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Arab-Americans expressed delight Monday, a day after 24-year-old Lebanese-American Rima Fakih was crowned Miss USA.
"For once, we're talking about beauty and not terror," said Osama Siblani, publisher of The Arab-American News, in Dearborn, Michigan, who knows Fakih and her family.
He and about 150 other Arab-Americans watched the pageant unfold on a 100-inch television screen at La Pita Restaurant in Dearborn, which was packed with her friends.
The place erupted in applause when she took the crown, he said.
"This sends a signal that we're part and parcel of this great country ... this is a part of being American. The American dream is still alive and kicking. Nobody can tell us that a Muslim cannot make it. Yes, we can make it."
"We couldn't hear ourselves," said Mohamad Dbouk, general manager of the restaurant. "Everybody was screaming."
Dancing continued until 2 a.m., said Siblani, who text-messaged Fakih after her victory. "She was very excited."
He said Fakih and her family describe themselves as Muslim. Asked if conservative Muslims might be offended by the pictures of the young woman wearing a bikini, he said, "Only stupid ones. It's like all religions: They have conservative, they have liberal, and they have in the middle."
He added, "If you're asking those conservatives, yes, they'll tell you that it's forbidden. But I'm a Muslim, and if you ask me would my sister wear a bikini or a swimsuit, I'd say yes, of course."
A Lebanese friend downplayed the issue. Though her name is Muslim, "Rima was raised in a family that's moderate, and they practiced both religions," including Christianity, said Rami Haddad, who said he helped with Fakih's publicity campaign in Michigan.
"She's American first, and I don't think religion has to play any role in this."
He also downplayed the impact of the pictures, including those showing a scantily clad Fakih dancing on a pole. "I don't think they are anything bad," he said.
A spokeswoman for Miss USA said pageant officials are not certain that Fakih is the first Arab-American to win the title, since such records are not kept, but she said she thought that was the case.
Either way, Samar Boulos, 23, was proud of Fakih's victory. "I would really hope that she would raise the Lebanese name up high," said the Beirut native who teaches Arabic at Kennesaw State University in suburban Atlanta, Georgia. "Instead of always showing the terrorism part of it, maybe she could show the good side of it, the beauty."
Similar sentiments surged across international borders: "9 years after 9/11. America has a president of Muslim origin and a Muslim Miss America," tweeted Khalid Alkhalifa, the foreign minister of Bahrain.
But it was not all positive. Octavia Nasr, CNN's senior editor of Middle East affairs, said criticism was emerging on some websites. "It's a mixed bag," she said.
Arabs are quick to adopt someone who becomes successful, even if their country of origin played no role in their success, she said.
"Arabs usually flee their land to find opportunities elsewhere. Until they make it, their countries of origin do nothing for them," she said.
Arab-Americans react with delight to Lebanese-American Miss USA - CNN.com
"For once, we're talking about beauty and not terror," said Osama Siblani, publisher of The Arab-American News, in Dearborn, Michigan, who knows Fakih and her family.
He and about 150 other Arab-Americans watched the pageant unfold on a 100-inch television screen at La Pita Restaurant in Dearborn, which was packed with her friends.
The place erupted in applause when she took the crown, he said.
"This sends a signal that we're part and parcel of this great country ... this is a part of being American. The American dream is still alive and kicking. Nobody can tell us that a Muslim cannot make it. Yes, we can make it."
"We couldn't hear ourselves," said Mohamad Dbouk, general manager of the restaurant. "Everybody was screaming."
Dancing continued until 2 a.m., said Siblani, who text-messaged Fakih after her victory. "She was very excited."
He said Fakih and her family describe themselves as Muslim. Asked if conservative Muslims might be offended by the pictures of the young woman wearing a bikini, he said, "Only stupid ones. It's like all religions: They have conservative, they have liberal, and they have in the middle."
He added, "If you're asking those conservatives, yes, they'll tell you that it's forbidden. But I'm a Muslim, and if you ask me would my sister wear a bikini or a swimsuit, I'd say yes, of course."
A Lebanese friend downplayed the issue. Though her name is Muslim, "Rima was raised in a family that's moderate, and they practiced both religions," including Christianity, said Rami Haddad, who said he helped with Fakih's publicity campaign in Michigan.
"She's American first, and I don't think religion has to play any role in this."
He also downplayed the impact of the pictures, including those showing a scantily clad Fakih dancing on a pole. "I don't think they are anything bad," he said.
A spokeswoman for Miss USA said pageant officials are not certain that Fakih is the first Arab-American to win the title, since such records are not kept, but she said she thought that was the case.
Either way, Samar Boulos, 23, was proud of Fakih's victory. "I would really hope that she would raise the Lebanese name up high," said the Beirut native who teaches Arabic at Kennesaw State University in suburban Atlanta, Georgia. "Instead of always showing the terrorism part of it, maybe she could show the good side of it, the beauty."
Similar sentiments surged across international borders: "9 years after 9/11. America has a president of Muslim origin and a Muslim Miss America," tweeted Khalid Alkhalifa, the foreign minister of Bahrain.
But it was not all positive. Octavia Nasr, CNN's senior editor of Middle East affairs, said criticism was emerging on some websites. "It's a mixed bag," she said.
Arabs are quick to adopt someone who becomes successful, even if their country of origin played no role in their success, she said.
"Arabs usually flee their land to find opportunities elsewhere. Until they make it, their countries of origin do nothing for them," she said.
Arab-Americans react with delight to Lebanese-American Miss USA - CNN.com
