NbA Muslims
Original Post: Haute Hijab
By Layla Abdullah-Poulos
Despite the beauty of Islam as a faith and way of life, there are harsh realities that come from interacting with one’s fallible co-religionists. Muslims are human and prone to gracing each other with love and compassion as well as inflicting one another with pain and subjugation. No one is immune. Adherents, leaders and scholars can all be sources of abuse, creating emotional pain and potential crises of faith.
Issues of abuse continue to plague American Muslim communities making it necessary for organizations to raise awareness through education and provide services to those impacted. The Peaceful Families Project focuses on domestic violence prevention. HEART Women and Girls raises awareness about sexual abuse and supports survivors, FACE (Facing Abuse in Community Environments) promotes safer Muslim communities by holding religious and community leaders accountable for abuse, and the Muslim Anti-Racism Collaborative provides layers of education about racism and anti-Blackness.
Professor of Islamic Studies, interfaith activist and Muslim leader Dr. Ingrid Mattson founded the Hurma Project to increase awareness about Muslims subject to spiritual abuse by religious leaders and scholars as well as the need for prevention, accountability and a revival of ethics among those providing pastoral care and claiming the intellectual authority to convey devotional knowledge. The Hurma Project, which recently convened its first research conference in Chicago, encourages an appreciation for humanity and agency and to uphold individual rights to dignity and honor as sacrosanct.
I spoke with Dr. Mattson about why she is focusing on the issue of Muslim leadership and spiritual abuse.
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