Islam
Federal ruling paves way for Mississippi mosque construction project
By Joseph Hammond — January 12, 2022
(RNS) — In at least one instance, a municipal official who opposed the mosque admitted the plan was initially blocked ‘because they’re Muslims.’
Israel’s national library sees Arabic site traffic boom
By Ilan Ben Zion — January 10, 2022
(AP) — The Jerusalem library is home to an extensive collection of Islamic and Arabic texts, including thousands of rare books and manuscripts in Arabic, Persian and Turkish ranging from the 9th to the 20th centuries.
How East London’s oldest halal restaurant survived the pandemic
By Joseph Hammond — January 3, 2022
LONDON (RNS) — Halal Restaurant opened in 1939 to serve the needs of Muslims in the maritime industry. Over the ensuing decades the restaurant has changed alongside the rapidly shifting neighborhood.
Islamic-friendly comic book content finds a growing audience
By Joseph Hammond — December 29, 2021
(RNS) — 'I just knew there would be interests in dynamic storytelling outside of the superheroes, wizards and dragons out there,' said the founder of Fictional Frontiers, an initiative seeking to support Muslim writers and illustrators.
Former London Fashion Week designer pivots to modest fashion market
By Joseph Hammond — December 22, 2021
(RNS) — After being wrongfully imprisoned for two years in the U.K., Elle B. Mambetov has taken her once famed luxury brand and focused it on modest fashion, aimed at Muslim women.
Celebrity surgeon Dr. Oz seeks to be first Muslim elected to the US Senate
By Joseph Hammond — December 2, 2021
(RNS) — Besides Sufism, the mystical Islamic sect, Oz's spiritual practices include transcendental meditation and elements of his wife's Swedenborgian tradition.
Interfaith love a risk amid India’s Hindu nationalist surge
By Sheikh Saaliq — November 29, 2021
While interfaith unions between Hindus and Muslims are rare in India, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s and other Hindu nationalists have forcefully decried what they call “love jihad.”
‘Praying to the West’ offers look at America’s diverse Muslim communities
By Joseph Hammond — November 25, 2021
(RNS) — Omar Mouallem's new book looks at 13 mosques across North and South America and how Muslims developed their identity on the continents.
UFOs and science fiction in Muslim culture goes well beyond ‘Dune’
By Joseph Hammond — November 19, 2021
(RNS) — In the Middle East, in particular, science fiction became an outlet for political criticism.
New biography offers novel approach to life of Muhammad
By Joseph Hammond — November 12, 2021
(RNS) — In his new book, 'Muhammad, the World-Changer: An Intimate Portrait,' biographer Mohamad Jebara takes long-established sources and weaves them together for a fresh telling of a familiar story.
Muslims win office in US municipal elections in 2021
By Joseph Hammond — November 10, 2021
(RNS) — Three years after the first Muslim women were elected to Congress, successful campaigns in Michigan, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey and Pennsylvania put Muslims in key local offices.
AI technology resurrects the voice of Laleh Bakhtiar
By Joseph Hammond — November 9, 2021
(RNS) — A project aimed at cementing the legacy of an Islam scholar could help the IT world’s sometime hostility to Muslim voices.
European diversity campaign celebrating Hijab ended after French backlash
By Joseph Hammond — November 8, 2021
(RNS) — A Council of Europe spokesperson told the BBC the organization had taken down the campaign tweets, 'while we reflect on a better presentation of the project.'
High court struggles with government secrets case
By Jessica Gresko — November 8, 2021
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court struggled Monday with whether to allow a lawsuit by Muslim men claiming religious bias by the FBI to go forward despite the government’s objection that doing so could reveal national security secrets. The case the high court was considering involves a group of three men from Southern California. They […]
A new generation of Muslim American media puts women in focus
By Joseph Hammond — November 1, 2021
(RNS) — 'I think today there is a shift in the media industry writ large with more and more women going into the profession,' said the editor in chief of American Muslim Today. 'That is being reflected in the Muslim community.'
