There are many stories that will be written about the meaning of the 2021 elections across the US, but for me the most important news was Abdullah Hammoud's victory as the mayor of Dearborn, Michigan. In many ways, that city has played a central role in the work to empower the Arab-American community.
Since our entry into politics as an organised constituency in the late 1970s, Arab Americans have experienced painful instances of rejection and exclusion. In 1983, a candidate for mayor in Philadelphia attended a fundraiser hosted by Arab Americans. After being challenged by his opponent for "taking Arab money", he returned the donations. Others, when challenged, purged their campaigns of Arab-American staff or outright shunned the community.
Then, in 1984, along came Reverend Jesse Jackson and his history-making campaign for president. His was the first national effort to welcome the Arab-American community into his coalition. The response was overwhelming. Excited by Mr Jackson's recognition and respect, the Arab-American community turned out in large numbers for his events across the country. And Dearborn was no exception. After the election, we realised the importance of building on this experience and created the Arab American Institute to continue the momentum created by the 1984 election. The institute was committed to increasing Arab-American voter registration and getting more Arab Americans to run for office.
While we were initially focused on preparing for the 1988 presidential contests, something happened after our founding meeting in early 1985 that caused us to refocus our efforts. A young Arab-American woman from Dearborn, who had been at that founding event, called our office with the news that a long-shot candidate in that year's mayoral race had sent a tabloid mailer to every home in the city saying: "Let's talk about the 'Arab Problem'." The "problem", as he described it, was that there were too many of them, and they didn't speak our language, share our values, and were "ruining our darned good way of life". His racist-speak worked and he won.
Dearborn is a small city adjacent to Detroit. Back in the 1980s, it had a population of about 90,000. It was home to one of Ford Motor Company's major plants. Designed by Henry Ford early in the 20th century, the city was closely tied to the car industry. Workers and their families lived among and close to the factory and steel plants on the eastern side of the city, while the more upscale west was home to management and white-collar employees.
Because Ford was known to hold racist views, in addition to separating his workforce, few black people or Jews were allowed in the community. Over the years, new immigrants would arrive in Dearborn, attracted by the prospects of employment at Ford. As they settled, they replaced those who had come before and had since moved up the ladder of social and economic mobility.
During the 1970s and 1980s, Arabs were the new immigrants, many having left Lebanon during its civil war, with especially large numbers from Southern Lebanon arriving after Israel’s invasion and occupation. Thus, it might not have been unexpected that a candidate would make a racist appeal against the "newcomers". Expected, but still shocking and painful.
I flew to Dearborn the day after news of the hurtful tabloid and spoke to a large community gathering. I will never forget the pained look of rejection on their faces. And so, I told them: "You are not the problem of Dearborn – you are its promise and its future." We learned that because the community was so new and their voter registration was low, the mayoral candidate had sensed that they were an easy target. Working with several great local community groups, we hired staff and put resources into voter registration and mobilisation efforts.
You are not the problem of Dearborn – you are its promise and its future
James Zogby to Arab Americans in Dearborn,
Michigan in 1985
Four years later, the woman who had called our office to report on the tabloid, Suzanne Sareini, was elected to the city council – the first Arab American elected in the city. Ten years after that, with Arab-American voters numbering more than 7,000, that same mayor spoke at one of our events. He began his remarks in Arabic and gave me the symbolic "Key to the City".
At a Dearborn event we hosted in 2003, every Democrat running for president made an appearance. By 2013, the president and the majority of the city council were Arab Americans. And now, Dearborn, with Arab Americans making up the majority of its residents, has its first Arab-American mayor.
Abdullah Hammoud's is a classic American story. His parents are immigrants from Lebanon. His father was a truck driver. His mother ran a small business. Mr Hammoud, who holds two master's degrees, was elected a state representative in 2017 and again in 2019 – the first Arab American to represent Dearborn in the Michigan legislature. His opponent tried to bait him during the campaign, suggesting that Mr Hammoud was running to represent "his community" while he was running to represent all of Dearborn. Mr Hammoud, however, stayed positive and focused on the city's needs.
In addition to winning the mayor's race, four out of seven council members are Arab American, including Ms Sareini’s son Michael, who was elected president of the council. The police chief is Arab American, as are several judges, and all three principals at Dearborn's public high schools. And the city's Arab-American business community continues to bring life to the city, contributing to metro Detroit's overall renewal. It's important to note that the city of Dearborn Heights also elected an Arab-American mayor, William Bazzi, as did nearby Hamtramck, which elected Amer Ghalib, a Yemeni immigrant and now the first Arab-American mayor of that city.
The Arab-American community has shown that we truly are the "promise" of our cities and states. Ours is a story we all need to be reminded of in times like these.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
Where to donate in the UAE
The Emirates Charity Portal
You can donate to several registered charities through a “donation catalogue”. The use of the donation is quite specific, such as buying a fan for a poor family in Niger for Dh130.
The General Authority of Islamic Affairs & Endowments
The site has an e-donation service accepting debit card, credit card or e-Dirham, an electronic payment tool developed by the Ministry of Finance and First Abu Dhabi Bank.
Al Noor Special Needs Centre
You can donate online or order Smiles n’ Stuff products handcrafted by Al Noor students. The centre publishes a wish list of extras needed, starting at Dh500.
Beit Al Khair Society
Beit Al Khair Society has the motto “From – and to – the UAE,” with donations going towards the neediest in the country. Its website has a list of physical donation sites, but people can also contribute money by SMS, bank transfer and through the hotline 800-22554.
Dar Al Ber Society
Dar Al Ber Society, which has charity projects in 39 countries, accept cash payments, money transfers or SMS donations. Its donation hotline is 800-79.
Dubai Cares
Dubai Cares provides several options for individuals and companies to donate, including online, through banks, at retail outlets, via phone and by purchasing Dubai Cares branded merchandise. It is currently running a campaign called Bookings 2030, which allows people to help change the future of six underprivileged children and young people.
Emirates Airline Foundation
Those who travel on Emirates have undoubtedly seen the little donation envelopes in the seat pockets. But the foundation also accepts donations online and in the form of Skywards Miles. Donated miles are used to sponsor travel for doctors, surgeons, engineers and other professionals volunteering on humanitarian missions around the world.
Emirates Red Crescent
On the Emirates Red Crescent website you can choose between 35 different purposes for your donation, such as providing food for fasters, supporting debtors and contributing to a refugee women fund. It also has a list of bank accounts for each donation type.
Gulf for Good
Gulf for Good raises funds for partner charity projects through challenges, like climbing Kilimanjaro and cycling through Thailand. This year’s projects are in partnership with Street Child Nepal, Larchfield Kids, the Foundation for African Empowerment and SOS Children's Villages. Since 2001, the organisation has raised more than $3.5 million (Dh12.8m) in support of over 50 children’s charities.
Noor Dubai Foundation
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum launched the Noor Dubai Foundation a decade ago with the aim of eliminating all forms of preventable blindness globally. You can donate Dh50 to support mobile eye camps by texting the word “Noor” to 4565 (Etisalat) or 4849 (du).
Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026
1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.
3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.
8. Pillar 2 implementation
Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.
9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services
Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.
10. Substance and CbC reporting focus
Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.
Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer
The National in Davos
We are bringing you the inside story from the World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting in Davos, a gathering of hundreds of world leaders, top executives and billionaires.
