Archive for October, 2013

IIIT Presents Its Distinguished Scholar Award to Professor Sulayman Nyang

Dr. Sulayman NyangFriday, September 06, 2013

Prof. Sulayman Nyang receives 2013 IIIT Distinguished Scholar Award In recognition of his outstanding scholarly achievements and lifelong community service, the International Institute of Islamic Thought (IIIT) presented its Distinguished Scholar Award to Dr. Sulayman Nyang, Professor of African and Afro-American History at Howard University, Washington, D.C.
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State of Islamic Studies in American Universities

15248Research Projects on State of Islamic Studies in American Universities

The following documents and reports are part of a comprehensive study of the state of Islamic Studies in American universities undertaken by IIIT and the Center for Islam and Public Policy (CIPP) between the years 2004 and 2007. The study traces the historical roots of Islamic studies in American universities, examine their current state with a focus on four major programs, present and analyze the theoretical frameworks and methodologies of approaching the study of Islam and Muslim world affairs and collect and disseminate data on the major academic programs for the study of Islam and Muslim world affairs in American universities.

Executive Summary

Policy Recommendations

Book: Observing the Observer: The State of Islamic Studies in American Universities

Case Studies: Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies

Public Policy. Concepts, Models, Theories


Public Policy: Concepts, Models, Theories

“What is common between the Lal Masjid tragedy of 2007 in Pakistan, the American invasion of Iraq in 2003, the Madrassa Reform Project of 2002 of Pakistan, the Soviet intervention in Afghanistan in 1979, the Cuban Missile crisis of 1962, President Lyndon Johnson’s war on poverty of the mid-1960s, and President George Bush’s war on terrorism? These were all policy decisions that were undertaken by politicians, generals and legislatures to ameliorate an actual, perceived or a manufactured public policy situations.

This monograph does not promise to answer the question whether these policy decisions were right or wrong; its primary focus is to understand the processes through which such decisions are made and what concepts, theories and models are employed, either consciously or implicitly, to reach these decisions.

This book is intended both for students of public policy and for those in general public who are interested in knowing more about how public policy is made and how it should be made.”
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IIIT mentions Dr. Mumtaz Ahmad as featured scholar

Dr. Mumtaz AhmedInternational Institute of Islamic Thought (IIIT) mentioned Dr. Mumtaz Ahmad as featured scholar in its newsletter of September, 2013.

Dr. Mumtaz Ahmad is Executive Director of Iqbal International Institute for Research & Dialogue, associated with the International Islamic University Islamabad, since 2007. He is a Professor of Political Science at Hampton University, VA, USA. He received an M.A in Political Science from Karachi University, an M.A. in Development Administration from the American University of Beirut, and Ph.D in Political Science from the University of Chicago.

He has served as: member of “Islam and Social Change Project” of the University of Chicago; Research Fellow at the Brookings Institution, Washington, D.C; Senior Fulbright Fellow in Bangladesh and Pakistan; Fellow of the United States Institute of Peace (USIP) in Sudan, Pakistan and Malaysia; American Institute of Bangladesh Studies Fellow; American Institute of Pakistan Studies Fellow; member of the “Fundamentalism Project” of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences/University of Chicago; and Senior Consultant for the “Muslims in American Public Square” Project of Georgetown University. He is currently President of the South Asian Muslim Studies Association (SAMSA), an affiliate of the Association of Asian Studies (AAS) and Vice-President of Centre for Islam and Public Policy (CIPP), Washington, D.C.

American Muslims’ Perspectives on the Sept. 11 Tragedy

Thursday, October 18, 2001

Viewpoint, a live discussion forum on washingtonpost.com. This forum offers washingtonpost.com sponsors a platform to discuss issues, new products, company information and other topics.

How did American Muslims respond to the tragic events of Sept. 11? What are the challenges facing American Muslims following these events? What will be the nature of the relationship between the Muslim community and the larger society? Dr. Zahid Bukhari and Dr. Sulayman Nyang, co-directors of Project MAPS: Muslims in the American Public Square, answered these questions and more. Project MAPS is a three-year project funded by the Pew Charitable Trusts, housed at the Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding (CMCU) at Georgetown University.
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Islam in the United States of America

by Sulayman Nyang

This book is a collection of essays written over several years. Professor Sulayman S. Nyang has collected them to share with the reading public his insights and research findings on the emerging Muslim community in the United States of America. Working on the assumption that American Muslims are still unknown to most Americans, the author addresses several issues which are relevant to the whole discussion of religious plurality and multiculturalism in American society. Its contents range from Islam and the American Dream to the birth and development of the Muslim press in the United States.

Product Details
Paperback: 165 pages
Publisher: Kazi Publications, Inc. (January 1, 1999)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1871031699
ISBN-13: 978-1871031690
Product Dimensions: 0.4 x 5.9 x 8.8 inches
Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #502,378 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Islam in the West

by Khurshid Ahmad, Zahid Bukhari
Policy Perspectives , Vol 5, No.1

Introduction
Many scholars classify the Islamic World into six cultural zones: the Arab world; sub-Saharan Africa; the Turkish zone, including Central Asia and even central Europe; the Persian Gulf; South Asia; and Southeast Asia or the Malay zone. In the West, Muslims are creating a new cultural zone of Islam. There are three main actors in this zone: immigrant Muslims; the second generation of the immigrants; and indigenous Muslims, such as African Americans, and White or Spanish Muslims. As these three types of Western Muslims interact with each other and with the larger non-Muslim society, a new cultural zone of Islam is emerging.
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Continuities and Discontinuities in Islamic Perspectives on Cultural Diversity

Colorado College’s 125th Anniversary Symposium
Cultures in the 21st Century: Conflicts and Convergences

Delivered at Colorado College on February 4, 1999 at 7:30 PM
in a discussion forum entitled “The Islamic World.”
by Sulayman S. Nyang
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IIIT Roundtable on Islamic Studies in American Universities

NOTES FROM THE IIIT CONFERENCE ON IFTAA AND FATWA IN THE MUSLIM WORLD AND THE WEST: THE CHALLENGES OF AUTHORITY, LEGITIMACY AND RELEVANCE #9

[This is the ninth in a series of my notes on the International Institute of Islamic Thought conference on iftaa and fatwa held in Herndon, VA. These notes are raw material for an edited report I will write on the conference and represents my perception of the discussion. The proceedings will be published by IIIT at a later time. The Minaret of Freedom Institute thanks IIIT for the grant that makes the publication of these notes possible. Responsibility for any errors in the notes is mine alone.]
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Need to make our voices heard!

August 16, 2012
Dr Zahid Bukhari

This is the season of Ramazan, one of the holiest times of the year for practicing Muslims. For one month, we fast from dawn until dusk, increase our charity work and deepen our faith through the Quran. This year, as Ramazan comes to a close, I can’t help but reflect on the many ways this faith is being misrepresented.

Muslim Americans are in the midst of a profound crisis. Our faith is under assault. Radical groups abroad are using Islam as a justification for wanton violence, which is strictly forbidden in the Muslim faith. And at home in the United States, Islam is being criminalized, turned into an object of suspicion and threat. In New York City, the Police Department has made a practice of spying on Muslims in their restaurants, bookstores and places of worship.

Conspiracy theorists continue to ‘accuse’ President Barack Obama of being Muslim, as if this were a bad thing, capable of disqualifying him from leading the nation. And throughout the country, a movement to ban US courts from considering Shariah in their legal decisions has been sweeping the legislatures in one state after another.
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