Now, I understand what politics is all about.  I know how you can go after one another, and that’s good.  But I think this goes too far.  And I think it has made the McCain campaign look a little narrow.  It’s not what the American people are looking for.  And I look at these kinds of approaches to the campaign and they trouble me.

And the party has moved even further to the right, and Governor Palin has indicated a further rightward shift.  I would have difficulty with two more conservative appointments to the Supreme Court, but that’s what we’d be looking at in a McCain administration.

I’m also troubled by, not what Senator McCain says, but what members of the party say. And it is permitted to be said such things as, “Well, you know that Mr. Obama is a Muslim.”

Well, the correct answer is, he is not a Muslim, he’s a Christian.  He’s always been a Christian.

But the really right answer is, what if he is?  Is there something wrong with being a Muslim in this country?

The answer’s no, that’s not America.

Is there something wrong with some seven-year-old Muslim-American kid believing that he or she could be president?

Yet, I have heard senior members of my own party drop the suggestion, “He’s a Muslim and he might be associated [with] terrorists.”

This is not the way we should be doing it in America.

I feel strongly about this particular point because of a picture I saw in a magazine.  It was a photo essay about troops who are serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.  And one picture at the tail end of this photo essay was of a mother in Arlington Cemetery, and she had her head on the headstone of her son’s grave.

And as the picture focused in, you could see the writing on the headstone.  And it gave his awards–Purple Heart, Bronze Star–showed that he died in Iraq, gave his date of birth, date of death.  He was 20 years old.

And then, at the very top of the headstone, it didn’t have a Christian cross, it didn’t have the Star of David; it had crescent and a star of the Islamic faith.  And his name was Kareem Rashad Sultan Khan, and he was an American. He was born in New Jersey.  He was 14 years old at the time of 9/11, and he waited until he can go serve his country, and he gave his life.

Now, we have got to stop polarizing ourself in this way.  And John McCain is as nondiscriminatory as anyone I know.  But I’m troubled about the fact that, within the party, we have these kinds of expressions.

Transcript from MSNBC


Powell alluded to a photograph of the grave of a Muslim American soldier published in the September 2008 edition of the New Yorker magazine, part of a photo essay by the photographer Platon titled “Service.” You can view the photo essay on the New Yorker web site here. You can read an article about the soldier, Kareem Khan, on the Arlington National Cemetery web site here

By Corey Habbas, Engage Minnesota

As health care costs increase in Minnesota and the uninsured rise in number, the Islamic Center of Minnesota (ICM) has taken on the role of a first-access, primary care clinic for anyone who needs it, through the Al-Shifa Clinic.

“It is our Islamic duty to address the issue of providing people with equal access to health care. We serve anyone in the community, both Muslim and non-Muslim,” asserts Sobia Sarwar, full-time coordinator for Al-Shifa Clinic. Al-Shifa is an Arabic noun for healing.

Since hiring Sarwar, the clinic’s committed doctors, who serve walk-in and scheduled patients, can concentrate on health care and not have to worry about administrative tasks like before.

She adds, “It’s the volunteer doctors that really make it happen. Without their skill set we really would not be able to contribute to the community. The fact that they dedicate their time and effort is enormous.”

Sarwar works in the banking industry, but says that her most rewarding job is her role as coordinator for Al-Shifa Clinic. But Al-Shifa is more than just a clinic.

Al-Shifa: A Clinic, and More

The Al-Shifa clinic is nestled within the front office of the ICM, a separate room that is medically equipped with its own restroom, patient’s table, medical supplies and a variety of diagnostic tools. Yet the clinic’s reach extends much farther, and other services unfold beyond the physical clinic itself.

Sarwar carries a cell phone specifically dedicated to the clinic in order to take calls seven days a week from patients, Al-Shifa physicians, cooperating pharmacies and medical laboratories. She also prepares the physicians’ rota, and creates fliers and brochures to announce health awareness seminars.

When patients arrive at the Al-Shifa Clinic for care, they are saved from the red tape of having to fill out income and insurance verification. They simply give their name, contact information, and fill out a medical history form.

When asked why patients are not required to go through the rigorous paperwork and verifications required by many medical institutions and insurance companies, Sarwar says, “…because we feel that no matter what a patient’s circumstances are, that health care should be made available to all, no questions asked.”

The Al-Shifa Clinic serves all socioeconomic, cultural, and religious groups. They support health efforts for the benefit of Muslims, non-Muslims, immigrants, and native born Americans equally. Although the Al-Shifa Clinic is open to everyone, it is expected that the Twin Cities Muslim community may seek out care here more than others due to special circumstances that make their situation unique.

“Due to social and religious differences, many families hesitate to access health care in the communities they live, regardless of the insurance or their financial status,” says an Al-Shifa Clinic physician who wishes to remain anonymous. He also notes that many families have visiting relatives who are uninsured and, as a function of their age, need access to cheap and efficient health care.

Promoting a Healthy Community

The Al-Shifa Clinic physician notes, “As the immigrant population assimilates into American culture, unfortunately they absorb the same poor lifestyle and eating habits as the surrounding society.” He says that with time health care habits deteriorate and so does the basic understanding of disease. “Our community needs basic education in health care matters in order to improve long-term health outcomes.” He says that this can mean the difference between an elevated standard of living over time because of good health choices, or a radically declining lifestyle in which the patient is always in crisis-mode.

“Al-Shifa Clinic should strive to be committed to promoting a healthy community to assist families making healthy choices according to cultural and religious norms,” says the Al-Shifa Clinic physician. To address community education needs, the Al-Shifa Clinic will be holding public health seminars which include topics such as diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, and including cancer screening and nutrition counseling.

The first health seminar sponsored by the Al-Shifa Clinic will be on Colon Cancer Screening. Dr Irfan Sandozi, from MN Gastroenterology, will be the lead speaker. Topics for forthcoming health seminars include hypertension, diabetes, high cholesterol, women’s health, children’s health, and immunizations. All seminars will take place on Sundays.

By becoming a first-access health care model, Al-Shifa Clinic is moving away from its previous basic health care model in order to provide a more comprehensive solution for ailing patients.

Al-Shifa Clinic’s first-access resource serves in identifying health issues, providing immediate and basic medical care, gives consultations, and refers patients to any other existing services in the community at a low cost. Al-Shifa Clinic currently has four committed physicians and one non-physician member active in the community and dedicated to making this project an ongoing success.

Want to Know More?

• The clinic is open every Sunday between 10:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m., and is located in the Al Amal School Building at the ICM, 1401 Gardena Ave N.E, Fridley MN 55432. Appointments can be made by contacting Sobia Sarwar at 763-567-9605.
• Attend the community health forum on hypertension (the medical term used to describe high blood pressure) on Sunday, April 27 at the ICM. Dr. Amin Rahmatullah will speak at the event.
• Read more about Al-Shifa on the ICM website, and view a PowerPoint from the clinic’s tenth anniversary celebration.
• Find information on donating to Al-Shifa here.

Corey Habbas is a freelance writer and children’s-book author who lives in Blaine, Minn. Her articles have appeared in The Milli Gazette, IslamOnline, Iqra! Newspaper, as well as many others.

Hajj is considered the fifth pillar of Islam, meaning every Muslim who can afford it and is in good health has to perform Hajj (at least) once in his lifetime.

My very first recollection of people going to perform Hajj was in my childhood in Karachi, where all the pilgrims from Pakistan used to assemble at the harbor to board ships heading towards Saudi Arabia. There was a distinct difference between them and the rest of the people who were not going to Hajj. The men were all dressed in white, women well covered, and you could see children running around dressed similarly. They were more organized than other people and always remained with their group, lest they get lost and be a problem for themselves and others.

When one of my father’s friends went to perform Hajj, my father took me along to bid him farewell at the passenger ship. In those days, the rich pilgrims normally flew to Jeddah directly and the middle class and the poorer people would take a ship to Jeddah, a journey of almost seven days.

The ship was fully occupied by almost two thousand people, and it had a separate open place for the daily prayers. The impression of seeing these pilgrims remained on my mind for a long time, and whenever I would read about the pilgrimage to Makkah in books, I would remember seeing the same pilgrims.

Several years later, while I was on an assignment to Nigeria, I once drove near Niger’s border south of Sahara. There, I came across a caravan, which, I was told, was heading towards Makkah for pilgrimage almost 18-20 months away. There are many such caravans in the Sahara heading to Makkah on camels and on foot, any time of the year. I remembered the saying “All roads lead to Makkah,” which seemed to be true. Upon leaving Nigeria, I accepted an offer to teach in a University in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Fortunately, it was very close to the Hajj season. So I decided to go there just in time to be able to perform this religious duty also.

After my plane landed at Jeddah Airport, I was taken in a bus to Makkah. For the first time, I felt, I was overwhelmed by my own emotions in anticipation of the holy journey and pilgrimage I was about to perform, a journey which every able-bodied Muslim should perform, if he can afford it, at least once in his lifetime. My eyes were looking for every detail of the contour of the land and every rock and stone which might be lying there from the time of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh).

When the bus was entering the city though the main highway, I could see the mountain on the top of which Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) had for the first time the encounter with Angel Gabriel which had changed the course of history. I recalled how he came back running to tell his wife about this experience.

The Story of Hajj

The story of Hajj began about 3,500 years ago, when the Prophet of God Ibrahim (pbuh), known in English as Abraham (pbuh), took his wife, Hajirah (Hagar), and their son, Ismael (Ishmael), to the valley of Baka’a near the Hills of Faran, and left them there, by God’s command. Baka’a, now called Makkah, means a desolate place with no vegetation, and Faran (originally Paran) is the name of the hills on the western slopes of the Arabian Peninsula.

Greatly concerned with the thirst of the infant and of herself, Hajirah ran desperately in search for water and made seven trips back and forth between the nearby hills of Safa and Marwah. Allah (SWT) then caused Ismail to rub his feet against the sand and a spring of water, the water of Zamzam, came out. This spring has never stopped and water still gushes out of it, and, once upon a time, it was the only source of water for the City of Makkah. I have drenched myself several times with the water of Zamzam and drank it to my content.

In his later trip to meet his wife and son, God commanded Ibrahim (pbuh) to build the holy sanctuary of Kaaba, the very first house of God where One God (Allah) would be worshiped. Kaaba is a near-cubical, elevated room, covered by a black satin and velvet cloth. The Sacred mosque in Makkah is built around it.

Upon completing Kaaba, Ibrahim was asked by God to call out people to pilgrimage to that holy sanctuary. He replied that there were not many people around. God asked Ibrahim to call out people and they would come on even lean camels.

“Behold! We gave the site, To Ibrahim, of the (Sacred) House [Kaaba that he built], (Saying): ‘Associate not anything (In worship) with Me; And sanctify My House for those who compass it round, or those who stand up (in prayers), or bow, or prostrate themselves (Therein in prayer). And proclaim the pilgrimage among men: they will come to thee on foot and (mounted) on every kind of camel, lean on account of journeys through deep and distant mountain highways; (HOLY QURAN 22:26-27)”

So Ibrahim (pbuh) stood up and called out people to come for pilgrimage. Soon there were a few who joined him to purify themselves. From that day onward, as far as recorded history goes, every single year at the prescribed days people from near and far would go for pilgrimage to Makkah and its vicinity in response to the call of Ibrahim (pbuh).

But the tests of Ibrahim had not ended yet. Ibrahim (pbuh) then saw in dreams that he was asked to offer in sacrifice to Allah what he loved the most. When he had ascertained that it was not just a dream but a vision and true commandment from God, he told his son about the dream. “O my son! I have seen in a dream that I am sacrificing you on God’s command, so what do you think?” They both realized that this was an order from Allah. Ismael responded without any hesitation: “Father do what you have been commanded, you shall find me among the very patient InshaAllah.”

They both submitted to the will of Allah, Ibrahim walking ahead and the patient son following him. One was leading his most beloved treasure, the answer to his 90 years of prayers, for whom he had waited such a long time, ready to give back the gift of the first son to the One who had given him in the first place. He remembered every innocent move the son had made, and every smile on the child’s face, from birth to childhood. He did not want to look at Ismael for the love of him and was keeping his eyes away from him.

When Satan (the Devil) approached him and his son, and tried to reason out that what they were intending to do was wrong and logically incorrect, they hit him with stones and he went away depressed knowing that he (Satan) had his limitations and would not be able to deceive true men of God.

Ibrahim (pbuh) laid his son prostrate, put his forehead on the ground and covered his own eyes, lest the love of the son would overcome God’s command, and directed a sharp knife towards his neck. At this very moment, Allah called him: “O Ibrahim! You have made your dream come true! Thus do We reward the good doers!” A big sheep was sent down from heaven to be slaughtered instead of Ismael, and they both had a big celebration that day. This event is celebrated every year by over a billion Muslims all over the world and is considered the most important festival of the year. It is Eid al-Adha when we slaughter the sacrificial sheep, and give one third of its meat to poor, one third to friends, and keep the remaining one third for our own home.

Hajj is the enactment of Ibrahim and his family’s sacrifice and their love for God.

This promise of Allah, to send people from all over the world to Makkah, is fulfilled every single year in Arabia through the Muslims’ yearly pilgrimage, where about three million Muslims come to perform the Hajj (pilgrimage) every year. The ‘lean camel’ coming after the fatiguing journey through distant mountain roads typifies the difficulties of travel.

Millions with Tears in Their Eyes

Movement of pilgrims during Hajj

Looking at Kaaba for the first time is an experience hardly anyone can forget. When I looked at Kaaba, a strange sensation passed through my spine and I stood still, gazing at it for some time. The Kaaba, which I had been seeing in pictures all my life and towards which I turned my face when praying five times a day, the House of Almighty Allah on Earth, was right in front of me. I was stunned for a while.

Is this the place which Ibrahim and Ismael built thousands of years ago, the center of monotheism? I had read in books that the prayers you wish when you first see Kaaba are accepted by God. I had so many prayers that I wanted to ask but I had forgotten them all at that time. I just asked God to let me enter paradise upon my death and to accept any prayers when I would need them. Later I realized that these were excellent supplications to God.

I went close to Kaaba, kissed its velvet curtain, and kissed the black stone received by Ibrahim (pbuh) and revered by all Muslims. With literal tears in eyes overflowing with emotions, I circumambulated the Kaaba seven times, prayed near the mark of the footstep of Ibrahim, drank the water of Zamzam, and drenched myself with it. I ran between the hills of Safa and Marwah, remembering the passion and desperation of our mother Hajirah, left alone with her infant son in that desolate valley. I remembered how God watched over her.

I walked on the road, on which Ibrahim (pbuh) and Ismael (pbuh) had once walked to the scene of the greatest sacrifice a lover can give to his beloved God, the offer of the first son, (Ismael, Isma meaning heard, and El meaning God) who was born in response to Ibrahim’s (pbuh) lifetime prayers. I remembered my own daughter at that time and the love I had in my heart for her. I also thought of the Great Prophet Ibrahim (pbuh), who walked over the same passage that I was then walking, when his mind may have been telling him to do one thing and the heart full of love and submission to God another.

I also prayed at the unending flat land of Arafat and Jabale Rahmah and threw pebbles at the structure symbolizing Satan, as Ibrahim (pbuh) and Ismael (pbuh) had done. I slaughtered a sheep, thinking again of Ibrahim (pbuh) when he was sure he was going to sacrifice his son.

I prayed on the Mountain of Mercy in the ground of Arafat. Here, Adam and Eve had met for the first time after they had been sent down to earth from Heaven. Just imagine how happy they must have been seeing each other on Earth the first time. What is the probability of two human beings meeting on the surface of the earth within their lifetime, when one had been sent down to Jeddah (literally meaning grandmother) and the other to Sri Lanka?

It is an experience of a lifetime. The sea of men wrapped in the same two pieces of cloth with no marks, no distinction between the rich or the poor, king or the beggar, white or black or brown or yellow. All equal in the eyes of God. The Earth and its politics, its wealth and its name, seems to be a small thing when you feel so close to God.

I saw millions of men and women with tears in their eyes, ready to help with compassion. People who could speak only their native languages were full of love for others who they had never seen. I saw an old man, perhaps in his eighties, and his wife walking together slowly, one stepping after the other, with each other’s help, hand in hand. You could hear people speaking Arabic, Urdu, English, French, Russian, Turkish, and Spanish; name any language of the world. And every one, in a low tone or loudly, chanting to God.

“God I am here, God I am here (to the call of Ibrahim which he made three thousand years ago). There is no God but You. All praises are for You and all blessings are from You and the whole World belongs to you. There is no partner in Your divinity.”

Owais Bayunus is the president of the Islamic Center of Minnesota (ICM), and former chairman of the Muslim Christian Dialogue, Minnesota Council of Churches.

Conservation of natural resources is a key to ensuring the longevity of our planet and its inhabitants. Islam has a rich tradition of drawing our attention to properly taking care of the environment.

The teachings of Prophet Muhammad (p.b.u.h.) point toward conservation, sustainable development, and resource management. The Prophet Muhammad (p.b.u.h.) remarked, “The Earth is green and beautiful, and God has appointed you his stewards over it.”

This holistic environmental philosophy assumes a fundamental link and interdependency between all natural elements; if one of these is abused, then the natural world as a whole will suffer on account of this.

The following article is a humble attempt to help the readers conserve energy. This effort is inspired by Islam’s exhortations to safeguard the rights of the environment and to adopt moderation in the use of natural resources.

Minnesota has just experienced one of the coldest winters this decade. January witnessed record sub-zero temperatures at International Falls, Embarrass, Tower, and the Twin Cities. By mid-April, those will be a distant memory. We live in a state that has one of the highest seasonal temperature fluctuations. Our winter windchills are comparable to Alaska’s, but in mid-summer our dewpoint heat index is no different from Louisiana’s.

An average single-family home in Minnesota pays about $1,000 each for natural gas and electricity bills annually. (According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.) We see bigger sticker shock with a gas bill since it fluctuates sharply, from just $20 in the summer to over $200 in the winter. With plasma TVs and multiple computers at home, our annual electricity consumption is a bit more constant (but constantly rising) with some variation in July and August, depending on air-conditioner usage. We also pay an average of $600 more on water consumption and garbage disposal each year.

Here are some useful tips on how to take control of saving energy by applying some energy conservation options.

Heating:

• Manage your home’s temperature by installing a programmable thermostat. You can program multiple temperature changes throughout the day.
• The rule of thumb is that setting the temperature one degree below your normal set-point for eight hours every day will help you save 2 percent on that month’s heating bill.
• Change your furnace filter every month. A dirty furnace filter is the leading cause of furnace problems. It also adds to your heating bill since the furnace runs inefficiently. Furnace filters come with MERV ratings from 3 to 15. The higher the rating, the more expensive the filter is. If you don’t have any serious allergy issues, a midrange MERV rating filter will do.
• Proper caulking and weather stripping on windows and doors will prevent cold draft problems.
• Take advantage of your utility company’s home energy audit programs, especially the $100 detailed home energy audit. You will be able to see cold spots near entrances, windows, walls, and ceilings while getting a professional assessment from an expert. This is well worth the $100 spent.
• Have a furnace tune-up once a year (or at least every other year) by a licensed contractor to ensure the unit is operating properly.

Cooling:

• Almost all of the heating-related energy tips above are applicable here.
• Install ceiling fans to add air circulation in your house. A ceiling fan can help decrease the room temperature by almost 10 degrees during the summer.
  Close drapes, blinds, and shades to minimize the radiant heating effect during the day time by keeping the sunrays out.
  Keep the outside AC condenser unit clean from debris and leaves. Please don’t bang on it with your lawnmowers.

Ventilation:

• Homes built in Minnesota since 2001 are much tighter and better insulated. However, they require proper ventilation to prevent any mildew or back draft problems. Most new homes are equipped with an Energy Recovery Ventilator (ERV), a black or beige colored box hanging in your utility room. This is the most neglected piece of equipment.
• Clean and rinse the ERV filters at least every 3 months. The instruction manual will show the steps. Also, clean the ERV’s air intake vent located at the side of the house. The vent has a screen that accumulates dust. An old tooth brush can do the trick.
• If it has been five years, your heating/cooling air duct system needs professional cleaning.
• Do not block the make-up air flow tubing in your utility room. This black, plastic-wrapped, flexible elephant trunk is necessary to ensure proper air flow needed for combustion and exhaust of your gas furnace and water heater. Blocking the make-up air flexible tubing may lead to safety hazards.

Humidity:

• The ideal relative humidity (RH) setting (for humans of course) is between 40 and 60 percent. We can tolerate as low as 30 percent. An RH below this minimum may cause throat irritation, dry skin, or nosebleeds. Prolonged dryness in a house may cause damage to your wood furniture and hardwood floors.
• Install an RH monitor that can display the minimum and maximum range inside your house. This should give you an indication of whether a humidifier is needed in the winter.
• You have to do a balancing act to set a comfortable RH level in your house in the winter without causing condensation on the windows. Prolonged condensation will lead to problems with mildew.

Lighting and Electronic Equipment:

• Install high-efficiency compact florescent (CFL) bulbs. A 15-watt CFL bulb can give the same lumens as a 60-watt standard bulb. Although CFL bulbs are expensive, they still save money and are cost-effective. Your electric utility company most likely offers rebates for these bulbs.
• Hibernate or turn off your computers/monitors at night instead of setting them on screen saver mode. A typical desktop uses from 60 to 200 watts, a 17-inch LCD monitor uses 30 watts, and a laptop can use 15 to 45 watts. With multiple computers at home, the electricity cost will add up.
• Turn off your other electronic entertainment gadgets when not in use at night. Unless we are recording a game or show, most of us only turn off the television set and completely ignore the VCRs, DVDs, and boomboxes.
• If you are replacing an old electric appliance, buy an appliance with an Energy Star logo.

Water:

• Install a low-flow showerhead if the water flow rate of your shower is more than 2.5 gallons per minute. Conduct a bucket test with a stopwatch and measure how long it takes to fill a one-gallon bucket. Your gas utility company offers one free low-flow showerhead to its residential customers each year.
• Install a new aerator on the faucets if the water flow rate from the kitchen or bathroom faucets is more than 1.5 gallons per minute. The aerator minimizes the water flow by adding air to the water. All faucets are equipped with aerators, but older aerators are not as efficient.
• Install a moisture sensor for your lawn sprinkler system. These sensors can detect rain and prevent unnecessary watering on a rainy day.

Recycling:

• Recycling has positive indirect savings. The amount you are paying to dispose of your garbage will be higher without recycling.
• The way I see it, we are preventing the formation of more landfills by recycling properly.

Islam teaches that humanity has been entrusted the task of being trustees to the world’s resources. As caretakers of those resources, it only behooves us that we leave behind a world that the future generations can enjoy and thrive in.

The teachings of Islam were revealed 1,400 years ago when the world population was a fraction of what it is today, and the pressure on the environment was nothing when compared to what it is today. Therefore, Islamic teachings on the importance of conservation and protecting our environment stand out like a beacon – beckoning humanity to that which benefits all for ages to come.

–Rafi Sohail has over 15 years of marketing and business development experience in the energy industry. He currently works for a local gas utility company and manages a group involved in energy conservation programs. He also servers as a board member of Al-Amal School in Fridley, Minn.

By Marcia Lynx Qualey, Engage Minnesota

It was 1998 when Basimah Hasan left her hometown of Chicago for Minneapolis.

In the Twin Cities, she attended nursing school and began her career at North Memorial Hospital. She says that there is a “big difference” between the Minneapolis and Chicago Muslim communities.

“[There are] more Muslims in Chicago, and they’re more active. Here, everyone seems to be in their own ethnic groups. You don’t see a lot of activities going on, versus in Chicago.”

But, if there’s not enough activity, Hasan (pictured above) is not one to sit back and wait for someone else to start it up. The nurse, talk-show host, screenwriter, community activist, and producer is stirring up all sorts of action.

Through her nonprofit Hasan Publications Dawah Center, Hasan launched the “Islamic View.” The talk show aims not just to reach the Muslim community, but, more importantly, to reach non-Muslims with positive stories about Islam.

Why television?

“It’s images,” she says. “This is where we get our information from.”

‘Islamic View’ Gets Its Start

The story of “Islamic View” begins when Basimah Hasan was thirteen years old.

“My family wasn’t Muslim,” says Hasan. “That was a decision I made after reading about all the different religions.” Thirteen-year-old Hasan read about Christianity, Buddhism, Hinduism, Judaism.

“And when I got to Islam, I just knew that that was the religion for me.”

Hasan launched the nonprofit HP Dawah Center in 2003, but the spark for “Islamic View” came in 2001.

“I really believe the spark was from seeing all the negative things on television, especially after September 11. That’s when people really started looking at Muslims differently, hating them, without even knowing them.”

“I wanted people to know: No, we’re not like that. This is what we practice, this is what we believe.”

The project has been slowly growing, she says. In the summer of last year, she began to rent a studio. Most recently, Hasan has begun to incorporate Islamic-themed poetry into the show.

The first poem is set to air this Friday, March 21, after an interview with Imam Neelain Muhammad. In the pre-recorded show, Muhammad and Hasan talk about dawah, or the propagation of Islam. In the second half of the show, Muhammad—who is also a martial arts instructor—gives tips for Muslim and non-Muslim women who want to learn self-defense.

“And then there’s the poem at the end,” Hasan said.

It was just recently that Hasan put out a call to local Muslim poets.

“She [Nandi] called and said a poem over the phone. And I said, ‘Wow.’”

Hasan notes that if you miss the show on Friday, or don’t have access to Channel 16, you can still watch the reading of Nandi’s “The Black Woman is Dead” on YouTube. (Watch it now.)

Through poetry, interviews, and talk-show chat, Hasan tries to combat a few key stereotypes about the Muslim community: “that Muslim women are oppressed, that we’re practicing a hateful religion, and that we’re terrorists.”

Others who’ve appeared on the show include local politicians and civic leaders, such as Hennepin County Commissioner Peter McLaughlin, community leaders, and people around the community.

There’s no script, Hasan says. “We just talk, just like we sitting at a table, having a conversation.”

Next: A Muslim-Themed Soap Opera?

Another media project Hasan has on the boil moves outside the talk-show format.

“I plan on putting together a drama series that would be Muslim-based, that would show people the everyday situations and circumstances we go through,” Hasan says. “It would be almost soap-opera like, but from a Muslim perspective.”

“So [non-Muslims] can see the human side of us.”

Currently, Hasan is at work on scripting. “I have characters; I have names for them; I have some situations.” She plans to send out a casting call soon.

If Not Muslims, Then Who?

Hasan doesn’t know the exact number of people who watch “Islamic View,” or whether they’re Muslims or non-Muslims. She does get a number of phone calls. “They will call and say, ‘I liked the show,’ or they might ask about the person who was on the show. And then you get the calls that are negative.”

“I know Muslims are watching,” Hasan says, “but I know non-Muslims are watching, too.”

And that’s important, she says, because the show is “mainly for non-Muslims, because they are the ones who need to be educated. As Muslims, we have to help them understand” that the images they see on TV give a distorted picture of Islam.

“The people who have negative views [have them] because of the images that were projected to them,” she says. “We have to change that distortion. As Muslims, that’s an obligation on us.”

“Because if we don’t do it, who else will?”

Want to Know More About ‘Islamic View’?

• Watch the show: It airs on Time Warner’s local cable station in Minnesota on Channel 16 every Friday at 4 p.m.
• Want to participate in the show? Have a poem to submit? Email Hasan at hpdawahcenter@yahoo.com.
• Want to help? Says Hasan: “They could support by giving donations, they could support by volunteering to help, or by spreading information about the show.” If you’re interested, visit the website or email hpdawahcenter@yahoo.com.
• Learn more about HP Dawah’s other activities, such as providing Islamic literature to inmates and participating in the Twin Cities’ Juneteenth celebration, at their website.

–Marcia Lynx Qualey is a mother, a writer, and is affiliated with the University of Minnesota in various ways. She is also an editor at EngageMN.com.