Activism

Zaynab Ansari, Mohamed Ghilan and Dawud Walid convene to consider the role of Muslims in an increasingly fractured social media landscape, the ethics of disagreement, and refining adab (conduct and manners) in our interactions.

What's next for Muslims after the 2020 presidential elections? Impacted by the polarized political climate, divisions within the Muslim community itself deepen, with some moving further left and others further right. Where do Muslims fit in the liberal setting of a Biden presidency?

Dawud Walid, author of the book, "Towards Sacred Activism" discusses engaging in social activism with an Islamic framework and methodology as well as pertinent issues related to the Black Lives Matter movement.

Mustafa Davis and Moutasem Atiya have a raw, powerful conversation on race in the wake of the ongoing assault on Black lives in America, and we revisit insights from previous guests on anti-blackness, Black history, social justice and anti-racism work.

Shaykh Yasir Fahmy returns to the podcast to discuss "keeping it real", the call-out culture, the debates between the right and left, and finding balance in addressing the divisive issues of the day.

In this episode, Dawud Walid and Tariq Touré join host Mohammed Saleem to examine the scholar-activist relationship from different angles, including generational and social dynamics at play, the role of Islamic spirituality and creed, relevancy in scholarship, and navigating through the influence of liberalism in activist circles.

As Muslim leaders and activists engage both the government and their own organizations, a number of ethical questions arise. Does partnering with government entities lend itself to conflicts of interest and inauthenticity? Do programs like CVE impose a frame on the Muslim community that takes away its own agency and agenda? Are activist-driven circles and initiatives any less immune to these risks? Muslim leaders and activists from all sides of the spectrum are challenged to keep themselves anchored in Islamic principles while navigating the complex socio-political realities of our time. In this episode, Ahmed Shaikh, a community leader and lawyer, and Mohamed Ghilan discuss these and other issues and offer their suggestions on preserving our integrity as external actors and internal egos battle for influence in the Muslim community.

In the wake of the recent controversy at the RIS convention, Dr. Su'ad Abdul Khabeer, a professor of anthropology and African American studies and author of "Muslim Cool: Race, Religion and Hip Hop in the United States", and Moutasem Atiya from Al-Madina Institute discuss the issues at hand, anti-Blackness in the community, and how we can move forward positively.

In the second part of the episode, our guests discuss the path American Muslim culture is taking and explore "Muslim Cool", a culture rooted in embracing Blackness and social justice that connects both Black and non-Black Muslims to Islam in America.

CVE (Countering Violent Extremism) programs have been a source of controversy in the Muslim American community, yet there is a lack of clarity in the discussion as to what CVE is. Is it a black and white issue as both its proponents and critics make it seem? In this episode, Alejandro Beutel, a researcher in CVE, and Mohamed Ghilan, a critic of CVE, discuss both government and community-led initiatives in countering violent extremism and consider how to address this divisive issue constructively in the Muslim community.

In this new series of conversations on issues facing the Muslim community, Moutasem Atiya & Mohammed Saleem discuss the 2016 presidential elections and how to stay upbeat, what to tell our children, and how we can move forward socially and spiritually.