By Zahra Billoo For too long now, unarmed Black men and women have been killed in police interactions. Thus far this year, over 130 Black men and women have been killed in such circumstances. This week, our hearts broke as we learned about the deaths of Philandro Castile and Alton Sterling. And we have since watched in horror with news that yesterday’s peaceful anti-police brutality protests in Dallas turned violent when an armed gunman with no ties to any organization or... Read more
This is Day 30, the last day, of the #30Days30Writers 2016 Ramadan series. By Tanzila “Taz” Ahmed Isn’t it funny how if you do something repetitively long enough, it can slowly turn into tradition? Growing up in our home, I knew that every Eid morning Mom would have a pot of sugary and squeaky roshghollas cooking for us so that we would have a bite of something sweet before heading out to morning Eid prayers. We would race to the... Read more
By Zeba Khan I was ten years old the first time I fasted. My family had just moved to Karachi, and we were living in the heart of the extended family compound, staying in my aunt’s house next door to my uncle’s house, which was downstairs from my uncle’s house, and also, to the left of my uncle’s house. I had ten thousand cousins and since they were all fasting, I decided I was fasting too. I made it through... Read more
This is day 28 of the #30Days30Writers 2016 Ramadan series. By Dilshad D. Ali How many of us were taught as children and adults that upon the start of Ramadan, shaytaan (the devil) is chained up, allowing us to be free of temptations and focus even more so bettering ourselves, increasing our ibadat (worship) and elevating our God-consciousness? We look to this holy month as a time when the horrors and difficulties of the world should stop, or at least... Read more
By Namira Islam “I am America. I am the part you won’t recognize. But get used to me. Black, confident, cocky; my name, not yours; my religion, not yours; my goals, my own; get used to me.” – Muhammad Ali, 1975 American Muslims are the most diverse religious group in the country, with nearly a third of U.S. Muslims identifying as Black and/or African-African. American heroes and role models include Black Muslim men like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Malcolm X (RA), and... Read more
This is Day 27 of the #30Days30Writers 2016 Ramadan series. By Laura P. As I let myself into my apartment, the clock showed 1 a.m. A sister at the mosque had just dropped me off at home after tarawih – two hours of prayer on these Ramadan nights. I have a strict rule not to check social media or messages during the night unless it’s a family emergency, so I was unaware a major news story was breaking in Orlando,... Read more
This is Day 26 of the #30Days30Writers 2016 Ramadan series. By Jameel Syed Journey into my life as a traveler, writer, author and historical figure as I navigate through the select landscape of Muslim America, showcasing moments in a timeline across this great adventure known as Ramadan. Last year was a major paradigm shift in the fabric of my life as I transitioned from being the CEO of a marketing firm to becoming the only person in history to have... Read more
By Maha Elgenaidi I recently attended and spoke at one of Pacifica Institute’s interfaith iftars, held at a major synagogue in the Bay Area that opened its doors to celebrate with Muslims the month of Ramadan. The event was packed, as these events usually are, with congregants both from the synagogue and neighboring churches and from mosques. My table conversation, like the others, I am sure, was filled with questions about Islam that I hope I answered to the satisfaction... Read more
This is Day 25 of the #30Days30Writers 2016 Ramadan series. By Kabir Helminski Ramadan has so many dimensions: purification, sacrifice, community, the still and subtle emptiness of the heart. It reorients us in so many ways. Ramadan is less something that we do, than a force field we enter and are transformed by. But it does take intention and effort on our part. If we can, we participate in the fast. Perhaps we also find other intentions, new aspects of... Read more
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Night and Day: Elie Wiesel and a Muslim Writer
By Jillian Pikora The world recently lost an amazing man (among many great losses this year), who has influenced the lives of many. I never thought an old Jewish man would be so influential to this Muslim woman’s life, especially since I first learned about him when I was a Catholic girl. Before I stumbled upon Elie Wiesel’s books on my mother’s shelves, my picture of World War II was a weird amalgamation of Schindler’s List, South Pacific, The Sound... Read more