to be considered the single most promising breakthrough for the U.S. military in Iraq. Although the move comes ahead of several reports to be presented to the U.S ....
Saudi peace plan is Arabs' greatest compromise toward Israel
Sep 08, 2007; ... After nearly 60 years, Israel is still not at peace with most of its neighbors. The Saudi peace plan, first proposed in 2002, is the latest in a series of Arab overtures aiming to end this situation. It offers Israel full normalization of relations in return for withdrawal from the temtories it ...
First Cup offers healthier pace
Sep 08, 2007; ... You'll never see unhealthy coffee, food or products at First Cup Organic Coffee in Redford Township. Owner Faye Saleh, a Lebanese immigrant, takes pride in the fact that all ingredients on the menu are Food and Drug Administration-certified organic. Saleh said, "We are tired of pesticides and ...
Are you the next face of ALO Hiyatti?
Sep 08, 2007; ... LOS ANGELES -America's top multi-cultural lifestyle magazine is giving you the opportunity to be a star! Compete for a chance to be the next Face of ALO, with the final judging aired live on national television. Entering is easy and almost everyone is eligible. ALO magazine is looking ...
Finkelstein, DePaul settle tenure scandal
Sep 08, 2007; ... Chicago's DePaul University and professor Norman Finkelstein have come to some settlement following a controversy surrounding his bid to get academic tenure. The political science professor was up for tenure, a permanent post that is one of the highest levels of professional ...
Treasury meets with community on charities
Sep 08, 2007; ... Members of the Arab American community voiced their growing concerns regarding charitable contributions during a special town hall meeting on Tuesday, September 4, at the Henry Ford Centennial Library in Dearborn. The meeting was arranged by BRIDGES and the office of U.S. Attorney ...
Permanent Resident Cards without expiration dates must be replaced
Sep 08, 2007; ... WASHINGTON - U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced this week a proposal to require nearly 750,000 lawful permanent residents carrying "green cards" without an expiration date to replace their current cards. USCIS published in the Federal Register a rule open for ...
Muhammad: The most influential person in history
Sep 15, 2007; ... The 100: A Ranking of the Most Influential Persons in History, is a 1978 book by Michael H. Hart. It is a ranking of the 100 people who most influenced human history. Since publication the book has been hotly debated and its concept widely copied. It is important to note that Dr. Hart did not ...
A Glimpse Into Islamic Art
Sep 15, 2007; ... Islamic art evolved out of the early phases of Islamic culture with the rise of the Islamic faith in the early 7th century CE. The early stages of Islamic art indicate distinct characteristics that articulate the definition of its nature: non-pictorial, non-figurative and textual. Unlike ...
Eid al-Fitr: A 3-day festival celebrating the fast-breaking
Sep 15, 2007; ... At the end of Ramadan, Muslims throughout the world observe a joyous three-day celebration called Eid al-Fitr (the Festival of Fast-Breaking). It begins on the first day of Shawwal, the month which follows Ramadan in the Islamic calendar. It is a time to celebrate with family and friends the ...
Muslim postage stamp
Sep 15, 2007; ... In 2002 the United States Postal Service acknowledged the contribution Muslims make to their country by issuing a commemorative stamp for the two most important festivals - or eids - in the Islamic calendar: Eid ul Fitr and Eld ul Adha. On these days, Muslims wish each other "Eid Mubarak," the ...
Army wants more Arab Americans to serve their country
Sep 22, 2007; ... DEARBORN - Arab Americans are playing an important role both in training U.S. armed forces who are going in to Iraq and actually serving on the ground there, but more of them are needed to join the effort. That is one reason Brigadier General Anthony A. (Tony) Cucolo III. Chief of Public Affairs ...
Beirut blast kills lawmaker
Sep 22, 2007; ... Antoine Ghanem, the eighth figure to be assassinated since February 2005, died Wednesday in a car bombing just days before the presidential vote. BEIRUT - An anti-Syrian Lebanese lawmaker was killed Wednesday in a large car-bomb explosion in east Beirut, just six days before parliament ...
Gunpowder dialogue in Lebanon
Sep 22, 2007; ... Political killing in Lebanon is serial. It is maddening. There seems to be no cure for it. The explosion of September 19 targets the Christian community in Lebanon. The Christians of this country have become a demographic minority over the last few decades as a result of higher ...
The Palestinian Mandela
Sep 22, 2007; ... The division of the Palestinian territories into a "Hamastan" in the Gaza Strip and a "Fatahland" in the West Bank is a disaster. A disaster for the Palestinians, a disaster for peace, and therefore also a disaster for Israelis. The Israeli political and military leadership are ...
The unstated message from Petraeus and Crocker
Sep 22, 2007; ... After weeks of leaks and media preparation, after staging the event and using very vague and manipulative language hiding the facts rather than elucidating them, the reports of Gen. David Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker came down to this: the United States is in Iraq to stay as long as the ...
Convenient racism: The 'us' and 'them' factor
Sep 22, 2007; ... Racism is, among many things, convenient. It provides simplified, definite and ready-to-serve answers to complex and compounded questions. Racists, in turn, come from all walks of life; their motivation and the root causes behind their contemptible views of others may differ, but the outcome of ...
My unsung Palestinian hero
Sep 22, 2007; ... In recent years, I have written tributes for my heroes in Palestinian justice, such as Dr. Edward Said or Father Michael Prior. But it is my father who was my greatest unsung hero, and this tribute is for him. Is this really happening? I sat frozen as the Orthodox priest swung the ...