ICLI News Nov. 2006

President’s Eid Message

Assalamu Alaykum Wa Rahmatullah.

Eid Mubarak. Mash Allah the month of Ramadan was very hectic and, Alhamdu Lillah we were fortunate to have Dr. Ibrahim Negm throughout this month to share some of his knowledge of the Qur'an and Hadith with us. During the last ten days of Ramadan, about eight to ten brothers observed itikaf in the mosque and this benefited all of us. During this blessed month we also had a joint RamadanSukkoth celebration with our friends from Temple Beth-El and on the same evening we held a press conference to respond to the attacks on ICLI in particular and Islam in general by Congressman Peter King.

October 22nd was a very busy day at the mosque. We had a successful Eid bazaar all day, followed by annual interfaith iftar, which was very well attended by clergy and other guests from different faiths. My thanks go out to Dr. Isma Chaudhry for a job well done.

ICLI together with Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC) sponsored a dinner to honor the Nobel Peace Prize winner Dr. Mohamed ElBaradei. It was an honor to meet him.

Thank you for your generosity for sponsoring the various projects undertaken by ICLI. There are a few more projects re-

maining and, with Allah's help, some of you Inshallah will sponsor them.

For Eid we had 4 prayers and it was a beautiful day with the community having a good time. My special thanks to all the volunteers who helped with various jobs including the flow of traffic, snacks, handing out shoe bags, collecting donations, to name a few.Mash Allah now we have a state of the art swing set thanks due to the donation of a generous brother.

Do not forget to enroll in the IC Pass donation project to help support your Islamic center.

May Allah guide us all. Jazakallah.

Habeeb Ahmed jifsha@yahoo.com

Nobel Prize Winner Dr. Mohamed ElBaradei with ICLI Mgmt.

Bismillahir Rahmanir Rahim

Sonia K. Qadir, MD, PC

Oasis Medical Care and Spa

900 Walt Whitman Road, Suite 101, Melville, NY 11747

This past August with great pleasure Dr. Qadir opened her private practice in Melville, New York.

Dr. Qadir was previously an Attending physician at the Department of Medicine, Long Island Jewish Medical Center from 2004-2006.

Her main goal is to serve patients in her community and the Muslim community with the best medical care.

Board Certified Internist

Residency at Mount Sinai School of Medicine, Elmhurst Hospital

Dr. Qadir accepts most major insurances

Grievance Governance Committee

If you have any Grievances and Suggestions, please leave a note at the ICLI office.

Editorial amendments are welcome.

Nazir Mir GGC

Islamic Center of Long Island Westbury

Clinic Hours: Monday-Friday 10:00 am – 5:00 pm Saturday 10:00 am – 2:00 pm

To make an appointment please call: 631-271-3075

Directions:

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“A wise person is one who keeps a watch over his bodily desires and passions, and checks himself from that which is harmful and strives for that which will benefit him after death; and a foolish person is one who subordinates himself to his cravings and desires and expects from God the fulfillments of his futile desires” Al-Tirmidhi Hadith 66

The Muslim Student Network: Or, How I learned to Stop Complaining and Effect Change in My Government.

I’ve figured it out, it took some time no doubt, but I have figured it out. Laying motionless, head down between my many books and assignments in a cubicle on sub-level D of my university library, it dawned on me the simple answer to the recurring question plaguing many young Muslims in America today: why is it so hard to be an AmericanMuslim? Trust me, I’ve heard all the theories hitherto and to be honest with you none of them have convincingly stood

must start to influence public policy from within the circuit or risk remaining pawns for whichever political party could use their support at the present moment. And I am happily here to tell you that such a demand is slowly but surely being met by one organization in particular, one that has changed my life personally and will, Inshallah, change the course of our community years to come, The Muslim Student Network (MSN).

Going into the program I honestly did not know what to really expect, only that it was a summer program which provided housing, food, and other various amenities to support Muslim college students from across the nation coming to D.C. to intern in their government. However upon completion of the program, I can guarantee I had no doubt in my mind exactly how it helped me better understand my government, my religion, my career ambitions and the incredible (and in many ways heartening) network of young Muslim professionals in D.C. willing to help me get where I’m going. Day in and day out—when I wasn’t at my day internship at the Brookings Institute—I was living, eating, socializing and learning with 14 of the most intelligent, articulate, humble, ambitious and pious group of Muslims my age I have ever met.

up to even modest doses of sensible logic and deductive reasoning; it’s the media, the Neocons, the Israeli lobby, the fear of terrorism, the fear of Islam, the Republicans, the Democrats, the Peter Kings or even the Osama bin Ladens. But seriously, this tired and extremely vexed boy has been to enough Jumahs, Desi-weddings and Muslim dinner parties, had enough political discussions, signed enough petitions and attended enough lectures, to fully understand exactly why the chance of a Muslim student seeing a bright future in America holds about the same probability as finding depth in a Bollywood movie. Simply put, it is because the frustration that arises from the poor representation of Muslims by our elected officials and media sources, is derived less and less from our governments’ “War on Islam”, and more and more from the political ineptitude and illiteracy of our own Muslim population.

But to be clear, I am not writing this to cynically tell of any inevitable decline of the Muslim communities’ position in the United States. In fact it’s just the opposite. There are many Muslims professionals and their affiliated organizations out there that are making many small strides and victories for our community within our government everyday that go unnoticed—and even worse, unsupported. I’m not talking about CAIR, ISNA, MPAC or any other similar organization, however crucial those may be. In today’s age, the American political climate demands much more from minority communities if justice and proper representation is really wanted. The game of American politics cannot forever be played as an outsider, inevitably Muslims

I remember each night to vividly. After coming back from our various internships to the respective guys’ and girls’ houses provided for us, we changed out of our shirts and suits and met together for dinner and the night lesson. Each day of the week it was one groups duty to prepare a meal with the ingredients shopped for by the other interns previously in the week. Afterwards, we were always graced with the presence of a prestigious speaker coming to the house to give a talk on their field of expertise. One day Karen Hughes of the State Department, the next Dr. John Voll of Georgetown University, and the next Dr. Muqtedar Khan of the Brookings Institute, all sitting 6 feet away in the living room of our adopted house, discussing politics, Islam, and whatever else was on our minds as we finished off our meals. After the evenings lecture we did Maghrib together, and then individually chose to either conclude our nights and return to our room, or stay around for the common Political/Religious discussions running sometimes till Fajr. Weekends were spent doing activities together— visiting area Mosques, governmental buildings, think tanks, Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs). Sleep was happily pushed off for the end of summer.

Now, as a proud graduate of the program, I can tell you that the word “Network” is not in the name for nothing. Currently in its 14th year of operation, the program has amassed an alumni network of close to 200 highly successfully Muslim professionals working in places ranging from the Department of Education to the FBI. Want an internship for next summer with the State Department? Or how about a good word put in for you for the promotion at Amnesty International? Well, now you know where to turn.

This is what the American-Muslim community desperately needs, a system for helping one another climb the ranks to positions of influence that affect the lives of all of us. If there is

venturing off into. But in great risk of sounding hackneyed in my writing, “There is nothing to fear, but fear itself”… and Allah of course.

So if there is one thing I want to get across, it is that organizations like these—which are in desperate and shameful need of funding—should be put to the forefront of our communities’ agenda. On Sunday November 26, 2006, MSN will be giving a thorough presentation at ICLI on everything from its mission statement to its admissions process, from its annual budget breakdown to its typical evening dinner menu. I implore you to just attend, and I guarantee you will see just how Muslims in this country will start to build their own future, and not simply accept the one currently presented to them.

one crucial thing I have learned from this summer, it is this: if you want to make sure that the petition your Mosque has spent weeks compiling gets to the congressman it is so desperately meant for, it doesn’t take an extra thousand signatures, rather, just one sympathetic Muslim intern. Simple as that, no tricks no gimmicks. Our government thus far has been viewed as this dark, threatening and hopeless land in which Muslim needn’t even bother

"Our Lord! make of us Muslims, bowing to Thy (Will), and of our progeny a people Muslim, bowing to Thy (will); and show us our place for the celebration of (due) rites; and turn unto us (in Mercy); for Thou art the Oft-Returning, Most Merciful.

Qur’an 2:128

Community Success

Amin Khawaja

Asalamu- Alaikum. Surprised to learn of my profession, a few members of the ICLI community asked me to write about the profession of flying, quoting “we have a pilot in our community, that’s a first.” I have been flying professionally for the past five years, but have recently joined AMR Corp, as a pilot flying for their American Eagle Airlines, based out of New York’s LaGuardia Airport. Although American Muslims take part with many of the jobs and opportunities within the aviation industry, there are a limited number of Muslim pilots flying our nation’s carrier airlines. Although, it has been more challenging than ever before post 9/11 for Muslims to work within the aviation industry and especially to be hired as a pilot, it is not at all out of reach for those passionate about this industry.

If you were to ask the majority of pilots flying today’s airlines, corporate/charter aircraft and privately owned aircraft regarding how they got into flying, they will simply reply, “We followed our childhood dream.” Childhood dream was also my starting point as I grew from a

deck of an aircraft flying at the proximity of the speed of sound. From seeing the shooting (falling) stars from a dark sky full of sparkles, to seeing the fire storm light shows and experiencing the power and might of thunderstorms, to experiencing the ever changing cloud formations and to watching the beauty of the sunrise and sunset from the high crisp blue altitudes. The enjoyments of airline flying are not only associated with the visual beauties aloft, but are also associated with experiencing the diversity of mankind and the cities we travel to throughout North America. I welcome and encourage anyone who is interested in the aviation industry and especially flying, to not think it is impossible to pursue a career within this field post 9/11. There is a saying, “It takes a flight crew to make an aircraft fly, but it takes 1000 others to make it truly happen,” implying that there are many positions available within this industry for those who wish to pursue an aviation career path.

Dr. Humayun Chaudhary

Dr. Humayun Chaudhry, Chairman of the Department of Medicine and Assistant Dean at the New York College of Osteopathic Medicine of N.Y. Institute of Technology, was selected as one of five finalists, out of more than 150 physician nominees, for the American Osteopathic Association's Mentor of the Year Award. Dr. Chaudhry was presented with a plaque and an honorarium at a blacktie reception and dinner at the 111th Annual Meeting of the AOA in Las Vegas on October 16, 2006. He was recognized for his commitment to mentoring and for serving as a physician role model for countless medical students, interns, residents and young physicians over the last 15 years.

first time flyer to now flying professionally for the largest airline in the world with over 1000 aircraft flying across the nation and around the world. My career progression started with simply taking flying lessons when I was in High School, followed by graduating with a B.S. in aviation management all while immersing myself deeper into the aviation industry as an intern for TWA (Trans World Airlines) and as a flight instructor for a local flight school. Soon after graduating, I obtained a managerial position at a collegiate aviation school while further obtaining my MBA. As flying opportunities came about after a downturn of the industry post 9/11, I started my search and landed a pilot position with American Eagle flying the Embraer 145 aircraft out of LaGuardia.

I call it “The traveling office with the most incredible view” and it is! Not everyone gets to experience the beauty of Allah (swt) creations first hand from the flight

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