Loading ...Miss USA Rima Fakih's Fans in Dearborn Still Proud
Although Miss USA Rima Fakih didn’t become Miss Universe tonight, her fans were still proud of her as they gathered in a Dearborn restaurant to cheer her on.
“She’s a tremendous success, not only for her, but for the whole community,” said Dr. Daw Alwerfalli, 63, of Dearborn, as he watched the pageant with his family.
A table of Middle Eastern foods before them as they broke fast for Ramadan, the Alwerfalli family was excited to watch the pageant on a TV screen at Assayad Restaurant on Warren Avenue, the main commercial road in the heart of Arab-America.
“Yeah, Rima!” said Daw Alwerfalli’s wife, Diana, as Fakih appeared in her gold eagle costume during the show’s opening.
A few minutes later, they were deflated as Fakih didn’t make the top 15. Jimena Navarrete of Mexico went on to win.
“I’m disappointed,” Diana Alwerfalli sighed after Fakih didn’t advance. “She’s so beautiful.”
Still, the Alwerfallis said Fakih is a winner anyway, considering she’s Miss USA, the first Arab-American and Muslim to win the crown.
“She’s a role model for the community, an inspiration,” Daw Alwerfalli said. “She’s opened the doors for Arab-Americans. She’s part of the next generation. The sky is the limit for Arab Americans.”
Others in metro Detroit, especially in its Arab-American communities, are happy to see Fakih represent the community.
“She’s still Miss USA. That’s still very good, to go that far,” said Majida Hamdan, a Dearborn resident watching the competition at the restaurant.
The Alwerfalli family has known Fakih, 24, of Dearborn, and her family for about four years.
Daw Alwerfalli exchanged text messages just hours before the show.
He wished her good luck.
“Thank you so much,” Fakih replied. “You’re the best.”
As they watched the show, the family ate from platters of white fish, chicken kebabs, olives, humus, mashed eggplant, and falafel. It was the first time they had eaten all day since it is Ramadan, when observant Muslims fast from sunrise to sunset.
Fakih told the Free Press last week that she is fasting this month for Ramadan despite her hectic schedule. Since her victory in May, Fakih has been the focus of intense attention around the world as many debate Islam, the Middle East, and American identity at a time of demographic changes.
“Fakih is living the American dream,” said Suehaila Amen, 30, of Dearborn. “She set her goals, followed her dreams and achieved success. As a proud American of Lebanese descent, I feel Rima is the perfect representative for the USA.”
Born in Lebanon, Fakih grew up there during a time of war and conflict. She moved with her family to New York City when she was 7.
After graduating from high school in New York, she and her family moved to Dearborn, which has the highest concentration of Arab Americans among all U.S. cities.
She graduated from the University of Michigan-Dearborn and worked in marketing at Detroit Medical Center. Fakih competed in pageants in Michigan, Lebanon and Ghana, before winning Miss Michigan.
Her friends and fans in Dearborn say she has a bright future. Daw Alwerfalli said Fakih will make for an excellent ambassador of the U.S. to the Arab and Muslim worlds, an important issue right now.
“She’s smart, educated, very pretty, and very down to earth,” Diana Alwerfalli said tonight at the restaurant. “She kept in touch with her friends even after she got the crown, which shows how genuine she is. She can do anything.”
Niraj Warikoo
Detroit Free Press