Islamic Horizons July/August 2022

JULY/AUGUST 2022/1443 | $4.00 | WWW.ISNA.NET

CHICAGO, HERE WE COME! | WHITE HOUSE RESTORES ITS EID CELEBRATION

Muslim Youth and Mental Health Challenges

ISLAMIC HORIZONS | VOL. 51 NO. 4 JULY/AUGUST 2022 | READ ON-LINE: HT TPS:// ISL AMICHORIZONS.NET | VISIT ISNA ONLINE AT: W W W.ISNA.NET

ISNA Matters

The Muslim World

10 Resilience, Hope, & Faith: With Hardship, Comes Ease 10 Chicago will be ISNA City during Labor Day Weekend 12 Elevating Education in a Changing World

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Nation

48 Hindutva Influence Peddling, Mobilizing and Fundraising Infrastructure in the U.S.

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Finance 46

Family Matters

Health & Wellness

50 Muslims and American Holidays

8 Chicago, Here we Come!

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The Hunger Truck

60 Performing the Pilgrimage to One’s Heart During the Hajj

Women in Science

Environment

Social Service

Feature

34 Still Suspect: The Impact of Structural Islamophobia 36 Islamophobia: It’s Worse than you Think!

40 On the Frontier Where Faith, Ethics and Medicine Meet

Who Won the French Presidential Election?

56 Ukraine and Beyond 58 The Value of Literature and the Arts is in the Interpretation

Islamophobia

Meet the Scholar

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Opinion

The Global Association of Islamic Schools

38 Muslim Women in STEM: A Minority Within a Minority

Muslims Living As Minorities

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Education 32

Does It Matter Where Your Zakat Goes?

Fascism Watch

White House Restores Its Eid Celebration

22 Muslim Youth and Mental Health Challenges 24 Supporting Our Children’s Mental Health While Navigating the Pandemic 26 Coming of Age as a Muslim American 28 Negative Mental Health Impacts One Year into the Covid-19 Pandemic

Another Successful Regime Change

30 ho is Responsible W for Meeting an Islamic School’s Stated Mission?

Departments 6 14 62

Editorial Community Matters New Releases

Al-Mizan: A Covenant for the Earth

DESIGN & LAYOUT BY: Gamal Abdelaziz COPYEDITOR: Jay Willoughby. The views expressed in Islamic Horizons are not necessarily the views of its editors nor of the Islamic Society of North America. Islamic Horizons does not accept unsolicitated articles or submissions. All references to the Quran made are from The Holy Quran: Text, Translation and Commentary, Abdullah Yusuf Ali, Amana, Brentwood, MD.

JULY/AUGUST 2022 ISLAMIC HORIZONS

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EDITORIAL

An Unbalanced Nation

M

ental Health Awareness Month — May — got off to a bad start this year: a shooting in South Carolina, in Buffalo (May 14, 14 deaths) and Uvalde (May 24, 22 deaths), and the 18 more happenings.

Among the results were increased gun sales and calls for new and/or stricter gun control laws. Thousands protested the NRA’s convention, held on May 27-29 in Houston. Second Amendment supporters blamed Uvalde on mental issues rather than the ease with which Americans can get almost any type of weapon.

Some officials said that the Uvalde killer did not have a mental health report, which means nothing. Perhaps his parents didn’t want to deal with the associated stigma.

Gov. Greg Abbott (R-Texas) also blamed mental health issues but offered no evidence to support this assertion.

Interestingly, Texas ranks worst in the nation in terms of mental health care access, and the governor has been accused of diverting “$211 million from the department that oversees the state’s mental health issues money away from agencies in Texas that oversee mental health programs” (https://www.vice.com).

The gun lobby maintains that further gun control laws are useless. The Washington Post (June 19, 2018), cited the Small Arms Survey, a project of the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva: There are more than 393 million civilian-owned firearms in the U.S. The New York Times (April 2020) said about 2 million guns have been sold since Covid-19 started.

As of 2021, the U.S. population stood at 331.9 million.

Muslim Americans’ attitudes toward mental health may finally be changing.

Islam urges us to look for cures and live peacefully with others. Mental health plays a big role in realizing that vision and in our overall well-being.

Abu Darda (radiyallahu ‘anh) narrates: “The Messenger of God said, ‘God has 6

sent down both the disease and the cure, and He has appointed a cure for every disease, so treat yourselves medically, but use nothing unlawful’” (“Sunan Abu Dawud,” Tibb 11, [3874]). Notice that he didn’t qualify “disease” with “physical.”

Given Muslims’ status as “a middle nation” (ummatan wasatan; 2:143), we need to work with both lobbies to help balance our unbalanced society — at least in this regard.

On April 10, Prime Minister Imran Khan fell victim to regime change.

The loyalty of several party members was bought by opponents of his steering Pakistan toward an independent course. Is this a repeat of Mohammad Mossadegh’s overthrow, the Shah’s re-ascent to his throne and the subsequent Islamic Revolution that replaced a close ally with a implacably hostile nation?

Usually, the U.S. administration condemns the suppression of peaceful protests anywhere in the world. But when the new regime brutalized participants in Imran Khan’s May 25th Islamabad rally, there was only silence. None of the foreign-funded NGOs have yet spoken out.

One can only wonder why.

The South Asia Citizens Web’s “A Report on the Infrastructure of Hindutva Influence Peddling, Mobilizing and Fund Raising in the US, 2014-2021” reveals that ideology’s vision for India’s Muslims, Christians, Sikhs and Dalits. It also exposes what Hindutva’s followers have been up to in this country.

Monia Mazigh analyzes the French elections, which the ever-so-Islamophobic Emmanuel Macron won, and notes that the political ascent of Marine Le Pen, the greater Islamophobe, continues — a fact that doesn’t bode well for Muslims.

God willing, ISNA will host its 59th Convention — “Resilience, Hope, & Faith: With Hardship, Comes Ease” (94:6) — in Chicago over Labor Day weekend.

We hope to see you at this in-person weekend of shared hope and resilience as we go forward. ih

ISLAMIC HORIZONS JULY/AUGUST 2022

PUBLISHER The Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) PRESIDENT Safaa Zarzour EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Basharat Saleem EDITOR Omer Bin Abdullah EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD Iqbal Unus, Chair: M. Ahmadullah Siddiqi, Saba Ali ISLAMIC HORIZONS is a bimonthly publication of the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) P.O. Box 38 Plainfield, IN 46168‑0038 Copyright @2022 All rights reserved Reproduction, in whole or in part, of this material in mechanical or electronic form without written permission is strictly prohibited.

Islamic Horizons magazine is available electronically on ProQuest’s Ethnic NewsWatch, Questia.com LexisNexis, and EBSCO Discovery Service, and is indexed by Readers’ Guide to Periodical Literature.

Please see your librarian for access.

The name “Islamic Horizons” is protected through trademark registration ISSN 8756‑2367 POSTMASTER Send address changes to Islamic Horizons, P.O. Box 38 Plainfield, IN 46168‑0038 SUBSCRIPTIONS Annual, domestic – $24 Canada – US$30 Overseas airmail – US$60 TO SUBSCRIBE Contact Islamic Horizons at https://isna.net/SubscribeToIH.html On-line: https://islamichorizons.net For inquiries: membership@isna.net ADVERTISING For rates contact Islamic Horizons at (703) 742‑8108, E-mail horizons@isna.net, www.isna.net CORRESPONDENCE Send all correspondence and/or Letters to the Editor at: Islamic Horizons P.O. Box 38 Plainfield, IN 46168‑0038 Email: horizons@isna.net

ISNA MATTERS

Chicago, Here we Come!

ISNA to gather in person at the Convention

BY IQBAL UNUS

I

t has been a long time coming.

After two missed in-person conventions (2020 and 2021), ISNA returns to its chosen location in Chicago for a gathering untethered from the electronic images of our favorite speakers and panelists.

This year we will meet them in person and feel the connections so sorely missed on the digital media.

Whether you have been a regular attendee or an occasional visitor, the possibility of an in-person convention will evoke the memory of the hustle and bustle of this unique gathering of friends and friends-to-be, of enthralling speakers and compelling panelists, of exhibits and displays and charming shops and so much more. It was great that ISNA had two very successful conventions in the ecosphere of the internet. If anything, they whetted our appetite for what is to come in Chicago during this Labor Day weekend, God willing.

An energetic program committee is busy shaping a program that, with some 10 main sessions and 20 parallel sessions, will

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educate and inspire all attendees around a stirring theme: “Resilience, Hope, & Faith: With Hardship, Comes Ease” Timely and uplifting, indeed!

Chicago’s Rosemont Convention Center is a familiar place for regular convention goers. Being in a familiar place again as the pandemic retreats will be therapeutic. The hustle and bustle in the large open spaces, as well as around the many well-appointed meeting rooms, will be stimulating. The newcomers will walk into a welcoming place with friendly hosts and warm greetings.

The city’s Muslims have never missed the mark when it comes to providing the caring hospitality and efficient organization that awaits all ISNA Convention attendees or visitors. This year will be even more promising, God willing.

You might ask: Is the ISNA Convention for me?

If you’re interested in community service projects, you’ll be in the right place to engage with others in learning about how you can serve those around you and

ISLAMIC HORIZONS JULY/AUGUST 2022

even participate in activities designed to help those in need. If your children are coming with you, there will be fun activities they won’t want to miss and lessons they’ll remember long after they go home.

If you care deeply about interfaith, again you’ll be in the right place. With selected panelists from other faith affiliations and speakers at special events, the Convention offers a unique opportunity to strengthen your commitment to peace and social justice both locally and nationally.

And for all who attend, there will be carefully scheduled inspiring and stirring lecture sessions and panel discussions throughout the Convention. You can choose whatever interests you — a thoughtful discussion on a timely topic or an insightful lecture that educates and inspires transformation and accomplishment. You’ll hear and meet locally and nationally recognized expert panelists and distinguished speakers. You might have heard some of them on streaming media, but there’s really no substitute for seeing them and hearing them speak to you in person. It will be thrilling, to say the least. And you might even get a few selfies!

You may have special interests — education, chaplaincy, health care and technology, for example. They will be sprinkled throughout the main and parallel sessions. More importantly, both general and special interest topics will all be inspired by the event’s motivating theme and by our obligation as

Muslims to honor God’s commandments and pursue acts of service and social justice.

That’s not all. ISNA’s Muslim Youth of North America (MYNA) will run a parallel agenda to engage, educate, enthuse and empower young Muslims. Its impact on participants will be both undeniable and unforgettable. With leading speakers and influencers, both from the main program and those especially invited, not to mention wholesome entertainment and exciting

precedent MSA, as well as the Muslim community. Past keynote speakers at this event have included distinguished personalities, such as former president Jimmy Carter.

On other occasions, government officials, elected representatives and national and international leaders may make personal or virtual appearances.

Representatives of ISNA’s affiliates, partners and prominent Muslim community organizations will also be featured speakers

REPRESENTATIVES OF ISNA’S AFFILIATES, PARTNERS AND PROMINENT MUSLIM COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS WILL ALSO BE FEATURED SPEAKERS OR PANELISTS, FOR THE ORGANIZERS WANT YOU TO BENEFIT FROM A WIDE SPECTRUM OF THINKING AND EXPERIENCES.

talent and game competitions, MYNA’s program will offer youth a unique experience of which parents will be proud.

Then there are the special ticketed events, such as the Annual Community Service Award Luncheon. Well attended and organized for over 20 years, the Luncheon recognizes an outstanding leader who has served in pioneering and sustaining ISNA and its

or panelists, for the organizers want you to benefit from a wide spectrum of thinking and experiences. This approach also demonstrates the mutual respect such people have for each other and is an encouraging sign of the North American Muslim community’s healthy development.

And how can one forget the sprawling bazaar, with its offerings from books to

clothes to jewelry to technology and so much more. Filled with shoppers and onlookers, the bazaar is a unique attraction. If you come to the Convention just to shop, no one will hold it against you!

Did I mention the entertainment on Sunday evening? Music, songs and talent galore pull in a full house of young and old, with time to relax and be regaled with appropriate performances.

Televisions, computers and smartphones, all with streaming and conferencing capabilities, have served us well during the pandemic interlude. But now it’s time to give them a rest. So, observing the relevant precautions, let’s get together and celebrate our community’s uniqueness and enrich one another in friendship and camaraderie, commitment and mutual care!

If anyone still doubts the Convention’s ability to attract and benefit attendees, consider this. In mid-May, ISNA conducted its iconic and well-recognized Annual Education Forum. Organizers cautiously projected an attendance of 250 educators due to pandemic hesitancy; 400+ attendees turned up. A vote of confidence if ever one was needed!

Will you skip the ISNA Convention on Labor Day weekend in Chicago? I hope not. ih Iqbal J. Unus, Ph.D., a former ISNA secretary general and MSA president, has attended 49 of the last 50 ISNA conventions.

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ISNA MATTERS

Resilience, Hope, & Faith: With Hardship, Comes Ease.

ISNA shapes up for its 59th annual Convention

BY RASHEED RABBI

J

ust when we hoped that the pandemic was over and uncertainty was gone, we encountered a new variant. The moment we started to recognize global unity to overcome the Covid catastrophe, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine divided and compelled political leaders to make difficult choices. We Americans hoped to live through the pandemic’s financial crisis with stimulus money, but were overtaken by the unprecedented level of inflation. Needless to say, the new wave of mass shootings, even in an elementary school, shook the entire nation — it is still in shock.

At the same time, other enduring social depravities, among them devastating humanitarian crises, worsening climate impacts, prevailing social injustice and the never-ending gender divide, continue to mark their embarrassing milestones.

Despite living in a First World country, life has become a vicious cycle of endless social evils, which frequently make us feel lost or hopeless. These conflicting realities may seem unreal, and yet experience proves them to be obvious over and over again.

In the face of many such conflicting realities, ISNA invites all Muslim Americans to explore beneath the surface contradictions so that the real grains of wisdom emerge. One tenable assertion of that wisdom is to extend resilience and weave sustainable hope amidst these social adversities through the fabric of faith. To that end, this year's annual ISNA Convention 10

THESE SESSIONS SEEK TO ENGAGE THE LARGER AUDIENCE AND GIVE THEM HOPE BEYOND THE CONVENTION HALL AND SHOW RESILIENCE IN THE DAYS TO COME. DON’T FORGET TO CLAIM YOUR PORTION OF HOPE AND RESILIENCE DURING THE LABOR DAY WEEKEND IN CHICAGO’S DONALD E. STEPHENS CONVENTION CENTER! coined the following theme — Resilience, Hope, & Faith: With Hardship, Comes Ease.

Each one of us showed resilience during 2021, when our perception of the pandemic also changed. At first we thought and hoped it would have a defined end; over time, however, we accepted that it will always be part of our lives. Similarly, our idea of resilience must be adjusted and evolve. Resilience is not, as so many of us thought in the pandemic’s early days, an end state we can reach; rather, it’s a constant process of becoming.

In the presence of endless uncertainty, our committed attitude to accepting them and moving forward is resilience. It’s not a marker to reach, but rather a mindset to live with.

One immediate benefit of this extended resilience is the relief from succumbing to despair, for added resilience exudes hope to respond by adapting. The secret of emitting hope from resilience lies in the fact that it differentiates between something real and something that only worries us — a task that faith has

ISLAMIC HORIZONS JULY/AUGUST 2022

been fulfilling since humanity’s creation. Faith simplifies real vs illusion (3:185 and 57:20). Just as night becomes darker only to disappear into daylight (57:6), similarly every hardship comes only to offer ease (94:5). So, all these difficulties are disguised opportunities to improve our living conditions.

To instill our trust in this

conviction, the convention outline currently contains 10 main and 18 parallel sessions, in addition to the introductory and concluding sessions.

In between these, there will be a few special events, such as the Community Service Recognition program with an award presentation, a children’s program, a chaplaincy program, an interfaith panel, a panel on global crises, Islamic finance and entertainment. While this may seem overwhelming, there is a definitive itinerary to ensure hope and encourage resilience.

First, it plans to address individual responsibility, then elaborate on community empowerment and gradually include other discussions — but all geared toward global peace resolution.

A few highlights will be: ❯ Employ Faith to Renew Resilience and Harness Hope.

The antidote to uncertainty is to trust, mainly in our own selves.

Chicago will be ISNA City dur

BY ISLAMIC HORIZONS STAFF

C

HICAGO, CURRENTLY IN PHASE FIVE OF ITS REOPENING, IS completely open and welcoming visitors and residents to experience all that it has to offer. In short, there are: • No restrictions or capacity limits at all establishments, including restaurants, attractions, museums and venues. Please check with individual museums for details, such as hours and ticketing information.

Some establishments may require a mask and/or proof of vaccination.

Some of the places you may like to check out Adler Planetarium, Field Museum, Shedd Aquarium, Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago History Museum and WNDR Museum (a high sensory experience that may contain flashing lights, sounds and other high sensory elements).

• No limits on private indoor and outdoor social gatherings. Chicago’s tours and outdoor attractions are open to enjoy. Some establishments may require patrons to wear masks indoors. You can enjoy places like Navy Pier, Skydeck Chicago, 360 CHICAGO, Lincoln Park Zoo, Millennium Park, and Fox in a Box and other escape rooms.

Believing that everything happening around us is meant to bring positive change makes us resilient enough to formulate alternative courses of action during difficulties. The stronger our vertical relationship with God, the more hopeful and resilient we will be in our horizontal relationship with our family, community and wider society. ❯ Nurturing Values of Togetherness in the Family.

Family is the first place in which to weave faith and ground the deen as a complete cycle — from instituting marriage to instilling Islamic values in children and extending empathy toward the elderly. However, living in a non-Muslim country poses distinct challenges to embracing faith holistically within the family. ISNA conventions offer us space to reflect together on how we’re falling short in terms of fulfilling our commitments and diminishing our Muslim

identity, when just a little awareness could strengthen the threads of faith in our families. ❯ Building a Beloved Com­ munity. Muslim Americans are a small minority, but they represent the most diverse and fastest growing population. This diversity makes us vulnerable to division within mosques and local communities. Multiple sessions will reveal how Muslim communities are thriving via inclusivity across genders, tribes, nations (49:13), language and color (30:22) to foster our spirituality and solidarity. Tips to make our family mosque-oriented and engage in outreach services to fulfill our accountability will be abundant. ❯ Islamic Education for Community Empowerment.

As Muslims communities are coming of age, Islamic education is boasting of its six-decade legacy in the U.S. However, many parents and families are unaware of this realm. ISNA plans to overview the current state of Islamic education, along with a comparative picture of religious vs traditional or mainstream schooling and a vision of Islamic education in the U.S. ❯ Ethical Liability in the Face of Global Calamities.

ring Labor Day Weekend Chicago’s array of unique shopping options are also open, from locally owned boutiques to major brands on The Magnificent Mile.

Some establishments may require masks.

• No capacity restrictions on conventions, festivals and large public events. All Chicago parks, playgrounds, gardens and the lakefront are open to enjoy, among them The Lakefront Trail, The 606, Millennium Park, Garfield Park Conservatory, Lincoln Park Conservatory, Maggie Daley Park, Chicago Riverwalk and Chicago Botanic Garden.

• No limits on capacity or table size in terms of indoor and outdoor dining. Carryout and delivery are allowed at restaurants.

In addition, Chicago’s “L” trains and public buses are operating on normal schedules with enhanced cleaning protocols. Masks are not required on CTA trains, buses or stations.

Hyatt Regency O’Hare has offered ISNA Convention attendees special rates: King bed: $112; Double beds: $129. The hotel link that comes in the registration confirmation form will also give this rate. ih

Just as we have been plagued by the coronavirus, our society has long been infected with multiple deadly social viruses, such as mass shootings, gun control, racial inequality, social injustice, institutional racism, immodesty and manipulation of freedom of speech. Interestingly, these are the outcomes of long-overlooked ethical liabilities. Political exploitation often makes us blind to these problems’ sources and larger impacts, and, as a result, unable to devise lasting solutions.

ISNA plans to host a full session on the ethical implications of resolving global calamities. ❯ Emotional Well-being for Community Solidarity.

The uncertainties associated with Covid-19, global political unrest and unstable national economies constantly challenge our sanity and impact our emotional well-being and positive outlook. ISNA has invited several professionals and experts to highlight the best practices for our daily lives, as well as necessary actions that the community can take to better protect the most vulnerable. ❯ Fulfilling Global Com­ mitments. Discussing the global crises’ ethical aspects increases awareness, but we still must take actions to resolve them. Several speakers will remind us of our commitments and ongoing initiatives, not only on human rights, but also in preserving the environment for future generations. With scary statistics and worst-case scenarios, our approach of speaking about climate change is often very intimidating. ISNA plans to introduce positive initiatives like the Green Masjid Taskforce Group, which has been diligently raising awareness across 2,700 mosques and 300 Islamic schools in the U.S. to reduce energy consumption and host an efficient and eco-friendly premises. Many such attempts exemplify excellence (ihsan) and provide hope to be a part of them.

❯ Comprehensive Vision for Holistic Transformation.

A key convention theme is hope, which becomes tangible due to our comprehensive vision. Once our hope is backed by knowledge, information and faith, we feel more committed and thereby resilient to adjust all adversities to realize our hope.

How faith, hope and resilience interplay will become evident during all our current struggles. ❯ Youth Empowerment.

In addition to parallel MYNA sessions, ISNA has planned a main session dedicated solely to youth, focusing on their unique challenges in American society.

Experts will present their years of experience to bridge the gaps between the parent–child relationship and faith at home versus the classroom or outside. ❯ Parallel Sessions. While the main sessions struggle to pay adequate attention to many topics, parallel sessions offer more focused discussions on those topics. For example, ISNA plans to address Muslim family issues, mosque and community challenges, resources for financial stability in the unpredictable Western economy, global warming and various political issues such as Ukraine vs Russia, Palestine vs Israel and Kashmir, Uyghur, Rohingya and Afghani resettlement in the U.S. These sessions seek to engage the larger audience and give them hope beyond the convention hall and show resilience in the days to come. Don’t forget to claim your portion of hope and resilience during the Labor Day weekend in Chicago’s Donald E. Stephens Convention Center! ih Rasheed Rabbi, an IT professional who earned an MA in religious studies (2016) from Hartford Seminary and is pursuing a Doctor of Ministry from Boston University, is also founder of e-Dawah (www.edawah.net) and secretary of the Association of Muslim Scientists, Engineers & Technology Professionals. He serves as a khateeb and Friday prayer leader at the ADAMS Center and is a certified Muslim chaplain at iNova Fairfax, iNovaLoudoun and Virginia’s Alexandria and Loudoun Adult Detention Centers.

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ISNA MATTERS

Elevating Education in a Changing World After three years of closed schools, educators meet again in person at the 23rd Annual ISNA Education Forum

BY EDUCATION FORUM COMMITTEE conducted by Ibrahim Yousuf, featured participants sitting with their colleagues from the same grade levels so they could collaborate on the many topics relevant to what they teach.

CISNA hosted Saturday’s Leaders Networking session (Chocolate and Conversations). Attendance was more than expected, as school leaders, board members and just about anyone interested in leadership decided to show up — and it wasn’t just for the delicious chocolate! It had been a long day, but they were happy to meet in person and learn from each other informally. They left with valuable resources and insights.

THE ARABIC TRACK

Dr. Patricia Salahuddin receiving lifetime achievement award from ISNA vice president Magda El-Kadi Saleh

T

he ISNA Education Forum (EdForum), hosted by ISNA in collaboration with the Council of Islamic Schools in North America (CISNA) and the Aldeen Foundation, was held in Chicago on May 13-15. The organizers brought school board members, teachers and administrators together to offer professional development and guidance to advance the mission of Islamic schools.

The program committee, chaired by Dr. Azra Naqvi (principal, Hadi School of Excellence), selected the theme of “Elevating Education in a Changing World.” Educators must respond to society’s needs, especially during times when lives have been disrupted.

Attendees welcomed the opportunity to learn and exchange ideas with colleagues and experts.

The EdForum featured three tracks: Arabic/Quran, Curriculum and Instruction, and Leadership. Islamic studies was 12

integrated into all topics, just as Islamic values are integrated into every aspect of an Islamic school. Over 350 participants attended the event.

This year’s EdForum included two networking sessions and one general session. The morning networking session,

The Friday sessions started with Dr. Talaat Pasha’s (director, Arabic Language Institute, American Islamic College, Chicago) full-day preconference on “Planning for Teaching.” Pasha presented key concepts and strategies essential to the teaching/ learning process to the 28 participants.

The workshop was full of hands-on activities — aligning individual lesson plans with long-term planning, outlining learning objectives, developing warm-up and introduction activities, planning specific learning activities, aligning with lesson objectives, developing activities to check understanding, developing a conclusion

THE FORUM WAS A WONDERFUL OPPORTUNITY TO MEET IN PERSON AFTER THREE YEARS OF VIRTUAL EDUCATION FORUMS. ATTENDEES LEFT ENERGIZED AND EXCITED TO IMPLEMENT WHAT THEY HAD LEARNED, AS WELL AS WITH NEW CONNECTIONS NATIONWIDE — CONNECTIONS THAT WE HOPE WILL CONTINUE AND GROW.

ISLAMIC HORIZONS JULY/AUGUST 2022

and a preview, creating assessment activities and creating a realistic timeline.

Saturday started with Alice Saba’s (senior teacher, College Preparatory School of America; CPS) assessment session. Featured were hands-on activities and practical tips to train the attendees on Understanding by Design and backward design of assessment.

The session’s 55+ Arabic and Islamic studies teachers were introduced to test validity, reliability, summative and formative types of assessments and using assessment for effective learning. The attendees shared their positive feedback.

ISNA vice president Magda El-Kadi Saleh (principal, Bayan-Texas) engaged the attendees with her talk on integration across the curricula. She spoke about how integrating curriculum in Islamic schools can help Islamic schools realize their visions.

The attendees expressed their admiration of her knowledge and methods.

In the afternoon, Samar Dalalti Ghannoum (University of Redlands) gave two sessions. In the first one, she trained participants how to use standard-based teaching to teach language communicatively. She covered the ACTFL 5 Cs, around which teaching a foreign language revolves: Communication, Culture, Comparison, Connection and Communities. In addition to explaining and giving several examples of the types of communication (interpretative, presentational and interpersonal), she introduced McCarthy’s 4Mat system, which helps teachers differentiate teaching language content to reach all of the students.

In the second session, she trained the attendees on vocabulary teaching and assessment. She was joined by Fadi Abo-Goush (CPS), who has introduced several drills and interesting techniques on teaching vocabulary.

THE CURRICULUM AND INSTRUCTION TRACK

This track was rich in presentations on topics that both engaged and increased the attendees’ depth of knowledge and skill sets. Presenters came from schools located around the world.

This track started with Ibrahim Yousef ’s (principal, Nashville International Academy) very well-received “Positive Discipline” presentations. The following day featured Habeeb Quadri’s (superintendent, MCC Academy) “Raising Complete Children”; Saad Quadri’s (MCC Academy) double-session on “Islamic Integration in Curriculum”;

(L-R) Shaza Khan, executive director, Islamic Schools League of America, Dr. Tasneem Ghazi, co-founder, Iqra Foundation, and Dr. Freda Shamma, founder, Foundation for the Advancement and Development of Education.

(L-R) Dr. Patricia Salahuddin, Dr. Azra Naqvi and Magda Elkadi Saleh.

and Yahya Van Rooy (elementary school principal, Next Generation School, Dubai), Qur’an Shakir’s (Women’s Islamic Initiative in Spirituality and Equality) and Beth Garrido (academic regional supervisor, English Immersion Program, The Dominican Republic) presented a session on “Differentiated Instruction.”

Each session was attended by 50+ educators, all of whom left with renewed energy and new ideas and strategies to implement in their schools.

LEADERSHIP TRACK

Leila Shatara (president, CISNA) opened this track with a Friday night session on “School Administration.” The biggest complaint, which was made of all sessions, was that there wasn’t enough time for this very important topic. Nevertheless, participants felt that the session was “informative, interactive, and relevant.”

On Saturday morning, the forum held two double sessions on “The Leadership Challenge” with William White (board member, CISNA) and Sufia Azmat

(executive director, CISNA). Even though it took three hours, attendees felt there was not enough time! Some comments were: Well done and valuable. Excellent and eye opening. Insightful! Very well presented and informative. One attendee commented, “It provided me an opportunity to self-reflect as a leader (a director and board member) and the impact I have on our staff and the rest of the board in a new way.” Another said, “I have learned so much from this session. It was engaging and interactive, and so much learning occurred in such a short time.”

Jenay Morrisey (Management and Program Analyst, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Non-Public Education) discussed “Federal Education Programs and Benefits for Private School Students and Teachers.” She was joined by Ziad Abdulla (board member, CISNA).

Both of them provided guidance to school leaders on the available Title funds and how to access them.

The forum was a wonderful opportunity to meet in person after three years of virtual education forums. Attendees left energized and excited to implement what they had learned, as well as with new connections nationwide — connections that we hope will continue and grow.

As we move into 2023, we will consider the attendees’ recommendations: add more preconferences, repeat key sessions at different times so more people can attend them and livestream the sessions so educators who could not attend in person can benefit from them.

RECOGNITION

Dr. Patricia Salahuddin, facilitator of the Clara Mohammed Schools Network received the ISNA Education Forum Lifetime Service Award in recognition of her distinguished service for Islamic education in North America. She has served on the boards of the Clara Muhammad Schools, Council of Islamic Schools in South Florida, Florida Islamic Schools, and board vice chairperson of Islamic Schools League of America and PACT team/network member. ih

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COMMUNITY MATTERS Centro Islámico Mosque Coming Up

complaint in U.S. District Court in Camden alleging that the board’s refusal to approve the expansion violated the federal Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA). The matter was resolved without any admission of liability by the township or the board.

During its April 27 session, Brampton (Ont., Canada) city council renamed Sailwind Road Masjid Drive, which is located near Jamiat-ul-Ansar mosque.

Jaime “Mujahid” Fletcher

Centro Islámico has started constructing their 10,200-sq.-ft. mosque on a 2.5-acre lot in the Houston neighborhood of Alief.

Once complete, it will include a prayer area, classrooms, event center, a cafe and lounge, as well as a 3,600-sq.-ft. production studio for producing its bilingual English– Spanish media content for distribution. A museum will highlight the contributions of al-Alandus in terms of medicine, mathematics, education and technology.

Outdoors will be a basketball court, a soccer field, a playground, a pavilion and a courtyard. Like the museum, it will be designed with Andalusian characteristics,

among them vaulted ceilings and water fountains. Jaime “Mujahid” Fletcher (chief executive officer and founder, IslamInSpanish) told Religion News Service on April 15 that the costs of these improvements will total about $3 million, with $1 million left to raise.

They have plans for another mosque in Dallas.

A 2017 report published in the Journal of Race, Ethnicity, and Religion estimated that the country’s 50,000 to 265,000 Latino Muslims are primarily concentrated in California, Texas, New York, New Jersey, Florida and Illinois. Many are former Catholics, and more mosques are now publishing Spanish literature. ih mosque — after turning down two earlier versions and delaying the process for three years.

New York governor Kathy Hochul hosted an iftar for Muslims from Buffalo to Brooklyn in the state’s capital. She remarked, “New York’s greatest strength is our diversity, and we are proud to lead with inclusivity and equality for all.”

She thanked Imam Mansoor Rafiq Umar and Dr. Debbie Almontaser for their contributions to the state and their leadership.

The Washington Township (N.J.) Zoning Board voted 6:1 in April to give its blessing to Minhal Academy’s 3,000-sq.-ft.

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Imran Hasan, who helped spearhead the effort, said the Gloucester County township “gave us a very tough time.”

In 2018, he had purchased a long-vacant cluster of three offices and drew up plans to move the mosque; however, building permission was denied.

In January 2020, Minhal Academy filed a

ISLAMIC HORIZONS JULY/AUGUST 2022

“Muslim American Zakat Giving 2022,” a report released by the Muslim Philanthropy Initiative at Indiana University’s Lilly Family School of Philanthropy at IUPUI, stated that Muslim Americans gave $1.8 billion in zakat to domestic and international causes during 2021.

The average Muslim American household donated $2,070 to charity, said Shariq Siddiqui, assistant professor and program director of philanthropic studies.

The largest beneficiaries were international nonprofits (25.3%), governments (21.7%) and domestic nonprofits (18.3%).

The study’s findings also show that a substantial amount of zakat (14.7%) is still given informally, whether in person, to relatives or others, and through other remittances (12.7%). ih

ACHIEVERS Deqa Dhalac, MSW (Univ. of New Eng l and), MDP (Univ. of New Hampshire), was honored by her alma mater University of New Hampshire with the Sustainability Award — Graduate of Last Decade.

Early this year she made history as the first elected Black, Muslim mayor in Maine, the City of South Portland, and the first Somali American mayor. She is past program manager for The Center for Grieving Children, former South Portland Schools Community Builder for the Opportunity Alliance, Somali Community Center of Maine, board president of the Maine Immigrant Rights Coalition and Maine Women’s Fund and Family Engagement and Cultural Responsiveness Specialist with the Maine Department of Education.

The University of Michigan, with support from the Fawakih Institute (https://fawakih.org), will launch a two-year Qur’anic Arabic learning track during the upcoming Fall ‘22 academic term.

For the first time since the university’s founding in 1817, nearly 45,000 Michigan students (undergrads and grads alike) will have the chance to unlock the Quranic language by enrolling in either ARABIC 121 (Qur’anic Arabic I; first year) or ARABIC 221 (Qur’anic Arabic II; second year) course on campus.

For more information and enrollment, visit https://lsa.umich.edu/cg/ cg_openclasses.aspx?txtsubject=ARABIC ih

The Daily Record (Baltimore) named Chaplain Asma Inge-Hanif, CNM (executive director and founder, Muslimat Al Nisaa Shelter/Inge Benevolent Ministries), a 2022 Maryland Top 100 Women.

The Daily Record recognizes and honors women worldwide who are leading the way, mentoring, helping others succeed and creating change. A panel of business professionals and previous Maryland’s Top 100 Women honorees from across the state reviewed and selected this year’s honorees.

“Maryland’s Top 100 Women create change and break barriers in their professional worlds, but also make a difference

in their communities,” said Suzanne Fischer-Huettner, publisher of The Daily Record (pictured at the beginning of this item). “We applaud our honorees for their passion, their commitment to excellence and for the work they do to bring communities together. The impact these women make across our state demonstrates why they are truly Maryland’s Top 100 Women. The Daily Record is honored to recognize them.”

On July 1 Dr. Omar Lateef assumed charge as systemwide president and CEO of RUSH, while continuing as president and CEO of RUSH University Medical Center.

“The Board and I are very confident in Dr. Lateef ’s ability to take RUSH to new heights, not only in patient care, but [also] in the way health care is delivered in the future,” said Susan Crown, chairman of the RUSH and Medical Center boards.

Under Lateef ’s leadership at the RUSH University Medical Center, the organization received unprecedented acclaim. RUSH’s early Covid-19 innovations set the standard for care nationally by deployment of early testing, an intentional focus on critically ill patients from communities hardest hit by the pandemic, and clinical advancements of treatment protocols.

In April 2021, Dr. Lateef accepted Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s Medal of Honor on behalf of all the Medical Center’s health care heroes, recognizing the hospital’s extraordinary contributions to Chicago during the Covid-19 pandemic.

His tenure with RUSH began with a fellowship in pulmonary and critical care medicine at RUSH University Medical Center in 2005. Prior to leading the center, he served as its chief medical officer.

Roseline Jean Louis RN, BSN, the first nursing PhD student in Emory University’s history, was inducted into the Edward A. Bouchet Graduate Honor Society on April 8.

The award, named after Dr. Edward Alexander Bouchet, the first African American doctoral recipient in the U.S. (physics, Yale University, 1876), acknowledges outstanding

scholarly achievement and promotes diversity and excellence in doctoral education and the professoriate.

One of five Emory students to receive this award, this first-generation Haitian immigrant is one of the first in her family to graduate from college and will be the first to obtain a graduate degree. In addition to being an Edward A. Bouchet Graduate Honor Society Scholar, Louis is also a Birth Equity Research Fellow at the National Birth Equity Collaborative (NBEC).

As part of the NBEC fellowship, she leads a data analysis of the Maternal Mortality Review Information Application data set from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Maternal Mortality Prevention Division of Reproductive Health, looking at the impacts of racism on maternal mortality.

Adam Chaabane, who took an oath to the Woodland Park, New Jersey Council on Jan. 4, makes borough history by becoming the council’s first Muslim American. A former Board of Education commissioner, Chaabane serves as a deputy with the Passaic County Sheriff Department.

Shania Muhammad, 14-year-old Oklahoman, graduated college with honors — not from one but two colleges: Langston University and Oklahoma City Community College (OCCC).

“Don’t let your age be the ceiling to your potential, and I really want to push that. You cannot let that be a barrier to your life. It’s like I was in the seventh grade and the whole time I was on the collegiate level. I just didn’t know it,” Shania told News9.

“We have over 150 medals, over 50 trophies. We have over 100 academic awards as well,” her father, Elijah Muhammad added.

Shania attends her parent’s homeschooling program. They were the ones

JULY/AUGUST 2022 ISLAMIC HORIZONS

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COMMUNITY MATTERS who inspired her to look beyond her middle school curriculum. She started classes at OCCC at 13 and the University of Oklahoma as well.

After a semester OU, Shania chose to follow in her parents’ footsteps and attend Langston University for the HBCU experience. She plans to continue classes at Langston. She will be pursuing her bachelor’s in family consumer science and a minor in plant soil science.

Her 12-year-old brother plans on starting classes at the OCCC in the fall to pursue a career in cybersecurity.

A set of triplets who are no strangers to making history recently did it again by graduating from Georgia Tech with neuroscience degrees — aged 18.

Adam, Zane and Rommi Kashlan recently achieved their degrees with minors in health and medical sciences with honors in only three years, according to 11Alive on May 16.

The trio is used to setting records. After testing on a higher academic level when they were in the first grade, the triplets were named the first-ever co-valedictorians at West Forsyth High School in Georgia at the age of 16.

They plan to work as researchers at Harvard Medical School in affiliation with Boston Children’s Hospital.

Their parents, Dean and Majid Kashlan, say the brothers have always been close.

Maggie Siddiqi, former program coordinator at the ISNA Office of Interfaith and Community Alliances in Washington D.C., now serves as director of the U.S. Department of Education’s Center for Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships.

In her last position, she was senior director, Faith and Progressive Policy Initiative at the Center for American Progress.

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On May 18, Kansas City attorney Humaira Mirza was honored with the Nonprofit Catalyst-Staff Member Award at the Nonprofit Connect Awards ceremony.

Mirza, who advocates for survivors of domestic violence, helped change the legal landscape as a staff member at Newhouse, Kansas City’s first shelter. For the last 12 years, she has been helping survivors navigate the legal system.

In 2021, a milestone year, she expanded her role as a legal advocate by standing in the gap for victims in and out of the courtroom, led the Newhouse legal program’s evolution by streamlining and organizing the process of first educating clients and then transitioning them from victims to survivors, worked with 20 survivors as a staff member at Newhouse, volunteered as a court-appointed special advocate of Jackson County CASA for four children, acted as executive director of her own nonprofit (Breathe Hope), educated members of her Muslim community and more.

She is using her nonprofit to fill the holes in the current support system by helping survivors get a driver’s license, housing and employment.

A top-rated attorney selected to Rising Stars for 2019-21, Mirza is principal of Mirza Law Firm, Overland Park, Kan. Now in its 38th year, the Nonprofit Connect Awards Celebration honors individuals and organizations for their outstanding commitment to have a positive impact on Kansas City.

Sumaiya Ahmed Sheikh joined the executive office of Governor Gretchen Whitmer as director of appointments.

She works with the senior team to oversee the appointment of qualified people to Michigan state’s 350 boards and commis Photo: (L to R) Sumaiya Sheikh sions, as well as juwith Governor dicial appointments Whitmer. and administrative appointments to the Governor’s cabinet and state departments.

Sabah Sial (University of Utah ‘21), who starts at Oxford in October 2022, became the first person to receive the Rhodes

ISLAMIC HORIZONS JULY/AUGUST 2022

Scholarship from the university in 20 years.

One of 32 recipients, she is interested in studying financial crime prevention and intends to go to law school.

This scholarship, created in 1903, was designed to foster a relationship between English-speaking countries and enable students to study at the University of Oxford. The scholarship now serves students worldwide and is intended to bring together people of different viewpoints.

Ginger Smoak (director, Office of Nationally Competitive Scholarships) said Sial has proven to be “an impressive scholar, leader and humanitarian with amazing vision and motivation to use her knowledge, leadership and desire to help” — all aspects that are important for this scholarship.

This year, a record 22 American women were selected as winners.

Growing up in Sandy, Utah, Sial dreamed of coming to the U. Ultimately, her decision was settled by the Eccles Scholarship — an eight-semester comprehensive scholarship that brings 29 students interested in different fields of study together to create a change in the Honors community.

“It feels like I’ve kind of come full circle with the Rhodes Scholarship,” she said.

While speaking about her childhood and being from a not very diverse community, she noted, “As a woman of color who is visibly from a different faith, I would have expected it to be harder than it was,” Sial said.

“My experience was being fully immersed in the educational experience and building a community wherever I go, regardless of what someone’s background is.”

Her parents immigrated from Pakistan in the 1990s. She is the oldest of three siblings.

Asim Rehman was appointed New York City commissioner and chief administrative law judge of the Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings (OATH) on March 29 by Mayor Eric Adams.

A founding member and former president of the Muslim Bar Association of New York (MuBANY), this former deputy

commissioner for legal matters and general counsel at the NYC Department of Correction is the first Muslim American and the first person of South Asian descent to lead the office.

“In order for our city to operate effectively and carry out its core functions, we need fair, expeditious and just administrative trials and hearings,” said Mayor Adams. “Asim Rehman is a proven reformer who will bring his legal expertise and keen understanding of city government to his new role at OATH, and I’m proud to announce his appointment.”

Rehman, who joined City government in 2014 as general counsel for the new Office of the Inspector General in the Department of Investigation for the NYPD, has served as general counsel and first deputy inspector general.

A Staten Island native, Rehman (BA, Haverford College; the University of Michigan Law School) is an adjunct professor of law at New York Law School, where he teaches “Law, Public Policy & Social Change.” ih

CISNA Conducts Environmental Sustainability Essay Contest The Council of Islamic Schools of North America (CISNA)’s participation in the Worldwide Teach-In on Climate and Justice,allowed young Muslims to sound off on what the Quran teaches them about preserving and caring for Earth.

In March, 290 students from 100 Islamic schools nationwide submitted essays describing their duty as stewards of God's Earth while answering the following prompt: As a Muslim, what responsibility/duty do you have towards the environment and our planet? What are some environmental issues that should be addressed? How can you take action to make a difference?

The contest was divided into three levels: Level 1 (Grades 3-5), Level 2 (Grades 6-8), and Level 3 (Grades 9-12)

with a separate rubric for each level.

Prizes were sponsored by United Hands for Relief and Development (UHR), an international humanitarian relief and development NGO. The winners for the 2022 are: Level 1 1st Place: Adam Elshaikh $300 Prize 5th Grade Pillars Preparatory Academy 2nd Place: Mawedah Bahiabah $200 Prize 5th Grade Rising Star Academy 3rd Place: Salaheddine Koumyem $100 Prize 3rd Grade Rising Star Academy Level 2

1st Place: Maya Baisa $300 Prize 7th Grade Crescent Academy International 2nd Place: Nada Peracha $200 Prize 7th Grade Crescent Academy International 3rd Place: Fajr Abdeldayem $100 Prize 8th Grade The Huda Academy Level 3 1st Place: Danial Qasim $300 Prize 12th Grade MTI School of Knowledge 2nd Place: Tasnim Motan $200 Prize 12th Grade MTI School of Knowledge 3rd Place: Zahid Abdul Qadeer $100 Prize ih

JULY/AUGUST 2022 ISLAMIC HORIZONS

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NATION

White House Restores Its Eid Celebration

Former ISNA president Azhar Azeez with President Biden.

P

resident Joe Biden fulfilled a campaign promise to restore the annual commemoration of Ramadan and Eid al-Fitr at the White House.

After a hiatus, this in-person celebration, held on May 1, was historically meaningful to both those in attendance and Muslim Americans nationwide.

First Lady Dr. Jill Biden presented a thoughtful welcome.

Also present were Second Gentleman Douglas Emhoff and Dr. Talib Shareef (president and imam, Masjid Muhammad), a veteran who offered the invocation.

In his remarks, Biden recognized the Muslim Americans’ diversity, vibrance and the multitude of ways in which they continue 18

to contribute to the nation’s collective future.

The president acknowledged the important contributions made by Muslim American frontline workers and scientists to respond to the challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic.

He said, “This year, as we mark Eid al-Fitr, we hold in our hearts the millions of displaced persons and refugees around the globe who are spending this sacred holiday separated from their families and unsure of their future, but still hoping for a brighter tomorrow. As a nation we must always keep faith with those seeking a better life and uphold our commitment to serving as a beacon of hope for oppressed people around the world. And, [as] Muslims across the United States celebrate Eid, let

ISLAMIC HORIZONS JULY/AUGUST 2022

us renew our dedication to our foundational commitment to respecting all faiths and beliefs.”

The president reminded the audience that the “tradition of religious freedom for all strengthens our country, and we will continue to work with Americans of all beliefs and backgrounds to safeguard and deepen our collective commitment to this fundamental principle. This year, we will resume the tradition of celebrating Eid at the White House, and of honoring the inspiring Muslim Americans who are leading efforts to build greater understanding and unity across our nation.”

Those in attendance reflected the rich diversity of Muslim Americans across multiple sectors including elected officials and public servants, entrepreneurs and innovators, as well as community-based social sector leaders. Several Muslim appointees and members of the administration were also present at the celebration.

Farhan Latif (president, AlHibri Foundation) noted, “You [Mr. President] reiterated your promise to make your administration look like America, and we thank you for continuing to deliver on that promise. Your administration has made significant appointments of American Muslims to the federal bench, in the area of international religious freedom and other branches of the administration. Our regular and ongoing engagement with the Office of Presidential Personnel has helped to connect public service opportunities with highly qualified candidates from our communities.

We know that American Muslims will continue to work within and alongside your administration to tackle the climate crisis, rebuild the economy, safeguard our health, and restore our alliances.

“We welcome your remarks seeking renewal of our common commitment to shared values, so that we may realize an equitable and more inclusive society that helps us all live up to the potential of forming a more perfect union.”

He also appreciated the president for acknowledging the suffering that many Muslim communities face across the globe due to religious discrimination and stated his support for religious freedom at home and abroad. “It did not go unnoticed”

NATION

(L-R) Rizwan Jaka, Imam Magid, Azhar Azeez and Dr. Syed M. Syeed

he added, “that you also recognized our domestic challenges of targeted violence and Islamophobia impacting Muslim communities in America.”

Latif offered his appreciation to the White House Office of Public Engagement, the Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, the National Security Council and the many team members within the administration who facilitated the planning and execution of the Eid celebration.

ISNA president Safaa Zarzour, along with former ISNA presidents Dr. Sayyid M. Syeed, Imam Mohamed Magid (All Dulles Area

20

Muslim Society) and Azhar Azeez (Muslim Aid USA), attended the event.

Among the other attendees were public officials such as Abdullah Hammoud (mayor, Dearborn, Mich.), Hala Hijazi (commissioner, City & County of San Francisco), Dr. Sadaf Jaffer (New Jersey Legislative District 16) and Sam Baydoun (commissioner, Wayne County, Mich.).

They were joined by representatives of various Muslim organizations: Jawaid Kotwial (Afghan-American Foundation), Arsalan Suleman (America Indivisible), Salmah Rizvi (American Muslim Bar Association), Ghada Khan and Arshia Wajid (American Muslim Health Professionals), Tarek Elmessidi (Celebrate Mercy), Mark Crain (Dream of Detroit), Uzma Syed (Eid Holiday Coalition Inc.) and Dr. Iltefat Hamzavi, Nada Al-Hanooti and AJ Durrani (Emgage); Farooq Kathwari (CEO, Ethan Allen), Dr. Mohamed Elsanousi (Faiths4Vaccines), Nashiru Abdulai (Global Deaf Muslim), Sayyeda Mirza (Hub Foundation), Dr. Dilara Sayeed (Illinois Muslim Civic Coalition), Petra Alsoofy (Institute for Social Policy and Understanding), Dr. Imrana Umar (International Interfaith Peace Corps.) and Jaime Mujahid Fletcher (Islam In Spanish); Dr. Marium Hussain (president, Islamic

ISLAMIC HORIZONS JULY/AUGUST 2022

Medical Association of North America), Maha Elgenaidi (Islamic Networks Group), Anwar Khan (president, Islamic Relief USA), Iman Zawahry (Islamic Scholarship Fund), Ayman Kabire (Islamic Society of Greater Houston), Nausheen Rajan (Ismailis Rise Up), Rahmah Abdulaleem (KARAMAH: Muslim Women Lawyers for Human Rights), Dr. Asifa Quraishi-Landes (Muslim Advocates), Dr. Ihsan Bagby (Muslim Alliance of North America) and Ahmad Maaty (Muslim Americans in Public Service); Margari Hill (Muslim Anti-Racism Collaborative), Aniqa Nawabi (Muslim Community Network), Amani Al-Khatahtbeh (Muslim Girl), Salam Al-Marayati (Muslim Public Affairs Council), Dr. Kameelah Mu’Min Rashad (Muslim Wellness Foundation), Sehrish Siddiqi (National Association of Muslim Lawyers), Rima Meroueh (National Network for Arab American Communities), Aziza Hasan (NewGround: A Muslim-Jewish Partnership for Change); and Amin Aaser (Noor Kids), Haris Ahmed (OPEN Chicago), Rahat Hussain (Shia Muslim Foundation), Karim Farishta (The Asian American Foundation), Alex Kronemer (Unity Productions Foundation), Dr. Parvez Shah (Universal Muslim Association of America) and Dilnaz Waraich (Waraich Family Fund). ih

59TH ANNUAL ISNA CONVENTION

ISLAMIC SOCIETY OF NORTH AMNERICA

September 2-5, 2022

Donald E. Stephens Convention Center

5555 N River Road, Rosemont, IL 60018

Resilience, Hope, & Faith: With Hardship, Comes Ease

Indeed, with hardship comes ease (Ash-Sharh, 94:6)

CONFIRMED SPEAKERS: Siraj Wahhaj

Dalia Mogahed

Mohamed Magid

Ubaydullah Evans

Yasir Birjas

Maha Elgenaidi

Muzammil Siddiqi

Abdalla Idris Ali

Muhammad Nur Abdullah

Azhar Azeez

Safaa Zarzour

Magda Elkadi Saleh

Ameena Jandali

Hussain Kamani

and more than 100 speakers

CONVENTION HIGHLIGHTS:

REGISTER AT ISNA.NET

Dynamic Speakers, Inspiring Sessions, Bazaar, Youth Programs, Matrimonial Banquets, Entertainment Sessions, Film Festival, CSRL Award, ISNA President’s Award,

CONTACT INFO: Registration inquiries: convention@isna.net Expo & Sponsorship: akhan@isna.net Matrimonial : matrimonialintern@isna.net

Children’s Program, and much more.

Join the conversation: #ISNA59

Chaplaincy Training Event, Interfaith Banquet,

isnahq

isnahq

ISNA (Islamic Society of North America) official channel

@ISNAHQ Islamic Society of North America (ISNA)

HEALTH & WELLNESS Muslim Youth and Mental Health Challenges Muslims should realize that mental health issues are real and treatable

BY KHALID IQBAL

T

he murder-suicide of a Bangladeshi family by their sons, Farhan and Tanvir Towhid, as reported in the Washington Post (April 6, 2021), shocked not only a community but the entire nation at the height of mental health discussions amidst a global pandemic. Both young men were reported to have been mentally disturbed for some time and decided to take the entire family with them to resolve their misery.

Salma (not her real name) felt she was being followed and monitored by some authorities 24/7 through an electronic chip “they” had installed in her during one of the hospital procedures she had undergone. She still feels paranoid wherever she goes and unsafe in her own residence, doesn’t turn on her computer because “someone is sitting there, watching me,” cannot work under tension at her job and feels forced to go through the day’s work only so she can keep her job. Although her family supports her, they also taunt her by telling her that she is going crazy.

Before Covid, Asif (not his real name) was a very social person — the life of the party and one of his college basketball team’s top players. But once Covid started, he started feeling extreme anxiety, a feeling that got worse after it killed his close friend. He stopped going out, didn’t even want to get out of bed. His parents are lost and not sure where to begin or what to do to support their son.

Sadia (not her real name) stopped eating properly because she wants to look good so, according to societal standards, she can “fit in with the crowd.” Her subsequent malnourishment, which causes her to feel dizzy, has led to her fainting a couple of times at school. Noting her situation, her teacher sent her to the school nurse. Sadia said she wished her parents would notice her condition and take appropriate steps to help her, but refused help when her teacher asked her if everything was alright.

Are such events and situations preventable? I had no clear answer to that and other questions until I took the Youth Mental Health First Aid course offered by our county in Virginia (also see https://www.thenationalcouncil.org/).

WHAT IS MENTAL HEALTH?

The World Health Organization defines mental health as the state of well-being, being a person who recognizes his/her own abilities, can cope with normal stresses of life and work productively and fruitfully, enjoys other people’s company and relationships, and can contribute to his/her community The following statistics are from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the U.S. Department of Justice. ❯ 1 in 5 U.S. adults experience mental illness each year (e.g., anxiety, fear of certain life issues, unable to enjoy life or other people’s company or cope with the normal stresses of life that, for some, lead to depression or extreme suicidal thoughts). ❯ 1 in 20 U.S. adults experience serious mental illness each year. ❯ 1 in 6 U.S. youth aged 6-17 experience a mental health disorder each year. ❯ 50% of all lifetime mental illnesses begin by age 14, and 75% by age 24. ❯ Suicide is the leading cause of death among Americans aged 10-34 (https:// www.nimh.nih.gov/health/statistics/suicide.shtml).

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ISLAMIC HORIZONS JULY/AUGUST 2022

National Public Radio’s Aug. 10, 2021, report states that “American Muslims Are 2 Times More Likely to Have Attempted Suicide Than Other Groups.” One reason for this is because while Muslims face the same factors as the general populace, they also have to deal with religious discrimination and the still-pervasive community stigmatization attached to the “mental disorder” label.

Salma, Saida and Asif ’s parents never even thought of going to a mental health professional. After attending the course, I asked the parents who I know well if they had considered this path; they both resisted the idea.

One mocked me, saying that “one course doesn’t make you an expert.” The attached social stigma prevented them from admitting that their child has a mental health issue and from seeking professional help.

One day, two soccer teammates got into a fistfight.

It seemed like a case of racial discrimination, for there was skin color-based name calling. The case was presented to an arbitration board. Both boys’ parents were present, but their reactions were very different.

One boy was immediately taken to a mental health professional for assessment and treatment; the other boy, who happened to be Muslim, was scolded. That was the end of his “treatment.”

After observing this case, I wondered why Muslims are so far behind other communities when it comes to understanding mental health issues and being willing to deal with it. As a result, they are less likely to access the mental health resources available to all.

During a recent workshop, I noted several responses that leave us with something to think about: stigma; the myths that Muslims cannot be depressed, God is punishing them or they are spiritually weak; that it is a curse and therefore an untreatable issue; seeking help from within the community is difficult, something that we need to work on; exorcism, a lack of understanding based on the movie; the language barrier and the system isn’t ready to serve Muslims due to religious and cultural misunderstandings.

Muslims need to realize that mental health issues have nothing to do with religion. Depending on Quranic verses only won’t solve these types of illnesses. And besides, many scholars say that treating

usually begin in early adolescence or early adulthood. In fact, half of all mental disorders begin by age 14 and, if not checked and addressed, can affect the person’s education, personal development, health and social life. This being the case, parents, guardians, teachers, friends and family members can help identify the issue and support and encourage the one affected to seek personal or professional help.

The course pointed out several steps that can be taken, among them assessing the risk to self or others (e.g., suicide or self-harm, gathering or overdosing on medicine, burning, possessing harmful weapons like knives and guns).

One can also look for the following symptoms. ❯ Emotions. Sadness, anxiety, guilt, anger, mood swings, lack of emotional responsiveness, and feelings of helplessness, hopelessness, irritability, depression and fear. ❯ Thoughts. Frequent self-criticism, self-blame, worry, pessimism, impaired memory, impaired concentration, indecisiveness, confusion, a tendency to believe that OUR COMMUNITY LEADERS SHOULD INVITE MENTAL everyone sees you in a negative light, and thoughts of suicide and death.

HEALTH EXPERTS TO GIVE LECTURES, CONDUCT ❯ Behavior. Crying spells, withdrawal from INTERACTIVE WORKSHOPS, SHARE THEIR THOUGHTS AND others, neglecting responsibilities, losing interEXPERIENCES, AS WELL AS DEVELOP A PEER PARTNERSHIP est in personal appearance, loss of motivation, slowing down and using alcohol or other drugs.

TO TALK AND HELP EACH OTHER WHEN NEEDED. ❯ Physical. Chronic fatigue, lack of energy, sleeping too much or too little, overeating or NOT DEALING WITH THIS ONGOING STIGMA ON THE loss of appetite, constipation, weight loss or INDIVIDUAL OR COMMUNITY LEVEL CAN LEAD PEOPLE TO gain, headaches, irregular menstrual cycle, loss of sexual desire and unexplained aches or pain.

HIDE THEIR ISSUES AND THUS DELAY TREATMENT. ❯ General. Talking about no reason to live or life having no purpose, not eating or overeating, any disease or health issue properly is important. This and being involved in substance abuse.

Following are some of the common risk factors for self-harm, including suiinvolves recognizing that such diseases exist, discussing them openly and dealing with them in a rational cide, that should be recognized, evaluated and eliminated if possible: Depression way. Our community leaders should invite mental (untreated or undertreated), social isolation (loneliness is a major issue for all health experts to give lectures, conduct interactive ages, especially the elderly), major changes in social roles (e.g., new school, retireworkshops, share their thoughts and experiences, as ment, job loss, divorce), the recent death of a loved one, fear of prolonged illness, well as develop a peer partnership to talk and help each sleep deprivation, substance abuse, being a victim of abuse, suicidal ideation and other when needed. Not dealing with this ongoing behavior, as well as easy access to lethal weapons and/or means. stigma on the individual or community level can lead If a family member, friends or educators and any mental health first aider people to hide their issues and thus delay treatment. notice an unusual circumstance or behavior, they should approach the individual, Khutbas, lectures and workshops can help defeat the be willing to listen non-judgmentally and with acceptance, empathy, positive myths and misunderstandings that may lead to ignor- reassurance and, if needed, suggest seeking professional help. One can initiate the ing symptoms and causing harm to their loved ones. conversation by simply saying, “You haven’t been joining us lately at the group Now in his 50s, Ali (not his real name) remembers coffee break. Are you okay?” or “I noticed you’re not eating and losing a lot of having suicidal thoughts during his early teens. He weight. Is everything okay?” or “Do you want to talk about how you’re feeling?”

Muslims need to become involved and learn the skills taught in Adult or Youth saw himself as a victim of every incident, relationship failure or other mishap. He remembers trying to kill Mental Health First Aid through training courses available for free. Become first in himself many times by cutting his wrist or overdosing the line of support to those in need. Help them feel less distressed. Encourage them on pain medications. His parents always accepted his to talk about their issues and feelings. Listen to them nonjudgmentally. You can be a lame excuses about his cuts or why he slept almost vital resource in terms of helping them seek further assistance. Your body language, all day without inquiring about his situation and what you say and being a non-judgmental listener can have a powerful impact. mental condition.

Empower your community through education and bringing resources to assist Ali noted the difference between the story of Prophet those in need. Reach out to mental health professionals and give them a platform Yaqoob and his son Prophet Yousuf (‘alayhum as salam), to educate others. Help youth and adults help themselves. Make a difference in of how caring and understanding Yaqoob was com- the life of someone suffering from a mental health challenge by reaching out and pared to his own father, who seemed to be largely absent offering help. Your actions can be a first step in a person’s journey to recovery. ih from his children’s lives. His mother would worry, while Iqbal is founder of Rahmaa Institute (www.Rahmaa.org), which focuses on issues related to marriage, conflict his father usually just laughed it off. Ali promised him- Khalid resolution, divorce, domestic violence and anger prevention. In his capacity as the author of “Anger and Domestic Violence self to be a more aware and concerned father.

Prevention Guide for the Muslim Community” and speaker, he has developed and teaches a comprehensive eight-hour Research shows that the impact of mental disorders premarital counseling course. He has been married for 50 years and has three wonderful children and 10 grandchildren.

JULY/AUGUST 2022 ISLAMIC HORIZONS

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HEALTH & WELLNESS

Supporting Our Children’s Mental Health While Navigating the Pandemic Ending the stigma of mental illness

BY AMINAH SALIM

T

he Muslim community has not actively addressed its members’ mental health. As a result, many mosques lack the professionals needed to address the various mental illnesses present within their communities.

Most Muslim schools have no staff members who are equipped to provide mental health support to their students. Illnesses such as autism, schizophrenia and ADHD, just to name a few, are common. In fact, many of us have a loved one or friend who is suffering from such an illness. For example, ADHD is a common disorder that affects many school-age children, and yet many Muslim children reman undiagnosed.

Then at the start of 2020 came COVID, a pandemic that forever changed the lives of people worldwide. Along with it came an increase in mental health disorders in children — higher rates of anxiety, depression and even suicide.

Many children have been negatively affected by the pandemic’s serious side effects. Their schools were closed as stayCHILDREN MAY BE UNABLE TO EXPRESS THEIR at-home orders were implemented. Isolation from friends and extended family members FEELINGS AND NOT KNOW HOW OR WHERE TO GET affected their mental health. Children, who HELP. EDUCATING PARENTS AND THE COMMUNITY need movement and exercise for their mental TO WATCH FOR CERTAIN BEHAVIORS IS THE FIRST well-being, suddenly could not go outside to play or access local parks and recreation cenSTEP IN LEARNING HOW TO ADDRESS THEIR ters. In addition, they were faced with food MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES. insecurity as their parents’ places of employment and/or businesses had to close — some permanently. With over 6 million COVIDrelated deaths globally, many children lost one or more loved ones or friends. families. And as children and teens watched feelings Suicide rates have risen among adolescents, and many have lost their enthusi- of anxiety, fear and mood changes appear among their asm for the activities and pursuits that once interested them. Students, including parents, they reacted in kind. those who had maintained good grades prior to Covid, suffered academically as Unfortunately, due to the nationwide shortage of schools were forced to implement virtual learning. Fear of an uncertain future mental health professionals, children are dealing with also contributed to the decline of their mental health. High school graduates untreated mental health issues. The title of a recently found themselves unable to partake in the graduation experience they’d looked uploaded American Psychological Association article, forward to for so long. What should have been celebratory was replaced with “Children’s mental health is in crisis,” says it all. sadness and, for some new graduates, anger.

Now more than ever, our Muslim communities As Muslims, Ramadan brings a sense of unity and enjoyment for families. need to provide training and education programs in With mosques having to close and families feeling disconnected from the umma our mosques and schools. Public schools in some areas during the holy month and Eid, this enforced isolation affected the mood of many have begun giving teachers mental health training 24

ISLAMIC HORIZONS JULY/AUGUST 2022

PHOTO PUBLISHED WITH PERMISSION

and adding subjects to the curriculum to address issues ranging from depression to suicide.

Ahmein Watson (LCSW-C LCADC) is the executive director of Healthy Lives, LLC (https://healthylivesmaryland.com), a Muslim-owned behavioral health organization. Established in Baltimore in 2013, its mission is “to create an environment where people can find a safe, professional opportunity to address and manage behavioral health issues.” The holder of a master’s degree in social work with a specialization in mental health and substance abuse, Watson has been working in the field for 20 years.

The organization’s team of licensed and certified professionals has formulated programs for both adults and children. Understanding the importance of addressing children’s mental health issues in real time, among the services he and his team provide are the following: transitional age support; health promotion and training; self-esteem; strengthening communication between parents, youth, teachers, and other adults; and assisting parents and families with obtaining entitlements.

In line with Healthy Lives’ psychiatric rehabilitation service, the children he serves resumed in-person interaction as soon as it was allowed, thereby utilizing outdoor COVID-safe activities in addition to mental health therapy.

Children may be unable to express their feelings and not know how or where to get help. Educating parents and the community to watch for certain behaviors is the first step in learning how to address their mental health issues. On Sept. 21, 2021, the CDC uploaded a list of signs on its website that may indicate a decline in mental health. While each child copes with stress and trauma in their own way, some of the common signs are excessive crying for younger children, acting out

or irritability, poor school performance, difficulties concentrating, using drugs or alcohol and disinterest in activities that once interested them.

As we are entering the third year of this pandemic, one important thing is to talk with our children, for reassuring them and talking about their fears and concerns can help them mentally. As the saying goes, “If life gives you lemons, turn them into lemonade.”

As COVID numbers rise and another wave is anticipated for the fall and winter, create a fun and positive environment if you find your child back in virtual learning or restricted movement.

If you are concerned about your child’s mental health, talk with their pediatrician or seek out a mental health professional. Suicide is a mental health issue that affects all of us, even Muslims. Never hesitate to address indicators your child may be having suicidal thoughts. Your local crisis hotline or suicide prevention hotline is a good source of information on where to get help in your area. Contact 911 should you find your child attempting or threatening suicide.

Mental health disorders in our community are not going away. Muslim professionals and organizations need to work together to tackle the issues facing our umma. Ensuring that shura boards contain at least one mental health professional is vital. Creating groups and classes led by us and for us as Muslims are also needed. Our children are our most precious assets.

Given this reality, we owe it to them to invest in them — including in their mental well-being. ih Aminah Salim, a mental health intern pursuing her Master’s degree in clinical social work, specializes in trauma-focused therapy and is the founder of The Salim Foundation. Working in the behavioral health field since 2019, she actively works to bring training, licensed professionals and community education to Muslim communities as well as to end the traditional stigma attached to mental health.

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25

HEALTH & WELLNESS

Coming of Age as a Muslim American

Research during the past decade shows that Muslim youth are indeed thriving

BY MADIHA TAHSEEN

T

he existential questions faced during adolescence by all youth, which become particularly important for Muslim American youth as they come of age in a heated sociopolitical environment, are “Who am I?” and "Where do I belong?"

The questions "What helps Muslim youth thrive as they try to answer these questions and become the best version of themselves?" and "What promotes their healthy well-being and successful thriving?" have been of interest to the author for the past decade. These were dealt with in her dissertation study (conducted during 2013 through 2020) with Charissa Cheah, Merve Balkaya-Ince and The Family & Youth Institute (FYI).

Although Muslim Americans are a heterogeneous group with varying backgrounds and experiences, the study focuses on immigrant-origin Muslim American youth (i.e., first or second-generation South Asian and Arabs) aged 14-22 years.

WHAT DOES MUSLIM YOUTH’S WELLBEING AND MENTAL HEALTH LOOK LIKE?

Muslim youth are experiencing mental health challenges, such as anxiety, mood disorders, eating disorders, adjustment disorders and suicidal ideation (A. Basit & M. Hamid, “Mental health issues of Muslim Americans” The Journal of IMA, 42(3), 106– 110). However, Muslim youth also thrive and engage with their societies. Some of the factors impacting their mental health are shown in FYI’s Muslim Youth Mental Health Fact Sheet.

WHAT HELPS MUSLIM YOUTH THRIVE AND PROMOTES THEIR WELL-BEING?

The study, aimed at understanding the factors that promote youth’s well-being and thriving, focused on those identities that blossom during adolescence and their parents’ role during this stage. Various studies on high schoolers and college students consistently find that Muslim youth endorse dual identities, which indicates a strong sense of belonging to both Muslim and American cultures. Some of these are listed in the “References” section at the end of this article. Such a dual identity was associated 26

THE FAMILY IS A CENTRAL COMPONENT IN THE LIVES OF MUSLIMS, WITH A LOT OF DIVINE AS WELL AS PROPHETIC EMPHASIS AND GUIDANCE ON CREATING A HEALTHY FAMILY UNIT. with the highest level of well-being. In other words, youth who feel like they belong in their Muslim (mosque, friends, social circles) and American communities (school, non-Muslim friends, social circles) have greater well-being.

Religious identity is protective.

Interestingly, religious identity is protective for religious minority youth, similar to what others have found. A higher level

ISLAMIC HORIZONS JULY/AUGUST 2022

of Muslim identity was related to less externalizing problems (e.g., smoking, drinking; Balkaya et al., 2019). Experiencing discrimination does not significantly impact youth’s Muslim identity (Balkaya et al., 2019). In fact, a strong religious identity empowers them to be more engaged with their societies, especially in the face of discrimination.

For instance, one of our studies revealed that Muslim youth who identify strongly with their religion in their daily lives are more likely to be civic-minded and engage in civic behaviors, such as volunteering, belonging to or donating money to nonprofit organizations and expressing their opinions on political issues (Balkaya-Ince, Cheah & Tahseen, 2020). These findings directly contradict all public narratives about how being actively Muslim pulls youth away from being American or contributing to American society.

American identity is protective, too. In fact, youth who have a strong sense of religious identity may heighten their American identity to counter any Islam-based discrimination

they experience. American identity refers to how youth believe they connect and belong to this country’s mainstream culture, such as being with their non-Muslim friends or engaging in “American” extracurricular activities.

When youth experience personal discrimination and believe the U.S. to be an Islamophobic culture, we found that they respond by increasing their American identity, which protects them from engaging in risky behaviors. In other words, they express greater pride in being American and endorse American cultural beliefs and activities.

Motivated to reduce the unfair treatment of all stigmatized Muslims, they may use their American identity as an empowering strategy and to reaffirm that Muslims do indeed belong to the American tapestry. In sum, this body of work shows that Muslim youth’s identities are complicated and should be treated as such in intervention and prevention programs (https://www.thefyi.org/ reports/muslim-youth-identity/).

Supportive parents. The family is a central component in the lives of Muslims, with a lot of divine as well as prophetic emphasis and guidance on creating a healthy family unit. Based on this, our team focuses on the role of supportive parents in helping youth thrive. The parent–child relationship is critical in helping Muslim youth develop healthy identities and mental health outcomes.

Supportive Muslim parents empower their children to have a stronger Muslim identity, engage in civic behaviors and, ultimately, have greater well-being (Balkaya et al., 2019). Parents’ religious socialization efforts positively shape their children’s religious identity and religiosity, especially their day-to-day feelings about their religious group. These include talking to children about religion, engaging in religious practices together, encouraging friendships with other Muslim children and engaging in social activities with Muslims.

Youth who received positive messages about Islam from their mothers had (1) more favorable attitudes about their religious group and (2) stronger beliefs that belonging to the Muslim group was an important part of their self-image daily (Balkaya-Ince et al., 2020). Parents can also protect youth from the adverse effects of discrimination. In one study, we found that their mothers’ supportive conversations strengthened youth’s identities and well-being when they faced discrimination.

This research for the past decade shows that Muslim youth are indeed thriving.

refugee youth. For more information on the needs of these subgroups, please see The FYI’s State of Muslim American Youth report.

REFERENCES

Healthy identities with multiple groups serve as protective factors for youth when they experience discrimination. Parents play a crucial role in socializing youth and strengthening their identities.

However, not all Muslim youth are the same. They differ in individual characteristics, cultural backgrounds, generation levels, socioeconomic status and the different environments within which they reside. We must consider the interaction among these factors to accurately understand their experiences.

Finally, American Muslim youth comprise many underserved subgroups that require special attention: young women, African American or Black youth, converts, and

Balkaya-Ince, M., Cheah, C. S. L., Kiang, L., & Tahseen, M. (2020). Exploring daily mediating pathways of religious identity in the associations between maternal religious socialization and Muslim American adolescents’ civic engagement.

Developmental Psychology, 56(8), 1446–1457.

Balkaya, M., Cheah, C. S. L., & Tahseen, M. (2019). The role of religious discrimination and Islamophobia in Muslim-American adolescents’ religious and national identities and adjustment.

Journal of Social Issues, Special Issue: To Be Both (and More): Immigration and Identity Multiplicity, 75, 538-567.

Tahseen, M., & Cheah, C. S. L. (2018). Who Am I? The social identities of Muslim-American adolescents. American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences, 35(1), 31-54).

Madiha Tahseen, Ph.D. (Univ. of Maryland, Baltimore County) is a research director and a community educator at The Family and Youth Institute. She researches, among other topics, individual and group identity development, parenting, acculturation and risk/protective factors of Muslim adolescents’ healthy development. A Muslim American community organizer for more than a decade, she is also an executive board member of Stones To Bridges, an anonymous online platform that helps Muslim youth address their emotional, social and behavioral needs. She can be reached at madiha@thefyi.org. ih [Adapted with permission from author’s article published as an AEMS post on “Human Development Matters,” a IIIT blog <iiit.org/ blog/>, in June 2022.]

JULY/AUGUST 2022 ISLAMIC HORIZONS

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HEALTH & WELLNESS

Negative Mental Health Impacts One Year into the Covid-19 Pandemic A study that will allow experts to identify potential solutions that can be applied and/or tailored to other segments of the Muslim community

BY ERUM IKRAMULLAH

M

uslim Americans reported slightly higher negative mental health impacts than the general population.

Muslims aged 50+ and Black Muslims have fared better than younger Muslims and Arab, Asian and white Muslims, respectively.

Since March 2020, the Covid-19 pandemic has impacted nearly all aspects of American life — our health behaviors, social interactions, shopping habits and work, as well as our school and home environments. It has also significantly impacted mental health.

Lockdowns and physical distancing imposed isolation upon us.

We had to deal with the stress of spending far more time together with household members and managing relationships.

Then there was the fear and anxiety related to becoming, or having a family member become, sick, hospitalized or even killed

by Covid-19. And if you were a frontline worker, you faced the additional stress of risking your life day after day. All of our minds and bodies have been working overtime to process and manage the many ways our lives were — and remain — affected.

The Institute for Social Policy and Understanding (ISPU) fielded a survey from March 22 to April 8, 2021, to assess Muslim Americans’ experiences of living through the pandemic for one year. The survey also provided comparisons to the general population. Our analysis reveals significant findings about Muslim Americans’ mental health during this period, as well as key differences among the community’s various subpopulations (https://www.ispu.org/wp-content/ uploads/2021/08/Methodology-Public-for-Vaccine-Data-EarlyRelease.pdf?x46312).

MUSLIMS REPORT SLIGHTLY HIGHER NEGATIVE MENTAL HEALTH IMPACTS

Overall, Muslim Americans were slightly more likely than the general population to feel nervous, anxious or on edge nearly every day (11% vs. 7%); down, depressed or hopeless more than half the days (27% vs. 20%); and angrier more than half the days (23% vs.

15%). They were also slightly more likely than others to experience other impacts related to mental health, including difficulty sleeping (62% vs. 56%) and increased conflicts with household members for more than half the days (20% vs. 13%).

There were no gender differences in the community as regards experiencing negative mental health impacts. On the other hand, among the general populace, women were more likely than men to feel nervous, anxious or on edge for several days (40% vs. 29%); 28

ISLAMIC HORIZONS JULY/AUGUST 2022

down, depressed or hopeless for several days (40% vs. 29%); and slightly more likely to feel angry for more than half the days (13% vs. 9%). Women in the general populace were also more likely than men to experience difficulty sleeping (34% vs. 27%) and increased conflict with household members on several days (25% vs. 18%).

MUSLIM ELDERS REPORT FEWER MENTAL HEALTH IMPACTS

Muslims aged 18-29 and 30-49 were more likely than Muslims aged 50+ to experience negative mental health impacts, among them feeling nervous, anxious or on edge (65% and 63% vs. 44%,

MUSLIM AMERICANS, A COMMUNITY LONG THOUGHT TO EXPERIENCE HIGH LEVELS OF STIGMA AROUND MENTAL HEALTH DISORDERS, MAY BE REACHING A TURNING POINT WHEN IT COMES TO ACCEPTING MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES.

respectively); down, depressed or hopeless (61% among both 18-29 and 30-49 year olds vs. 42%); and angry (60% among both 18-29 and 30-49 year olds vs 47%). Younger Muslims were also more likely to experience difficulty sleeping (65% and 64% vs. 51%) and household conflicts (46% and 42% vs. 33%). We found the same pattern when looking at age differences in mental health impacts among the general populace.

BLACK MUSLIMS FARE BETTER THAN ARAB, ASIAN AND WHITE MUSLIMS

When looking at mental health impacts by race, we find that among Muslim Americans, Black Muslims are the least likely to report negative mental health symptoms. When it comes to feeling nervous, anxious or on edge, 65% of Arabs, 63% of Asians and 69% of whites report any occurrence, compared with 42% of Black Muslims. Similarly, Black Muslims were the least likely to feel down, depressed or hopeless at all (41% vs. 66% of Arabs, 55% of Asians and 66% of whites), to be angry (41% vs. 63% of Arabs, 57% of Asians and 68% of whites), to experience difficulty sleeping (45% vs. 66% of Arabs, 63% of Asians and 68% of whites) and to experience increased household conflicts (26% vs. 50% of Arabs, 44% of Asians and 51% of whites).

This pattern of racial differences is unique to the American Muslim community. Among the general populace, the study found that, overall, white Americans are less likely than Black and Hispanic Americans to report mental health impacts.

Muslim Americans, a community long thought to experience high levels of stigma around mental health disorders, may be reaching a turning point when it comes to accepting mental health issues. Recent research from the National Alliance on Mental Health suggests that for Americans, overall, the challenges of living through Covid-19 has engendered more openness about mental health challenges (https://nami.org/Support-Education/Publications-Reports/ Survey-Reports/2021-Mood-Disorder-Survey).

These findings also suggest several areas that require further research. Specifically, we need: • More data to capture if and how mental health challenges are evolving throughout the pandemic’s course and different phases.

• A closer qualitative and quantitative look at Muslim subpopulations to better understand their unique stressors and thus develop solutions or therapies that cater to them — for example, younger Muslims.

• To understand if racial disparities in mental health struggles are correlated to different degrees of internalized stigma in different races/cultures.

• A closer qualitative and quantitative look at Muslim subpopulations that are faring better than other groups when it comes to mental health impacts — for example, Black Muslims. Such an analysis will allow experts to identify potential solutions that can be applied and/or tailored to other segments of the Muslim community. ih Erum Ikramullah, research project manager at ISPU, manages the day-to-day activities of the organization’s research studies.

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29

EDUCATION

Who is Responsible for Meeting an Islamic School’s Stated Mission?

A school principal is not just another employee

BY SUFIA AZMAT

G

iven the correlation between fidelity to mission and institutional success, one would expect every school to at least try to ensure that there are policies and procedures in place to regularly review its programs to guarantee mission alignment. Research suggests, however, the existence of a gap between believing that a clear mission should be an integral part of an organization and implementing this belief into policy.

What takes place versus what should ideally happen is driven by leadership. This became clear in principal interviews that I conducted during March 2020. Most interviewees acknowledged the mission statement’s importance while also acknowledging that their current school fell short in actualizing it when it came to school governance. Only four of 14 principals described the development and review of their mission statement as being a collaborative process.

A lack of buy-in through stakeholder involvement also became evident as the principals discussed some of the problems they face with parents’ expectations and engagement. Many of them spoke of the disconnect between what parents claim they want versus their support for school policy — a clear indication of detachment from the mission.

MISSION AND GOVERNANCE

Not only does understanding and believing in a school’s mission drive engagement, but it can also inspire staff to work together and 30

ISLAMIC HORIZONS JULY/AUGUST 2022

be creative in finding new ways to achieve said mission. Innovation and creativity are fundamental to bringing about transformation during times of turbulence due to external pressures. A study conducted by Anthony Burrow, a social psychologist at Cornell University, shows that “short-term goals are not enough to motivate employees;” they must be engaged through a greater sense of purpose.

A purpose-driven organization needs a leader who is also guided by purpose (Sandra Petrova, https://adevait.com/). According to Gerald Grace, Catholic schools are facing a dramatic shift from religious to lay personnel, a development that raises the question of “whether or not some Catholic schools are becoming private schools with a religious memory but a secular presence” (Grace, “Faith, Mission and Challenge in Catholic Education,” 2015).

Islamic schools need to be wary and proactive lest they face the same predicament.

The board is responsible for hiring a principal who will achieve organizational effectiveness while maintaining mission integrity.

Hiring the right principal is the board’s single most important undertaking because a main component of Islamic school mission statements is spiritual formation and Islamic identity. Therefore, this person must be an instructional leader and a faith or spiritual leader.

The same has been affirmed about Catholic school principals for, according to Grace, “there is also an important spiritual dimension to leadership that is apt to be

absent from the concerns of public-school administrators. This spirituality is manifest in the language of community that principals use to describe their schools, and in their actions as they work to achieve the goal of community.”

Moreover, the principal is expected to provide moral leadership. Many of the dilemmas principals face arise from a disjuncture between Islam’s moral teachings

Mission-appropriate hires are more likely to contribute to greater organizational productivity and accountability because of their understanding, agreement and support for the shared organizational purpose (mission) and vision. Van der Vorm stated in her 2001 article, “Hiring Faculty and Administrators for Mission,” that successful hiring is the result of constantly revisiting the mission statement throughout the search process.

HIRING THE RIGHT PRINCIPAL IS THE BOARD’S SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT UNDERTAKING BECAUSE A MAIN COMPONENT OF ISLAMIC SCHOOL MISSION STATEMENTS IS SPIRITUAL FORMATION AND ISLAMIC IDENTITY. THEREFORE, THIS PERSON MUST BE AN INSTRUCTIONAL LEADER AND A FAITH OR SPIRITUAL LEADER.

but that this isn’t embedded in the school’s policies and onboarding materials. She likewise worries about what will happen when there is a new administration, one that isn’t as appreciative of or aligned with the mission as she and her current colleagues are.

The governing body is ultimately responsible for safeguarding a school’s mission.

While administrators and all staff members play a role in achieving the mission, the community must hold the governing body accountable.

The Council of Islamic Schools in North America’s (CISNA) accreditation process addresses these concerns. While communicating high expectations for accredited schools, CISNA’s standards are not prescriptive; rather, they provide a guide to improve schools and a way for school communities to hold themselves accountable for their own missions. To see a list of CISNA-accredited schools, visit https://cisnausa.org/current-members/. ih Sufia Azmat (M. Ed., Bayan Islamic Graduate School) is executive director of the Council of Islamic Schools in North America (CISNA)

and contemporary society’s values. Then there are the double standards of parents who expect schools to teach morality but don’t always set the example at home.

The recruitment, selection and formation of leaders is essential to the future of our community’s schools. The principal interviews conducted for this study, however, suggest that their governing bodies are hiring principals without placing enough weight on whether a prospective principal “fits” within the community’ values and beliefs. The critical agents for translating a community’s formal commitments into a lived school experience are, in the view of Bryk & Schneider, (“Trust in Schools: A Core Resource for Improvement” 2002), the school principals.

MISSION AND THE HIRING PROCESS

A school leader must be able to transmit the sense of mission importance to his or her staff. Staff members’ understanding of the larger impact of their work leads to greater engagement, passionate commitment and motivation. Administrators, teaching and non-teaching staff are more likely to contribute to the school’s success if they understand, agree with and support a shared organizational purpose (mission) and vision.

As Grace states, “Individuals or teams that rally around a core purpose with aligned systems will become a ‘purpose-driven’ and ‘built-to-last organization.’”

Only three of the principals interviewed for this study indicated that this statement played a deliberate role in their hiring process.

The organization’s mission statement helps establish the psychological contract between the organization and new members by indicating what behaviors are expected.

This helps socialize the new members into the organizational culture and prevents mission drift, as well as inspires staff, especially new employees, with a sense of purpose.

One of the principals interviewed expressed a thought that epitomizes how schools may experience mission drift. She spoke of the many ways that the mission is a factor in school operations and decision making. However, when asked if all the examples she gave were transpiring because of a written process or policy or because some of the individuals were currently members of the administration team, she replied that she has been concerned about what will happen if these individuals are no longer in leadership positions. Her response reinforces my theory that individuals, not processes, are driving actions.

Her hiring process doesn’t include a discussion about the mission statement and how it may align with the interviewee’s personal mission or values.

Another principal also voiced her concern, stating that she intuitively looks for employees who will align with the mission,

[This article is a follow up to the previously published “Emerging Themes in Islamic School Mission Statements,” Islamic Horizons, MarchApril 2022, p.36).]

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31

EDUCATION

The Global Association of Islamic Schools

These webinars have been attended by 250 participants worldwide.

he world has seen a proliferation of Islamic schools since the first World Conference on Islamic Education held in Makka (1977). One vital task still remains: to create a unified global body of Islamic school associations, organizations and educators.

Inspired by this need, Zaffar Ahmed (principal, Al Falaah College, Durban, South Africa) reached out to nine Islamic schools associations across the world and arranged a Zoom conference to be held on Nov. 22, 2021. A general working group, along with a steering committee, was then established to bring all Islamic school associations, organizations and schools together under the Global Association of Islamic Schools’ (GAIS) banner (www.gais.network).

The steering committee comprises Zaffar Ahmed (zahmed@gais.network), Sufia Azmat (executive director, Council of Islamic Schools in North America; vice president, Weekend Islamic Schools Educational Resources), Abid Siddiq Omerson (trustee, Omerson Educational Trust) and Yahya Van Rooy (upper-elementary principal,

GAIS is now organizing the next global conference on Islamic education, which will be held in Istanbul during 2025. This date was selected to commemorate the 50th hijri anniversary of the first such event held in Makka during 1977.

The second World Conference on Muslim Education (WCME) was held in Islamabad (1980) under the aegis of Quaid-i-Azam University, the Ministry of Education (Pakistan) and King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah. The third WCME, held in Dhaka (1981), dealt with developing textbooks for all levels. The fourth conference, held in Jakarta (1982), concentrated on teaching methodologies and teacher education courses. The fifth conference, hosted by Egypt’s Muslim Youth Organization (1987), reviewed the previous conferences’ achievements and failures and discussed how to implement the recommendations. The sixth conference was hosted by South Africa’s Association of Muslim Schools (1996). Both the seventh (2009) and eighth (2010) conferences were held in Malaysia.

The Conference’s planning committee intends to visit Istanbul during October 2022 to meet with possible partners, conduct school visits, identify a suitable venue and plan for the ninth conference, to be held during 2023. ih

T

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Next Generation School, Dubai; director of community development, Islamic Schools League of America).

GAIS aspires to co-create the future of Islamic education by uniting and empowering the global K-12 Islamic school community. Current membership includes representatives from Australia, Belgium, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Malaysia, Netherlands, Nigeria, Pakistan, Singapore, South Africa, Turkey, the UAE, the U.K. and the U.S. This body envisions a world in which Islamic schools will impact their communities positively by educating students to embody ihsan (moral, spiritual and intellectual excellence). It seeks to bring Islamic schools together in order to build global solidarity and promote a culture of excellence by providing thought leadership, networking opportunities and research-based standards for a holistic and relevant education.

As of this writing, three webinars have been dedicated to connecting scholars who are conducting research in the field of Islamic education with educators in Islamic schools.

ISLAMIC HORIZONS JULY/AUGUST 2022

GLOBAL CONFERENCE ON ISLAMIC EDUCATION

ISLAMOPHOBIA

Still Suspect: The Impact of Structural Islamophobia

CAIR recorded a 28% increase in hate and bias incidents, which reinforced the fact that many local law enforcement agencies drastically underreport or completely fail to report hate crimes to the FBI’s national database

BY HUZAIFA SHAHBAZ

A

nti-Muslim discrimination continues its rise in the U.S. According to the findings of a 2022 civil rights report by the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the civil rights and advocacy group documented the highest number of complaints ever recorded in the organization’s 27 years.

The report is titled “Still Suspect: The Impact of Structural Islamophobia.” The word “structural” is significant, for it indicates that this prejudice has seeped into every part of our society — government institutions and the public sphere — through laws and policies, political rhetoric and other manifestations.

34

In 2021, CAIR received a total of 6,720 complaints nationwide, a 9% increase from 2020. They range from immigration and travel, workplace discrimination, denial of public accommodations and law enforcement and government overreach to hate and bias incidents, incarceree rights, school incidents, anti-BDS/free speech and other issues. These complaints clearly indicate that government discrimination and bias still have a disproportionate effect on Muslim Americans and that Muslim communities continue to be viewed with suspicion.

The report outlines three different areas to illustrate the impact of this severe structural and interpersonal Islamophobia. The

ISLAMIC HORIZONS JULY/AUGUST 2022

first area provides a detailed breakdown of the civil rights complaints CAIR received.

The organization detailed 2,823 complaints on immigration and travel-related issues alone, making them the most frequent report received for the second year in a row. The 56% increase in immigration complaints since 2020, CAIR argues, may have resulted from the Afghan immigration crisis during summer 2021 and the increased number of Americans traveling as the pandemic eased.

The second area provides a glimpse of Islamophobia’s impact on our community’s lived experiences. It describes many of the anti-Muslim incidents that happened nationwide, such as mosque vandalism, hate

FBI. In addition, they found that 88% of cities don’t report hate crimes at all.

The third area covers the government’s Terrorist Watchlist and No-Fly List to illustrate the continued suspicion of our community. As detailed in the report, the Terrorist Watchlist stigmatizes hundreds of thousands of people worldwide who have not been charged with or convicted of a crime, including many American citizens, as “known or suspected terrorists” without any semblance of due process. Placement on the watchlist can prevent individuals from traveling by air or sea and subject them to enhanced and invasive screening at airports.

An estimated 1.6 million people are currently on this watchlist.

The report closes by offering key recommendations to curb the threat of Islamophobia. One recommendation that could go a far way is for Congress to adopt legislation making federal funding for local law enforcement agencies contingent on them documenting and reporting hate crimes to the FBI’s national database. CAIR argues that this would incentivize local law enforcement to take this threat seriously and

ISLAMOPHOBIA IS A NATIONAL EMERGENCY THAT REQUIRES URGENT ATTENTION. MUSLIM AMERICANS DESERVE TO LIVE IN A COUNTRY WHERE THEY CAN FREELY PRACTICE THEIR FAITH WITHOUT FEAR OF RETALIATION OR RACIAL PROFILING. IT IS THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT’S RESPONSIBILITY TO ENSURE THAT ALL AMERICANS, REGARDLESS OF THEIR FAITH, LIVE IN A FAIR, JUST AND SAFE SOCIETY. crimes, travel incidents and school bullying.

In one disturbing case, a New Jersey high school teacher allegedly told an Arab Muslim student, “We don’t negotiate with terrorists,” when he asked for more time to complete his homework.

In fact, CAIR documented a 28% increase in hate and bias incidents, which reinforced the fact that many local law enforcement agencies are drastically underreporting, or completely failing to report, hate crimes to the FBI’s national database. According to reporting done by Axios, law enforcement agencies around the country are opting not to share statistics about hate crimes with the

could help the public and federal government gain a more comprehensive understanding of the challenges facing Muslim Americans.

Islamophobia is a national emergency that requires urgent attention. Muslim Americans deserve to live in a country where they can freely practice their faith without fear of retaliation or racial profiling. It is the federal government’s responsibility to ensure that all Americans, regardless of their faith, live in a fair, just and safe society. ih Huzaifa Shahbaz, who holds a BA in sociology from UC Santa Cruz and a MA in religious studies from the Graduate Theological Union, is a senior researcher and advocate at CAIR.

JULY/AUGUST 2022 ISLAMIC HORIZONS

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ISLAMOPHOBIA

Islamophobia: It’s Worse than you Think!

Nazita Lajevardi explores the political status of Muslim Americans

BY SANDRA WHITEHEAD

citizens in the U.S. (American’s Human Rights Challenge, https://www.migrationpolicy.org/), the pervasive anti-Muslim rhetoric of candidates in the 2016 and 2018 campaign seasons and President Donald Trump’s travel ban on majority-Muslim countries, she writes.

In a recent interview, the Michigan State University assistant professor explains how her research validates the anxieties she felt growing up Muslim American. “The totality of the evidence suggests that the exclusion I was sensing is, in fact, real and that it is far more pervasive than I had thought.”

GROWING UP MUSLIM AMERICAN

“

At 14 years old, I learned membership in the United States is not permanent,” Nazita Lajevardi, Ph.D., J.D., wrote in “Outsiders at Home: The Politics of American Islamophobia” (Cambridge University Press, 2020). In the aftermath of 9/11, this daughter of Iranian immigrants saw Muslimas remove their hijabs and Muslim families put American flag stickers on their cars. “My community immediately camouflaged as they waited for the heightened scrutiny on us to dissipate,” she says.

In the months and years that followed, the spotlight on Muslim Americans intensified with the war in Afghanistan, the U.S. invasion of Iraq and President George W. Bush’s declaration of the “Axis of Evil.” While Lajevardi and her friends worried about prom and college applications, they overheard their parents whisper about buying property abroad and moving to escape “the rising tide of harassment and discrimination. We heard … and we understood that despite having felt ‘at home,’ we were never really welcome.”

Since then, the stigmatism of Muslims has grown in the U.S. with the implementation 36

of numerous surveillance programs targeting Muslim communities, the rise of ISIS, the prolonged detention of Middle Eastern

MANY OF US HAVE FELT THAT EVERY TIME YOU TURNED ON THE NEWS, IT WAS ABOUT MUSLIMS.

BY PUTTING NUMBERS TO IT, WE SEE THAT, IN FACT, THE MEDIA IS PORTRAYING MUSLIMS AT HIGH RATES. AND WHEN IT DOES, THAT COVERAGE IS NEGATIVE AND IS IMPACTING AMERICAN ATTITUDES TOWARD MUSLIMS.

ISLAMIC HORIZONS JULY/AUGUST 2022

Lajevardi was raised in a “somewhat religious” household in Orange County, Calif.

“I went to Sunday school where nobody wore a hijab. It was more about spirituality, Sufism and mysticism,” she said. Most of her high school friends were Christian, Hindu or Catholic.

As the children of immigrants, Lajevardi and her friends navigated issues like “my friends are drinking and wearing short skirts, and my mom says I can’t do that and I can’t have a boyfriend,” she says. “They had to ask themselves, ‘Do I feel that faith, or is that my parents’ faith? How do I adapt?’

“Now a researcher, I understand. We, the non-Black children of immigrants, were a subset (about 25%) of the small Muslim population in America.” And there are only eight states in which Muslims compose more than 100,000 residents.

When Lajevardi went to Boston College, “for the first time in my life, all my friends were Muslims. During Ramadan, the university had iftars for us every night. I went to jumaa prayer with my friends. When I had to figure out what it means to go to frat parties and practice Islam, I could navigate it with my Muslim friends. I felt so uniquely supported in a way I never had before,” she says.

After one year of college, Lajevardi’s parents couldn’t afford to send her back. She transferred to a local community college.

But a decision she made in Boston — to fast every Friday and go to jumaa prayer – “grounded me in my faith,” she says.

Then “God opened a door I didn’t see coming,” Lajevardi says about her acceptance to the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) on a full scholarship. “God had equipped me that first year of school with all the tools of my faith, and then He had this path for me.”

At UCLA, she found another community of Muslim friends and continued to grow as a Muslim. “I have a very deep faith,” says Lajevardi, who doesn’t wear a hijab but has made umra four times.

“God has done everything for me.

Everything. None of this is me.” Holding up her book “Outsiders at Home,” Lajevardi says, “I feel with this book I’m so blessed that God wanted to do something in this world and I had a chance to do it.”

FROM LAW SCHOOL TO RESEARCH

After graduating magna cum laude in political science and French, Lajevardi went to law school at the University of San Francisco.

While there, she researched Section 215 of the Patriot Act, which authorizes the use of court orders requiring third parties like telephone companies to provide any records deemed relevant to international terrorism.

Use of the Patriot Act has often been criticized for abuse and overreach.

“I was given space to see how different courts had been interpreting it and applying it. For the first time, I saw the devastating toll just one small section of the Patriot Act had taken on Muslim lives here in the United States. For me that was profound.

It was perhaps the first time in my life this crazy reality I felt internally in myself, in my family and in my community was actually validated in the outside world.”

Meanwhile, Lajevardi accepted a position as an assistant district attorney in Sacramento County and was studying for the bar. “But something kept nagging at me,” she recalls. “Practically no one was studying Muslims. Nobody thought these issues were worth exploring.” She passed the bar, but declined the job and opted to pursue doctoral studies at the University of California, San Diego instead.

INVESTIGATING U.S. ISLAMOPHOBIA

Lajevardi began her academic career in 2017 in Sweden at Uppsala University. As a researcher on the CONPOL project, she explored how individuals’ involvement in politics is shaped by their social contexts. In 2018, she joined Michigan State University’s (MSU) political science department, where she also serves as an affiliated faculty in MSU’s Muslim Studies Program and at its College of Law. A prolific researcher, since 2017 Lajevardi has produced numerous academic journal articles and book chapters and won

many grants. She co-authored “Race and Representative Bureaucracy in American Policing” (Palgrave, 2017) and co-edited “Understanding Muslim Political Life in America: Contested Citizenship in the Twenty-First Century” (Temple University Press, 2018).

Cambridge University Press recently published two of her books: (1) “Outsiders at Home,” a comprehensive examination of discrimination against Muslim Americans today that provides overwhelming evidence of strong negative bias against Muslim Americans by the American public, media and political elites (this bias has “stark implications for the quality of Muslim American participation and representation in American democracy,” she comments.), and (2) “(Mis)Informed: What Americans Know About Social Groups and Why it Matters for Politics” (2021), co-authored with Marisa Abrajano.

Lajevardi worked for six years on another research, “The Media Matters: Muslim American Portrayals and the Effects on Mass Attitudes,” published in The Journal of Politics (July 2021). Her article was the first to empirically assess cable news coverage of Muslim Americans (increasingly negative) and to consider how this coverage affects American public opinion (it creates hostility toward Muslim Americans).

Lajevardi has just completed a sabbatical at Oxford University’s Rothermere American Institute, which supports “world-leading scholarship” on the U.S., where she was exploring a variety of research projects regarding Muslim identity and anti-Muslim sentiments.

In a Q & A, Lajevardi discusses her findings on the current state of Islamophobia in the U.S. • How bad is Islamophobia in America?

It is far more pervasive than I had sensed. Muslims reside in select states, so the experiences we have as a collective doesn’t approach, even closely, where the country is and has been. In many ways, we have been shielded from it.

If it felt terrible, we don’t even know the half of it. It is rampant and incredibly powerful, affecting the lives of millions of people.

• What is the status of Muslim Americans in American democracy?

Negative attitudes toward Muslim Americans are pervasive, and these attitudes matter for vote choice and policy preferences.

• Did you find anything that surprised you?

Many of us have felt that every time you turned on the news, it was about Muslims. By putting numbers to it, we see that, in fact, the media is portraying Muslims at high rates. And when it does, that coverage is negative and is impacting American attitudes toward Muslims.

• Did you find anything that gives you hope?

We are no longer talking about issuebased politics. Gone are the days when our parents could come out and say no to gay marriage or yes on a two-state solution. We are no longer thinking about politics on these issues. We can’t afford to as a community. All we can do is ally ourselves on one side or another. It gives me hope that Muslim Americans have found ways to create coalitions with other racialized groups and the progressive political agenda.

I want to encourage Muslim Americans to work with scholars studying Muslim Americans, especially those of us from the community who are spending our lives trying to help in the ways we can. Support scholarship that supports Muslims and share it with family members and friends. It empowers us as Muslims; it gives us visibility. ih Sandra Whitehead is an author, journalist and long-time adjunct instructor of journalism and media studies in the J. William and Mary Diederich College of Communication at Marquette University.

[Editor’s Note: An earlier version of this story appeared in the Wisconsin Muslim Journal.]

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WOMEN IN SCIENCE

Muslim Women in STEM: A Minority Within a Minority Three women share the ups and downs of pursuing higher education, from dealing with misogynistic thinking to imposter syndrome

BY SABIHA BASIT

B

eing a Muslima in the fields of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) is a rare commodity or, as Nida Rehmani, Ph.D. (mentor, Global STEM Alliance and professional member of the New York Academy of Sciences) stated, “You are a minority within a minority.”

In the 21st century, women from all over the world are challenging sociocultural norms by breaking out of the traditional stereotypes and pursuing higher education to fulfill their aspirations and even bring in some income for themselves and their families. However, as men dominate the Nida Rehmani STEM workforce, what’s it really like to be a Muslima in STEM? Do they experience imposter syndrome? How has their faith helped them achieve this path? Three women share their journey on what it’s like to pursue a STEM field.

According to DataProt, women hold only 24% of computing jobs.

Sabiheen Abdul (Lead Associate, Booz Allen Hamilton) is one of them.

“I [currently] implement IT processes and to put it simply, I make sure that systems are talking to one another. I chose IT because it is a very stable career [as] technology only grows and those skills are transferable across industries. My dad [also] works in IT, and I felt it was very natural to pursue Sabiheen Abdul this path because growing up, this was the world I already knew and was familiar with.”

Sabiheen has largely faced support and even encouragement from her colleagues to practice her faith in the corporate environment.

“Before the COVID-19 pandemic, I would use a room to pray and one day [my company] decided to start remodeling the building, which would result in removal of the room I used to pray in. My boss informed me of the change but reassured me that he would figure out a way that I could have a place to pray in. They called up one of 38

ISLAMIC HORIZONS JULY/AUGUST 2022

our vice presidents and said, ‘You can’t get rid of this room because Sabiheen uses it to pray!’ and they found a way to preserve another space for me.

They were able to guard my prayer better than I would have been able to and that’s how I knew that Allah placed me here, with these people, who were chosen to help retain the importance of Islamic deen in my life.”

The path to becoming an assistant engineer at the highly regarded Booz Allen Hamilton, a leading professional services company, wasn’t easy.

“Imposter syndrome is very real.

We are either immigrants, or in my case, children of immigrants, and we come from societies and cultures that don’t always promote women working. However, these are created cultural barriers, but not a reality of our Islamic deen,” Sabiheen said.

Oftentimes, many non-Muslims and even Muslims believe women are not capable of being educated and joining the workforce. However, many don’t realize that Islam promotes women’s education and rights.

“As a society, we have to embrace and understand that a Muslim women’s role is the same as a [Muslim] man’s, which is to, first and foremost, worship Allah. Then, Islam has shown us the tradition of Muslim women working, like Khadijah (‘alayhi rahmat), who was a [very successful] businesswoman. Through all those years, [however,] we’ve had to reteach those practices and traditions.”

Another successful woman in STEM, Rehmani, agrees with Sabiheen.

“During the time of the Prophet Muhammad (salla Allahu ‘alayhi wa sallam), there was no discrimination [against] women acquiring knowledge. When I read the Quran with meaning, it addresses both men and women for modesty. Yes, there are biological differences and responsibilities, but in terms of rights and equality, Islam is

“For Muslim women, you are a minority within a minority. I can talk to people with great confidence intellectually. But when [you] feel those microaggressions, you can suffer from imposter syndrome sometimes. You do feel a little invisible, like when you have ideas and you are not getting the visibility or acceptance because you are a minority.”

However, despite these challenges and more, she would still go back to do her doctorate all over again.

“I would never undo my higher education and degree, because it’s not just [about having] a job. It’s about the training and [being] a leader. You are an inventor of an idea, and I apply my training in my daily life …” Rehmani said.

Another Muslima excelling in STEM is Dr. Nahar Sultana (president and founder, International Society of Muslim Women in Science). She has a Ph.D. in atomic theory and is a practicing Muslima.

“Being in STEM, I feel I am in the right place. Allah tells us to find the mystery of His creations. I am interested in finding them, and STEM is helping me to understand what and how things are Dr. Nahar Sultana happening in nature [and] in the universe. The amount of knowledge our Creator has put in them is simply enormous and overwhelming, I am studying [just] a tiny part of it,” Dr. Nahar said.

OFTENTIMES, MANY NON-MUSLIMS AND “Religion among Academic Scientists: Distinctions, Disciplines, and Demographics,” a EVEN MUSLIMS BELIEVE WOMEN ARE NOT study conducted by Elaine Ecklund and CAPABLE OF BEING EDUCATED AND JOINING research Christopher Scheitle, found physics to be the highTHE WORKFORCE. HOWEVER, MANY DON’T est academic discipline whose practitioners do not believe in God’s existence — 40.8% of scientists REALIZE THAT ISLAM PROMOTES stated their non-belief.

WOMEN’S EDUCATION AND RIGHTS. “There may be [scientists] who are smart but do not want to believe, but there are also smart people who do believe in God. For example, Isaac Newton was very religious, and even Einstein folvery pro-women. Women have the right to property, the right to lowed Judaism and supported Israel. If someone doesn’t want to mahar and the right to have our [own] finances. We don’t have believe, then it doesn’t matter [because] they won’t be able to find any responsibility to spend on the family/house. But you don’t see the connection [to God] and truth. I find a connection. Allah has this type of thinking reflected in South Asian culture. Instead, you created so much, and everything has discipline. As the Quran see the opposite.” says, everything is measurable. Even in chaos there is something Rehmani also faced similar struggles of imposter syndrome, as consistent and a pattern. It’s not a random phenomenon. I [perwell as prejudice from her Indian hometown’s residents for going sonally] see the connection to God [and] to the nature around me to the U.S. to pursue higher education. through consistency. The universe is so big. Allah did not create it “I heard [people saying] things from my town [to me] such as: [just] to ignore it. He created it for us to use whatever is in it and ‘Do you really want to go to another country? You are married, understand it,” she said. what are you going to do there? Will you be able to complete your Despite the challenges each woman faced, from dealing with degree? I think you should have given the position to someone else imposter syndrome to being subjected to backwards thinking, they who is more deserving.’ I [also] felt my male professors in India were persevered and kept their faith strong. And now they are leading the way for the young generation of Muslim girls. undermining my determination to complete my degree.”

Rehmani, who wears the hijab, described feelings of microag“I would advise women to remember what Islam teaches us. gression from both men and women at Ohio State University, which First and foremost, your job is to worship Allah, and then pursue selected her to be part of the 21st century Obama Singh Knowledge what is of interest to you, whether that’s a career or not, as long as it is permissible in the realm of Islam. I would also advise women Initiative program “Definitely it was a culture shock when I came here, as I did coming into the workforce to work with others - not against people, observe some microaggression. During the day I would run up respect people, do good work and humble yourself. Then, watch and down the biomedical research tower. I used to get looks from how Allah honors you and opens doors for you.” Sabiheen said. ih scientists, like ‘What is she doing here?’ I [also] used to perform Sabiha S. Basit, a biology graduate from George Mason University, was staff writer for the Fourth prayers in the building and do ablution in the bathroom. They Estate, the school’s official student-run news outlet. She is currently working as a freelance writer and would come in and see me, and I would get weird looks. in education. She and her family reverted in 2021.

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MEET THE SCHOLAR On the Frontier Where Faith, Ethics and Medicine Meet

Aasim Padela explores intersections of religious identity, bioethics and health

BY SANDRA WHITEHEAD

I

nternationally reco gnized thought and research leader Aasim Padela, M.D., has a history of hiking into uncharted territory. An academic Daniel Boone, the Medical College of Wisconsin professor explores research domains that do not yet exist.

Padela’s multidisciplinary research clears new fields to unite ethics, medicine and religious studies. He uses a range of tools from community surveys to assess healthcare disparities to narrative discourse analysis to consider how Muslims are portrayed.

In his “elevator speech,” Padela explains, “I use Muslim Americans and Islam as a model to study how religious identity impacts health behaviors and healthcare experiences, as well as the professional identities of doctors and their practice. I also explore the bioethical guidance Islam offers to patients, providers, policymakers and religious leaders.”

With wisps of gray in his beard, Padela, 41, says it’s time to lead others into the clearing he has staked out in the wilderness.

A DEFINING MOMENT

Born in New York, Padela is the son of immigrants from Pakistan who came to America in the 1970s for postgraduate studies. “Our household was very religious,” he recalls.

“I was very comfortable with my identity as a Muslim.”

Padela graduated from the University of Rochester with dual degrees in biomedical engineering and classical Arabic language and literature. As a young man, he “had a long beard and wore a kufi all the time.”

He calls 9/11 “the inflection point” of his life. “Let me tell you the story,” he says.

“I am a first-year medical student at Weill Cornell Medical College in Manhattan on the Upper East Side, looking forward to becoming a physician. I have had EMT paramedic training.

“After the first class, we have a break.

I go outside and some people say a plane 40

‘Aasim, you need to know the patient-doctor relationship is a place where you can inform understandings. A good doctor needs to know about his patient, and a good patient needs to know about their doctor. Two worldviews meet there. You can decide to build bridges of understanding between who you are and what your faith means or not.' That leads directly to what I do now. My entire scholarly enterprise comes from that day.”

SETTING OUT ON HIS OWN

Aasim Padela (center) at the 5th International and Interdisciplinary Conference on Health, Culture and the Human Body in Istanbul, Turkey, in 2018.

hit the World Trade Center. We go into the second class a little after 9 o’clock. The medical school deans come into the auditorium; we don’t know why. Someone says another plane just hit the second tower and the first building has gone down. The dean says, ‘Classes are cancelled. Go call your families.’

“Immediately, I went to a friend’s dorm room to see the TV. We saw the second tower go down. I thought, ‘What can I do? I can pray and I can do service.’” Padela and his friends went to the emergency department and volunteered, but in four hours only two people came in.

“I say, ‘Let’s go down to Chelsea Piers to do triage.’ I tried to get on the MTA (Metropolitan Transportation Authority) bus, but the doors didn’t open for me. When I tried another MTA bus, the doors didn’t open. Then it clicked. I realized everyone was worried because I was visibly a Muslim.

I knew then that who Muslims are in this society was going to change forever.

“The next morning, the dean called a town hall meeting. I remember sitting with the 110 or so medical students and someone makes the comment, ‘Now Americans know how Israelis feel every day with Muslim terrorists trying to disrupt their peace.’

“I was one of two Muslim students in there. I got up and left the room in front of the auditorium.

“Later that day, the dean said to me,

ISLAMIC HORIZONS JULY/AUGUST 2022

In his fourth year of medical school, Padela chose to take a medical ethics elective that Cornell offered in Qatar, where the university was thinking about adopting a medical oath that respected Muslim cultural and religious traditions. He “read everything, literally everything, written in English on Islamic medical ethics,” he recalls. “I wanted to help medical students there feel secure in what their tradition says. I was trying to be a cultural liaison, as I was literate in the Islamic tradition.”

Padela graduated in 2005 and was matched for residency in emergency medicine at the University of Rochester. “Fast forward to my second year of residency. I did research on Muslim physicians to understand how their faith identity intersected with the practice of medicine. I wanted to discover points of conflict.”

After seeing his work, two research-oriented faculty members encouraged Padela to pursue a research fellowship. Another professor told him that the Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholars Program would be the top program for gaining research skills and would fund his studies. Padela proposed research on health disparities among Muslim patients and Muslim providers.

“I was asked in one interview what I thought the biggest barrier to my getting into the program would be. I said it will be whether they want to fund a Muslim American or not, especially because I wanted to do research on Muslim Americans and nobody does that work.” The University of Michigan accepted him into the program.

Two years later, the chair of the committee that had selected Padela pulled him aside at a conference to tell him, “I had to advocate very hard to have you accepted, because you are doing original work. No one else in the country is doing this.”

After three years in the program, Padela earned a master’s degree in health and healthcare research. “I did all these projects

on Muslim Americans. It was a great intellectual environment, and my emergency medicine chair and I got along very well.”

The University of Michigan offered Padela a faculty post, but the University of Chicago recruited him. “I was charmed by the idea that I would have pieces of myself in the divinity school, the ethics center and the medical school and would be able to create a program,” he says.

Along the way, he married and fathered four children. His wife earned a doctorate degree and now does educational consulting work.

Padela (center) discussing Islamic bioethics at the Conference on Health-related Issues and Islamic Normativity at the University of Hamburg, Germany.

PAVING THE WAY FOR OTHERS TO FOLLOW

TWO YEARS LATER, THE CHAIR OF THE COMMITTEE THAT HAD SELECTED PADELA PULLED HIM ASIDE AT A CONFERENCE TO TELL HIM, “I HAD TO ADVOCATE VERY HARD TO HAVE YOU ACCEPTED, BECAUSE YOU ARE DOING ORIGINAL WORK. NO ONE ELSE IN THE COUNTRY IS DOING THIS.”

BLAZING NEW TRAILS

In nine years as an associate professor of emergency medicine at the University of Chicago, and as a faculty member in its MacLean Center for Clinical Medical Ethics, Padela joined a group from both medicine and religious studies who explore the intersection of religion, ethics and medicine. He enjoys creating multidisciplinary research opportunities as the director of the Program on Medicine and Religion, and has founded an interdisciplinary platform for research, dialogue and education: the Initiative on Islam and Medicine.

“At the core, my interest is at the intersection of two fields — the Islamic tradition and biomedicine. That is the scholarship I [have] pursued for some 15 odd years,” Padela says.

Padela’s 100+ peer-reviewed research articles and book chapters look at issues like organ donation, healing, genetic engineering and withdrawal of life support through an Islamic lens. At the same time, he assesses health disparities in the Muslim community by considering such topics as the impact of the Muslim ban executive order, beliefs about modesty as regards healthcare utilization, as well as the efficacy of mosque-based education on medical issues. His work has

“Our Muslim community has not yet built scholarly foundations to address our own healthcare needs or to have academic enterprises that analyze issues from a Muslim perspective. We need to give voice to those scholars who can do that. We need to coalesce centers and institutions and funders and research centers around that.”

Padela is leading the charge. But, “every few years, the challenge is to get the next grant and then the next. Being as gray-haired as I am now, I can’t live like that all the time.”

been featured in The New York Times, USA Today, the Chicago Tribune, the Washington Post, National Public Radio, BBC and CNN. Funding is always the challenge, he says.

“No money, no mission. The reality on the ground, if you are an academician in medicine, is you can do clinical work to support your research or you can pursue grants and endowments so that your research and educational enterprises are paid for.

“If within that sphere you are doing Muslim health research, there is almost no money. My focus has been on two domains: Muslim health and healthcare disparities and Islamic bioethics. There is no institute interested in Muslim healthcare disparities per se. There are no foundations that focus on Muslim Americans as a strategic priority population.

“The way the United States looks at disparities are racial, ethnic and sexual orientation. We do not look at disparities of religious communities. However, there are disparities and we have to look at them. But they are not first, second, third, fourth or fifth line of priority for funding. And Islamic bioethics doesn’t exist as an academic field.

“Even now in my academic career, I have to justify why I am writing about the Muslim population or why I am drawing on Islamic precepts,” Padela exclaims.

With his recent move to the Medical College of Wisconsin, Padela’s focus has shifted from blazing trails to building roads. “Research is a part of my life, but not the only thing I do,” he said. “I have crossed that bridge and been successful.”

With an eye to developing the next generation of researchers, Padela is now focusing on using his position as the Emergency Medical Department’s vice chair of research and scholarship to create opportunities for young scholars following his path. He is mentoring five medical students “to increase the awareness that they can do this line of work. I have models I deployed in Chicago and other places [that] I would like to help junior researchers implement.

“I see myself in more of the thought leader, mentor role. I will do my own research in the community and give others opportunities to run with it. They will learn skill sets and be able to do their own projects.

I look forward to being a coach, mentor and advisor.”

On the Islamic bioethics sphere, Padela recently published two books and is writing another one. “I would like to complete those projects as a service to the academy and the next generation of folks thinking about this domain, to increase awareness of healthcare disparities and consider how we can help the healthcare system be more culturally sensitive and have [a] better inclusion and accommodation of religious identity.

“I’m in the academy because I want to generate new knowledge. Hopefully, it will be beneficial.” ih Sandra Whitehead is an author, journalist and long-time adjunct instructor of journalism and media studies in the J. William and Mary Diederich College of Communication at Marquette University.

[Editor’s Note: An earlier version of this story appeared in the Wisconsin Muslim Journal.]

JULY/AUGUST 2022 ISLAMIC HORIZONS

41

ENVIRONMENT

Al-Mizan: A Covenant for the Earth Humanity has thrown God’s creation out of order

BY ISNA GREEN INITIATIVE TEAM

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ccording to Islam’s teachings, humanity enacts the Divine will in our divinely instituted role as khalifat al-ard (steward, guardian, protector) of our common home, Mother Earth.

We’ve been given the unique ability and, along with it, the awesome responsibility to freely choose how to act in and upon Earth. According to this understanding, we have been charged with the trust (33:72), meaning to behave justly, fairly and with the utmost goodness toward all others, as well as to administer everything placed under our control and use.

Humanity fulfills this duty by maintaining the natural cosmic order of balance, for “The Sun and Moon move according to plan, the stars and the trees prostrate. And He raised the heaven and imposed the balance (mizan), so don’t transgress within the balance. Maintain the weights with justice, and don’t violate the balance” (55:5-9).

When we began to consider ourselves Earth’s real and sole owners, as having absolute dominion over it and all its other inhabiWHEN WE BEGAN TO CONSIDER OURSELVES tants and natural resources, as well as having the right to treat them as we please, our home EARTH’S REAL AND SOLE OWNERS, AS HAVING began to fall apart. This reality has led to the ABSOLUTE DOMINION OVER IT AND ALL ITS OTHER ongoing climate emergency and existential threat in which we now find ourselves.

INHABITANTS AND NATURAL RESOURCES, AS WELL The impacts of climate change (e.g., AS HAVING THE RIGHT TO TREAT THEM AS WE stronger storms and more erratic and extreme weather events) threaten human PLEASE, OUR HOME BEGAN TO FALL APART. life, healthy communities and critical infrastructure. Catastrophes (e.g., famines, dangerous heat waves, droughts, fires, floods, plagues like the zoonotic Covid-19 virus) leave trauma and grief in their wake.

These three are limited public resources, and These are already being felt across ecosystems and all of our planet’s communities human rights demand free access to them. They’re and economies, and will only get worse if immediate action isn’t taken. not to be privatized by corporations who put profit Our greed for more, driven equally by the soaring arrogance of conspicuous over people. Instead, we must share these life-enabling consumption and the unbridled and insatiable corporate greed of the few, has resources equitably and sustainably among all of our driven us to this scary situation. All of this comes at the expense of the poorest planet’s inhabitants, as well as secure them sustainably and most vulnerable of our human family: those who contribute the least to global for future generations warming yet pay the highest price in terms of its devastating effects and harms.

Social, environmental, racial and economic justice We’ve ignored the Prophet’s (salla Allahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) wisdom and guid- are inextricably entwined. Climate change, pollution ance that "Muslims are partners in three — water, pasture and fire — and their and environmental degradation and destruction have price is unlawful” (Ahmed, Ibn Maja, Hadith no: 2472, cited on the authority exacerbated systemic racial, regional, social, environof Ibn Abbas). mental and economic injustices. And who has been the 42

ISLAMIC HORIZONS JULY/AUGUST 2022

most disproportionately affected: the Indigenous peoples; communities of color; migrant, deindustrialized and depopulated rural communities; the poor, low-income workers, women, the elderly, the unhoused, people with disabilities, youth who collectively make up our frontline and vulnerable communities in general.

Only transformational and radical change on all levels can reset and restore the natural balance and order and thereby make a true difference for our descendants and the planet’s future.

Al-Mizan: A Covenant for the Earth (https://www.unep.org/al-mizan-covenant-earth) is a novel international, intersectional and multi-organizational and institutional undertaking by Sunni and Shia scholars, academicians, environmental leaders and activists worldwide. Their institutions have teamed up with Faith for Earth at the United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP); the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization; the Islamic Foundation for Ecology and Environmental Science; Uskudar University (Istanbul), the Qur’anic Botanic Garden and the College of Islamic Studies and Hamad Bin Khalifa University (Qatar) to draft it.

Imam Saffet Catovic, a member of Al-Mizan’s scholars drafting team, observed, “This historical collective undertaking is one which will, insha Allah, be a game changer in bringing to the fore Islamic perspectives on the environment and guidance for effectively addressing the many interlocking crises of the global climate emergency based on Islam’s teachings.”

This document takes its name and inspiration from the verses cited above. It builds upon the legacy of Islamic and Muslims’ scholarship on the environment (fiqh al-biyya), ecology coupled with the broad lived experiences of eco/environmental activists and impacted communities, as well as the important prior

foundational work found in the Islamic Declaration on Global Climate Change and similar international statements. This restatement and rearticulation of the Islamic principles governing Earth’s protection and guardianship and all its inhabitants meets today’s complex global challenges. In addition, it examines the ethics behind the social patterning of human existence and inquires into how they can be brought to life and reintegrated and connected by working in harmony with the heartbeat and rhythms of the natural world.

Environmentalism is deeply embedded in the veins of Islam. It’s about personal behavior and how we manifest it while interacting with others, about being conscious and considerate while interacting with the natural world and all sentient beings, who, as both our neighbors and fellow worshippers, have rights upon us.

These principles grew out of the foundations emanating from the life example and practices of the Prophet, who was sent as a mercy to the worlds and “walked gently upon the Earth” (25:63), and codified over the millennia into a range of rules and institutions that manifested a truly holistic expression of life. This holistic approach can be distilled into encouraging the public good, enjoining the right and forbidding the wrong and always acting in moderation, “Let there be a community among you that calls for what is good, urges what is right and forbids what is wrong. They are the ones who succeed” (3:104).

As a religious responsibility, the ISNA Green Initiative Team urges Muslim communities and individuals to do their part by adopting practices that alleviate environmental degradation. ih ISNA Green Initiative Team members: Huda Alkaff, Safet Catovic, Nana Firman, Uzma Mirza and Saiyid Masroor Shah (chair).

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JULY/AUGUST 2022 ISLAMIC HORIZONS

43

THE MUSLIM WORLD

Another Successful Regime Change

Pakistan — Going once, going twice, sold!

BY AMBREEN AMBER

Under the imposed junta, police and law enforcers served as goons to suppress PTI’s May 25th rally

R

egime change occurred in Pakistan during the second week of April. Shortly after this event, Waqas (@worqas) tweeted — or maybe retweeted — “Congratulations on successfully removing Pakistani Mosaddegh [the CIA-ousted nationalist Iranian prime minister]. We saw what it took. Great job. This will end well.”

Imran Khan, who heads the Pakistan Tehrike Insaf (PTI) and was elected prime minister in August 2018, has been officially voted out of office. Opposition leader Shahbaz Sharif, president of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and out on bail for money laundering, is now prime minister.

Former six-term Rep. Cynthia Ann McKinney (D-Ga.) stated that Washington was hardly an innocent bystander, as it claims. The reasons: Khan refused to condemn Russia, join the sanctions war, let the CIA use Pakistan and was ardently pro-Palestinian.

Lo and behold! The country is now ruled by a 16-party Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) government, effectively a PML-N (Sharif family) and Pakistan Peoples Party (Zardari family) joint venture.

Moeed Pirzada (CEO & editor, Global Village Space; TV Anchor at 92 News) remarked that Washington must be surprised how easy it was — “just hire a few greedy, ambitious characters and you can do a regime change.”

THE PROCESS

The Supreme Court refused to admit PTI’s review petition against its April 7 decision – saying that it was submitted after office hours. However, it did so to institute a suo moto action to negate the National Assembly’s deputy speaker’s order that the vote of no-confidence (VNC) was inadmissible and ordered that it could not be held. The Supreme Court opened at midnight, and the Islamabad High Court sat at midnight. Why? To block 44

Khan’s rumored actions.

On March 7, Khan’s government argued that Asad Majeed Khan, the then-Pakistani ambassador to the U.S., was told a day before the opposition formally filed the VNC, that relations with Pakistan depended on the vote’s success and that Pakistan’s path would be very difficult if it failed. Apparently, the State Department wanted the message conveyed because an embassy note-taker sat in plain sight.

Asad Khan presented the issue before the country’s National Security Council. After the judicial coup, the military declared that the U.S. had merely intervened. Prime Minister Sharif quickly reconvened the council. Asad Khan restated his view, and the regime’s propagandists repeated that it was an intervention but not a conspiracy.

Meanwhile, Supreme Court chief justice Bandial invited Shehbaz Sharif (PML-N) and Bilawal BhuttoZardari (PPP) to address the court; Imran Khan was not. Instead, the judge chided Khan after his colossal Peshawar rally and unashamedly cited the incorrect figure of “10-15,000” given by a hardline anti-Khan TV presenter.

On March 21, Khan’s government sought the court’s interpretation of a law that bars lawmakers from switching sides. The judgment – however favorable — that could have helped Khan oust those who had betrayed his party, was announced on May 17 after the deed was done.

The court’s bias favors Khan’s opponents. For instance, then Supreme Court chief justice Saqib Nisar dismissed the Rs 8.3 billion fake bank account charges against Bilawal on Jan. 7, 2019, referring to “innocent Bilawal” who had come to Pakistan to continue his mother’s [Benazir] legacy. He also asked, “Was Bilawal’s name added to the list to defame him?”

On Dec. 15, 2021, Minallah absolved Zardari in the reference against his Manhattan 524 East 72 Street property purchased through fake bank accounts transactions.

In short, the first quarter of 2022 saw a handful of Pakistanis sell their motherland for a pittance.

“BUY ME, SIR. I’M VERY CHEAP”

The New York Times’ Elisabeth Bumiller (“How Bhutto Won Washington,” Dec. 30, 2007) wrote that former U.S. ambassador Peter W. Galbraith, Benazir’s

FORMER SIX-TERM REP. CYNTHIA ANN MCKINNEY (D-GA.) STATED THAT WASHINGTON WAS HARDLY AN INNOCENT BYSTANDER, AS IT CLAIMS. THE REASONS: KHAN REFUSED TO CONDEMN RUSSIA, JOIN THE SANCTIONS WAR, LET THE CIA USE PAKISTAN AND WAS ARDENTLY PRO-PALESTINIAN.

ISLAMIC HORIZONS JULY/AUGUST 2022

longtime friend from her Harvard days, On record, the Sharifs own no American “spen[t] a lot of time talking about what real estate; however, their British interests messages she needed to convey.” He added, are there. U.S. and British shared interests are no secret.

“She was this completely charming, beautiful The U.S. categorcally denies the allegawoman who could flatter the senators, and tion; and the U.K. seconds the denial. who could read their political concerns, who could persuade them that she would much better serve American interests in LOW-COST ASSETS Afghanistan than [Gen.] Zia.” In practice, no governments run charities.

Husain Haqqani, a former Pakistan They exist to subtly serve national interests — ambassador, Benazir adviser, and professor after all, taxpayers fund them to serve them. (international relations, Boston University), The U.S. National Endowment for Democracy (NED), known in Latin told Bumiller that Benazir’s Washington network helped her overcome Pakistan’s America as the “National Endowment for An overwhelming number of Pakistanis resent powerful army and intelligence service’s Destabilization” — a CIA front for regime having an under-trial person as head of opposition to her becoming prime minister. change — continues to grant fellowships government Bumiller reported, “For the first six to Pakistani journalists. The few that months of 2007, the firm Burson-Marsteller instantly come to mind are diehard critics took in fees of close to $250,000 for work on behalf of Ms. Bhutto.” One wonders of Imran Khan, such Nadeem F. Paracha (Dawn), where this money came from, for Zardari is not known for parting with money. Raza Rumi (Ithaca College, New York; Naya Daur David Morrison (www.david-morrison.org.uk), who has published a great TV), Marvi Sirmed (professor of human rights jourdeal on Western interference in the Muslim world, wrote, “[Bhutto] succeeded nalism in Connecticut) and Murtaza Solangi (forin convincing Washington that she would serve U.S. interests just as well as Zia merly Voice of America Radio TV online). Prime ul-Haq, in particular, that she would do nothing to disturb the existing arrange- Minister Y.R. Gilani and Information Minister Sherry ments for assisting the mujahedeen against the Soviet rule in Afghanistan.” Anyone Rehman appointed him director general of Pakistan remember that Zia, nearly 40 military officers, the U.S. ambassador and a general Broadcasting Corporation. all died in a never-investigated air plane crash?

The 2014-15 cohort was introduced to the NED Morrison concluded, “The history of Benazir Bhutto’s tenure of office is that family of institutes, counterpart organizations and she never went against the U.S. interest — which is presumably why Washington the ideas of leading scholars: CIPE, IRI, NDI and the felt able to support her return to office for a third time” (“Benazir Bhutto: A friend Solidarity Center. They were taken to places such as Freedom House and the government-run Holocaust of Washington,” Labour & Trade Union Review, Jan. 5, 2008).

PPP fulfills Washington’s wishes. Diplomatic cables obtained by WikiLeaks Museum. The cohort included Farahnaz Ispahani reveal the following in a cable sent during August 2008: Anne Patterson, the (Mrs. Hussain Haqqani, who now sits on Zionist then-U.S. ambassador to Pakistan, wrote that Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani Anti-Defamation League board). brushed aside [then Interior Minister] Rehman Malik’s suggestion of slightly The State Department also runs the Pakistan delaying the drone attacks, saying, “I don’t care if they do it, as long as they get Professional Partnership Program in Journalism, the right people. We’ll protest in the National Assembly and then ignore it.” which brought 230 Pakistani media professionals to At a June 2009 meeting in Islamabad, attended by then-U.S. National Security the U.S. ostensibly to help educate their audiences Adviser Gen. James Jones, President Asif Ali Zardari “made repeated pleas for and dispel myths and misperceptions about people drones to be ‘put in Pakistan’s hands’ so that Pakistan would own the issue and living in other countries. drone attacks (including collateral damage) would not provoke anti-AmericanThe British Foreign, Commonwealth and ism,” one cable says.

Development Office operates the Chevening (https:// According to Bob Woodward (“Obama’s Wars,” 2010), when notified that the www.chevening.org/) scholarships, which let aspiring CIA would be launching missile strikes from drones over his country’s sover- and professional journalists and opinionmakers enjoy eign territory, Zardari replied, “Kill the seniors. Collateral damage worries you a year of hospitality.

Americans. It doesn’t worry me.”

With the U.S. dollar pegged at over Rs 200 and the Another Patterson cable quoted that Maulana Fazal-ur-Rehman (chairman, British pound at Rs 244, private and official media Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazal), a professed admirer of the Afghan Taliban, while like the Washington Post and the BBC can easily lobbying for himself in November 2007, pleaded “that Washington not crown afford to station their correspondents in Pakistan.

Pakistan People’s Party leader Benazir Bhutto prematurely.”

However, contracting the work locally is a better In October 2015, Michelle Obama signed a $70 million “Let Girls Learn” pledge buy. For instance, Khan antagonist Asma Shirazi with Maryam Nawaz, who had accompanied her parents to the White House, (Aaj News) is a BBC columnist, and her fellow to help educate 200,000 adolescent girls in Pakistan. In September 2017, Sindh Khan-antagonist Hamid Mir (Geo TV) writes for High Court Justice Munib Akhtar heard civil rights campaigner Bisma Naureen’s the Washington Post. ih petition against alleged misappropriation of this U.S. aid. She questioned [now convicted but bailed to care for her absconding father] Maryam’s authority to [Editor’s Note: All information cited in this article is freely available on the internet.] sign the pledge and run government affairs; she had never held any public office.

Until today, no one knows where the money was used.

Ambreen Amber is a freelance writer.

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45

FINANCE

Does It Matter Where Your Zakat Goes?

The policy created by the Islamic Council of Europe is a useful starting point in evaluating how zakat is spent

BY AHMED SHAIKH

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“zakat myth” exists in the Muslim American community: Zakat is something you calculate and then give to a Muslim nonprofit. These organizations fortify this myth through aggressive and sustained marketing, despite a rather gaping hole: The Quran says nothing about Muslim nonprofits or their projects being eligible. This is not a small matter, for they are restricted to acting as the donor’s wakeel (representative) to ensure its distribution to legitimate beneficiaries and maybe (depending on which scholar you follow) deducting their legitimate expenses from it.

In the past few decades, various scholars have stated that one particular category (out of the categories of zakat mentioned in the Quran, 9:60), that of fi sabil Allah (in the cause of Allah) can be used for anything “good.”

This is dramatically different from its traditional and historical very specific meaning. For those who use the loose definition, “anything good” can include organizations that focus on social welfare, civil rights, constructing roads and bridges, I HAVE DISCOVERED MULTIPLE INSTANCES OF hiring schoolteachers and a wide variety of MUSLIM ORGANIZATIONS USING SCHOLARS’ other things for which U.S. taxpayers are already paying.

NAMES WITHOUT THEIR AUTHORIZATION OR Many Muslim American nonprofits are ACTUAL ENDORSEMENT. SO IF YOU SEE A trying to reimagine zakat from the traditional “hand-to-hand” model of the wealthy giving SCHOLAR’S NAME, CONSIDER CONTACTING THE to the poor into other priorities focused on SCHOLAR TO VERIFY HIS OR HER APPROVAL. what they want to do. While some Muslims still administer hand-to-hand zakat, particularly in local areas, zakat has become a spending bonanza for larger nonprofits, with little if any direct benefits going to the poor or needy. Even benefits to the the donor. A wakeel who doesn’t provide adequate poor have become more diffused and indirect. “I don’t have money for you, poor disclosure or a system of accountability is doing a person, but here’s a nice conflict mediator, road, English teacher or someone who poor job and should be replaced. can write press releases.”

DONORS SHOULD UNDERSTAND HOW ZAKAT IS SPENT

If you are a zakat donor, your wealth is being used for worship. In the same way you wouldn’t pray on a soiled carpet, you shouldn’t give zakat to iffy organizations or those that spend it in a manner that conflicts with your intent. Also, never assume that merely because the person at the nonprofit is a “good brother” or a “good sister” or has hired a scholar to speak at the fundraising gala that the organization has been vetted. Often, it hasn’t been.

Furthermore, the recent nonprofit- and government-instigated reimagining of zakat, including the expanded fi sabil Allah interpretations (expanded zakat, or EZ) as well as “zakat for development” (known as Z4D in the charitable sector) may have gone off the rails.

The donor’s perspective matters here, because a wakeel for zakat represents 46

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IS THERE A ZAKAT POLICY?

The first thing you should ask any zakat administrator is to describe the organization’s distribution policy.

You don’t give zakat to an organization; rather, you entrust them with it. This is very important. You need some form of written assurance from the administrator as to what will be done with your money and if the distribution is valid.

One way to ensure its validity is to ascertain if scholars have agreed with policy. But also realize that this method is far from foolproof. I have discovered multiple instances of Muslim organizations using scholars’ names without their authorization or actual

how they use the funds differently from other donations or provide no accounting for them at all. And why should they? Donors have not demanded them.

Typically, a charity’s information and “education” on zakat will be about how to calculate it and the obligation to pay it. As a result, you don’t see very much on what the organization does with your money other than vague descriptions and marketing photographs.

As a rule, unless you know how your zakat is being distributed and are comfortable with the process, don’t donate. This is your worship.

ZAKAT ETHICS

endorsement. So if you see a scholar’s name, consider contacting the scholar to verify his or her approval.

You don’t need a scholar-approved zakat policy if a group of volunteers distributes your zakat “handto-hand” to the poor and needy, taking no overhead.

That is the most obvious and purest form of zakat.

You only need scholars for practices that cause normal people to scratch their heads — of which there are plenty in Muslim nonprofits.

Regardless of what scholar signed off on the zakat policy, review it yourself. The existence of a policy is neither an excuse nor a permission for donors to turn off their brains.

A scholar who creates a zakat policy for a nonprofit is essentially doing nonprofit consulting and therefore cannot be considered independent. Credentialed scholars have blessed many of the most flagrant abuses.

In fact, loopholes in zakat policies render the whole effort pointless. For example, one policy may restrict overhead to 12.5% while simultaneously allowing unlimited overhead.

I recommend that when you start evaluating how your zakat should be spent, begin with the policy created by the Islamic Council of Europe (though like anything else, there may be grounds for some to quibble).

Unfortunately, as the U.S. has no uniform zakat standards guiding the relevant organizations, they are free to make up their own or, more likely, to have no standards at all, since donors historically have not cared. Indeed, some of this country’s largest zakat collectors provide donors with no meaningful policy on

Competition between Muslim charities for the same zakat dollars can be savage.

Online searches for one Muslim charity’s zakat during Ramadan will frequently result in search results for multiple other Muslim charities buying the other charity’s name as a keyword, which search engines put up for auction. In 2020, one prominent Muslim charity spent $4.4 million on Google and about $1 million on Facebook advertising, which the organization dubiously claimed was a valid zakat expense.

Indeed, zakat administrators commonly regard marketing expenses, including convention and meeting sponsorships for groups of affluent Muslims, as valid zakat expenses.

Much of this zakat is spent competing with other administrators who are using these dollars to pursue the same donors. Such organizations, unfortunately, treat your donation as a massive self-licking ice cream cone.

Representatives of Muslim nonprofits often trash other Muslim nonprofit organizations to donors. These organizations are often focused on their own growth and treat their organizations as enterprises that need to expand their ever-increasing salaries, bonuses and other executive perks. In fact, zakat has become more about the organizations than the donors or the beneficiaries.

Donors have not yet demanded that they act in a transparent and ethical manner. This should change.

GETTING IT UNDER CONTROL

It is long past time for the Muslim community to develop standards and processes of accountability so donors can make better decisions and start making apples-to-apples comparisons between nonprofits. Of course, such standards should be developed by those who hope to fulfill zakat’s purposes, as opposed to considering such organizations’ business and growth objectives.

Muslim donors should give nothing to organizations that place their own institutional needs above those of zakat’s eligible beneficiaries.

WHO SHOULD RECEIVE MY ZAKAT?

So far, the only trustworthy zakat operations in the U.S tend to be local masjid-based volunteer zakat committees. Of course, local masjid management and zakat practices can vary from year to year and place to place, which means that it remains vital for donors to understand how the operation is currently conducted.

Occasionally, a masjid may collect zakat but hold on to it because they lack volunteers to distribute it. Or, its board may have become comfortable with using zakat to meet the masjid’s budget or to fund construction projects — things that EZ interpretations allow, along with nearly anything else.

After years of writing about Muslim nonprofits, I wish I could tell you that some Muslim organizations operate with the gold standard when it comes to collecting and distributing zakat. But I cannot. Every donor needs to be vigilant about his or her worship and ignore slick online marketing campaigns or a great banquet speech. Zakat is about so much more than donors being separated from their money. It’s about you caring about what happens to it after it has left your hands. ih Ahmed Shaikh is an Islamic estate planning attorney based in Southern California, co-author of “Estate Planning for the Muslim Client” (ABA Publishing; 2019) and a former member of ISNA’s executive council. His newsletter on Muslim nonprofits can be found at ehsan.substack.com.

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FASCISM WATCH Hindutva Influence Peddling, Mobilizing and Fundraising Infrastructure in the U.S. The fascist onslaught continues

BY ASLAM ABDULLAH

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uring May, the South Asia Citizens Web (sacw.net) published its 93-page “A Report on the Infrastructure of Hindutva Influence Peddling, Mobilizing and Fund Raising in the US, 2014-2021.” It makes for rather interesting reading as regards BJP-ruled India’s plans against Muslims, Christians, Sikhs and Dalits.

This well-documented and well-researched report exposes the violent nature of Hindu fascist groups in the U.S. who have infiltrated various civil society sectors to promote the agenda of India-based Hindu terrorist groups.

This report continues an earlier account launched in 2014, exposing the Hindu fascists’ strong ties to White nationalists and Nazi bigots.

The ongoing violence against minorities, termed by leading human rights organizations and experts as the final stage before committing a full-scale genocide, includes the following: ❯ Lynching and criminalizing minorities (especially Muslims, Dalits and Christians). ❯ Work, education and housing discrimination against religious and caste minorities. ❯ Police brutality against Muslims and caste-oppressed communities. ❯ Religion and caste-based segregation and targeting of interfaith families. ❯ Attacking, destroying and shutting down non-Hindu places of worship. ❯ Targeting movement leaders, journalists and watchdog groups. ❯ Undermining the judiciar y’s independence. ❯ Assassinating high-profile critics of Hindu nationalism. ❯ Changing citizenship laws to target certain minorities, especially Muslims. ❯ Building “foreigner” [read minorities] detention camps. ❯ Chilling the freedoms of speech and press (India ranked 142 out of 180 on the 48

Reporters Without Borders’ 2020 World Press Freedom Index; https://rsf.org). ❯ Using forms of ethnic cleansing (Assam) and genocide (Muslim-majority Kashmir).

Hindutva’s fascist infrastructure, the Sangh Parivar (Sangh family, or the Sangh), operates a vast social ecosystem throughout India. Fascists have become mainstreamed by winning elections and gaining control of federal and state governments.

They have consolidated power by waging hate campaigns against minorities and critics, cultivating their mythologized history-based information ecosystem.

Hindu fascists abroad fund and support such groups in India through family and youth programs, cultural events, temple-related conferences, charitable funders for education and health projects and political pressure groups that provide socio-political support to Hindutva.

The report uses data mining of tax records and government filings, public statements, websites, news reporting and maps portions of this ecosystem in the U.S. It presents evidence of selected U.S. groups and individuals’ Sangh affiliation, funding

ISLAMIC HORIZONS JULY/AUGUST 2022

flows among different groups and possible strategies and areas of influence in this country’s social, educational and political institutions from 2014 to 2021, including Hindu nationalist efforts to: ➊ Cast Sangh groups as cultural gatekeepers and representatives of Hindus, fund Sangh groups in India and insert support for Hindutva histories into American academic institutions and textbooks. ➋ Shift Washington’s domestic and foreign policy toward South Asia and finance Sangh-friendly politicians. ➌ Target their critics.

It also highlights some administrative and financial irregularities in certain Sanghaffiliated groups’ paperwork, which points toward enabling further investigations to reveal any misconduct and to better understand how such groups function.

FINDINGS OF THE REPORT

1. Reportedly 222 Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh (HSS) chapters, the U.S. counterpart of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), exist across 32 states and 166 cities. Operating weekly, they have an estimated 8,880 participants in their youth and family programming, according to tax records and HSS’s 2019-20 annual report. Its work in 2019-20 involved 426 other organizations and impacted more than 45,000 families in 198 cities.

2. The Vishwa Hindu Parishad of America (VHPA; https://www.vhp-america.org/) reportedly operates 21 chapters in 14 states. Its cultural projects often use different names, such as the Swami Vivekananda Family Camp or the Hindu Mandir Executives Conference (HMEC).

3. Between 2001-19, according to available tax returns, seven Sangh-affiliated charitable groups reportedly spent at least $158.9 million on their programming, sending much of it to groups in India.

The groups studied in this report are the All India Movement (AIM) for Seva, the Ekal Vidyalaya Foundation of America

(EVFA), the India Development and Relief Fund, Param Shakti Peeth, the PYP Yog Foundation, VHPA and Sewa International.

4. Local Indian journalism has connected EVFA’s program in India to BJP’s electoral victories. Its work appears to be linked to a larger pattern of the U.S.-based Hindutva’s leader Ramesh Shah’s pro-BJP electioneering activities.

appear to include briefings and meetings held by groups like HAF and the Foundation for India and Indian Diaspora Studies (FIIDS); campaign financing through the Hindu American Political Action Committee (HAPAC, headed by HAF leaders) and individual Sangh-affiliated donors; and through direct Indian government lobbying.

9. Federal Election Commission (FEC)

THE REPORT USES DATA MINING OF TAX RECORDS AND GOVERNMENT FILINGS, PUBLIC STATEMENTS, WEBSITES, NEWS REPORTING AND MAPS PORTIONS OF THIS ECOSYSTEM IN THE U.S. 5. The Dharma Civilization Foundation website and news media reported the foundation had offered over $13 million between 2012-16 to establish academic programs or chairs at the Graduate Theological Union (GTU), the University of California at Irvine and the University of Southern California — UC Irvine refused the offered funds.

According to tax records and its annual reports, the Uberoi Foundation for Religious Studies (UFRS; https://www.uberoireligiousstudies.org/) spent at least $561,000 in the U.S. between 2010-16 to influence public school textbooks, establish university endowments, undertake teacher training programs, distribute research grants, develop educational materials and fund the VHPA’s Hindu University of America saffronizing (bringing institutions or social sector closer to Hindu nationalism) South Asian history.

6. Tax records and annual reports indicate that the HSS-affiliated UFRS reportedly gave the Hindu American Foundation (HAF) at least $142,000 from 2012-16, partly to influence the content of California textbooks.

7. The U.S.-based Sangh appears to benefit from online abuse and hate campaigns; work-based harassment, where public smear campaigns and petitions target a faculty member’s institution; as well as civil lawsuits and subpoenas that pressure education officials and disincentivize scholars’ participation in public processes relevant to their areas of expertise, such as public-school textbook revisions.

8. The groups’ websites and government filings indicate that the Sangh’s efforts to platform and amplify Hindutva priorities in American domestic and foreign policy

filings, from 2012-20, show that HAPAC reportedly spent more than $172,000 toward influencing U.S. elections.

10. FEC filings between 2015-20 show that Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.) reportedly received $117,000+ from HAPAC and Sangh-affiliated individuals.

Between 2014-19, (former) Representative and presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawaii) received at least $110,000 and Rep. Brad Sherman (D-Calif.) received over $27,000. Between 2018-20, Congressional candidate Srinivas Rao Preston Kulkarni received over $95,000.

11. News reports show that Sanghaffiliated groups and individuals’ efforts to impact American policies reportedly included protesting the State Department’s visa denial to Narendra Modi, insertion of Hindu nationalist histories into public school textbooks and the assertion that state violence against Kashmiris is an “internal matter.”

12. Department of Justice filings between 2017-20 show that the BJP-led Indian government reportedly paid lobbying groups, on average, between approximately $15,000 to about $58,000 per month each to forward India’s interests on matters connected to American policy and academic institutions.

13. Tax filings show that the Bhutada Family Foundation reportedly gave over $1.7 million to Sangh-affiliated charities during 2006-18. The Puran Devi Aggarwal Family Foundation allegedly gave $272,000+ to Sangh-affiliated charities from 2008-18. Also, the major donors connected to the Dharma Civilization Foundation reportedly include Mira and Ajay Shingal, Irma and Ushakant Thakkar,

Drs. Harvinder and Asha Sahota and Drs. Meera and Jasvant Modi.

14. In April 2021, Al Jazeera reported that five U.S.-based Hindu nationalist groups — Ekal Vidyalaya Foundation of USA, HAF, Infinity Foundation, Sewa International and VHPA — received approximately $833,000 from federal Covid-19-related funds. The HAF sued several civil society groups in connection with the article in May 2021.

15. News reports indicate that individuals with Sangh affiliations or who have attended Sangh events and thereby conferred legitimacy on them were/are within or close to the Biden-Harris campaign/administration.

Among them were/are Amit Jani, Sonal Shah, Kulkarni and Vivek Murthy.

16. The evidence of possible financial irregularities was noted via government filings and websites, including possible electioneering work by Global Indians for Bharat Vikas, a series of land and money transfers between Vivek Welfare and Education Foundation and other groups, along with some multimillion dollar loans from nonprofits like the India Development and Relief Fund and Bhutada Family Foundation to other entities. HAF also seems to provide material aid to the Pakistan Hindu Refugee Relief Program (PHRRP), a VHP-affiliated channel of funds to India whose website states it is not a tax-exempt organization. The report is evidence for further investigation.

17. In January 2022, The Wire (https:// thewire.in/) began publishing findings from its two-year investigation into the app Tek Fog, which appears to have links to BJP and Persistent Systems, a company with U.S. offices. The app was reportedly used in support of BJP’s efforts to erode democratic participation in India by manipulating the available information ecosystem by injecting partisan posts into trending online topics; enabling the automated online abuse of BJP’s critics and invading private citizens’ WhatsApp accounts to influence their contacts.

The report has identified Sangh Parivar’s institutions, leadership, strategies, funding flows, apparatuses and targets of influence, as well as their effects in the U.S. and India.

However, it remains a preliminary report.

More research is needed, and steps are needed to strengthen and build progressive groups that can challenge the Hindu fascists threatening world peace. ih Condensed by Aslam Abdullah, Ph.D., editor-in-chief of Muslim Media Network Inc., publisher of the Muslim Observer, and a resident scholar at Islamicity.org.

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FAMILY MATTERS

Muslims and American Holidays What lies under the surface of American holidays?

BY OMER KAZMI

Andrews Methodist Episcopal Church,Grafton, W. Va., the site of the first Mother's Day service of worship in 1908; it serves as the International Mother's Day Shrine.

A

mother is waiting patiently for the doorbell to ring. She has the television on, but gets up and dusts or rearranges things. She sighs. She runs wrinkled hands through her white hair.

Her worried expression, etched onto her face, is common for mothers. Whatever she is cooking starts to burn. She rushes to the stove and almost misses the doorbell! She races to the front door, and her smile is wide when the delivery man hands her flowers.

She is so excited that she tips him and hurriedly reads the “Happy Mother’s Day” card.

Tears of joy trace their way down her cheeks.

Her son has finally remembered her.

While this account is entirely fictional, it does not stand outside the realm of possibility: it’s quite possible that on May 8, 2022, thousands (or hundreds of thousands) of mothers lived this story out with minor differences.

50

This could be interpreted as a sweet story.

It has all the elements of a lovely Mother’s Day, a time when millions of Americans take some moments out of their day to celebrate mothers and motherhood. Even in this era of Roe v. Wade, which allows a woman to refuse motherhood, Mother’s Day is one of those days that, at least in the public consciousness, is more important than other holidays.

Islamically, there does not, prima facie, seem to be anything wrong with celebrating Mother’s Day. It is one of those days that seems so innocent (unlike Halloween or Valentine’s Day) and pure and good, and thus criticizing it can be shocking. We’re celebrating our mothers, after all, and they should be honored, as mentioned in the famous hadith: “Abu Hurayra reported that a person said: Allah’s Messenger (salla Allahu

ISLAMIC HORIZONS JULY/AUGUST 2022

‘alayhi wa sallam), who amongst the people is most deserving of my good treatment?

He said: Your mother, again your mother, again your mother, then your father, then your nearest relatives according to the order (of nearness)” (“Sahih Muslim,” Hadith# 2548b). Other versions increase the number of times he says “mother,” highlighting motherhood’s significance. Based on this, it’s not much of a stretch to devote an entire day to mothers.

However, there are much larger, insidious issues that we overlook when celebrating such holidays. If we’re not vigilant and clear about what we believe and who we are, we may lose parts of our religion or add unlegislated things to it. God warns us: “Say, (O Prophet,) “Shall we inform you of who will lose the most deeds? (They are) those whose efforts are in vain in this worldly life, while they think they are doing good! It is they who reject the signs of their Lord and their meeting with Him, rendering their deeds void, so We will not give their deeds any weight on Judgment Day” (18:103-5). We might think we’re doing good. But if we’re not following the Quran and Sunna, and if we lose sight of Islam’s teachings, then our deeds may become void.

Mother’s Day is just one manifestation of a larger issue: the underlying intent of American holidays at large. The secular holidays that celebrate certain people, relationships or other non-religious events are identified as American holidays because they are most popular here, even if they are celebrated elsewhere. In addition, they belie a particularly American mindset, namely, self-aggrandizing and an emphasis on profit.

So, what’s wrong with American holidays?

• Entitlement. In political discussions in the U.S., the focus is always on rights.

The country’s founding was based on this principle, as the American Revolution broke out because of a lack of the right of representation and the Constitution was not ratified until the Bill of Rights was created. Rights are naturally Islamic, and no question of justice can be answered without a discussion of rights and responsibilities. However, if one

only seems to be thinking in terms of rights, like Americans tend to do, then a society can feel entitled. People may think they deserve things that, in reality, they do not.

Everything, it seems, has become a right.

Every niche group promotes a rights-based program. Although the goals don’t always seem clear, there’s always vehement discussion. Anyone who opposes the rights of whatever group will be reprimanded or, worse yet, canceled. There is literally no

depressed if those expectations are not met.

• Following Desires. There is no religious basis for many American holidays, which means that if we celebrate them, we are essentially following our desires. Take Mother’s Day as an example. A Wikipedia search reveals that it was started in 1907 by Anna Jarvis, who wanted to celebrate it in the church. However, its underlying spiritual reasoning disappeared soon after: “Although Jarvis, who started Mother’s Day as a litur-

EVERYTHING, IT SEEMS, HAS BECOME A RIGHT. EVERY NICHE GROUP PROMOTES A RIGHTSBASED PROGRAM. ALTHOUGH THE GOALS DON’T ALWAYS SEEM CLEAR, THERE’S ALWAYS VEHEMENT DISCUSSION. ANYONE WHO OPPOSES THE RIGHTS OF WHATEVER GROUP WILL BE REPRIMANDED OR, WORSE YET, CANCELED. THERE IS LITERALLY NO DISCUSSION OF RESPONSIBILITIES. discussion of responsibilities.

American holidays exhibit this rightsbased mentality. The mother on Mother’s Day has the right to be treated well, even if this isn’t the case for the rest of the year.

Mothers have the expectation that people will do things for them, buy things for them and be nice to them, whether they’re good mothers or not. Like children on Christmas, it doesn’t matter whether they were good or bad throughout the year – they’re going to get a gift.

This principle is un-Islamic, for God says, “And I swear by the self-reproaching soul” (75:2). In his tafseer of this ayah, Ibn Kathir mentions that “Al-Hasan al-Basri ... said about this Ayah, ‘Verily, by Allah, we think that every believer blames himself.

He says (questioning himself), “What did I intend by my statement? What did I intend by my eating? What did I intend in what I said to myself?” However, the sinner proceeds ahead, and he does not blame himself ’” (http://m.qtafsir.com/Surah-Al-Qiyama).

It’s in the believers’ nature to question their intentions and behavior and to blame themselves for even little things. Islam focuses on what they need to do, not what they should expect from others. When one has the expectations that American holidays promote, then one might become disappointed and

gical service, was successful in founding the celebration, she became resentful of the commercialization of the holiday. By the early 1920s, Hallmark Cards and other companies had started selling Mother’s Day cards. Jarvis believed that the companies had misinterpreted and exploited the idea of Mother’s Day and that the emphasis of the holiday was on sentiment, not profit. As a result, she organized boycotts of Mother’s Day, and threatened to issue lawsuits against the companies involved” (“Mother’s Day.” Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ Mother%27s_Day).

The fact that the holiday’s originator ended up fighting against its celebration is telling. It had become — and remains — about desire and profit, not the spiritual exercise she had intended. Indeed, every innovation — and it is an innovation even if there is no Christian basis for having a Mother’s Day — leads to such commercialization.

• Tradition. The problem with recurring holidays is once they become traditions, it becomes increasingly difficult to stop or change them. We can easily graft these days into Islam, especially if we cite the above-mentioned hadith to justify celebrating Mother’s Day. Days of honoring quickly develop into ritualistic occurrences, replete with food, events and even

certain speeches. If enough time passes, the event becomes something observed simply because that’s the way it’s always been. However, the Quran frequently warns about the disbelievers who just follow what their ancestors did.

This is the most dangerous aspect. One can find a difference of opinion among learned, religious men and women about engaging in such celebrations. However, if they become ingrained, then they can become confused with religion. To take Mother’s Day as an example, Jarvis started celebrating mothers in the church. Already there are people who may not remember a time before Mother’s Day, and that means it will become so culturally ingrained that to stop celebrating it will be next to impossible.

Muslims need to start a conversation about observing American holidays with a focus on their underlying intent, rather than a fiqhi ruling. It may very well be permissible to celebrate Mother’s Day, but that isn’t necessarily the point. Our devout ancestors would abandon even halal things for fear of falling into haram. What about these American holidays, which are questionably permissible? The good that they seem to show belie the problems underneath. ih Omer Kazmi, Ph.D. is a writer, editor and professor of English at Valencia College in Orlando, Fla. He is also the author of “The Temptation of Jamal” (2021).

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51

MUSLIMS LIVING AS MINORITIES

Who Won the French Presidential Election?

Islamophobia continues its advance

BY MONIA MAZIGH

I

n April, French voters went to the polls to choose a new president.

Emmanuel Macron, the incumbent and leader of the centrist La République en Marche (Republic on the Move) party, was elected with 58.55% of the votes. Marine Le Pen, leader of the right-wing National Rally party, obtained 41.45%, the equivalent of 13 million votes. More than 3 million votes were blank or spoiled, making the turnout one of the lowest since 1969. Despite her loss, the Washington Post reported on April 24 that Le Pen declared to her supporters “tonight’s result represents in itself a resounding victory.”

She is correct. In 2017, she confronted Macron for the first time and received 34% of the votes. In 2012, her first bid to become president, she placed third in the first presidential round with 18% — a very decent result for a first-time effort, compared to that of her father Jean Marine Le Pen. This long-time far-right politician, who founded the Front National (the forefather of the Rally National) and sought the presidency several times, never got more than 17% of the vote (The Guardian, April 12, 2012).

Despite his “failure” in 2002 to beat the centrist Jacques Chirac, the Le Pen family has never missed the chance to bring its far-right policies and debates into the political arena.

When Macron ran for the first time in 2017, he promised that he would be “neither left nor right,” thereby distancing himself from his political “mentor,” the socialist Francois Holland, whom he had served under as the economy minister. Many voters thought Macron would promote a pro-business agenda and a strong pro-European involvement, along with a somewhat left-leaning approach on social issues.

During his five-year term, Macron pushed and implemented some of his pro-business agenda, despite some unions’ resistance. In December 2018, his government replaced a wealth tax with a flat tax of 30% on wealth 52

and a tax on real estate (Forbes, Oct. 9, 2020).

Many citizens were unimpressed by this “reform,” which they saw as a gift to the rich.

His “reform” of the labor laws and introduction of a fuel tax caused people to see him as president of the rich and not very strong, all of which, according to National Public Radio (Dec. 3, 2018), helped place the yellow vest movement front and center at the end of 2018.

Given this tense socioeconomic climate and the terrorist attacks in 2020 — a Chechen refugee murdered the teacher Samuel Paty and a Tunisian refugee murdered three people at Notre Dame Basilica in Nice — Marine Le Pen amplified her anti-immigration and anti-Muslim rhetoric.

The media and the far-right groups’ portrayal of these attacks as direct consequences of lax immigration policies, along with what some intellectuals, politicians and media have been falsely describing as the latent Islamization of France, threatened Macron’s reelection prospects. Thus, it didn’t take much for Macron and his government to play his predecessors’ political card: putting Muslims and Islam at the heart of politics … but only for the negative reasons.

From burkini bans at beaches and in pools to proposed hijab bans in universities and streets, introducing Islamist separatism legislation, talking about banning halal food in school menus and volunteer moms accompanying their children on school trips, to closing mosques and dissolving Islamic charities … everything became possible.

These topics became the subjects of talk shows, discussions by government ministers and senators and politicians from all political spectrums — all of them claiming that laicïté is being threatened and republican values undermined because of the Muslims living in ghettos and preaching “communautarism” and “separatism.”

It’s not solely Marine Le Pen and some external factors’ fault that Macron and his

ISLAMIC HORIZONS JULY/AUGUST 2022

government chose to follow the footsteps of other politicians; however, he clearly broke his promise of “neither left nor right.”

Indeed, many Muslims found their faith, or its associated symbols and organizations, on trial almost daily on TV and social media and with no chance to rebut, defend or say otherwise.

Accusations of being “separatists” or “extremists” were never documented. To the contrary, researchers from the Centre for the Study of Conflict in Paris who studied the relationship between terrorism and discrimination in France found “a massive adherence of the French Muslims to the Republic” (Time, Dec. 8, 2020).

The narrative of Muslims as the enemy of the Republic means that they should be more surveilled, have their civic rights curtailed, have their worship places closed and charitable organizations shut down. These views of Marine Le Pen have now become the official politics of Macron and his government. Despite his constant repeating that he has nothing against Islam (Euronews, Feb. 11, 2020), his policies and politics speak otherwise for Muslims. In a report released during March 2021, Amnesty France documented such discriminations.

This competition between Le Pen and Macron, which should have been ideological, economic and political, brought more far-right policies into the mainstream arena.

During a debate with Gerard Darmanin, a former interior minister of Macron’s government, Le Pen looked stunned after being accused of being “not tough enough” in her policies toward Muslims (Daily Mail, Feb. 13, 2021). This political point scoring done at the expense of Muslims obviously had only one winner: hate.

him stand out in an ocean of hate. Once again Muslim issues were on the tongue of all candidates, and once again for the wrong reasons. His failure to make it to the second round and face Macron is the evidence that hate and Islamophobia pay political dividends. They make you “win,” as we can see from Le Pen’s describing her defeat as a “victory” (novaramedia.com, April 29, 2022).

Muslims found themselves choosing between an incumbent president who did nothing to protect them and, even worse, vilified them and introduced legislation to further stigmatize them, and a presidential candidate who continues her political ascendance at their expense. That situation pushed many Muslims to abstain from voting with a

THUS, IT DIDN’T TAKE MUCH FOR MACRON AND HIS GOVERNMENT TO PLAY HIS PREDECESSORS’ POLITICAL CARD: PUTTING MUSLIMS AND ISLAM AT THE HEART OF POLITICS … BUT ONLY FOR THE NEGATIVE REASONS.

In a way, Le Pen was right to congratulate her base on her “resounding victory” — not the victory of becoming president, but the victory of almost normalizing her policies. This is what I call the “banalization” of hate. Never has hate been so widespread and accepted in a country that many have considered a beacon for human rights, justice and equality.

A few days before the election, a police officer beat up two women wearing the hijab.

They were crossing the street at a traffic light, and the police officer was speeding in his patrol car. He didn’t appreciate being reminded that the traffic light was still green for them (Middle East Monitor, April 28, 2022).

During the recent election’s first round, socialist Jean-Luc Mélenchon, described by some as a “radical socialist,” came in a strong third, just shy of beating Marine Le Pen by 2% of the votes cast. After Macron’s victory, Mélenchon promised to run in the June legislative elections to become prime minister.

Many Muslims supported his campaign, and 69% of them ended up voting for him.

His denunciation of Islamophobia made

hashtag “ni la peste ni le cholera” (neither the plague nor the cholera) trending on social media — a metaphor used to describe the impossible choice between the bad and the worst (The Guardian, April 22, 2022).

Macron pushed his political opportunism to such an extent that on the eve of the elections he courted Muslims voters by visiting a Parisian neighborhood that many Muslims call home and opposing a hijab ban in the public space, repeating “that no other country in the world has such a ban” (www.politico.eu April 22).

For many Muslims, these words are empty and meaningless. Macron had five years to bring harmony into society and defeat Le Pen’s politics of hate, but instead he chose to ride the wave of Islamophobia while pretending to defend the values of the Republic.

Hate has never been doing so well in France’s politics as it is right now. ih Monia Mazigh, PhD, an academic, author and human rights activist, is an adjunct professor at Carleton University (Ontario). She has published “Hope and Despair: My Struggle to Free My Husband, Maher Arar” (2008) and three novels, “Mirrors and Mirages” (2015), “Hope Has Two Daughters”(2017) and “Farida”(2020), which won the 2021 Ottawa Book Award prize for French-language fiction. She is currently working on a collection of essays about gendered Islamophobia.

JULY/AUGUST 2022 ISLAMIC HORIZONS

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The world we live in is constantly evolving and ISNA is committed to being a positive driver of change. ISNA has long recognized the importance of engaging with other faith communities as a fundamental part of its mission, and therefore, we continuously host and participate in interfaith events, meetings and webinars to educate our friends, partners, officials and activists about Islam.

These interreligious initiatives have helped break down barriers of misunderstanding, formed genuine partnerships of faith and ethics, and established a platform to advocate for social justice issues for the common good.

We aim to work together to fight Islamophobia and share knowledge about the true teachings and understanding of our religion in all sectors.

The gift of education has a ripple effect—it creates change locally, nationally and globally.

Ignorance is our enemy, and with your support we can make a difference.

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SOCIAL SERVICE

The Hunger Truck: Feeding More Needs Than Just Hunger Houston Muslims reach out to those in need for more than food

PHOTOS © YASMINE ABUSHMEIS

BY RUTH NASRULLAH

T

hey serve people who are otherwise forgotten, people who face an enormity of need, and they do it with goodwill and modest pride.

They are the volunteers who run the Hunger Truck, an initiative started by a New York-based nonprofit organization, Muslims Giving Back. This program has expanded to Houston and Dallas, with plans to set up a program in Washington, D.C., soon.

So what exactly is a Hunger Truck? It’s a mobile restaurant of sorts, just like a food truck, with a kitchen in the back and big windows in the front through which volunteers hand out food. The Hunger Truck doesn’t sell food, though; it gives it away.

“When I heard about the Hunger Truck and started to get involved with it, I was so down for it,” said Yasmine Abushmeis, a volunteer coordinator whose background includes organizing charitable work with 54

Girl Scout and Boy Scout troops through the MultiCultural Center (MCC) in Webster, Texas, just outside of Houston. “What having the truck has really allowed us to do is be consistent with our efforts.”

The Hunger Truck’s outreach in the Houston area is one of MCC’s numerous community-based charitable programs that include food distribution to needy residents.

While the MCC’s main food distribution program happens on site, the Hunger Truck goes to the areas where there is a need, where people lack the means to travel and pick up food. The organizers alternate between two methods — cooking and catering. Area restaurants provide meals at discounted prices. When the meals are prepared by volunteers, it becomes a real community endeavor.

Coordinator Tamer Mansour describes the atmosphere of a catering day. “The

ISLAMIC HORIZONS JULY/AUGUST 2022

whole project has a lot of positivity,” he said.

“When we cook as a team, it’s high school students, young professionals, college students, Muslims, non-Muslims, black, white, Asian — everybody just talking, cooking, helping and caring.”

Whether it’s cooking or catering, the Hunger Truck generally provides services to three groups: refugee communities, people experiencing homelessness and residents of women’s shelters.

MORE THAN FOOD

Although Houston has been hailed as a success story in reducing homelessness, the challenge hasn’t gone away, especially since the pandemic’s economic impact continues and people living in tents under highway overpasses are still hungry. The Hunger Truck travels to different locations throughout the city to provide meals — but they often provide much more, according to Yasmine Abushmeis.

“What we’ve come to learn … basically from the first few times when we started serving, it was more than the food,” she said.

“What people really needed was conversation. If you think about it, somebody who’s out on the streets all day — they’re used to being ignored.”

Following in the prophetic tradition, charity is also a form of da’wah, as highlighted by a conversation she had with a man at a homeless feeding.

“A moment that really touched my heart was when one of the guys that we serve said, ‘You know, I have never felt so valued. Every single person in that assembly line looked me in my eyes and talked to me. I never felt that way.’ And he pointed at my hijab and said, ‘I served against your people overseas, and I never expected this.’”

THE HUNGER TRUCK IN ACTION

I visited a serving day recently at an apartment complex in the WoodlakeBriar Meadow (also known as Mid-West) section of Houston. The area is west of downtown Houston, and the apartments are just off Richmond Avenue, a main street. The Gables complex has all white exteriors and a crowded parking lot; it looks almost urban compared to the neat and tidy homes on the surrounding streets. When I first arrived, I accidentally pulled into an alley behind the building at first and drove past what was clearly a bed set-up for a homeless person.

Volunteers are more than forthcoming in supporting the project.

PHOTOS © YASMINE ABUSHMEIS

LOOKING AHEAD

WHETHER IT’S COOKING OR CATERING, THE HUNGER TRUCK GENERALLY PROVIDES SERVICES TO THREE GROUPS: REFUGEE COMMUNITIES, PEOPLE EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS, AND RESIDENTS OF WOMEN’S SHELTERS.

The Hunger Truck program organizers plan to expand their services. According to Mansour, their short-term plan is to serve meals twice a week throughout 2022.

Their long-term plan is to establish a kitchen within the MCC with the capacity to cook meals for the Hunger Truck daily. They aim to continue serving the populations with whom they are working now – refugees, the homeless and residents of women’s shelters.

Of course, ambitious plans require funding. Mansour says they need $150,000 to build the expanded kitchen. And the Hunger Truck organizers will, of course, continue recruiting volunteers. But Abushmeis has full confidence in her community.

“The main thing for me, when I think about this project, is the unity aspect, of getting people at all levels of communities to recognize that we all have blessings. Those blessings may be different for each one of us, but it’s incumbent upon us to kind of redistribute that wealth,” she says. “Like the whole concept of sharing what you have.” ih Ruth Nasrullah is a freelance writer (https://ruthnasrullah.com/).

When I pulled into the correct lot, the Hunger Truck was busy — a table in front from which people could easily pick up bags.

There was no line; throughout the afternoon, people steadily arrived individually or in family groups. Volunteer Muhammed Abdelhalim showed me the truck’s interior, where a group of volunteers was busy portioning food from trays into Styrofoam containers. He said that they were short on volunteers that day, so some members of the Afghan refugee community — those whom the Hunger Truck was there to serve — had stepped up to volunteer.

Apparently, the volunteer shortage was due in part to the fact that with Ramadan having ended recently, energy had waned a bit. During this past Ramadan, every night they collected trays of leftover food from Islamic centers to bring to the refugee families. Muhammed estimated that the Hunger Truck served about 40 to 50 families, many of whom arrived in Houston during the past 10 months — U.S. troops pulled out of Afghanistan during August 2021.

Sulaiman Kakar, a teenager, said he had fled Afghanistan as American troops were withdrawing and that the Taliban had begun resurging. His mother worked for a Talibantargeted women’s organization. It was a long trek to Houston. Their journey took them to Qatar and then to Germany and Washington, D.C. Their final stop, before arriving in Houston one year ago, was Fort McCoy, a U.S. Army base in Wisconsin (He said it was fine, except for the bland American food).

Hamid Shah, another Afghan refugee, has been in Houston for three months. Through a translator, he told me he and his family are glad to be here, where they feel safe. He and Sulaiman agreed that they are living “a new story in America,” as Kakar put it.

“Different language, different life, different rules,” Shah said.

As I drove away, I saw two children on a second-floor balcony enjoying their dinner from the Hunger Truck. I drove back down Richmond Avenue, passing signs for the Beverage Barn and Poker Run. Indeed, life must really be different for the Afghan refugees here.

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55

OPINION

Ukraine and Beyond: A Call for Global Solidarity The U.S. can — and should — do better

BY HAROON IMTIAZ

President Biden signs a delegation of authority regarding economic assistance that the U.S. is providing to Ukraine, March 16, 2022, at the White House (Official White House Photo by Adam Schultz).

O

n Feb. 24, 2022, Russia launched a full-fledged invasion of Ukraine, bent on replacing the existing Ukrainian government with a loyal regime. Following this, a UN General Assembly resolution condemning Russia’s aggression and calling for its withdrawal from Ukraine was backed by 141 of 183 member states (Axios, March 2, 2022). While this was an impressive collective rebuke, it nonetheless masked a deeper global division, one that would become apparent in April, when 82 countries refused to openly support Russia’s removal from the UN Human Rights Council, despite evident war crimes committed by Russian forces (CNBC, April 7).

Still today, various African, Latin American and Asian countries are taking a neutral stance, both issuing calls for peace and refusing to sanction the Russian economy (The Intercept, March 26). India, China, Mexico, Brazil and Indonesia are just a few of the many nations that have refused to 56

pursue an economic pressure campaign against Moscow. This is in sharp contrast to others, most notably the U.S., its Group of Seven allies and the European Union, all of which have imposed severe economic sanctions and backed the Ukrainian resistance with generous military aid.

With this help, the Ukrainians have been able to forestall Russia’s domination of Kyiv and much of their land while facing a country with a much larger military and far more firepower. In fact, the invasion thus far has been a strategic failure, an undertaking replete with atrocities that have exposed the Russian military as incompetent and its equipment wanting. The destruction of Ukrainian towns and cities has followed a Russian campaign of relentless and indiscriminate bombardment, bearing some resemblance to how their forces carried out bombings during the second Chechen war and the Syrian civil war. At the time of writing, the UN has estimated that over 12

ISLAMIC HORIZONS JULY/AUGUST 2022

million Ukrainians have fled their homes and, reportedly, that close to 6,000 have become civilian casualties.

Yet despite this humanitarian nightmare, President Vladimir Putin insists that the invasion is primarily a response to years of NATO provocations and its inattentiveness to Russia’s security concerns (The New York Times, Feb. 24, 2022). He also insists that modern Ukraine sits on lands that were once part of historical Russia, and that both Ukrainians and Russians are bound by a shared history (Al Jazeera, Feb. 25, 2022). But whatever the Russian leadership’s motive or motives, none can justify this recent invasion, which constitutes a clear example of aggression, one of the core crimes cited in the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.

International law is on Ukraine’s side, as are several countries that have combined to provide an enormous amount of diplomatic, humanitarian and military support to the beleaguered nation. The U.S. itself has been a leader, having provided more humanitarian and military support than any other nation.

It has helped impose devastating sanctions upon Russia, sanctions that have already hurt that country’s economy in palpable ways, joined other nations in welcoming Ukrainian refugees and called for Putin to be held personally accountable for war crimes. This overwhelming response ultimately shows what the U.S. can do in a time of crisis and for major international causes.

However, given that the global landscape features a long list of humanitarian challenges, one can rightly ask if a country like the U.S. has been just as vocal and supportive of its values vis-à-vis other countries. Clearly, if we as Americans accept the principles embedded in international law — which we cite to condemn states like Russia and others — then we should stand against all violators with equal conviction and make sure our solidarity transcends all borders to

reach every person in need. Global solidarity means that we don’t choose who’s worthy of consideration. That’s why we Americans should stand up to all abusers, express solidarity with their victims and demonstrate our concern for humanity both in Ukraine and beyond.

Well before his presidency, Joe Biden correctly condemned then-President Trump for his apparent “love affair with autocrats” and

resistance against Russian aggression to also support rightful resistance movements elsewhere ... for instance, the Palestinians against Israel, the Sahrawis against Morocco, and the Kashmiris against India. But this has not been the case.

One would also expect an administration so concerned about Ukrainian lives to show concern and empathy for all those living in hardship. But for months now, as the U.S.

CLEARLY, IF WE AS AMERICANS ACCEPT THE PRINCIPLES EMBEDDED IN INTERNATIONAL LAW — WHICH WE CITE TO CONDEMN STATES LIKE RUSSIA AND OTHERS — THEN WE SHOULD STAND AGAINST ALL VIOLATORS WITH EQUAL CONVICTION AND MAKE SURE OUR SOLIDARITY TRANSCENDS ALL BORDERS TO REACH EVERY PERSON IN NEED.

lack of action for the cause of democracy and human rights (Daily Mail, Oct. 18, 2018).

But after more than a year in the White House, what can be said about his administration, which entered with promises “to restore the soul of America,” lead a struggle against autocracies and “restore our moral leadership” in global affairs?

Thus far, President Biden has done well to oppose an abusive autocrat like Putin, considering the latter’s litany of crimes.

At the same time, his administration has had no qualms about lending support to other governments guilty of severe human rights abuses. Consider Saudi Arabia and the UAE’s well-documented atrocities in Yemen and internal abuses against activists and dissidents. Then there’s Egypt, one of the world’s most repressive countries. Israel, widely considered an apartheid state, has now occupied Palestinian lands for over 55 years in defiance of international law.

India continues to violate the rights of its minorities and terrorize Kashmiris, and the Philippines has become known for the extensive abuses committed in its ongoing drug war and counterinsurgency campaign. Yet despite all this evidence, on Nov. 10, 2021, Shimon Arad of warontherocks.com noted that the Biden administration has provided military assistance to all of them.

Furthermore, one would expect an administration supporting the Ukrainian

has blanketed the Russian economy with unprecedented sanctions, it has not taken much of an interest in the economic hardship imposed on ordinary Russians. Elsewhere, the Biden administration has supported the withholding of $3.5 billion of Afghanistan’s money held in the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, instead of letting it be used to help address that country’s major humanitarian crisis (CBS News, Feb. 12, 2022).

And while Biden promised a thorough sanctions review as he entered office — according to the National Iranian American Council’s April 28th letter addressed to him — the President decided to continue Trump-era sanctions on Cuba and Iran, two countries whose civilians have seen their livelihoods devastated as a result (https:// www.niacouncil.org/).

And lastly, one would have expected an administration so concerned about the plight of Ukrainian refugees to have treated other groups in the same manner. But after the Biden administration announced a move to fast-track up to 100,000 Ukrainian refugees into the U.S., people began asking why it had treated other groups differently.

In fact, CNN reported on April 1 that the administration only stopped using Title 42, a Trump-era policy that deprived asylum seekers of their legal right to seek asylum in the country, on that very day!

In other words, the Biden administration

violated the human rights of countless asylum seekers from Latin America for over a year and, moreover, sent them back to countries where they faced danger and persecution that, according to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit, was very likely a violation of international law (https://www. humanrightsfirst.org/, March 21). To make matters worse, this same New York-based human rights organization has documented “at least 9,886 kidnappings, torture, rape, and other violent attacks on people blocked in or expelled to Mexico due to the Title 42 policy under the Biden administration…”

Until now, evidence shows that the U.S. has, in many ways, fallen short of upholding its values under the Biden administration.

And while the U.S. is right to side with Ukraine, it is wrong to be so dismissive about human rights concerns and humanitarian challenges elsewhere. Clearly and unfortunately, American solidarity is not always global. This administration can and should do more to project moral leadership and global solidarity on the world stage. ih Haroon Imtiaz is the director of communications at ISNA.

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OPINION

The Value of Literature and the Arts is in the Interpretation For parents and educators today, supporting humanities-trained Muslims would be the best way to breathe new life into social justice in the classroom

BY REEM ELGHONIMI

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.E.B. Du Bois’s concept of a “double consciousness” both does and does not capture my experience. As a female child immigrant to the U.S. from Egypt in 1979, I became entangled in a history of race and gender. Mainstreamed into a Texas elementary school, I was called “sand n*****” during my second-grade year for the first — but not last – time, by a blond boy who glared at me as I sat down next to him. Taught by my parents to be polite, I smiled and nodded, churning inside.

Although I didn’t understand the word, his look and the slur’s ferocity emblazoned them in my memory. Nor was it one with which my parents, as immigrants, were familiar. Nor one my first-grade teacher, Ms. Kerr, patiently recorded for me on a hand-held tape player to learn along with my mother’s list of Arabic phrases. For me, education in race consciousness was never punctual. Like my past, it could not prepare or buffer me from the onslaught of bullies and bigots. My parents and I stood outside of history when we entered the U.S. and then, in one moment, we stepped within it.

MUSLIM AMERICANS’ PRESENT MOMENT

In November 2021, Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) stated that she assumed her colleagues, elected lawmakers who were Muslimas of color, were terrorists and suicide bombers. As of early 2022, tens of thousands of Muslim families continue to be separated despite the lifting of the Muslim/ African travel bans. Inevitably, vulnerable populations within out-groups, such as children, face the severest consequences of such politicization.

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Karl Shapiro

Currently, 51% of school-age Muslim American children report religious bullying and harassment, almost double the percentage of children in the general public (Natasha Tariq, Jan. 25, 2022, https://www. ispu.org/10-needs/). Even more alarming is the fact that school administrators and teachers are responsible for 30% of these incidents. Four decades after my childhood experiences, American public sentiment toward Muslim and African immigrants has deteriorated.

SHARED PASTS ARE VITAL EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES

As a child who navigated only one line of latitude, from the African East to the American West, no footpath guided my steps. No route had been prepared and marked out for the journey my schoolfellows and I had to take together. That didn’t have to be the case. Such

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rapprochements have been a vibrant though little-known part of this country’s literary past. Today, as parents and educators, we can bring these resources to the front of the class, provided we listen to those who can best interpret our story and relate our history.

To wit, when Poet Laureate Karl Shapiro (1913-2000) used his “California Winter” to judge the state’s unique topography and climate among other geographies and eras, he didn’t invoke European lands to mediate his cultural past.

If the walls were older one would think of Rome: If the land were stonier one would think of Spain.

Vividly, he chose Egypt’s river culture: It is raining in California, a straight rain Cleaning the heavy oranges on the bough, Filling the gardens till the gardens flow, Shining the olives, tiling the gleaming tile, Waxing the dark camellia leaves more green, Flooding the daylong valleys like the Nile.

“California Winter” was meant to surprise. Shapiro had a reputation for iconoclasm, but he was also a staunch and consistent defender of Jewish and African American rights. Synchronizing the beginning of his career in the arts almost precisely with the escalating reach of World War II, he publicly identified as a Jew. Given this background, such literary-historical interludes are untapped reservoirs for addressing xenophobia in our educational curricula. As the statement that American writers drew on Egypt as a trope, ancient mythology, or a form of romanticism — a kind of “Egyptomania” — doesn’t apply to Shapiro, his cultural turn toward it should be taken seriously as a model for relating to Muslim populations in the West.

READING “CALIFORNIA WINTER”

The poem’s imagery locates Egypt in the American West, which produces Mediterranean crops and foliage: heavy oranges, shiny olives and dark camellia. By invoking the land of the Nile instead of the European Mediterranean, Egypt replaces Rome, considered the origin of republicanism, and Spain, one of the origins of agrarian culture.

The answer as to why he emphasized Egypt lies in the shift of focus to race and the working class. After tracing a link with African civilization, the verses span the gulf of social class, centering the field of vision on cultivation: Fig tree and palm tree — everything that warms The imagination of the wintertime.

Transplanted Mediterranean saplings bring warmth to offset winter’s barrenness.

Like the Nile’s annual flooding, California’s ample yet ephemeral rainfall is nature’s gift.

That abundance cannot always offset the

stated, “Nasser’s action could be defended as legal, and there was no reason to believe that there would be any interference with canal traffic” (https://history.defense.gov/ Portals/70/Documents/secretaryofdefense/ OSDSeries_Vol4.pdf, p.52). Eisenhower’s demand that the three aggressors withdraw ended the crisis.

During this tense period, the poetic reference to Egypt counters the Egyptians’ post-1956 politicization and agrees with another interpretation: One action that precipitated the Suez nationalization crisis was Washington’s withdrawal of its promised funding for the Aswan High Dam.

SINCE SHAPIRO HIGHLIGHTED THE ORDINARY WORKING PERSON’S RELATION TO LAND AND WATER AS A CULTURAL AFFINITY WITH EGYPT, “CALIFORNIA WINTER” APPEALS TO GLOBAL CONSCIOUSNESS, NAMELY, THAT DIFFERENT MATERIAL REALITIES IN EACH ENVIRONMENT CALL FOR EMPATHY, RATHER THAN POLITICAL DEMONIZATION, TOWARD OTHER CULTURAL GROUPS AND NATIONS. harsh climate, but it can fortify even non-native crops. Thus, Shapiro salutes not the natural resources, but the cultivation (of what is appropriate for a particular climate) by the planter’s hands and will, not the elite governance or rule by a landed class, but those who tend the fig and the palm, whether in Egypt or California, thereby modeling consciousness on ordinary people’s reciprocal commerce with their habitat.

Published in 1957 in The New Yorker, “California Winter” debuted after the 1956 Suez Canal crisis, during which Israel, Britain and France invaded Egypt, bombing civilians and the magnificent historic landscape alike. This fact argues against a folkloric or romantic vision of ancient civilization, making it more likely that the poet attempted to forge bonds between his context and contemporary Egypt based on ordinary citizens and their intricate relationship to their environment.

Such a position subverts the conventional political narrative of this crisis: the planned invasion was justified by President Nasser’s perceived threat to free maritime trade. However, the event’s official history, reported by the U.S. Office of Defense,

Environmentalists often cite the ecological and social harms of building dams, such as displacing rural populations. While the political elites and corporations usually reap the benefits, typically income generated from new hydroelectricity and agricultural infrastructures, Nasser’s project channeled Suez revenues toward training and leveraging Egypt’s skilled and semi-professional workforce. Over a decade, the endeavor employed and paid nearly 35,000 indigenous technicians and engineers.

Despite the environmental cost, this monumental engineering feat, commemorated (and was paid for by) nationalizing the Suez Canal. This stunning achievement symbolized Egypt’s cultural self-determination, on the heels of its political independence, in the face of foreign military invasion and Washington’s withdrawal of aid.

Since Shapiro highlighted the ordinary working person’s relation to land and water as a cultural affinity with Egypt, “California Winter” appeals to global consciousness, namely, that different material realities in each environment call for empathy, rather than political demonization, toward other cultural groups and nations. As one of the

world’s poorest countries, Egypt’s circumstances presented difficult choices.

The Suez crisis and the damming of the Nile evoked in the American West poet a camaraderie borne of understanding that all people face limits to their agency in the natural environment. On that account, it is dismissive to characterize his work as an “imaginary war” against “Europe and the Past” (David Orr, “Review of Karl Shapiro,” Poetry 187, no.3, 2005, p.244-5).

Such opinions have misconstrued Shapiro’s intent to reach beyond the common stock of cultural ties.

As climate change exacts an ever-greater toll on topographies already susceptible to scarcity, we should heed Fred Pearce’s words, “When the rivers run dry, we mine our children’s water” (Fred Pearce, “When the Rivers Run Dry” [Boston: Beacon Press books, 2006], p.33). If the current tendency of relating to other cultural groups, especially non-dominant ones, along combative political lines continue, future generations of children will equally bear the human and ecological cost of a polarization that impedes cooperation.

An apt metaphor that renders the politicization of Muslim immigrants’ cultural identity is an observer on the shore witnessing a large swell capsize a ship and knowing that he/she can do nothing but watch and wait. I say this not in passive resignation, but only because while trying to marshal the agency to move toward a better condition, the immigrant — like the observer who doesn’t apathetically turn away but keeps watching — is nonetheless rendered incapable by the disparity in his/her resources to aid, and not from a lack of will to do something but because of the extenuating, restrictive material circumstances.

In some ways, American Muslims still stand outside of history, facing real barriers that prevent fellow citizens from learning about them as individuals. Today, the most obvious barrier is the dominant political narrative that demonizes and excludes their stories from social studies education. Until we take the consequences of those obstacles seriously, then, like the fictional observer on the shore, I can only watch and wait for this country to right itself. ih Reem Elghonimi, who holds MAs in Islamic law, Middle East history, as well as the arts and humanities, completed her MA dissertation on free will in Islamic jurisprudence. She is currently translating new research from Islamic humanities into K-12 instructional material to represent Muslim history and voices.

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FEATURE

Performing the Pilgrimage to One’s Heart During the Hajj

Reflecting on the Ka‘bah’s uniqueness to restore the heart’s primordial pledge

BY RASHEED RABBI The Ka‘bah is the building of Ibrahim, son of Azar.

The heart, on the other hand, is Allah Almighty’s place of sight.

— Abd al-Rahman Jami (d.1492)

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he Ka‘bah, the center of all Muslim prayers, is venerated as the shrine of Ibrahim, the patriarch of monotheism. Bringing his bondwoman Hagar and their infant son Ishmael to the barren valley of Makka, only to abandon them to the Mercy of Allah, exemplifies a devoted heart fully content with God’s disposition. So does the attempt of Hagar, a distraught and thirsty woman who, following the divine plan, ran between the Safa and Marwa hillocks to find water for her son, until the Zamzam stream sprang forth.

Ishmael grew up, Ibrahim returned to Makka and together they rebuilt the Ka‘bah to re-institute the hajj (2:125-31), which culminates in monotheism’s highest teaching: divine unity.

Ever since, these accounts have served as the rite’s theological basis for ordinary pilgrims. However, for mystics each anecdote emits endless clues on how to become an Ibrahim-like hanif (2:135 and 3:96), an ardent believer maintaining his or her fitra (primordial nature; 30:30). Fitra means a heart that is unswervingly and inherently submitted to Him. Thus, visiting Ibrahim’s Station (2:125) entails recovering one’s original state to experience God’s friendship, just like Ibrahim did. Rumi (1207-73) cried out: O people who have performed hajj, where are you?

The Beloved is near, come here.

You have visited that House a hundred times, Come and visit this house of the heart, if only once.

Without experiencing the divine presence in our hearts that ‘Ayn al-Qudat Hamadani (1098-1131) alluded as “Scent,” visiting the Ka‘bah is worthless: 60

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Without the Beloved’s Scent, the Ka‘bah is just a house of idols.

But with the Friend’s perfume, an idol temple turns into the Ka‘bah.

Pursuing Ibrahim-like divine intimacy finds a simile in rebuilding the Ka‘bah, a repetition of Adam’s task to regain his lost proximity to the Divine. After losing access to paradise and angelic whispers, Adam continued to grieve, repent, pray and journey across the planet to Makka, until God commanded him to build “the first House of worship … a blessed sanctuary and a guide for humanity” (3:96).

Located directly beneath the Throne of God, this first Ka‘bah was a temple for the faithful to circle around, just as the angels circle around the Throne.

Imitating this heavenly model makes the faithful’s heart long for the Throne, desperately yearning to attract His gaze, which should be the ultimate qibla to direct all worship and action. Hence, Rumi said: The qibla of those who worship the form: an image of stone.

The qibla of believers is He, the Lord of the Grace.

Thus, the Ka‘bah is merely a metaphorical window or spiritual airport that transports us to the Throne on which the exalted Lord is sitting (20:5). Visiting it entails a metaphysical return, back in time, 2,000 years before the world’s creation, when the Ka‘bah was created (Malise Ruthven, “Islam in the World,” 2006, p.78) to personify the recovery of our original state.

For contemplative minds, it lends a divine proximity, prefigured in a primordially sacred place that is “out of this world” to the Ka‘bah’s original location in heaven, where its model still exists.

From here began the creation of our planet and the consolidation of its mountains, and from its clay Adam’s head and forehead were created. This heavenly origin of the Ka‘bah is to reawaken our original state of purity, when “the Children of Adam, from their loins, … bear witness” of His Absolute Lordship (7:173).

These theological beliefs embody a human being as far more than a passive entity belonging to an imaginable past to an interactive and prehistoric being who carries a proven record of participating in sacred rhetoric with God. Journeying to the Ka‘bah materializes a metaphysical return to our original home, which is beyond time and space and supersedes all geographical coordinates and historical reference points.

Ka‘bah. Even the translation of the words Ka‘bah — square, cube or high — and tawaf, which represents circles around this cubic House, become the source of sacred geometry and acquire a new meaning. This particular square can be viewed as a manifest and comprehensible world and the circles around it as a pure, unmanifest spirit-space. As did Robert Lawler, who envisioned tawaf as squaring the circle or embracing Infinity in all its varied dimensions or qualities through finite human actions (“Sacred Geometry: Philosophy & Practice,” 1982).

The seven circumambulations no longer remain the sum of six plus one; rather, they appear as an indefinite round number, meaning “many” or “infinite” ways to reorient the endless array of images, patterns and paradigms toward one’s unity with Oneness. Circling the Ka‘bah becomes a mysterious spiral to resolve the multiplicity and diversity to an absolute unity.

AS ONE’S HEART ENGAGES IN MYSTICAL YEARNINGS, A Every circumambulation exemplifies the SENSE OF THE SACRED PERMEATES EVERY ASPECT OF human being’s orderly movement toward the eternal, from an infinite formlessness THE KA‘BAH. EVEN THE TRANSLATION OF THE WORDS to an endless interconnected array of forms.

KA‘BAH — SQUARE, CUBE OR HIGH — AND TAWAF, Pilgrims move from the periphery of existence toward the center of creation, from WHICH REPRESENTS CIRCLES AROUND THIS CUBIC a state of worldly scatteredness to that of HOUSE, BECOME THE SOURCE OF SACRED GEOMETRY sacred unity and wholeness.

AND ACQUIRE A NEW MEANING. As the sense of being eternal emerges within us, our movements become a whirlwind of changes transcending every contour the Ka‘bah’s legacy of being built from stones taken of the cosmos, from its physical notation to a metaphysical perception. For Abulfrom five sacred mountains: Mount Sinai, where God Qasim Abd al-Karim al-Qushayri (986-1072), seven tawafs become a way to gave Moses the Ten Commandments and prophethood; master the seven seas that contain both the benefits and livelihood for creatures the Mount of Olives, where Jesus gave his final sermon and the felicity and salvation for those seeking unity. and ascended to heaven; Mount Lebanon, which repFor Najmuddin Kubra (c.1145-1221), seven tawafs correspond to crossing resents the northwestern limit of the Israelites’ conquest the seven heavens to explore the unseen mystery experienced by the Prophet under Moses and Joshua; Mount al-Judi, where Noah’s during his mi‘raj. To other mystics, these seven circles correspond to crossing Ark came to rest; and Mount al-Hira, where the Prophet the seven depths of hell on the road to paradise. Just as the number 7 alludes (salla Allahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) met Jibreel (‘alayhi as to infinity, tawaf offers infinite approaches to regain our fitra. As Awhad al-Din salam) to inaugurate his prophethood.

Kirmani (1166-1238) said: … and round the unit One This genesis underscores the fact that Ibrahim, All numbers circle if ye reckon clear, Adam and other prophets (radi Allahu ‘anhum) were To add or to divide, the great, the small, chosen for their desire to maintain their fitra, despite One as the center symbol doth appear. differences in creeds and practices. Similarly, our perJust as everything is hidden beyond the visible horizon of the Pleiades’ seven sonality, practice and perception of rituals may vary, but all worship must be directed to restoring us to stars, so does the human mystical experience remain hidden and unutterable after our post-fall state “to the lowest of the low” (95: 4-5) the seventh tawaf, depending solely on the pilgrim’s sincerity of heart. Hence, and manifest innate submission. Visiting holy places Rumi suggested making the pilgrimage to one’s heart: On God’s pathway there are two Ka‘bahs. can only supplement this pursuit. That’s why Abd One is the Ka‘bah you can see; al-Rahman Jami says: The Other is unseen, the Ka‘bah of the heart.

If you look for the God, look for Him As much as you can, make pilgrimage to the heart — in your heart, The heart’s value is greater than a thousand Ka‘bahs.

Not in Jerusalem, in Mecca, nor in Such a pilgrimage opens infinite ways to revive our fitra. It transforms tawaf the hajj.

As our preoccupation with worldly commitments into seven stages of spiritual rebirth, just as a human ovum completes its bodily often makes us oblivious and permits less time to cycle within its mother’s womb in seven stages of 40 days each, thereby re-instilling contemplate these mystical aspects of the Ka‘bah, the seven words of tawhid — la ilaha ilIa Allah, Muhammad rasul Allah. Thus, the hajj’s ultimate objective remains unrealized and making pilgrimage to one’s heart corresponds to the hidden virtues that bring out overlooked by the pilgrim’s naive enthusiasm of vis- our primordial being, as well as to the universal, moral and spiritual perfection iting this physical temple. Deeper contemplation that needed to remain constantly immersed in the Divine unity. ih transcends this ritual’s minutia can help us avoid such Rasheed Rabbi, an IT professional who earned an MA in religious studies (2016) from Hartford Seminary and is pursuing a Doctor spiritual incompleteness. of Ministry from Boston University, is also founder of e-Dawah (www.edawah.net) and secretary of the Association of Muslim As one’s heart engages in mystical yearnings, a Scientists, Engineers & Technology Professionals. He serves as a khateeb and Friday prayer leader at the ADAMS Center and is sense of the sacred permeates every aspect of the a certified Muslim chaplain at iNova Fairfax, iNovaLoudoun and Virginia’s Alexandria and Loudoun Adult Detention Centers.

However, the true homecoming only happens after we restore our fitra, the essence of humanity. This perception ingests a sense of being eternal beyond our physical capability to justify our elevated status over all of creation (33:72). We feel empowered to embrace the true Divine Eternal Being. Our submission remains no longer some passive act of worship, but becomes an active and deliberate manifestation of fitra.

The fundamental reality of such submission is both universal and the quintessence for humanity as a whole.

An urge to subsume all diversity is further etched into

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NEW RELEASES Nothing Has to Make Sense: Upholding White Supremacy through Anti-Muslim Racism Sherene H. Razack 2022. Pp. 276. PB: $28.00 University of Minnesota Press, Minneapolis, Minn. azack argues that the figure of the Muslim reveals a world divided between the deserving — those of European origin — and the disposable — all others. Emerging from critical race theory and bridging with Islamophobia/critical religious studies, she demonstrates that anti-Muslim racism reveals white supremacy as a global force and how Western nations have consolidated their whiteness post-9/11 via the figure of the Muslim.

This useful source on race and racisms explains why the global North cannot be understood in the absence of an analysis of how anti-Muslim racism functions as the link among Christianity, whiteness and the colonial apparitions in law and racial sciences.

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Hostile Homelands: The New Alliance Between India and Israel Azad Essa 2022. Pp. 224. $22.95 Pluto Press, London, U.K. nder Narendra Modi, India has changed drastically. As the world attempts to grapple with its trajectory toward authoritarianism and a “Hindu Rashtra” (Hindu State), more attention needs to be paid to the governments that inspire it and provide military and technical support.

India once called Zionism racism. However, Essa argues, Israel has increasingly become a cornerstone of India’s foreign policy. Looking to replicate the “ethnic state” in both policy and practice, its annexation of Kashmir increasingly resembles Israel’s settler-colonial project in the illegally occupied West Bank.

Essa places India’s relationship with Israel in its historical context, looking at the origins of Zionism and Hindutva, India’s changing position on Palestine and the countries’ growing military-industrial relationship since the 1990s. In addition to offering everything one needs to know about the history of their covert and open ties, the author reveals that the India–Israel alliance has significant consequences for democracy and the rule of law and justice worldwide.

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Rethinking Islam in Europe: Contemporary Approaches in Islamic Religious Education and Theology Zekirija Sejdini 2022. Pp. 180. HB: $80.99 De Gruyter, Berlin, Germany slamic theology had to wait for a long time before being granted a place in Europe’s universities. That happened, above all, in the German-speaking areas and led to the development of new theological and religious pedagogical approaches. Sejdini presents and discusses one such approach from various perspectives. He takes up different theological and religious pedagogical themes and reflects on them anew from the perspective of the contemporary context.

His primary focus is on contemporary challenges and possible answers from the perspective of Islamic theology and religious pedagogy. His book discusses general themes like the location of Islamic theology and religious pedagogy at secular European universities. The volume also explores concrete challenges, such as the extent to which Islamic religious pedagogy can be conceptualized anew, how it should deal with its own theological tradition in the contemporary context and how a positive attitude toward its worldview and religious plurality can be cultivated.

At issue here are foundations of a new interpretation of Islam that considers both a reflective approach to the Islamic tradition and the contemporary context. In so doing, it gives Muslims the opportunity to take their own thinking further.

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A Political Theory of Muslim Democracy Ravza Altuntas-Çakır 2022. Pp. 328. HB: $110.00 Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh, U.K. ltuntaş-Çakır proposes a framework of Muslim democracy that reconciles public claims made by Muslims with the normative and practical demands of democratic regimes.

He examines the ideals, institutions and processes that shape

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the development of a concrete Muslim-based democratic system — a form of democracy that recognizes religion’s centrality in Muslim societies.

Questioning the customary characterizations of Islam’s compatibility with democracy, he offers a comparative political theory approach that initiates a dialogue between Muslim and Western political thought. He systematically studies debates concerning Muslim political thought, multiculturalism, secularism, the public sphere and constitutionalism, which enables an exploration of Muslim democracy through a political theory approach, rather than a theological one.

Torture, Humiliate, Kill: Inside the Bosnian Serb Camp System Hikmet Karcic 2022. Pp. 276 (13 photos, 4 charts). HB: $85.00.

PB: $39.45 University of Michigan Press, Ann Arbor, Mich. alf a century after the Holocaust on European soil, Bosnian Serbs orchestrated a system of concentration camps in which they tortured, abused and killed their Bosniak Muslim and Bosnian Croat neighbors. Foreign journalists exposed these horrors during the summer of 1992, sparking worldwide outrage. This exposure, however, didn’t stop the mass atrocities.

Hikmet Karčić shows that the use of camps and detention facilities has been a ubiquitous practice in countless wars and genocides carried out to achieve the perpetrators’ wartime objectives. Although camps have been used for different strategic purposes, their essential functions are always the same: to inflict torture and lasting trauma on the victims.

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Under Siege: Islamophobia and the 9/11 Generation Jasmin Zine 2022. Pp. HB: $130.00 PB: $37.95. Kindle: $36.05 McGill-Queen’s University Press, Montreal /11, the subsequent global “war on terror” and the proliferation of domestic security policies in the West profoundly impacted the lives of young Muslims. The Muslim youth who came of age in these turbulent times have had their identities and experiences shaped by these events’ aftermath and backlash.

“Under Siege” explores the lives of the 9/11 generation of Muslim Canadian youth as they navigate these fraught times. As opposed to many other studies, Zine’s ethnographic study focuses on the toll this takes on Muslim communities, especially among younger generations. Based on in-depth interviews with 130+ young people, youth workers and community leaders, she unpacks the dynamics of Islamophobia as a system of oppression and examines how it impacts these youth in terms of, among others, citizenship, identity and belonging, securitization, radicalization, campus culture in an age of empire and subaltern Muslim counter-publics and resistance.

Twenty years after 9/11, Zine reveals how the global “war on terror” and heightened anti-Muslim racism have affected a generation of Muslim Canadians who were socialized into a world where their faith and identity are under siege.

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Taking Control: A Muslim Woman’s Guide to Surviving Infertility Farah Dualeh 2022. Pp. 152. PB: $16.95 Tugrah Books, Clifton, N.J. arah Dualeh, who has tried to conceive for many years, provides guidance for Muslimas who are facing the same issue. She shares her personal experience, along with psychological tools, on how to cope with this traumatic ordeal and offers extensive content from the Islamic perspective, including rulings on certain issues, as well as prayers.

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Towards a Sociology of Islam Muhammad Al-Ghazali 2021. Pp. 245. PB: $28.97 Pharos Media, New Delhi, India l-Ghazali examines the empirical method adopted in the modern social sciences that evolved in the historical context of post-medieval European society. The author highlights how it conflicts with the Islamic worldview, which created and sustained a distinct Islamic society on the Madinan model. He argues for adopting a new method based on the primacy of the Islamic criteria for truth and reality. ih

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