Great Report on Young Social Activists
Good resource for MLTs and understanding what the network is aiming to create now.
May 02, 2008
May 01, 2008
A Reflection on Geert Wilders' Film
MLT Moushumi Khan has an opinion piece on Geert Wilders' film "Fitna."
April 30, 2008
Irshad Manji in the News
MLT Irshad Manji recently appeared in the New York Times talking about her approach to Islam.
April 29, 2008
Facebook Page
We have a Facebook page, so become a fan.
MLT Watch: Debbie Almontaser
One of our MLTs, Debbie Almontaser, is back in the national news. She appeared over a year ago for her involvement with an Arabic language school in New York. We're going to be tracking news coverage for the immediate future in this post. If you see anything relevant, please post in comments, or email us.
April 18, 2008
Bearded, Praying Man Ejected from Plane
Why do people freak out about bearded men praying?
I wouldn't pray on a plane, but I understand why people do. I was on plan into NY last night and there were a whole bunch of Catholics were praying. So why do only bearded men get singled out?
BTW, I know the issue is one of regulation compliance in this instance, but still, it strikes me as being that if he weren't being overtly non-Christian religious, it wouldn't be the issue it is. And yes, I believe both anti-semitism and islamophobia are the same poison in the well.
April 11, 2008
Salaam wa Shalom
Via Laila Lalami I found this beautiful poem. Isn't it nice to know what a Muslim really means by "revenge?"
March 28, 2008
Muslims and Good Governance
It goes back to the beginning. Why do non-Muslims get this, but Muslims don't?
This is not us
I don't think I've posted about this before, but if I have, it bears repeating.
Yeh Hum Naheen is a music video from Pakistan about Muslims denouncing terrorism, it means "this is not us." Video clips below.
Asma Hasan at Glamour
My friend Asma Hasan is blogging at Glamour Magazine about the presidential election. Do check her out, but as she says, she's a Republican, and I am most assuredly not, so don't be surprised if you read very different things over there. Enjoy!
Muslim Woman Ruler
A Muslim woman ruler before the 20th century. It's amazing how much we've regressed.
Quran on Cloth
Click through and read the description.
March 24, 2008
Event Announcement: A Mystical Journey
A Mystical Journey - Sufi Music and other Expressions of Devotion from the Muslim World is a Golden Jubilee International Programme featuring artists from Algeria, Bosnia, Iran, Pakistan, Tajikistan and Syria performing music from various Sufi and other esoteric traditions of Islam. A Mystical Journey seeks to express the rich diversity of devotional expressions in Islam reflecting different geographies, languages and traditions. Though different in form, these acts of devotion are common in their peaceful search for the divine and represent the pluralistic traditions and mystical unity among different communities of interpretation within the Muslim world.
New York performance date is April 5. Tickets and more information can be found at: http://theismaili.org/amj
March 20, 2008
Eid Milad
Today is the Prophet Muhammad's (PBUH) birthday. Most Muslim celebrate this day to acknowledge that God sent us a message, a messenger, and a role-model. The day is used to remind us of God's blessings and our struggle to live up to the highest ideals of the faith. Eid Mubarak.
October 02, 2007
House Resolution on Ramadan
H. Res. 635 recognizing the onset of Ramadan.
(h/t World Muslim Congress)
Technorati Tags: House of Representatives, Islam in America
July 23, 2007
Talal Asad on Suicide Bombing
Read the Savage Minds post and follow links.
Technorati Tags: terror[ism][ists]
Newsweek and Islam
Newsweek has a special issue on Islam in America. Here's the primary link.
Also of note is week-long blog of Muslims speaking out here. The mission statement is interesting because it claims it wants to give voice to the Muslim American community.
Keep going back and reading. Seems like a good project.
Technorati Tags: Islam in America
July 17, 2007
Islam Unites UK
In hatred. Not so bad really. Just the usual amount of misinformation to make us sound more violent than the average religious group. I can see CNN's treatment of this now "Violent Center Funded by London, Jihad U."
Technorati Tags: UK
Brother Ali
Read an article about a new rapper Brother Ali. Tunes sounded slick, but his name caught my attention. Was he Muslim? Was he Muslim-chic (yes, it exists in hip-hop and in dress)? Did some b/g, and he is Muslim. Tunes are slick.
Technorati Tags: hip-hop, Islam in the US
July 09, 2007
Islam, business, Aga Khan
I am a Nizari Ismaili, and hold that the Aga Khan is the direct descendant of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) through his daughter Fatima (PBUH) and his cousin/son-in-law Ali (PBUH).
The New York Times ran a decent story yesterday on the Aga Khan and his humanitarian efforts. I don't call it philanthropy, because according to the Imam:
I am fascinated and somewhat frustrated when representatives of the western world -- especially the western media -- try to describe the work of our Aga Khan Development Network in fields like education, health, the economy, media, and the building of social infrastructure.
Reflecting a certain historical tendency of the West to separate the secular from the religious, they often describe it either as philanthropy or entrepreneurship. What is not understood is that this work is for us a part of our institutional responsibility -- it flows from the mandate of the office of Imam to improve the quality of worldly life for the concerned communities.
It's also nice to see another understanding of Islam being forward, instead of the usual violent imagery.
March 31, 2007
Milad an-Nabi
The birthday of Prophet Muhammad, our most blessed role model. From Nasir Khusraw:
Of Muhammad
I chose the Qur’an
and the faith of Muhammad,
for that is the choice
that was made by Muhammad.
I’m certain by faithfully
following these,
my certitude will
be like that of Muhammad.
My key for the heavens,
my guide to delight,
my fortified castle:
the faith of Muhammad!
Muhammad is sent as
God’s prophet to us:
thus is the imprint
of the seal of Muhammad.
The faith, the Qur’an
they are fixed in my heart
just as they were fixed
in the heart of Muhammad.
My hope is to be
by the grace of the Lord
the lowliest one
in the folk of Muhammad.
In the ocean of faith
you see, the Qur’an
is the most precious pearl
in the hand of Muhammad.
As every king
has a treasure concealed,
thus is the Qur’an:
treasure trove of Muhammad!
Now look at the jewel
that sits on this treasure!
Whom do you consider
the trustee of Muhammad?
His followers find
yonder jewel of faith
from nobody else
but the sons of Muhammad.
Muhammad entrusted
his treasure and goods
to one person, worthy
and close to Muhammad.
Who was such a close
friend? He whose dear wife
was none but the darling
black-eyed, of Muhammad.
From this darling child
and that cousin appeared
Hasan and Husayn,
letters close to Muhammad.
I know certainly this:
Hasan and Husayn
are jasmine and rose
in both worlds, of Muhammad.
Where could such a rose
and such a jasmine appear
in both worlds but out
of the soil of Muhammad!
I don’t dare select
any one among men
above these two sons,
lovely sons of Muhammad;
I don’t dare select
anyone above them
I would be ashamed
of the frown of Muhammad!
The sword of pure Haydar,
the mighty Qur’an
are cornerstones of
the strong faith of Muhammad,
for he stood as master
and with Dhu’l-fiqar
in every fight
to the right of Muhammad.
Since Ali’s sword helped
the mighty Qur’an;
Ali was the helper,
no doubt, for Muhammad.
As Aaron to Moses,
so was Ali in rank
A partner in faith
and close to Muhammad.
On Doomsday both Moses
and Aaron will kiss
the mantle of Ali,
the hem of Muhammad.
Muhammad’s religion
resembled a thicket:
The lion: Ali,
in the woods of Muhammad.
Muhammad said: ‘Go,
and seek wisdom in China!’
I went to that China,
the land of Muhammad.
I heard from the heir
of the Prophet such words
which were like the honey,
so sweet, of Muhammad!
Nasir Khusraw
from Make a Shield from Wisdom
translated by Annemarie Schimmel
cross-posted from islamicate
Technorati Tags: Milad an-Nabi
March 15, 2007
Synchronicity
Within 24 hours I read two different blog posting, that taken together basically say we should do more profiling at the airports because it's pointless. OMFG, is anybody running the US government literate?
cross-posted from islamicate
Muslims and the Cross
via one of my favorite Texans, I saw this on Street Prophets.
A. This is a huge violation of church and state in my opinion. Public schools should not be holding services in any religious space. Period.
B. The kid is a moron. It's not about him being Muslim. Let's not get stupid with him.
To the best of my knowledge there is no legal tradition that prevents Muslims from entering house of worship of other faiths. There are reservations (and prohibitions) about joint worship, but not actually entering the space. The closest I've heard about this religious image issue is from an Orthodox Jewish friend of mine who would not set foot in a church because of the cross. Of course, as commentators on the SP thread note, where are the limits of this ban? What of museum pieces? Churches turned into museum, a la Hagia Sophia? Clearly the intent and use of such iconography must be taken into account.
I have delivered talks in churches, but would not enter one of those churches during my graduation with my master's in theology because it was a religious service. I have no problem with inter-faith worship, but I shouldn't be forced to worship, either in my own faith tradition, or any others. However, in that context, the cross was a powerful religious symbol that marginalized me and my faith. My decision was not based on a systematic legal ruling, but a personal decision made for my particular context. There was no reason to make a public issue it, other than to discuss it with administrators so they were aware.
I feel bad for the boy, but he can't make his Islam my Islam, and he shouldn't minimize our faith and personalize an issue that is bigger than him.
cross-posted from islamicate
Technorati Tags: freedom of religion, muslims doing stupid things
February 27, 2007
Reading List: Intro to Islam
What would an introductory reading list on Islam look like? Not for an academic audience, but for the educated lay reader? My suggestions:
General:
Abou El Fadl, Khaled. Conference of the Books: The Search for Beauty in Islam. Lanham, Md.: University Press of America, 2001.
Algar, Hamid. Wahhabism: A Critical Essay. 1st ed. Oneonta, NY: Islamic Publications International, 2001.
Bulliet, Richard W. The Case for Islamo-Christian Civilization. New York: Columbia University Press, 2004.
Ernst, Carl W. Following Muhammad: Rethinking Islam in the Contemporary World. Islamic Civilization & Muslim Networks. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2003.
Firestone, Reuven. Jihad : The Origin of Holy War in Islam. New York: Oxford University Press, 1999.
Lawrence, Bruce B. New Faiths, Old Fears: Muslims and Other Asian Immigrants in American Religious Life. New York: Columbia University Press, 2002.
Safi, Omid. Progressive Muslims: On Justice, Gender and Pluralism. Oxford: Oneworld, 2003.
Sells, Michael Anthony. Approaching the Qur'an: The Early Revelations. 1st ed. Ashland, OR: White Cloud Press, 1999.
Wallace-Murphy, Tim. What Islam Did for Us: Understanding Islam's Contribution to Western Civilization. Watkins, 2006.
North America:
Abdo, Geneive. Mecca and Main Street: Muslim Life in America After 9/11. Oxford University Press, USA, 2006.
Abdul-Ghafur, Saleemah. Living Islam Out Loud: American Muslim Women Speak. Boston: Beacon Press, 2005.
Afzal-Khan, Fawzia. Shattering the Stereotypes: Muslim Women Speak Out. New York: Olive Branch Press, 2005.
Ahmed, Leila. A Border Passage: From Cairo to America--a Woman's Journey. 1st ed. New York: Farrar Straus and Giroux, 1999.
Bullock, Katherine. Muslim Women Activists in North America : Speaking for Ourselves. 1st ed. Austin: University of Texas Press, 2005.
Cone, James H. Martin & Malcolm & America: A Dream Or a Nightmare. Maryknoll, N.Y.: Orbis Books, 1991.
Webb, Gisela. Windows of Faith: Muslim Women Scholar-Activists in North America. 1st ed. Women and Gender in North American Religions. Syracuse, NY: Syracuse University Press, 2000.
X, Malcolm, and Alex Haley. The Autobiography of Malcolm X. 2nd Ballantine Books hardcover ed. New York: Ballantine Books, 1999.
Iran and Iraq:
Alavi, Nasrin. We Are Iran. Brooklyn NY: Soft Skull Press, 2005.
Riverbend. Baghdad Burning Ii : More Girl Blog From Iraq.1st Feminist Press ed ed. New York: Feminist Press, 2006.
Riverbend. Baghdad Burning : Girl Blog From Iraq. 1st Feminist Press ed. New York: The Feminist Press at the City University of New York, 2005.
Political Science:
Abou El Fadl, Khaled, Joshua Cohen, and Deborah Chasman. Islam and the Challenge of Democracy: A Boston Review Book. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 2004.
Abou El Fadl, Khaled, Joshua Cohen, and Ian Lague. The Place of Tolerance in Islam. Boston: Beacon Press, 2002.
Devji, Faisal. Landscapes of the Jihad: Militancy, Morality, Modernity. Crises in World Politics. Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press, 2005.
Dreyfuss, Robert. Devil's Game : How the United States Helped Unleash Fundamentalist Islam. 1st ed ed. Vol. American empire project, New York: Metropolitan Books, 2005.
Gerges, Fawaz A. America and Political Islam : Clash of Cultures Or Clash of Interests. Cambridge, UK ; New York, NY: Cambridge University Press, 1999.
Kepel, Gilles. Jihad: The Trail of Political Islam. Cambridge, Mass.: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 2002.
Kepel, Gilles. The War for Muslim Minds: Islam and the West. Cambridge, Mass.: Belknap Press, 2004.
Little, Douglas. American Orientalism: The United States and the Middle East Since 1945. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2002.
Mamdani, Mahmood. Good Muslim, Bad Muslim: America, the Cold War, and the Roots of Terror. 1st ed. New York: Pantheon Books, 2004.
Roy, Olivier. Globalized Islam: The Search for a New Ummah. The Ceri Series in Comparative Politics and International Studies. New York: Columbia University Press, 2004.
Interfaith:
'Ashur, Radwá, and William Granara. Granada : A Novel. 1st ed ed. Vol. Middle East literature in translation, Syracuse, N.Y: Syracuse University Press, 2003.
Bill, James A., and John Alden Williams. Roman Catholics and Shii Muslims: Prayer, Passion, and Politics. Chapel Hill [N.C.]; London: University of North Carolina Press, 2002.
Kaltner, John. Inquiring of Joseph: Getting to Know a Biblical Character Through the Quran. Collegeville, Minn.: Liturgical Press, 2003.
Khalidi, Tarif. The Muslim Jesus: Sayings and Stories in Islamic Literature. Convergences. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2001.
Mahfuz, Najib, and Peter Theroux. Children of the Alley. 1st Anchor Books ed. New York: Anchor Books, 1996.
Menocal, Maria Rosa. The Ornament of the World: How Muslims, Jews, and Christians Created a Culture of Tolerance in Medieval Spain. 1st Back Bay paperback ed. Boston: Little, Brown, 2002.
Not on CNN Islam:
Daftary, Farhad. A Short History of the Ismailis: Traditions of a Muslim Community. Islamic Surveys. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 1998.
Ernst, Carl W. The Shambhala Guide to Sufism. 1st ed. Boston, Mass.: Shambhala, 1997.
Hosseini, Khaled. The Kite Runner. New York: Riverhead Books, 2003.
Hyder, Syed Akbar. Reliving Karbala : Martyrdom in South Asian Memory. New York: Oxford University Press, 2006.
Jalal al-Din, Rumi, and Coleman Barks. The Essential Rumi. San Francisco, CA: Harper, 1995.
Roberts, Allen F., Mary Nooter Roberts, Gassia Armenian, and Ousmane Guáeye. A Saint in the City: Sufi Arts of Urban Senegal. Los Angeles, Calif.: UCLA Fowler Museum of Cultural History, 2003.
Shah-Kazemi, Reza. Justice and Remembrance: Introducing the Spirituality of Imam Ali. Tauris Parke Paperbacks, 2006.
Subhani, Ja'far, Reza Shah-Kazemi. Doctrines of Shi'i Islam : A Compendium of Imami Beliefs and Practices. London ; New York London: I.B. Tauris Institute of Ismaili Studies, 2001.
DVD:
The Crusades - Crescent and the Cross
Technorati Tags: books, inter-faith, intra-faith, reading lists, teaching islam
January 25, 2007
Burqini
What do you call the child of a bikini and burqa? A burqini! I love neologisms. I actually think this is a pretty cool idea. I was down at Cronulla Beach a couple of weeks ago, and I have to tell you, I was afraid, which I have not been before down there. A rather undesirable element seems to be present there at night; namely young, intoxicated white boys who need to prove they are men. Of course, all the Arab restaurants were packed.
January 10, 2007
January 09, 2007
Masjid-ul-Anwaar, Suva, Fiji
Any MLT folks been here?
Halal Subway in Sydney
International zabihaness.
December 04, 2006
As A British Muslim, I Advise You
As a British Muslim, I advise you:
Don’t be
alarmed by Stephen Schwartz[1]
Like Daniel Pipes and Steve Emerson of the United States Iraq Iraq
Far from being breeding centres of
radicalisation, the only thing that mosques are guilty of is employing imams
from “back-home” who have alienated a generation of young Muslims.
Increasingly, most young Muslims cannot speak or understand their mother
tongue—the first language of most imams. While there are exceptions, the fact
remains that most imams tend to have a limited understanding of the
complexities of modern secular life and the challenges faced by young Muslims
who seek an identity and just want to “fit-in.” Very rarely do imams attempt to
make sense of the political climate or equip themselves to do so; they prefer
to focus on matters of piety and faith. The young radicals that I have spoken
to over the past five years typically have become more and more frustrated at
and alienated by this general attitude in mosques and so looked elsewhere to
acquire their Islamic “education.” The internet has been a great source for the
propagation of a literalist theology and the multi-media experience of seeing
footage of Muslim men, women, and children killed by secular “collateral
damage” adds fuel to a fire that is ripe for exploitation. Yes, published books
heavily subsidised by certain Middle-Eastern countries have nurtured this hate
crime that Schwartz is so apt at repudiating, however, most mosques in the UK
have fallen victim to their literalist, a-historical reading of Islam and
Muslims are warned to look out for tell-tale signs of damnation. As such, both
Barelwi and Deobandi Mosques are labelled as places of “evil-innovation” and
Muslims are warned to avoid them.
So far, we have
learned that identifying which mosque Muslims attend won’t help a lot in
profiling potential terrorists. Sajad Badat, the would
be suicide bomber, who at the last minute decided not to go through
blowing up an airplane, came from a Deobandi background, whereas Asif Mohamed
Hanif who actually did blow himself up in Israel
came from a Barelwi-Sufi background. I doubt that Schwartz would claim that all
Sufis are therefore potential killers, so why castigate suspicion on the
Deobandis? Today, one can no longer simply brush both the Deobandis and
Barelwis with one colour (despite the temptation) for each have their varying
flavours and varieties, particularly when we have second-generation scholars of
British origin who are trying to reconcile their traditions with the modern
context with varying degrees of success.
While Tariq
Ramadan insists that he should be judged not by his lineage but by his message
(which is fair enough) and Tariq al-Suweidan actually
hasn’t spoken on the “Radical Middle-Way” programme, it is genuinely sad to
see Schwartz trying to demonise Hamza Yusuf.[1] In most of his
articles that he has written of late, Schwartz, in a most unscholarly way, has
repeatedly and unfailingly attempted to convince his audience that Yusuf is a
Wahhabi and/or a secret/closet radical/Jihadist. Schwartz either chooses to
remain ill-informed or he is deliberately trying to sabotage Yusuf’s
credibility—an attempt which only serves to discredit his own work and sets the
“agenda” alert flashing. Schwartz’s approval of Dr. Irfan al-Alawi as “an
outstanding British Muslim adversary of the extremists” is apt to prove the
point. Dr. al-Alawi would find it very difficult to even contemplate Schwartz’s
libellous description of Yusuf. I know—I called him after reading Schwartz’s
article and asked him for his thoughts. Like many others, al-Alawi knows that
Yusuf was instrumental in purging the extremist theology that haunted young
Muslims during the 90’s. He filled the void that had been created by a dearth
of English-speaking imams and in truth was (and is) the reason why many Muslims
(from diverse backgrounds) reaffirmed or adopted all the things that Schwartz
would readily identify with mainstream Islam. This wasn’t the first time I had
to call al-Alawi for his thoughts. In yet another article, Schwartz implied
that al-Alawi had indicated that Yusuf was an extremist—something which
al-Alawi robustly denies even having entertained or even mentioned at the Washington
Leaving aside
for the moment his gaping factual errors, I would agree with Schwartz in that
Muslims need to do more to bring about imams that are trained at home; citizens
of the West that are at ease with both modernity and their tradition. Narrow
readings of Islam will only leave us orphaned from the evolving story of Muslim
civilisation and those who accuse others as deviating from a pristine, idealised
Islam should not deter us in the least. There must also be a serious
reassessment on the prolonged dependence on ideologically-driven texts written
during the twentieth century against the backdrop of colonial resistance that
serve no benefit in the context of Muslim minorities living in the West. The Muslim community also needs leadership that is rooted in
traditional learning, encapsulated in a moral and ethical outlook. Myopia has
robbed our intellectual discourse of any coherent vision for too long.
Spirituality that has proven its transformative power time and time again, must
once again find a major role in the lives of Muslims and relearning its
sciences will provide us with some hope in producing great Muslim souls, as was
once done in the past, and with that, the ability to enrich Great Britain
*Editor of
The State We Are In:
Identity, Terror and the Law of Jihad ( Bristol Center of Culture
[1] See my “Schwartz’s Words of Mass Distortion” posted at: http://www.zaidshakir.com/Articles%5CSchwartz_words_of_mass_distortion.pdf
[1] A reply to Schwartz’s article: “As an
American Muslim, I warn you: Britain
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