Back to Top
Blog — State Specific
Wednesday October 10, 2012
A Texas- based group, True the Vote, plans to mobilize millions of poll watchers around the country. But some fear that its real intention is to intimidate minority voters. Their fears were confirmed last month when True the Vote’s national election coordinator told poll watchers that their aim should be to make for voters feel “like [you’re] driving and seeing the police following you.” Read More »
Posted by AAI at 1:38 pm / / Leave a comment
Monday October 08, 2012
As we head into the 2012 elections, it is important for the community to know that our voice counts and that we can make a difference this election. In a number of ways, we already have. The Arab American community has worked tirelessly in many states throughout the nation to register new voters and become more integrated into the political process. Today, not only are Arab Americans voting in record numbers, they are helping to influence the outcome of races like never before. Read More »
Posted by Omar Tewfik at 11:07 am / / Leave a comment
Friday October 05, 2012
Gov. Jerry Brown has vetoed the Trust Act, a proposal to prevent local California law enforcement officials from detaining suspected illegal immigrants and handing them over to federal authorities, except in cases where they have been arrested on suspicion of committing a serious or violent crime. Read More »
Posted by AAI at 1:05 pm / / Leave a comment
Friday October 05, 2012
By Vieshnavi Rattehalli
Hosted by the Arab American Republicans of Washington, D.C. and the Arab American Democratic Caucus of Virginia, the 24th Annual Virginia Candidates’ Night Dinner took place this past Sunday, September 30th, at the Tysons Corner Marriot in Virginia. Read More »
Posted by Guest at 11:19 am / / Leave a comment
Tuesday October 02, 2012
Judge Robert Simpson has blocked enforcement of a key portion of Pennsylvania’s voter-ID law. Agreeing that the state is unlikely to issue the necessary number of IDs before the election, Simpson’s ruling means that the photo ID requirement won’t be in effect for the Nov. 6 election, but it may be in effect for future elections. Read More »
Posted by AAI at 4:42 pm / / Leave a comment
Wednesday September 26, 2012
The Bronx District Attorney’s Office has dealt a blow to the city’s Stop-and-Frisk law. The New York Times reports that the District Attorney’s Office will no longer prosecute individuals arrested for trespassing at public housing complexes unless they are able to interview the arresting officer and confirm that the arrest was warranted. Read More »
Posted by AAI at 3:56 pm / / Leave a comment
Wednesday September 26, 2012
The New Jersey ACLU has released a free iPhone app that allows citizens to record their interactions with police. “Police Tape,” which runs off the iOS operating system on iPhones and iPads, disappears from the screen once it starts recording. Read More »
Posted by AAI at 3:46 pm / / Leave a comment
Tuesday September 18, 2012
The Arab American Institute (AAI) and the National Network for Arab American Communities (NNAAC) have adopted a logo for National Voter Registration Day on September 25. The Logo, designed by Nabil Ahmed Khatri, a high school student from Queens, New York with his own graphic design business, will be worn by thousands of Arab American volunteers across a number of states participating in efforts to register voters for the upcoming November elections. Read More »
Posted by Omar Tewfik at 10:35 am / / Leave a comment
Thursday September 13, 2012
The House of Representatives voted yesterday to extend the Federal Intelligence Surveillance Act through 2017. Civil liberties advocates have long criticized FISA, which authorizes warrantless monitoring of electronic communications – from phone calls to emails – of foreigners as well as U.S. citizens. Read More »
Posted by AAI at 2:20 pm / / Leave a comment
Wednesday September 12, 2012
This morning, as the nation mourns the tragic loss of four American diplomats and public servants in the attacks on our embassy in Libya, members of the House and Senate are sharing their thoughts – and their criticisms – of America’s foreign policy as well as any attempts to leverage this tragedy for political purposes. Read More »
Posted by AAI at 3:35 pm / / Leave a comment
Tuesday September 11, 2012
Marylanders will vote on proposed new Congressional districts in November. But Attorney General David Paulson confirmed today that, even if voters reject the new districts, they’ll stay in place through 2014. Paulson said “When it comes to this issue, we are in uncharted territory.” Read More »
Posted by AAI at 3:24 pm / / Leave a comment
Tuesday September 11, 2012
With the primaries over, the Massachusetts political season moves into full swing. The Senate contest between incumbent Scott Brown and challenger Elizabeth Warren has been making national news for months. In fact, it was national news when Brown, a Republican, won the late Sen. Ted Kennedy’s seat in a surprise 2010 upset. Congressional leaders from both parties viewed it as a referendum on both Obama and his proposed healthcare reforms, and a portent of a broader national shift. Read More »
Posted by AAI at 2:10 pm / / Leave a comment
Wednesday September 05, 2012
A District Judge struck down a proposed early voting schedule that would have given three more voting days to members of the military and individuals living abroad. Read More »
Posted by Jane Kaddouri at 9:59 am / / Leave a comment
Friday August 31, 2012
In September, the Michigan Court of Appeals will hear arguments on whether the Islamic Cultural Association can move forward with its plans to convert the Eagle Elementary School, which it purchased in 2010 for $1.1 million, into a mosque. Read More »
Posted by AAI at 1:24 pm / / Leave a comment
Thursday August 30, 2012
Last Friday, the California legislature sent the newly-passed Trust Act to Gov. Jerry Brown. Detractors say the Trust Act provides shields illegal immigrants, preventing police from enforcing Immigration and Customs Enforcement requests for detention unless the immigrant in question has been charged with a serious or violent crime. Read More »
Posted by AAI at 10:45 am / / Leave a comment
Friday August 24, 2012
Voter suppression has been the story of the 2012 elections, and Florida has been in the thick of it. Read More »
Posted by AAI at 10:54 am / / Leave a comment
Friday August 24, 2012
The race to represent New Jersey’s 9th District will be getting even more attention soon. In June, Rep. Bill Pascrell won a tough primary against Rep. Steven Rothman. He did it with no small amount of support from the Arab American community, resulting in some detractors trying to make the race a referendum on Arab-Israeli relations. As a result, the primary got a lot of attention. Read More »
Posted by AAI at 10:51 am / / Leave a comment
Friday August 24, 2012
The fight over early voting in Ohio has been contentious for some time. It seemed to reach a peak when the Obama campaign sued Attorney General Mike DeWine and Secretary of State John Husted in mid-July. But this week, the stakes got even higher for two election officials. Read More »
Posted by AAI at 10:49 am / / Leave a comment
Friday August 24, 2012
Voting rights activists in Virginia suffered a defeat on Monday, as the U.S. Department of Justice approved Virginia’s new voter ID law. The legislation, which requires voters to bring identification to the polls for the first time, will go into effect in time for Election Day in November. Read More »
Posted by Emily Manna at 10:47 am / / Leave a comment
Friday August 17, 2012
Opponents of Pennsylvania’s voter ID law were dealt a significant blow Tuesday, as Judge Robert Simpson refused to strike down the legislation. Although he expressed sympathy with those Pennsylvanians who would be burdened by the new voter ID requirements, Simpson ultimately decided that the state’s efforts to address the problems with implementing the law were sufficient to uphold it. Read More »
Posted by Emily Manna at 10:56 am / / Leave a comment
Looking at Iran by James Zogby
Kahlil Gibran Awards Gala - April 16, 2013
