Archive for the ‘Islamophobia’ Category
Support the Same Standards for All
Filed under: Engage Minnesota, Islamophobia | Tags: Asad Zaman, church and state, Engage Minnesota, Islamophobia, Katherine Kersten, Minnesota media, Tariq ibn Ziyad Academy, TIZA
Comments (2) 
Since Katherine Kersten’s column regarding Tariq ibn Ziyad Academy (TIZA) in yesterday’s Star Tribune, the Minnesota Department of Education has been inundated with negative calls.
Kersten’s column claims that TIZA is violating its charter and the “church and state” separation. She bases this largely on the observations of one short-time substitute teacher who was immersed in a different school culture, and could easily have been mistaken in her impressions and interpretations.
However, whether or not TIZA has violated the strictest interpretation of religion-state separation is not the issue. What school in Minnesota has not? Indeed, last December, the Minneapolis public schools launched a large faith-based initiative weighted almost entirely to Protestant congregations. Read about it here.
If we are going to examine TIZA’s practices with a fine-toothed comb, then surely all faith-based initiatives, Easter pageants, Christmas trees, and even our choice of holiday vacations should come under strict scrutiny.
If you would like to urge the Minnesota Department of Education to be fair in its scrutiny of Tariq ibn Ziyad Academy, and to be wary of Islamophobic motivations, the department is steering all calls to this number: 651-582 8570.
Blaine hate crime sparks town meeting focused on unity, answers
Filed under: Islamophobia | Tags: Diversity and Muslims, Emily Bright, Events, Islamophobia
Comments (1) By Emily Bright, Engage Minnesota
On the night of January 27, three men entered Mohammad Ismail’s Blaine Dairy store as he was closing shop and threw flaming glass bottles at the walls, destroying everything in the store. Ismail escaped through the smoke-filled store with minor cuts and burns. A strong expletive directed at the word “Arab” was founded spray painted on the side door that same night. The FBI is investigating the possibility of a hate crime.
Exactly two months later, on March 27, roughly 75 community leaders and concerned citizens gathered at Anoka Technical School to talk about what they were going to do about hate crime in their community. The crowd looked small in the auditorium, but the conversation was constructive, with many speakers stressing the need to forgive those who cause harm, educate the public, and get to know one’s neighbors. As an example of the meeting’s overall goals of unity, the event was cosponsored by the Council of American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the Lake Harriet United Methodist Church, the Anoka Technical Student College Senate, and the NAACP.
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Basimah Hasan: Changing Images Every Friday at 4
Filed under: Islam, Islamophobia | Tags: Basimah Hasan, dawah, Events, Islam, Islamic View, Islamophobia, Marcia Lynx Qualey, Minneapolis, Minnesota media, Muslim poetry, Muslims, poetry, self-defense, stereotypes, television
Comments (1) Talk-Show Host Aims to Correct Distorted Picture of Muslims and Islam
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.
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TV Show:
“Islamic View”
Airtime:
4 p.m. Fridays
Time-Warner cable Ch. 16
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“[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.”
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