State Sen. elect Andrew Gounardes, center, joined members of the AAANY and its guests at the event. (Photo by Arthur de Gaeta via Brooklyn Daily Eagle)
The Arab-American Association of New York (AAANY) held its 17th annual gala on Nov. 8 and honored political and human rights activists as part of its “solidarity” theme, writes Paula Katinas in Brooklyn Daily Eagle. AAANY singled out a new organization for a special award.
The AAANY presented the Freedom Fighter Award to Shaun King, the well-known writer and civil rights activist. The group Jews for Racial and Economic Justice received the Community Champion Award. The Community Defender Award was given to representatives of the New York City Commission on Human Rights.
Representatives of the Beit Hanina Cultural Center, a new center in Bay Ridge, picked up the Basemah Atweh Legacy Award. “It is a new center that opened and we very much want to work with them,” Enas Almadhwahi, the human resources manager for the Arab-American Association of New York (AAANY), told this newspaper.
The gala, held at the Widdi Catering Hall, 5602 Sixth Ave. in Sunset Park, drew a large crowd, organizers said. Go to Brooklyn Daily Eagle to read why Almadhwahi said leaders of AAANY believed “this year was different,” and how that informed their decisions about who to honor.