Belly dancer. (Photo: tanakawho/flickrcc)

If you want to make a living as a belly dancer, Detroit is the place to be.  Martina Guzman,  a reporter with FI2W and WDET in Detroit,  explains why in a piece that airs this week on PRI’s Studio 360.

Listen here.

This week’s Latino USA from NPR features Kidnap Radio a documentary by Annie Correal, a reporter for FI2W and El Diario.  Click here to listen to this moving story about an episode from Annie’s childhood.

Mexican Restaurant in Detroit. (Photo: JS_Frank/Flickr)

In a metropolitan area with a staggering official unemployment rate of 15.5 percent, (though many believe it to be much higher), Detroit is not considered to be a growing commerce hub.

Yet the Latino community is booming there—and hundreds of these immigrants have opened their own food-related businesses. Demand for Mexican food has stimulated entrepreneurship and economic growth. While the city’s overall economy continues to shrink, the Mexican community is the exception, seeing a 34 percent increase in small business development in just three years.

FI2W’s Martina Guzman took a walk through Detroit’s “Mexican Town,” and produced this story for NPR’s All Things Considered.

Listen to the story.

More from Martina Guzman.

An American Crown. (Photo: Damselfly58/Flickr)

The face of the American girl is changing.

Last night, 24 year old Rima Fakih, an Arab American of Lebanese descent, beat 50 other women in the 2010 Miss USA competition. She’s believed to be the first Arab American and Muslim to win the contest.

Fakih was born in Lebanon and was brought to the United States by her parents as a small child. She grew up in New York City, and moved to Dearborn, Michigan in 2003, which has a large Arab American community.

Her new title immediately engendered a heated debate online, running the gamut from Michigan pride to furious tirades about immigrants — particularly Arabs — not being fit to represent the U.S. in this spotlight. One commenter, who’s handle is “Rooster,” wrote the following addendum to a Yahoo news article about Fakih:

“Just great, we get an immigrant for Miss USA?????? What Reall American women aren’t good enough anymore. What a Freakin’ joke.”

Fakih was interviewed two days before the contest by Ameera David, a journalist for Arab Detroit and the Global Arab Network about her identity.

AD: You are certainly navigating territory no Arab American has ever navigated before. Why do you think that is?

Rima: I think that’s most likely the case for a couple of reasons. I think many Arab Americans are skeptical considering things that happened in the country. They think that they don’t stand a chance of winning, and therefore it’s a waste of time to try. Another reason could be that they are embarrassed by what others will think about their daughter being in a beauty pageant. To me, people who think this way can’t be proud of who they are. And if you’re not proud of who you are, you won’t be able to achieve anything.

AD: How do you suppose your face being the face of Miss Michigan, and hopefully Miss USA, will affect the current image of Arab Americans?

Rima: Well, I think it would prove that Arabs don’t always try to separate themselves, but instead are integrated into American culture. It would show the world that yes, there are Arabs that are beautiful not only in looks, but also on the inside. There are Arabs that are caring, that are good people, and who love the country they live in. I think it would make the Arab image a more positive one.

Though Fakih’s Americanism was not questioned on stage, the national immigration debate did surface when runner-up Miss Oklahoma Morgan Elizabeth Woolard was asked her thoughts on Arizona’s controversial new law requiring police to verify a person’s immigration status if there’s “reasonable suspicion” they are in the country illegally. She did not shy away from the issue, clearly stating that she supports the law.

“I’m a huge believer in states’ rights. I think that’s what’s so wonderful about America. So I think it’s perfectly fine for Arizona to create that law.”

There was some speculation online afterward that Woolard’s answer didn’t jive with the political sensibility of the judges, who wanted to make a pro-immigrant rather than anti-immigrant statement, and that’s why she fell short of winning the crown.

At any rate, many in the audience were of the opinion that the beauty contest should be completely separate from politics—Judge Oscar Nunez was booed for posing the question.

If you want to make a living as a belly dancer, Detroit is the place to be.

This is according to the latest piece by Feet in 2 Worlds and WDET reporter Martina Guzmán, who explored how Arab Americans in the Motor City metropolitan area try to maintain this tradition from their home countries.

Belly dancers in Detroit are hired for weddings, christenings, nightclubs and sporting events. Martina looks at how this ancient and often misunderstood form of dance reflects cultural conflicts and cultural pride in the largest Middle Eastern community in the U.S.

The piece aired on February 22 on WDET’s The Craig Fahle Show, which you can visit here.

Press play below to listen:

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Iraqi refugees. (Photo: Chaldean Federation of America)

Prior to 2006, strict immigration policies didn’t allow refugees fleeing the violence in Iraq to enter the United States. In 2007, a more lenient “open door” policy was implemented, allowing thousands of Iraqis –15,000 in 2009 alone– to settle in the Detroit area. Now, local Arab community groups that stepped up to help the refugees say they are overwhelmed by the burden of taking care of the new arrivals.

In a recent interview on WDET’s Detroit Today, Joseph Kassab, executive director of the Chaldean Federation of America, and Abdallah Boumediene, from the Arab Community Center for Economic and Social Services, acknowledged that the Arab community in Michigan can’t deal with the crisis by itself.

With little to no support from the local, state or federal governments, Detroit’s Middle Eastern community has to deal with providing thousands of displaced Iraqis with housing, health care, education, transportation and jobs.

Seven years after the United States declared war on Iraq, nearly two million Iraqis have claimed refugee status. Refugees have been evicted or forced to leave Iraq because of religious and ethnic persecution. As displaced Iraqis struggled to make their way into other Middle Eastern countries such as Syria and Jordan, a large influx –roughly 33,000– have recently arrived in the United States.

According to a report by Refugees International, the Iraqi refugee situation is “one of the largest humanitarian and displacement crises in the world.”

Because Michigan is home to the largest Middle Eastern community in the United States, various social service agencies, including the Chaldean Federation, campaigned to bring the refugees to Metro Detroit. Local Arab leaders used family unification as the main argument in their request to the State Department to bring them to Michigan. Arab leaders wanted the refugees to reconnect with family members, distant relatives, friends and other members of the community.

Kassab has been working directly with refugees and says there is also the matter of family separation.

“There are members of one family on four different continents,” he said.

Local non-profits are not only dealing with resettling the newly arrived, they’re also trying to cope with serious mental health issues suffered by many refugees. Iraqis often have had family members kidnapped, tortured or killed. Families experience depression, loneliness and the post-traumatic stress caused by living in a war-torn country.

“We deal with tragic situations and stories of people who have gone through horrendous experiences,” Boumediene said.

The agencies say they are committed to fully supporting the newly arrived, despite what they say is a lack of support from the government.

“We don’t want to re-victimize these people,” Kassab said. “These people are victims of torture, victims of persecution, victims of failed policies and therefore they should be helped.”

(Photo: Thomªs/Flickr - Click to visit photo page)

Feet in 2 Worlds reporter Martina Guzmán reported Thursday on WDET’s Detroit Today on, “techno artists who once spun records in Detroit basements, abandoned warehouses and after-hours clubs and are now considered royalty on the electronic dance club circuit in Japan and Europe.”

In her report, Martina narrates how the artists’ sound was, “influenced by automobile assembly lines and the city that now has a Spanish accent,” according to Detroit Today‘s webpage

You can listen to the piece here or visit WDET’s site for the whole show.

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The Detroit non-profit brings health care and medicines to Mirebalais, a town in Haiti. (Photo: Haiti Outreach)

Non-profit group Haiti Outreach, based out of St. Blase Church on Detroit’s east side, sends physicians and medical supplies to Mirebalais, a remote town in Haiti.

In a new piece for Detroit public radio’s Detroit Today show, Feet in 2 Worlds and WDET reporter Martina Guzmán reports on the group and its missions to Haiti, where people “will do anything to see a physician,” including standing in a mile-long line, say members Dominique Monde and Soledad Nelson.

“The relationship between both communities is mutually beneficial –reports Martina–. By helping a town in Haiti, Haitian-Americans help themselves maintain their identity.”

You can hear the piece below or visit Detroit Today’s webpage.

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Mexican Town, Detroit (Photo: Girl.in.the.D/flickr)

Nationally-syndicated radio show Latino USA featured one of FI2W reporter Martina Guzmán’s recent pieces this weekend.

You can listen to it here:
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From Latino USA‘s website:

“The numbers are bad, and they just keep coming. Home Depot reports 7,000 jobs lost, and as Circuit City closes its doors, 4,000 more disappear. Car sales haven’t been this low in 27 years, and everywhere we look there are more signs of the times. In south Boston, Esther’s Country Kitchen leaves a note on the door reading, ‘Due to budget cuts, the light at the end of the tunnel is being turned off.’ Still, Americans continue to look for a bright spot. Some are finding a glimmer in what might seem to be a surprising place: immigrant neighborhoods.

“As part of Latino USA’s ongoing series focused on immigrants, New American Voices, we take a look at Detroit, and the dynamics of immigrant businesses inside their communities and beyond. Though Michigan’s unemployment rate is hovering at 10%, and people are leaving the state in droves, there is also an influx of immigrants. Martina Guzman reports on one community in Detroit that is holding the torch for Michigan with energy and undeniable growth.”

You can also listen to a conversation between Latino USA anchor María Hinojosa and John Austin of the New Economy Initiative For South East Michigan about how immigrant businesses help the city’s economy.

The interview is on this page, where you can also listen to the whole show.

Feet In 2 Worlds reporter Martina Guzmán aired a report last week on WDET, Detroit Public Radio, about the Hagopian family’s commitment to keeping the art of rug weaving alive and the annual rug design competition at the College for Creative Studies that has influenced hundreds of young artists.

In her piece for the Detroit Today show, Martina reports,

The Hagopian store in Birmingham is alive with color. Persian, Turkish and Armenian rugs in ornate, geometric and floral patterns hang like paintings in the main floor of the show room. The colors include vibrant blues, reds, sage, and clay tones.

The store looks more like a museum gallery than a show room. And that’s the idea. The Hagopian family wants people who visit its store to understand that the rugs are arduous, time consuming pieces of art steeped in culture and tradition.

To listen to the report, click play below. You can also visit the Detroit Today website here.

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From the webpage of Detroit Today, hosted by Craig Fahle:

For decades Latino immigrants have achieved the American dream through the U.S. Auto Industry. At roughly 12 percent of the total U.S. manufacturing work force, Latinos acquired wealth and stability through good salaries, health benefits, union membership and a way to send the next generation to college. Now, all of that is in jeopardy with the Big 3 near collapse. As part of our occasional series, Feet in Two Worlds, WDET’s Martina Guzman reports on what Hispanic autoworkers are experiencing in the wake of the automotive crisis.

You can hear the story by pressing Play below:

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And you can read Martina’s post on the same subject from earlier this week here.

For decades Latino immigrants have achieved the American dream through the U.S. auto industry. Manufacturing plants provided a way for first-generation Latinos to acquire wealth, stability, and the means to send their children to college through good salaries, health benefits, and union protection. Now all of that is in jeopardy with General Motors, Chrysler and Ford near collapse.

Next Sunday, January 17, The North American International Auto Show opens to the public at Detroit’s Cobo Center. Close to seven thousand journalists from 60 countries will watch as automakers unveil 60 new production vehicles and concept cars, and discuss green machines that will help shape the future of hybrid and battery-operated vehicles.

Six degrees from Detroit. (Photo: MichiganMoves)

While some of Metro Detroit’s most established socialites will be pulling out tuxedos and designer evening gowns for the show’s gala charity events, Hispanic autoworkers, one of the groups directly affected by the downfall of the Big Three, are pondering their fate in this economic recession.

Assembly worker Cindy Garcia is a second-generation autoworker. Garcia attended Wayne State University but opted to work at Ford because, like her father, she saw it as a secure way to achieve a better standard of living.

Her father, Jose Ramos, immigrated to the United States from Tamaulipas, Mexico in the 1970s. Drawn by the auto industry’s solid wages and excellent health care benefits, Ramos worked in auto manufacturing for 30-years, made his way into the middle class, and was able to send his children to college.

“He came here, got the American dream like the rest of the immigrants who came back in the day when they were trying to form the union,” Garcia said. “They did as much as they could but now the whole dream has fallen apart.”

Garcia’s sense of economic insecurity is shared by many Latinos. According to a new report by the Pew Hispanic Center, “Latinos hold a more negative view of their own current personal financial situation than does the general U.S. population.” The report goes on to say:

More than three-in-four (76%) Latinos, and 84% of foreign-born Latinos, say their current personal finances are in either fair or poor shape, while 63% of the general U.S. population says the same.”

Garcia has nine years seniority at Ford Motor Company. A relatively short time compared to many Latino assembly workers who have built cars for more than 20 years. A wife and a mother of two, Garcia is already thinking the coming year will be worse than this one.

“Unless things shape up, the next few Christmases we’ll probably be in another house or living with family, and having smaller meals and sharing clothes and passing food cans around within the family… it’s going to be very rough,” Garcia said.

“When I wake up every morning I wonder if I’m going to have a job, if I’m going to be able to feed my kids, be able to put them through school, if I’m going to be able to keep this house that I have, am I going to be able to keep the car, am I going to be able to keep up with the bills?”

Latino auto workers like Garcia are not the only ones being affected. Troubles in the auto industry are also affecting Hispanic-owned manufacturing plants, car dealerships, logistics companies, design engineers, and consultants.

“A few years ago when I added up the dollars that the Big Three spent with Hispanic business it was almost a billion dollars,” said
Lizbeth Ardesana, CEO of ASG Renaissance, an automotive consulting company in Dearborn, Michigan. “If their not doing it, that’s almost a billion dollars into our community that will be gone and that’s just through the supply base — that doesn’t count the employment”

Ardesana started her company 21 years ago. Like many other Latino entrepreneurs, Ardesana used the auto industry to establish her business. Her company has approximately 200 employees, and for the past seven years ASG, or Automotive Supply Group, has been named one of Metropolitan Detroit’s 101 Best and Brightest companies to work for.

“If you look at the biggest Hispanic business in the United States they relate to the auto industry, they’re auto dealers or auto suppliers,” she said. Auto dealers and suppliers account for four out of the ten top companies on Hispanic Business Magazine’s list of leading Hispanic businesses in the U.S.

John Schmitt, a senior economist with the Center for Economic and Policy Research in Washington, DC. says unlike their white counterparts, black and Hispanic-owned businesses don’t have the wealth to weather an economic downturn.

“We know in general terms that minority owned businesses are under-capitalized relative to non-minority owned businesses, they have less cash on hand and less access to less credit line or loans,” Schmitt said.

Ardesana believes that the auto companies will turn themselves around. If not, she worries the economic impact of their failure could set Latinos back a generation.

“I think that we as a community, Hispanic community, will be more dramatically impacted,” Ardesana said. “We’re a younger community so we haven’t established the roots that will sort of let us ride out a drought like this.”

Feet In Two Worlds‘ Martina Guzman reported on Detroit’s thriving Latino businesses in a piece that aired on WDET, Detroit Public Radio.

Guzman compared some Motown neighborhoods where “buildings designed by world famous architects” are “now abandoned” to the city’s Mexicantown where “historic buildings have been renovated. There are ethnic grocery stores, bakeries, restaurants, shops and a bustling main street.”

She added,

As the national economic crisis deepens and the state faces the loss of thousands more manufacturing jobs, Metro Detroit’s Latino business community may be a ray of hope on Michigan’s bleak economic landscape.

You can hear Martina’s piece by pressing play or you can visit WDET’s page here.

[Visit post to listen to audio]

Detroiters parade in downtown. (Photo: Romain Blanquart/Freep.com)

DETROIT – Martina Guzman, FI2W reporter

Detroiters cheered in bars, honked their horns and literally danced in the streets when Barack Obama became the president-elect.

Detroit is considered a black city: the population is more than eighty percent African American. It has had a black mayor for decades, black City Council members and elected officials. But as a veteran of multiple presidential and local campaigns, I have never seen an outpouring of joy over an election like I saw last night — there’s no precedent to compare it to.

This was not the kind of celebration that takes place after a major sports victory. And it was nothing like the usual party after winning an electoral race. This time, people in bars sobbed openly as Obama spoke to the nation. At the Park Bar, one of Detroit’s newest hangouts, no one was allowed to talk while Obama gave his speech — and no one did. People sat in silence, beaming, listening to every word he said.

“Oh my God, what a great country we live in,” said 42-year-old Louis Aguilar after Obama’s victory speech. Aguilar was one of the thousands of people who came out last night to watch the results roll in.

As the states turned blue, a trickle of cars honking their horns turned quickly into a midnight parade.

People poured onto Woodward Avenue, the main drag in downtown Detroit and hugged each other, cried and waved Barack Obama signs.

A group of youngsters in their twenties parked their car on the corner of a busy intersection, blasted some music and started dancing. Some people cheered and others joined them. [You can watch a video of the celebrations here.]

“This is history,” said 69-year-old Dorothy Jones. “I was this excited when Kennedy won.”

I wasn’t born when Kennedy became president or was assassinated. I have no recollection of the social movements of the 1960′s. But the sixties were alive last night.

Barack Obama’s win was a vindication for almost everyone of that generation who had fought for racial equality and rejected the war in Vietnam.

Vietnam veterans gathered in a local watering hole and talked about past elections. They sat nervously at the bar and tried not to get excited. They said the 2004 presidential election was a huge disappointment and they didn’t want to get their hopes up again this time.

“Look at what happened to Kerry, he was a Vietnam vet who went up and down on a river, got shot at for this country… Then losing the way he did, that broke my heart,” said one veteran who went by the name Tattoo.

But the veterans were hopeful: they had champagne on ice just in case Obama won.

Native Detroiter Eric McMahon flew in from Amsterdam to cast his vote in person. He has been living abroad for eight years and usually votes absentee. But this year he wanted to be present for a historic election.

“I can’t imagine not being here,” McMahon said.

Undeterred by long lines, Latino voters in Southwest Detroit came out in droves today to cast their ballot for president.

“This is the election where Latinos are really going to count,” said 77-year-old Bill Ojeda, a Korean War veteran. Ojeda was a little shy about saying he voted for Obama, but quickly remarked that he liked Obama’s philosophy in dealing with global conflict.

“I don’t mind taking care of the world but I think we should take care of America first,” Ojeda said.

The unusually warm weather for November made voting seem like a community event. Neighbors exchanged friendly ‘hellos’ and asked each other about whom to vote for in local races. Latina mothers, grandmothers and first-time voters arrived together. Twenty-year-old Eliseo Fuentes was thrilled to be voting for the first time. He was well informed, articulate and said immigration is the most important issue for him.

“Neither candidate is talking about immigration,” he said. Ultimately, Fuentes made his decision based on who he though would be better equipped to handle America’s financial crisis. “We live here and we need someone who can take care of the economy now,” he said.

Another first-time voter, Carlitos Candelario, from Puerto Rico, said he feels McCain is the right man for Latinos in America. “Obama is not for the Hispanic community,” he said.

Both young voters went to the polls with their families. Fuentes said twice as many of his family members are voting in this election than in 2004. Michigan expects eighty percent of eligible Latino voters to make it to the polls today—the highest turnout in the state’s history.

Martha Solis, 83 and Martha Kerr, 73 made the short walk from their homes. They said they waited until mid-morning to avoid the long lines. Kerr said she was proud to be voting for a black man for president. “It will open doors for other races,” she said. “The audacity of hope that they could one day become president.”

Lopez campaigns for Obama in Detroit (Photo: Freep.com|Detroit Free Press)

It was George Lopez doing the talking, but this time the punch line wasn’t funny.

“You cannot be happy with the last eight years,” the comedian said. “Do you like waking up everyday to banks closing?”

Lopez was speaking at a voter registration rally aimed at Detroit’s Hispanic community, held on Sept. 20, to discuss the important role Latinos will play in this year’s presidential election.

Polls in Michigan show Senators Barack Obama and John McCain in a statistical dead heat, with the Democrat enjoying a slight edge. The state is home to more than 400,000 Latinos, and Latinos make up only 4 percent of the electorate. But in an election that seems too close to call, they could decide which candidate wins Michigan’s 17 electoral votes.

Latino voters are the focus of much attention in the battleground states of New Mexico, Nevada, Colorado and Florida — but strategists are beginning to see that smaller burgeoning Hispanic communities in Michigan, Pennsylvania and Ohio could have a hand in deciding the winner.

Latinos drove two and three hours to get a glimpse of the famous comedian and listen to what he had to say about his support for Obama.

The Hollywood A-lister is one of many Hispanic stars who are crisscrossing the country and using their celebrity to get out the Latino vote. Movie star Rosario Dawson (Rent, Sin City) has targeted the youth vote while Desperate Housewives star Eva Longoria has campaigned with Congresswoman Hilda Solis (D-Calif.) discussing the importance of voter turnout among Latinas.

Although there is no way of knowing how much influence Hollywood stars have on voters, those attending the rally said Lopez’s campaign appearance made them feel that minorities are finally being paid attention to, and that it made the race more interesting. “The other elections were boring,” said 29-year-old Santos Bernard.

Lifelong Republican Edith Castillo, 34, who said she will vote for Obama this year, said she feels the celebrity pit stop will definitely help sway voters.

“People have a connection to George Lopez because he came from the working class,” Castillo said. “For Latinos who are on the fence his presence will have an influence.”

Castillo is excited to be voting for a Democrat for the first time in a presidential election. She said she defected from the GOP because of the party’s stance on immigration and the erosion of individual rights and quality of life caused by toughened immigration enforcement and the slumping economy. “I bought into the idea of change, of giving power back to the people,” Castillo said.

Lopez, the famous sitcom star, cracked jokes, took on hecklers and reminded the crowd that, like Obama and himself, many Latinos grow up without fathers. “His story is our story,” he said to a cheering crowd.

Lopez praised the dozens of volunteers who walked around with clipboards stacked with voter registration sheets. He encouraged those in the crowd to register their grandmothers, aunts and teenage relatives.

“This is our election,” Lopez said. “We can decide who becomes the president of the United States.”

Vicente Fox at Wayne State University. (Photo: Centro Fox)

A capacity crowd of activists, politicians, students and intellectuals from the Detroit metro area gathered at Wayne State University Sept. 12 to listen to former Mexican President Vicente Fox give a lecture on “Globalization and Immigration.” Those attending the highly publicized event were eager to hear Fox’s thoughts on immigration from the Mexican perspective.

While the immigration debate has mostly been put in the back burner -as opposed to the economy and the Iraq war- during the 2008 campaign, Fox said he believes the issue will be front and center and could be used as a wedge issue as we get closer to the November 4 election.

When asked about his thoughts on the current debate, Fox said the discussion was “misleading, full of destruction and lack of factual information.” He went on to say that the immigration debate needs to be more objective and that the American people, as well as the media, are uninformed.

According to the Employment Policy Foundation, the United States has a systemic labor shortage that is expected to transform the workplace over the next 25 to 30 years, as baby boomers retire. In this context, while the United States needs and benefits from immigrant labor, Fox said, Mexico suffers from the northward migration in the long term, losing its human capital.

“All this energy, all this talent is needed in Mexico for the development of the nation and the competitiveness of the economy,” Fox said.

Immigration regulation is key to changing the current dialogue. Fox said he supports legislation like the failed McCain-Kennedy bill, proposed in 2005. The plan would have allowed illegal immigrants who entered the U.S. before Jan. 7, 2004, and who have jobs, to work legally for an additional six years and eventually become citizens, after paying fines and meeting certain citizenship requirements.

The U.S., Fox stressed, was sharply criticized for not addressing the human side of immigration, such as the impact on families, mental health, human and workers’ rights. He said the current dialogue only deals with economic drain, job loss and a wall on the border.

But the former Mexican president had a positive outlook on the future of his own country and said Mexico is poised to turn itself around in the 21st century. Many Latin American countries, he reminded the audience, spent most of the previous century under single-party rule, corrupt dictators and military regimes. Fox’s own presidency (2000-2006) is considered historic because it ended 71 years of uninterrupted rule by the Institutional Revolutionary Party.

“We have not been able to enjoy democracy,” Fox said.

Threatening Mexico’s success is organized crime’s seemingly growing power. Current president Felipe Calderon used the fight against drugs and drug cartels as the cornerstone of his campaign and has declared war on the cartels since taking office in 2006.

“Mexico has the unfortunate luck to be between drug-producing countries and the United States, the largest consumer of drugs in the world,” Fox said.

Fox closed by saying that visionary ideas are needed on both sides of the border, in order to solve the immigration crisis.

“The Mexican government,” he said, “is more than willing to work hard to retain our own people and make sure that we have opportunities for them.”

Although this was only the primary election, the district is more than 90 percent Democratic and there is rarely a credible Republican candidate.

As we noted earlier this week Tlaib’s candidacy was controversial from the start. Latino leaders in the district felt the seat in Michigan’s 12th House District belonged to them. The mostly Mexican community has a long history in Detroit going back almost 100 years, yet has no political representation in the state legislature.

Community leader Elena Herrada of the Centro Obrero criticized Tlaib in an interview with Feet in Two Worlds. “Rashida actually represents the majority of white voters,” Herrada said, “the new people, the younger people who came into the narrative very late.” Herrada also claims Tlaib is a protégé of current 12th District State Representative, Steve Toboccman, who is the Majority Floor Leader in the Michigan House, and who did not seek reelection because of term limits.

Tlaib also was attacked for being a Muslim Arab.

“Rashida Tlaib, a Palestinian Muslim extremist whose candidacy was touted across the country on extremist Muslim and anti-Israel mailing lists, is unfortunately a viable candidate for this seat,” posted Debbie Schlussel, a conservative blogger based in Michigan.

Schlussel want on to say, “Tlaib was a top official at ACCESS, the Arab Community Center for Economic and Social Services, the agency that gets millions in your tax money to help illegal aliens, fight immigration laws and supports Hezbollah and Hamas.”

Despite the attacks Tlaib won, and won big. She captured 44 percent of the vote, beating her closest competitor by 770 votes.

Her campaign team and volunteers were ecstatic. “We were so tired but when we found out we won I felt that all of that hard work paid off,” said 17-year old Latina Cynthia Carrillo. Carrillo had never worked on a campaign and says it empowered her as a young woman. “I thought politics was a bunch of rich men giving their opinions,” she said. “I learned that women could be in politics too.”

Tlaib’s story is also significant because, some believe, her success also helps break stereotypes about Arab women. “We’re fed up with seeing the same recycled images of Muslim women in the mainstream media, images that repeatedly depict women as passive and helpless,” wrote filmmaker Jolene Pinder. Pinder produced a film called Election Day featuring Tlaib.

Although Tlaib is celebrating her victory, she now must work with Latino leaders who did not support her candidacy. She also must deal with the troubles of a culturally vibrant yet economically distressed community. The district is rampant with drugs, crime and blight, and as part of Detroit, suffers from the highest unemployment rate in the country for any metro area.

Southwest Detroit is home to Michigan’s largest immigrant community. Before running for state representative, Tlaib built her career working on immigrant isssues. “She comes from an immigrant rights background, and that is a tough message in a post 9/11 world,” said Rep. Toboccman.

This article was written by Feet in Two Worlds reporter Martina Guzman.

Martina’s story aired yesterday. You can listen to it by pressing play here:

[Visit post to listen to audio]

This is the first collaboration between Feet in Two Worlds and WDET, our newest radio partner.

Tlaib’s campaign strategy is simple, walk the entire district twice and knock on the doors of more than eight thousand voters. Her approach seems to be working. Residents call her by her first name, and her unassuming demeanor and easy smile can disarm residents of some of the toughest Detroit neighborhoods.

Her grassroots approach has also inspired a core group of college-age Arabic and Latina women to faithfully volunteer on her campaign. The young women walk the district along with the candidate, make phone calls in Arabic and Spanish, put up signs and organize fundraisers.

Although Tlaib has inspired a faithful following, not everyone in the Latino stronghold is excited about the young Palestinian attorney running for office. Local resident and community activist, Elena Herrada says the district is predominantly Mexican, and a Latina like former State Representative Belda Garza should hold that seat. Garza was the first Latina elected to the Michigan legislature in 1998 and served two terms before losing to current State Representative Steve Tobocman in 2002. Garza is running again in this election.

But Tlaib says her biggest concern isn’t running against a Latino, black or white candidate. It’s about anti-Muslim attitudes, she feels could derail her campaign. Tlaib’s fears seem warranted. In 2006 conservative political commentator Debbie Schlussel stirred anti-Muslim sentiment by falsely accusing Ishmael Ahmed, who at the time was the executive director of ACCESS, the largest Arab-American human service agency in the country, of being anti-American and supporting extremist organizations.

Ahmed was being considered for a cabinet post in administration of Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm. After an uphill battle, he was confirmed as the Director of the Michigan Department of the Human Services. Ahmed says that if Arab Americans want to climb the political ranks, this kind of prejudice is typical what they have to go through, “no matter how good, how honest, how decent and how hard they have worked.” Tlaib says that, like Ahmed, she has been the recipient of racist attacks by bloggers. “People who hear these things suspect where there’s smoke there’s fire, and back away from really good people,” says Ahmed. “These attacks have an effect,” he adds, “I hope that’s not the case in Southwest Detroit.

Although Tlaib understands that political action to advance the interests of a certain group is important, she says it’s more important to help people with every day issues that affect their quality of life. “What I’ve been told is that it’s a slap in the face not to have a Latino represent the district,” says Tlaib. “My response is that it’s more of a slap in the face when you do have a Latino that doesn’t make an impact in peoples lives.”

There are a half-million Middle Easterners living in Michigan. No Muslim women serve in the Michigan state legislature.

This article was written by Feet in Two Worlds reporter Martina Guzman. Martina produced a radio profile of Rashida Tlaib for WDET. You can listen to it here or click play below.

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