Located just outside of Detroit, the city of Dearborn is home to the nation's most densely populated Arab community.
Source: US Census
When the US invaded Iraq in 2003, Middle Eastern families began to flee their war-torn countries in search of safety and prosperity. Many came to Dearborn, where a Lebanese enclave formed after the first Gulf War.
Today, over 30% of Dearborn's 98,000 residents are of Arab descent. While intolerance occasionally crops up among local protesters and bloggers, the community finds strength and solidarity in numbers.
Source: US Census, Detroit Free Press
Photographer Salwan Georges and his family left Iraq more than 10 years ago and lived as refugees in Syria. He visited Dearborn on his second day in the US but settled elsewhere in the state.
After visiting Dearborn for many years, I decided it was time to tell the story of those people," Georges told Business Insider. "I wanted to tell the world about Iraqi traditions.
While Dearborn's Arab population is made up of Iraqi, Lebanese, Palestinian, and Yemeni refugees, Georges focused his project on people who shared his Iraqi heritage.
Source: National Journal
"Little Iraq" surrounds Dearborn residents with reminders of home, such as ethnic groceries, mosques, Islamic schools, and the Arab-American National Museum.
In Alraffedean Cafe, a local coffee house where Iraqi immigrants meet daily after work, the conversation always circles back to life at home.
Customers can often be found playing a game of Taolee, or Backgammon, just as they would do in coffee houses in Iraq.
Even the graffiti comforts homesick hearts. Under a dilapidated food stamp sign is an Arabic phrase, "Mashallah," which means appreciation, joy, and praise.
The community upholds its religious traditions. In December, roughly 6,000 Shia Muslims marched through Dearborn to commemorate Ashura, an Islamic celebration of the late Imam Hussain.
Speakers from around the world flew in to deliver lectures and services over the 10-day holy holiday.
Source: Detroit Free Press