Candidates promise fairness and engagement at Arab Chamber Iftar event March 13
By Ray Hanania
More than a dozen candidates running for various local offices in the Chicagoland suburbs attended an Iftar dinner Thursday, March 13, 2025 hosted by the Arab American Chamber of Commerce and the Palestine Club at the Jerusalem Banquet Hall in Bridgeview.
Candidates included Jim Dodge who is leading the campaign to remove and replace racist Orland Park Mayor Keith Pekau who has told Arabs and Muslims who attended a village board meeting in February 2024 to “go to another country” if they didn’t like his policies.
More than 300 people attended the Iftar, the fast-breaking evening meal of Muslims in Ramadan at the time of adhan of the Maghrib prayer. For observant Muslims, this is their second meal of the day following the evening sunset.
More than 40 Arab and Muslim candidates have filed for public office in the April 1, 2025 elections in Cook, Will and DuPage County, a record number. CLICK HERE for this updated list of candidates.
Many candidates attended and spoke at the event including:
Orland Park Mayoral candidate James Dodge, who is seeking to oust racist Mayor Keith Pekau. His slate, Informed Orland Park, includes Mary Ryan Norwell for Clerk, and Trustee candidates Dina M. Lawrence, John Lawler, and Joanna M. Liotine Leafblad.
Orland Township Trustee candidates Lena Matariyeh and Danny Flores, representing the Orland Township United slate which also includes Richard Kelley for Supervisor, CindyMurray for Clerk, Antonio Rubino for Assessor, Tracey Maureen Sullivan for Highway Commissioner, and Trustee candidates Michael Schofield and Kelly Erin Metzger.
Representatives for the independent slate for the Orland Fire Protection District Commissioner Donald “DJ” Jeffers, Trustee Beth Damas Kaspar, and former Palos Heights Police CSO Bridget Tolan.
Suzan Atallah, candidate for Palos School District 118
Dr Rasha Atallah for the North Palos Dist. 117 school board.
Tesneem Amine, who is seeking election to the High School District 230 board of trustees, joining Trustee Mohammed Jaber. District 230 includes three high schools, Andrew, Sandburg, and Stagg representing students from Tinley Park in the south to Summit in the North.
Also speaking and addressing the Ifatr Chamber event were:
Reem Odeh, a prominent attorney, who is running for Clerk in Orland Township along with Supervisor Paul O’Grady.
Jennifer Frankowicz running for Alderperson of the 3rd ward in Palos Hills.
Maher Khattab running for School District 119 Trustee.
Diane Shaar who is running for Moraine Valley Community College (MVCC) Trustee.
A. J. Pasek who is challenging Palos Hills Mayor Gerald Bennett.
Haytham Elyyan for Palos Hills First Ward alderperson.
Among the community leaders who attended the event were Samir Khalil, founder of the Arab American Democracy Coalition, activist Salman Aftab, Judge Bill Hadad founder of AMVOTE, and Palos Township Trustee Tasneem Abuzir.
Imam Haitham of the Orland Prayer Center in Orland Park, offered the Iftar Prayer for attendees and discussed the importance of everyone voting in the upcoming election.
Also attending were Mazen Doleh, president of the Palestine Club, Abder Ghouleh, Tareq Albitar of the Arab American Chamber of Commerce, journalist Yousef Marei, and the Chicagoland bureau of Palestine TV.
The event was co-founded by a generous donation from Chicagoland businessman Mohamed Abdullah.
The author, Ray Hanania, served as the event emcee.
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Hanania also writes about Middle East issues for the Arab News, and The Arab Daily News criticizing government policies in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Hanania was named "Best Ethnic American Columnist" by the New America Media in November 2007, and is the 2009 recipient of the SPJ National Sigma Delta Chi Award for column writing.
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