Chador and Toothpaste with Imam Reza



Twelve hundred years ago, Ma’moon finally gave up trying to manipulate his way into legitimized authority and murdered Imam Reza by forcing him to eat poisoned grapes. Once Reza died, his corpse was brought from Marv to Mashhad and he was buried right here. His many followers attended his funeral. Oppressors and fascists take note: killing the leader of the opposition does not annihilate the opposition itself.

Managing Anger and Democracy at the Democratic Convention



Razor wire adorns the skyline in liberal Massachusetts. Gee I can hardly wait for the other convention in Ashcroft land.

Stop Debating Semantics: Darfur Needs Our Help Now



Muslims both here and abroad are expending great energy in a debate over whether the situation in Sudan truly constitutes genocide instead of taking action to bring relief to the victims of Darfur and pressuring others to do the same. The debate should stop. Now.

Canada’s Media and Muslim Organizations Ignore Country’s First Muslim Woman Elected to Parliament



The question is this: How could the national media miss such a historic milestone for Canada's 600,000-strong Muslim community?

Muslims and Gay Marriage: Is a Loving Commitment Between Two People Such a Bad Thing?



It is too often easy to use Islam to justify personal and cultural prejudices rather than to challenge them as we should.

Salafabi Soup: A Recipe



Hammer the Shariah until it becomes rigid, making sure all bubbles of humanism are completely removed. Then fold the Creator of the Universe into the Shariah, making sure your own views and Divine decree are thoroughly blended in any subsequent legal judgements.

End the Agony, Stop the War Criminals: Justice in Darfur Now!



There is little doubt that the rabid violence has been directly orchestrated by the Sudanese government. As Muslims and members of the larger human family, we call on the Sudanese government to end the agony and stop the war criminals in Darfur.

Israel Builds Another Wall



There is a terrible irony in the chorus of loud Zionist condemnations that have greeted the ICJ’s ruling.

Choking on Genocide in Darfur



What is happening in the Darfur region of Sudan is genocide. This is the official MWU. No lawyers were involved. Don’t let the State Department and the Holocaust Museum throw dust in your eyes.

Moore Hope



I wanted to make some strong rebel move that would not involve Mr. Moore earning more, while still using his cleverly made film to get Bush out of office. I decided that if Muhammad wouldn’t go to the mountain, then I’d take the mountain to Muhammad.

Forging an American Muslim Identity: Time for Alternative Muslim Institutions



It is time for progressive, forward-thinking, passionate, globally-minded, and tolerant Muslims to develop alternative institutions to articulate a self-critical community.

Funky Maulana Down Under: Farid Esack's Refreshing Speaking Tour in Australia



Recently, Sydney was abuzz with news that a fresh face was arriving to take the student-and/or-revert dawah-circuit by storm.

Warming Up to a Dictator



President Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair want us to think that Gaddafi's conversion on the road to Washington and London was due to the fear that he would end up in the same jail cell as Saddam Hussein.

The Ugly Ironies of France's Muslim-Jewish Problem



A recent spate of hate attacks in France’s Alsace region has left a number of cemeteries desecrated with swastikas. At first glance, this may appear to be the latest report on anti-Jewish acts in France, but it actually refers to vandalism against Muslim gravestones that is believed to have been committed by Neo-Nazis.

On Belief and Disbelief: The True Meaning of Idolatry



Though the western scriptures tell us not to bow to statues, is this necessarily the most common or dangerous form of idolatry?

Will the 'New Iraq' Be Any Different? Allawi Sows Seeds for Emerging Police State



The news that the new ‘democratic’ Iraq will have all the institutions and laws of a police state should not surprise anyone above the age of 40. We have all seen this before.

A Visit to Shatila



There are close to 400,000 registered Palestinian refugees in Lebanon living in 13 camps ranging in size from 1,000 to 45,000. They are carefully (and deliberately, according to some refugees) distributed throughout the country but well away from the border with Palestine.

My American Son



It was the beginning of the 4th of July weekend, and I decided to take my 4-year old son, Ali, to the Friday prayer at my favorite mosque, Masjid Al-Farah, the Mosque of Happiness, in New York City.

The Terror of Beheadings: Who Is Responsible?



Today, the terror tactics used by the British and other European colonizers to break the will of their captive populations are being used by a new group of people—the Al Qaeda terrorists who have infiltrated the freedom fighters trying to get rid of new occupations.

Michael Moore’s Fahrenheit 9/11: The Problem Is Bigger than the Bushes



Viewers who have suffered through the nightmare four years of the Bush administration and marched against the horrendous invasion and occupation of Iraq are understandably hopeful that Fahrenheit 9/11 will help produce “regime change” in the U.S. this fall. That may prove to be the case, but will putting Democrat John Kerry in the White House lead to withdrawal of U.S. troops, military bases, and profiteering corporations from Iraq, repeal of the Patriot Act, or a reorientation of U.S. foreign policy away from its drive for imperialist hegemony?