Rima is a Lebanese American who lives in Dearborn, Michigan and was crowned Miss Michigan on September 19, 2009.
This is a welcome event at a time when it seems that Arab-Americans have been stereotyped in the American media in a very negative light, almost automatically associated with any terrorist bomb plot, and even the last time the media focused on an Arab American woman from Michigan it was the CBS News 60 Minutes story of CIA Agent Nada Proudy.
24-year-old Rima Fakih was born in 1986 in New York, then raised in Dearborn with her parents and her younger brother Rami, according to her bio on the Miss Michigan website.
Rima graduated from the University of Michigan where she got her Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics with a minor in Business Administration. From all accounts, she's a confident person who's proud of her Arab-American background. Rima said that her father told her "You don't know who you are until you know where you come from."
And on that, reportedly, there are images of Rima that may be painted as controversial in light of her win but the website Palestine-horizon.com reports the photographer, Fadil Berisha, is Muslim and Rima's family fully supports the photos and her work.
This blogger only watched 4 minutes of the Miss USA TV broadcast, and immediately noticed Rima Fakih because her personality jumped out of the screen (Seriously!) and she had a very toned body. Rima was certainly a contender. Congratulations to Rima for making history!
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