Engage Minnesota

Minnesota Muslims are finding themselves voiceless, discussed, defined, categorized, psychoanalyzed, talked at and talked about without a serious attempt at inclusion. Muslims, and friends of Muslims, would like to change this climate. Engage Minnesota is a blog that begins that effort.

1948, the Nakbah: The Palestinian perspective

By Hani Hamdan, Engage Minnesota

This article is to present the Palestinian point of view mainly for reference purposes. Americans deserve to know all perspectives on the Israeli-Palestinian matter.MORE »

Nonie or Mahmoud Darwish? Minnesota's libraries need more, better Arabic literature

By Marcia Lynx Qualey, Engage Minnesota

During a recent visit to Minnesota from my adopted home in Cairo, I went to my mother’s public library in search of a translation of superstar-poet Mahmoud Darwish.MORE »

Islamic art: Mirror of the invisible world

By Onder Uluyol, Engage Minnesota

I believe beauty is that which communicates the familiar and the unfamiliar together in a uniquely inspiring form.MORE »

Capturing the Minnesota Muslim experience through oral histories

By Onder Uluyol, Engage Minnesota

“Really?” was the first question Kathy Wurzer of the Almanac asked me when she featured the Muslim Experience in Minnesota oral history project on her popular TV show on TPT. Does the Muslim experience in Minnesota really go back to 1880s?
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We need to take a long hard look at interest

By Hani Hamdan, Engage Minnesota

With the Occupy Wall Street movement gaining momentum and showing some promise of reform, there is a need to identify the issues that need fixing within our financial system. The phenomena that OWS protesters are decrying, such as the growing socioeconomic inequality, are not simply an act of wealthy bankers.MORE »

My 9/11 experience

By Rihab Naheel, Engage Minnesota

I rarely think of 9/11. I know that almost every one has been affected by this day in one way or another. It was 10 years ago and yet it feels like yesterday. I had to remember that day against my will the other day, long before the actual date came, while teaching a grammar lesson. Yes, this day creeps up in unexpected places, unexpected times. MORE »

Countering Islamophobia on the tenth anniversary of the September 11 attacks

By Asma Adam, Engage Minnesota

If asked whether Muslim-Americans should be treated fairly, most Americans would answer “yes.” However, America has had its struggles with racism, bigotry, prejudice, and discrimination in its history and it seems that Muslim-Americans are now on the receiving end of these hateful reactions.MORE »

Islamophobes' authoritarian contemptuous attitude toward the American public

By Hani Hamdan, Engage Minnesota

Much of the industry of Islamophobia these days seems to operate based on a perceived existential threat to the American identity – the threat that somehow Americans may become “Islamicized” en masse and be brainwashed by Muslims either into converting to Islam or adopting Islamic viewpoints.MORE »

American pundits' anti-Muslim hate speech predictably ends up costing lives

By Hani Hamdan, Engage Minnesota

This is not to say that Islamophobia has not already cost a barrage of human lives.MORE »

Appreciating and utilizing our freedom

By Hani Hamdan, Engage Minnesota

As much as we welcome the recent revolutions in parts of the Arab world, we need to acknowledge an important fact: Revolutions are no fun. Although they are necessary at times in order to correct rampant tyranny and corruption, it’s better not to ever have to resort to them.MORE »

Engage Minnesota

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