Beenish Ahmed is one of Michigan Radio’s Detroit-based reporters. Since 2016, she has been a reporter for WNYC Public Radio in New York and also a freelance journalist. Her stories have appeared on NPR, as well as in The New Yorker, Harper’s, The Atlantic, VICE and The Daily Beast. Additionally, Beenish spent two years in Islamabad, Pakistan, working with the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting, covering the country’s first democratic transition of power as well as Pakistan’s education system.
Much of her reporting has focused on covering under-reported stories and adding nuance to major headlines. That included covering stories related to DACA and the #MeToo movement as well as reporting on the personal challenges Muslims in metro Detroit faced in taking a public stand against President Trump’s so-called “Muslim ban.”
She is a graduate of the University of Michigan and has a master’s degree from the University of Cambridge. She was also a Spencer Fellow at the Columbia School of Journalism in New York, and an NPR Kroc Fellow.
Contributions from Beenish Ahmed
- Atlanta killings revive memory of Vincent Chin and another time of Anti-Asian sentiment
Wednesday, June 23, marks 39 years since a young Chinese-American named Vincent Chin died after being beaten by two white autoworkers in metro-Detroit. His death came at a time of heightened anti-Asia … - Juneteenth celebrations in Michigan as holiday gains national recognition
A series of parades, concerts, and other celebrations will take place this weekend to honor Juneteenth, a holiday commemorating freedom for enslaved people following the Civil War. The local commemora … - Detroit schools have "no intention" of holding back third graders struggling to read
The head of Detroit Public Schools said that the district will circumvent a law requiring third graders who fail the reading portion of the end-of-year standardized test to repeat the academic year. D … - Detroit public schools to run an audit of diversity in English class reading
This story was updated on June 8, at 1:00 p.m. The Detroit public school system will begin taking stock of the diverse perspectives included in high school English curricula this fall as part of a bro … - Democratic lawmakers introduce bills to address Secretary of State appointment backlog
Democratic lawmakers introduced legislation on Tuesday aimed at addressing the backlog for appointments at Secretary of State offices. "We've never been in a situation where the Secretary of …