Author Archives: Arab America

The Society for Professional Journalists’ online publication, Quill, is open for feedback regarding the renaming of the SPJ Helen Thomas Award for Lifetime Achievement. Below are two letters written against and in defense of Ms. Thomas. Please be advised that letters can be accepted at: quill@spj.org From the Quill/SPJ Website: Quill and SPJ have received … Continued

One of the perils in writing about the Palestine/Israel question is that one can sometimes be misunderstood. There are so many nuances that when one writes in a fashion outside the normal lines of the debate, he might receive the same criticism and praise from all sides. Last week, I wrote a satirical column about … Continued

The fallout over journalist Helen Thomas’ controversial remarks about Israel could continue Saturday, when another group convenes to consider removing her name from another prestigious award. The Society of Professional Journalists’ board will meet Saturday in Nashville, Tenn., to reconsider a lifetime achievement honor named for Thomas. The name of the award is being reconsidered … Continued

Colorful scarves danced fancifully as the women shook their hips relentlessly, right to left, left to right. Gyrating to the melodic, pop-like beat, they mouthed the words to the Arabic-language song blaring from the stereo. The women were professional belly dancers who had gathered in New York City for a workshop that would help perfect … Continued

On Friday, February 11, 2011 at 6:00PM, under the auspices of the American-Arab Center for Civil and Human Rights (ACCHR), ADC Michigan will co-host its 12th Annual MLK Scholarship Awards Reception with the Detroit Urban League and the Damon J. Keith Center for Civil Rights at Wayne State University Law School. The 12th Anniversary MLK … Continued

Gambling just got cheaper for Syrians. They no longer have to travel hundreds of miles to Lebanon or another neighboring country to try their odds — they can bet on blackjack, play poker, spin roulette wheels and face off with slot machines in a brand new, one of its kind casino. The Syrian capital of … Continued

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) today condemned both a New Year’s Day attack on a church in Egypt and a series of attacks on churches in Nigeria. In a statement, CAIR said: “We condemn the heinous attacks on churches in Egypt and Nigeria and repudiate the apparent motive of the perpetrators to harm long-term … Continued

The Arab world condemned a devastating bomb attack outside a church in the northern Egyptian city of Alexandria that left 22 dead on Saturday. The Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) condemned ‘the criminal and terrorist act which targeted civilians who were performing their religious rituals’. Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, the Secretary General of the OIC, expressed … Continued

For the first 15 years of his working life, Naim Shah Jr. was the personal assistant to the imam at Masjid Ibadallah, a mosque in Los Angeles. He helped with Friday sermons and religious classes and dealt primarily with his Muslim congregants. But for the last six months, Shah has worked with Christian and Jewish … Continued

Arab stock markets ended 2010 with on an optimistic note with investors upbeat over rising oil prices and predictions of good annual earnings for listed firms, financial analysts said Friday. They also cited the easing euro zone debt crisis and signs of sustainable world recovery as additional factors that could lead to a rally at … Continued