Expanding The Definition of Muslim Activism

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By Daniel Tutt When I tell people about the activism work I do, many people wonder if I’m a Muslim, and when I tell them I’m not, they’re either confused or intrigued. Sometimes both. They wonder what it is that makes me want to be an advocate for Muslims even though I don’t practice Islam. [...]

The Vilification of CAIR

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By Rabia Chaudry The is the first in a two-part series on the vilification of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) and how the American Muslim community has responded. There is only one national organization in the United States whose primary mission is protecting the civil liberties of American Muslims, and that is the Council [...]

Muslims on Wall Street: Pragmatic over Dogmatic

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By Rushdi Siddiqui The New York Stock Exchange – Muslims working in non-Muslim countries do understand work is for work, even in Islamic finance, and informed non-Muslim colleagues understand basic tenets of Islam. The New York Times recently interviewed several American Muslims, including me, working in the financial arena for the article, “Muslims on Wall Street, Bridging [...]

Does Mona Eltahawy’s Radicalism Advance Arab Women’s Rights?

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By Sahar Aziz Last week, Mona Eltahawy triggered a polemic firestorm with her blanket assertion that Arab men’s hatred of women explains the abysmal gender inequities found in the Middle East.  Many Arab women are perturbed that her article “Why Do They Hate Us?” in Foreign Policy has receive so much attention while millions of [...]

Taking the Gloves Off – The ‘War on Women’ in the Middle East and Beyond

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By Nadia S. Mohammed “Why Do They Hate Us,” asks Arab journalist, Mona Eltahawy, in her essay for Foreign Policy magazine. Eltahawy goes on to describe her perception of the treatment of women in the Arab world and ascribes all related mistreatment to systematic sociopolitical misogyny and patriarchy. The title of her essay is featured [...]

Ice Princess Zahra Lari – An Example for Women of Faith

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By Ashley McGuire She’s been called the “Ice Princess in the Hijab.” And, I think she rocks. Zahra Lari is a 17-year-old Olympic figure-skating hopeful from the United Arab Emirates. And you can’t miss her because she wears a black hijab instead of sparkly hair clips and nylon pants instead of the characteristic shiny nude [...]

The Typecast Muslim Professional

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By Kari Ansari While Muslims collectively groan almost daily over some mischaracterization of Islam or Muslims in the media, Islamic organizations and institutions continue to endure unwarranted government suspicion, as this recent Pulitzer Prize-winning Associated Press investigation series highlights. Now, more than ever, the Muslim community supports Muslim institutions and organizations as our champions who [...]

Shaima Al-Awadi – Beyond Hoodies and Hijabs

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By Nadia S. Mohammad The perplexing circumstances surrounding the brutal murder of a young mother, Shaima Alawadi, has had the Muslim American community abuzz recently. As her daughter purportedly found Alawadi’s body with a note stating, “go back to your country, you terrorist,” many rushed to label the incident as a ‘hate crime,’ even attempting [...]

Wajahat Ali’s All-American Khutbah (Sermon)

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Wajahat Ali (playwright, humorist, lawyer, altmuslim contributing editor, and activist, who co-authored the Center for American Progress’s report “Fear, Inc.” on the Islamophobia network) gave his first khutbah at Duke University at invitation by Imam Abdullah T. Antepli Check out the text of his khutbah below. View the video of his khutbah at the end [...]

Forging a New Relationship Between American Muslims and Law Enforcement

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By Rabia Chaudry A few years ago I found myself at a table with about 20 other local Muslim community leaders, gathered to meet a regional outreach officer from a law enforcement agency. Many of those present had been living and working in the area for decades and were pillars of the communities they represented. [...]