Islam

Islamic World Scholar: Hamline Mistaken to Fire Instructor

by Ahmad Sadri

Hamline University deprived its students—including Muslims—of the chance to learn about a multiplicity of views within the faith. 

Most of All, Hamline's Decision Offends Me as a Muslim

by Amna Khalid

Hamline University, in firing an art history instructor for showing an image of the Prophet Muhammad (with a content warning, in an optional exercise), has not only exemplified how risk-averse bureaucracies use inclusive language to dismiss faculty expertise, it also insulted Muslims by associating a vast and diverse set of cultures with fundamentalist theology. 

As Taliban Return, a History of Afghan Women’s Rights

The feared subordination of women under the Taliban in Afghanistan is not a return to "tradition" but reflects the complexity of differing regions and conflicting ethnic and cultural groups. 

How Malcolm X Inspired John Coltrane to Embrace Islamic Spirituality

by Richard Brent Turner

John Coltrane's embrace of influences from religious music from Africa, Asia and the Middle East, profoundly influential to the Black Arts movement and African American spirituality, was influenced by Malcolm X. 

The Muslims Who Inspired Spinoza, Locke and Defoe

by Mustafa Akyol

"In this age of anxiety, anger and contestations between the West and the Islamic world, many epoch-shaping stories of intellectual exchanges between our cultures are often forgotten."

Islamophobia Goes Global

by Zaman Stanizai

At the end of the Cold War impasse, however, as the Berlin Wall came crumbling down, the ideological divide of the East-West was replaced by the Middle East-West racial, religious, and cultural divide that culminated in the election of Donald Trump and the rise of neo-fascism parading as super-nationalism.

Jack Miles' God in the Qur’an brings the three Abrahamic traditions to the table

by Zaman Stanizai

We cannot force someone to hear a message they are not ready to receive, but we must never underestimate the power of planting a seed.

Coexistence and Sectarianism in the Modern Arab World

by Ussama Makdisi

In the case of the Middle East, the need to demythologize communities and their ideological underpinnings needs to go hand in hand with evoking a dynamic history of coexistence that transcends communalism. 

What is a caliph? The Islamic State tries to boost its legitimacy by hijacking a historic institution

by Ken Chitwood

The Islamic State’s caliphate was never widely recognized among the global Muslim community and no longer has significant territory. But the Islamic State still uses the history of the caliphate to push their claims.

Trump administration says joint UNC, Duke Middle East Studies program portrays Islam too positively

The Trump administration is pressuring the University of North Carolina and Duke University to revise their joint Middle East studies program or risk federal funding.

A New History of Islamic Empires Defined Through Illustrious Cities

by Erik Moshe

"History constantly refreshes and reinvents itself and that is its abiding power. It has a built-in resistance to obsolescence."

Muslims arrived in America 400 years ago as part of the slave trade and today are vastly diverse

by Saeed Ahmed Khan 

Some of the earliest arrivals to this land were Muslim immigrants.

America’s Long History of Hysteria about Women’s Veils: Jeanine Pirro and Ilhan Omar

by Juan Cole

In fact, nothing is more American historically than veiling and debates on veiling. 

Christian student challenged a school history lesson on Islam and lost in court

As a high school junior, Caleigh Wood refused to complete a history lesson on “The Muslim World” that she said forced her to embrace Islam in conflict with her Christian faith — and the Constitution.

Is Islam a Western Religion?

by Juan Cole

It doesn’t hate us. It is us.

Study: American Kids Are Learning Islamophobia From Their Textbooks

by Melissa Levinson

"My research on world history textbooks used across the country finds that sections about Islam and the Middle East advance a “rise and fall” narrative."

Daniel Pipes says regime change in Iran is “inevitable”

by Daniel Pipes

In an expansive interview he gives his views on Iran, Turkey and the future of Islamism.

Islamic Spain Ended in the 15th Century and We Still Can’t Agree If It Was a Paradise or Hell?

by Brian Catlos

Even historians can’t agree.

Islam will be the second-biggest U.S. religion by 2040

The data published last week by the Pew Research Center shows that Islam will surpass Judaism as the second biggest religion in the country, behind Christianity, within two decades.

NYT raves about Garry Wills’s new book on the Quran

by Lesley Hazleton

Why this Catholic writer, author of  "WHAT THE QUR’AN MEANT:  And Why It Matters," is a great guide to an Islamic text.