Muslim Voices

According to the United Nations Population Fund, an estimated five thousand women are victims of so-called honor killings. These women are murdered, by family members, for doing things seen as degrading of family honor. Those things include everything from committing adultery to getting a divorce to being raped. These killings take place all over the world; although a number of them do happen in Muslim countries. And, in the West, it seems as though, every few months, therersquo;s a story in the news about an honor killing. The victim almost always a Muslim woman killed by her male Muslim family members. What these stories often overlook is that there is nothing Islamic about an honor killing. ldquo;That is one of the black and white statements I can make,rdquo; says Indiana University doctoral candidate Rafia Zakaria. ldquo;There is absolutely nothing, either in the Qurrsquo;an or in the Hadith, or even in any secondary source that says that honor killing is something that Muslims should do or can do or that is lawful.rdquo; Muslim Cultures And Islam Zakaria is a human rights activist and sits on the Board of Directors of Amnesty International USA. She says honor killings are not about religion at all; they have become linked with Islam because they do take place in some Muslim societies. When they do happen mdash; or are suspected to have happened mdash; the media are quick to pick up the story and Islam becomes framed as a religion that condones honor killings. ldquo;The fact is everything that happens in Muslim societies is not Islamic. But the problem is that because the Muslim world is under so much scrutiny these days, these iterations of horrific crimes become denominators of what Islam is or what Muslim society is.rdquo; Violence By Any Other Name Often, honor killings are portrayed in the West as a barbaric institution inherent to all things Muslim. This stereotype establishes an archetype of ldquo;civilityrdquo; in the West and ldquo;barbarismrdquo; in the East. It covertly implies the West is free from such acts of violence. Zakaria points out that domestic violence has risen 72 percent in the United States since the beginning of the economic recession. Though she is hesitant to link honor killings with domestic violence, there is a connection: victims of both types of violence suffer because they have no voice. Zakaria says no amount of reform can occur if this issue is not addressed. ldquo;I donrsquo;t want to promote an Orientalized version of women as powerless and subject to honor killings,rdquo; Zakaria says. ldquo;But at the same time itrsquo;s important to me to bring attention to the fact that the girls who are being killed are in their society powerless and are horribly repressed and essentially killed for no reason at all.rdquo;

Islam spread into North Africa in the late 600rsquo;s and made its way into sub-Saharan Africa two centuries later. One of the places that adopted Islam early was Zanzibar, an island grouping that is now semi-autonomous region of Tanzania. While about 35 percent of people in Tanzania practice Islam, in Zanzibar, Muslims make up about 97 percent of the population. The country is incredibly diverse with more than 140 different ethnic groups speaking more than 140 languages. As you might imagine, there are also a number of mixed ethnic groups. ldquo;My father is from Yemen, he came from Yemen to Zanzibar,rdquo; says Alwiya Omar, a linguistics professor at Indiana University and a native of Zanzibar. ldquo;[He] married my mother who was born and raised in Zanzibar, but had grandparents -- paternal and maternal -- from the Comoro Islands; so they were also of mixed descent.rdquo; Memory Of The Call To Prayer Omar has been in the United States for quite a long time now, although she does visit her native country whenever she can. During her travels back and forth, she is often struck by the differences in how Islam is practiced between the United States and Zanzibar. ldquo;Here in America, there is not call to prayer,rdquo; Omar says, ldquo;Back in Zanzibar, I just came back, at 4 or 5 a.m. in the morning there is a call for prayer. Reminding people itrsquo;s better to go and pray; prayer is better than sleeping.rdquo; Another difference is in mosque attendance; in Zanzibar, Omar says, women donrsquo;t go to mosque. ldquo;We pray at home,rdquo; Omar says. ldquo;Itrsquo;s the men and the boys who go to mosque. So I havenrsquo;t had the experience of going to the mosque in Zanzibar. My first experience of going to mosque was here, in Bloomington, Indiana.rdquo; A Woman's Life In Zanzibar When asked about the place of women in Islam, Omar is adamant they can do or be whatever they want as long as they remain observant of their faith. ldquo;Some people just say women should be at home and not go to school and not continue with their education,rdquo; she says. ldquo;But thatrsquo;s not how it is. My mother didnrsquo;t have opportunity the way I had. But she, indirectly wanted me, wanted all of us to continue. So thatrsquo;s what I want Muslim women to just say, lsquo;We are not going to be staying at home, we can be hellip; the skyrsquo;s the limit. We can do whatever we want given we also observe our teachings of Islam.rdquo;

Often, individuals who identify as non-heterosexual are found in the fringes of not only societies, but communities and families as well. They are often over-looked and cast aside as individuals that have a place only in the margins of society, safe in the outer-realms of our comfort zone. When homosexuality enters the sphere of religion they are told that their sexual orientation is a sin and will face serious consequences in the afterlife. The branding of homosexuality as ldquo;evilrdquo; has kept many people living a double life: by day they are pious and by night they are pious and homosexual. One of the most challenging spheres for sexual freedom is in Islam. Enter imam Daayie Abdullah. Imam Abdullah is the only openly gay imam mdash; a Muslim community leader mdash; in North America. A Baptist's Way To Islam Raised a Southern Baptist, Abdullah was introduced to Islam through his contact with the Uighur population, a portion of Chinese society that has a longstanding Muslim tradition. A student of both Chinese and Arabic, Abdullah attended a prayer service one Friday evening and it made perfect sense to him: Islam was the path he was looking for. He professed his faith upon his return to America a few years later. Imam Abdullah has spent over the last 10 years trying to bridge a gap between Islam and homosexuality. He has experienced trouble from both conservative Islamic groups and anti-gay groups. His interpretation of Quaranic verses has aided in bridging this gap. ldquo;To be gay and Muslim, at times, people will say that it is an oxymoron. But in actuality, itrsquo;s a formulation that shows the diversity within Islam; that people can be a variety of backgrounds. The Quran says to look to the nature of the world. And from that, you can see the diversity and understand that Allahrsquo;s understanding of the world and the universe in which he created is full of diversity; but you find the oneness, the tauheed unification of all, through those various diverse aspects.rdquo; Traditional And Unorthodox Services Over time he began to embrace this diversity and elected himself as a leader that provides a voice for minority peoples within Islam. This has led Imam Abdullah to perform interfaith marriages mdash; between a Muslim and non-Muslims -- as well as interracial marriages. He has even performed the funeral rites for a closeted Muslim man who died of complications from HIV. The young man was unable to have a traditional Islamic funeral based on Sharia law because of his sexual orientation. Imam Abdullah believes outspoken, openly-gay Muslims within the Muslim community are the only way to raise awareness of the gay minority within the faith. ldquo;Itrsquo;s not for them to agree with me, or for me to disagree with them. Itrsquo;s for them to understand that we have a voice, the gay and lesbian community have a voice," he says. Imam Abdullah is a member of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Religious Leadership Roundtable, a board member of the Al-Fatiha Foundation, and moderator for an openly gay internet message board. He resides with his partner in Washington, D.C.

For years, experts have been stressing the importance of exposing young children to foreign languages. Children who are introduced to foreign languages early on have a much easier time learning them as they get older. Therersquo;s also the added bonus of the cultural education language instruction can lead to. Many educators feel kids need an understanding of the culture where a language is spoken if they are to learn it well. Alef Ba, an Arabic language program in Bloomington, Indiana, is working to introduce children in the community to Arabic as well as the culture of Arabic speakers. ldquo;For me, at this age hellip; itrsquo;s basic exposure,rdquo; says Alef Ba director Naomi Spector. ldquo;What I would like to do is to be able to expose a child to these basic sounds and sights with the idea that if, at some point, they should continue their education -- if, at some point, they even want to do a different language, it wonrsquo;t seem so frightening to them.rdquo; A New Experience At The Library Each Saturday during Indiana Universityrsquo;s academic year (the school is based in Bloomington and IU students serve as Alef Ba instructors) the Monroe County Public Libraryrsquo;s Preschool Exploration Center becomes a language lab. In one corner of the room children circle up to sing songs, hear stories and learn to count in Arabic. Joshua Wolfe heads the children's services department at the library and says patrons are always amazed the program is offered at all. ldquo;Wersquo;re always looking for a more attractive way to bring people into the library and to create a new experience,rdquo; he says. ldquo;Irsquo;ve worked in four other public libraries and none of them had the resources that Bloomington has. So, to be able to offer something like this to non-Arabic speakers, to people who are completely without an Arabic background or any sort of Arabic at all is just amazing.rdquo; Wolfe says the library also strives to bring members of the Monroe County community together and Alef Ba, which draws Muslims as well as non-Muslims, fit the bill perfectly. ldquo;Monroe County is a very diverse community, particularly for Indiana,rdquo; Wolfe says, ldquo;and we always felt like we had a mandate to reflect that diversity and to reach out to all the different sort of micro-communities that exist here so it fell right in line with that mission from Day One.rdquo; It really is a diverse group that attends Alef Ba. The children seem to range in age from 2 or 3 up to about 7 or 8. There is also a mix of racial and ethnic backgrounds, Muslims and non-Muslims. Connect With The Community ... And With Home Rania Neufal is a Muslim mother from Palestine and brings her two kids to Alef Ba most weekends. Although Neufal and her husband speak Arabic at home, they worry their kids arenrsquo;t exposed to the language enough. So Neufal brings her kids to Alef Ba. ldquo;Arabic is my first language and English is their first language,rdquo; Neufal says. ldquo;I always wanted them to be bilingual and keeping the traditions and the language at home is an important part for me and Irsquo;m trying to make it fun for them as well so thatrsquo;s why I bring them here.rdquo; Alef Ba is a joint project of the library and IUrsquo;s Center for the Study of Global Change. It received such positive feedback from the local community that a Chinese language course called Ya Ya is now being offered as well. Both Wolfe and Specter say theyrsquo;d like to offer more languages eventually depending on the communityrsquo;s needs.

In ancient times a chimera was a mythical beast ndash; a hybrid creature. It had the body of a lion, a tail that was basically a snake and a goatrsquo;s head sprouting out of its back. Oh, and it also breathed fire. Therersquo;s a modern version of the chimera, although not in animal form. And certainly not fire breathing. Todayrsquo;s chimeras tend to be the cultural kind and are the focus of scholars who study the idea of hybridity. Globalization And Reality TV ldquo;Reality TV has been one of the most popular types of programs,rdquo; says Marwan Kraidy, associate professor in the University of Pennsylvaniarsquo;s Annenberg School for Communication. ldquo;Theyrsquo;re typically brought in as a format from Europe -- from the U.K. and Holland -- which is where the big format houses are and then they are adapted in Arabic.rdquo; Kraidy studies hybridity in the Arab world and has published two books on the subject: Hybridity, or the Cultural Logic of Globalization and the more recent Reality Television and Arab Politics: Contention in Public Life. He says the reality programs, when they first emerged in the Arab world, created quite a stir. ldquo;There were, basically, kind of moral panics around them, arguments, op-ed pages, talk shows, governments establishing new media policies to get these shows off the airwaves.rdquo; Making Way For Poetry But they did not leave the airwaves; in fact, producers began to take the format and imbue it with Arab cultural norms. ldquo;You saw, increasingly, that reality shows tend to appeal to local values so we saw a lot of poetry,rdquo; Kraidy says. ldquo;Poetry is a very important part of Arab culture. There were some shows focused on prayer and recitation of the Qurrsquo;an which obviously resonates with religious people. And now therersquo;s a new show called lsquo;Stars of Sciencersquo; which is basically young people, kids, compete with scientific experiments.rdquo; Hybridity And Holding On To Culture Kraidy says, at its heart cultural hybridity is related to globalization. It states, basically, that virtually all culture is the result of mixing. There is not a place on earth where the main culture doesnrsquo;t have traces of some other. But, he stresses, this is not your mamarsquo;s cultural imperialism. ldquo;The bottom line is that itrsquo;s not the U.S. dictating its values,rdquo; he says, ldquo;as much as it is the global economy, which is to a large extent dominated by the U.S. and by U.S. firms; these shows they are in the Arabic language, they are adapted, they are done by local channels whereas in the past you used to see, whether it was Dallas or ten years later it was Baywatch, those were made in the U.S., imported and then dubbed.rdquo; The key is that the local producers are taking a foreign format, that may have originally reflected foreign values or history, and turned them into something new. Examples of hybridity in American culture arenrsquo;t too hard to find, all you have to do is listen to a little jazz or bluegrass. Both music genres have origins overseas but they were adapted and shaped into something new by people living in the United States.

There is a debate raging in Europe over what it means to be European. The identity issue came to a head a few years ago during the voting on a European constitution ndash; it failed. But itrsquo;s also been attached to discussions of Islam in Europe. The question often asked: Can one be European and be Muslim? ldquo;When people think of Islam in Europe they may think of Turkish workers in Germany or Algerians in France or maybe the Muslims who were in Spain many hundreds of years ago,rdquo; Indiana Universityrsquo;s Francis Trix says. ldquo;But they forget that there have been Muslim peoples in Southeast Europe, that is, in the Balkans, since the 1300rsquo;s.rdquo; Trix is an associate professor of linguistics and anthropology at IU and has spent her career studying Islam and the Balkans. She says those first Muslims were people who came to the Balkans during the Ottoman Empirersquo;s conquest of the region, but over decades large portions of the native populace began to convert. ldquo;Until the beginning of the 19th Century a slight majority of the Balkans were Muslim,rdquo; Trix says. Thatrsquo;s not the case now, with just handful of countries having Muslim majority populations. Among the newest of those is the Republic of Kosovo, which declared its independence from Serbia in 2008. With a population hovering around 1.8 million people the Republic of Kosovo is one of the smaller countries on the continent. Islam In Flux Kosovorsquo;s independence was fraught with controversy. Serbia considers the republic an integral part of the Serb nation; Kosovorsquo;s attempt to break away in the late 1990rsquo;s lead to the Kosovo War which ended when NATO stepped in. During that conflict almost half of Kosovorsquo;s population was forced out of the region although, Trix says, most of those Kosovars have since returned to their homes. They returned to a place in a state of flux. ldquo;I think itrsquo;s fair to say Islam is in transition there,rdquo; Trix says. ldquo;Itrsquo;s definitely part of the culture of the people; it remains to be seen how it will bare.rdquo; Kosovo is still recovering from the war with Serbia; NATO and then the United Nations have been in the republic attempting to keep the peace. These internationals, Trix says, often have a very myopic view of what it means to be Muslim as well as Balkan. ldquo;I saw a fair amount of ignorance on the part of the internationals,rdquo; Trix says. ldquo;And here Irsquo;m speaking mostly of Western Europeans, who bring with them, what I see, as somewhat racist attitudes. They donrsquo;t the history of the Balkans; they know very little about history of Kosovo, of Albanians, they know less about Islam. They bring their attitudes and their condescension. Itrsquo;s not a pretty picture.rdquo; Trix does point out therersquo;s more to Kosovo than Islam. In fact, the figure she says Kosovars are most proud of is actually a Catholic. Mother Teresa, ethnically Albanian like the majority of Kosovorsquo;s population, was born in Kosovo. Trix says the fact that Mother Teresa was Albanian trumps any sort of religious affiliation. Virtually every town in the country has a street named for her and, she adds, therersquo;s even a statute of Mother Teresa standing in the middle of Kosovorsquo;s capital Prishtina.

Afghanistan, always complicated, finds itself in a turbulent place. The country is working to create a functioning democracy, although the last presidential election was plagued with accusations of electoral fraud. Women, who under the Taliban had virtually no rights, are slowly beginning to carve larger roles for themselves in Afghanistan. Muslim Voices had the chance to sit down with one of those women. 51-year-old Leila (not her real name), left her native country 30 years ago to escape the war with Soviet Russia and just returned to Afghanistan last year. Speaking with reporter Doug Wissing, Leila, who was born in Kabul, described why she left Afghanistan. Becoming A Refugee ldquo;Actually, it was during the Russian Revolution and our lives were in dangerrdquo;, said Leila. ldquo;My husbandrsquo;s family was in danger, my father-in-law was killed; 3 or 4 of my husbandrsquo;s uncles were killed. Thatrsquo;s why we decided to leave Afghanistan. That time it was easy to leave Afghanistan. Then my family left, and then my husbandrsquo;s family left and we all moved to America.rdquo; The journey to America was difficult and roundabout mdash; Leila left Afghanistan in 1979 only to get denied visas in Pakistan, India and Germany. It wasnrsquo;t until she applied for refugee status that she was able to make her way to the United States. When her family finally arrived there was not much of an Afghani community to associate with. After living in New York City for 10 years, her family decided to move to Washington, D.C., and finally to California. A Whole New Afghanistan There have been moments when, from her home in the States, Leila couldnrsquo;t reconcile her memories of Afghanistan with what she was seeing in news, especially after September 11th. ldquo;My grandmother, my mother and I did not wear a burka when we lived in Afghanistan,rdquo; Leila said. ldquo;They usually had the scarf on, but not a burka. [It] came when Taliban came, but I donrsquo;t know where that came from. Burka is a new thing for us also. When I saw the TV after 9/11 I was wondering why people were wearing it. Even my children were asking me lsquo;Mom, what is this?rsquo;rdquo; And, although the fight against the Taliban continues and the political situation in Afghanistan remains turbulent, Leila remains hopeful for the future of her country. ldquo;I hope that one day Afghanistan will become a peaceful place and everyone can live like the right way to live,rdquo; she said. ldquo; Itrsquo;s not like they have to worry about the Taliban or about someone else. They can have their own life.rdquo; This is the first of several stories produced by reporter Doug Wissing while embedded with an Indiana National Guard Agribusiness Development Team in Afghanistan as part of WFIU Public Radio's Cultivating Afghanistan series.

Converting to a new religion is never an easy thing. Therersquo;s a lot to learn and, of course, the issue of how to break the news to family and loved ones. Things can be even more complicated for non-Muslim women who convert to Islam hellip; most of the time. ldquo;I feel really blessed because my family reacted much better than other families Irsquo;ve heard about.rdquo; Sarah Thompson is a native of Noblesville, Indiana. She grew up in what she would call a Christian household but says she always felt like something was missing and eventually left Christianity. It wasnrsquo;t until she began exploring Islam that she says she felt like she found a spiritual home. Thompson converted a few years ago after taking several months to learn about the faith. A Family's Reaction ldquo;My mom was like, lsquo;Okay, great, this is wonderful; what can I do?rdquo; Thompson says of her motherrsquo;s reaction. ldquo;And she went out and bought me like fifteen scarves. I mean, she was just amazing.rdquo; Although not everyone has been amazing, some of her family did have a difficult time understanding Thompsonrsquo;s decision. Her father and stepfather, in particular, began to take it hard once they realized ldquo;just how realrdquo; Thompsonrsquo;s conversion was. Most of her close friends were also supportive of her decision, although Thompson says she did have a few who thought she was crazy. Feminism And Islam ldquo;Irsquo;ve always been a really strong feminist, so when I say they thought I was crazy, thatrsquo;s what they meant,rdquo; Thompson says. ldquo;They have a very limited idea of what Islam is. It is the woman in the hijab and it is this woman in the veil thatrsquo;s being oppressed and thatrsquo;s sort of the image [they have].rdquo; The funny thing is, Thompson says, that she feels more liberated as a Muslim woman than she ever did as a Christian one. ldquo;I didnrsquo;t feel oppressed, but I didnrsquo;t necessarily feel liberated in Christianity,rdquo; she says. ldquo;I definitely feel more liberated, and more free, in Islam. The way that some women are treated in other countries is more cultural and itrsquo;s definitely not Islamic. In the Qurrsquo;an it says lsquo;men have this right and women have this rightrsquo; and itrsquo;s the same right.rdquo; The Beauty Of Islam Thompson says she was drawn to Islam because of what she calls the ldquo;peacefulnessrdquo; of the faith as well as the personal nature of Muslim religious practice. ldquo;It is a community religion but it is really focused on you and your relationship with God and you making your prayers every day and your intent being right every day,rdquo; Thompson says. ldquo;Only He knows what yoursquo;ve done.rdquo; Thompson says that, in many ways she feels shersquo;s the same person she was before the conversion. The big difference is that, instead of just saying shersquo;s putting her faith in God, as a Muslim Thompsonrsquo;s actually doing it.

Out of the 535 lawmakers in the US congress only two are Muslims serving in the House of Representatives. The first, Keith Ellison, was elected from Minnesota in 2006. The second, from Indiana, is Andreacute; Carson. He followed Ellison into the house two years later. Carson was elected in a special election to fill the 7th district seat vacated by the death of his grandmother Julia Carson. Julia Carson had held the seat for 10 years before passing away. Andre Carson said while following in his grandmotherrsquo;s footsteps was a big challenge, there were others along the campaign trail. Carson said the fact he was a Muslim never turned into a negative, but he did have to face opponents who attempted to tap into some of the fears and misconceptions many Americans have about Islam. ldquo;It [the campaign] became a platform once again to show that Muslims are people,rdquo; Carson said. ldquo;Many Muslims care about the country, about the great Hoosier state, about the economy, the foreclosures, and the war in Iraq. At the end of the day, white, black, red, or yellow it doesnrsquo;t matter what religion you are. People are concerned about what you are going to do to address their needs.rdquo; Carson said he is more than confident that President Barack Obama, a fellow Democrat, will be able to bridge the gap between Muslims and non-Muslims in the United States. This, Carson said, because Obamarsquo;s global upbringing has given him access to people from all walks of life. ldquo;Itrsquo;s critically importantly not only to build relationships with people because itrsquo;s for the greater good of humanityrdquo;, Carson said, ldquo;but building the relationships in our counter-terrorist efforts, and our efforts to build bridges in our global understandingmdash;itrsquo;s always good to have friends on all sides of the aisle.rdquo; Congressman Andre Carson represents Indianarsquo;s 7th District in the U.S. House of Representatives and is only the second Muslim to be elected to the United States Congress. Watch the BBC World video on Muslim Americans where Carson appears.

Author Elsa Marston is committed to helping create a better understanding of the Arab and Muslim worlds. She does that by writing about the lives of Arab teenagers. The source of her inspiration is her visits to the Middle East where she has strong family ties. In her stories she shows how the lives of Arab teenagers are different to those in the U.S. - and at the same time how similar they can be. With her husband coming from Lebanon, Marston has a close relationship to the Arab world. One of her trips to that region led her into a Palestinian refugee camp. ldquo;I saw how people were living, how they are managing to get along under terribly stressful conditionsrdquo;, Marston says. On a visit at a Palestinian refugee school run by the United Nations, she was stunned by her experience. Little boys were so proud of their ability to read in English that they were jumping out of their seats and begging their teacher to call on them. Marston explains, ldquo;I was just deeply touched by that because I saw that they still had enthusiasm for life. They still had hope that their lives might turn out right.rdquo; An Inspiration That gave her the idea for a story called ldquo;The Planrdquo; in which a young boy who still has hope and wants to make the world a little better by starting with his older brother who is looking for a woman in his life. This story is part of her book "Santa Claus in Baghdad and Other Stories about Teens in the Arab World." There is also a story of a young girl who sacrifices her own wants to do what she thinks is best for a teacher. In another tale a young boy wants to show his mother how much he loves her by preparing dinner for one night. Although her own teenage years were, as she puts it, ldquo;some time ago,rdquo; Marston did not have difficulties to write from the perspective of teenagers, at least of teenagers in the Arab world. ldquo;I cannot identify with a lot of the things going on in present American teenagersrsquo; livesrdquo;, she admits. ldquo;But because those things are not quite so present in the lives of teenagers in Arab countries it was easier for me to write about teenagers in the Arab societies.rdquo; In her opinion there is still much more parental control, much more expectations of good manners and proper behavior in these societies. Marstonrsquo;s stories have now made it to the classrooms, and she hopes they help to produce cultural and emotional bridges. She often receives positive feedback from the schools. ldquo;One teacher told me that his students were amazed to find that they could see similarities between their lives and the lives of the kids in the storiesrdquo;, she says. Another one told her that his students reading her stories felt sad and happy at the same time. Marston simply states, ldquo;That is what I hope for.rdquo;

Twenty students from Iraq came to Indiana University last summer as part of a leadership program sponsored by World Learning. The idea is to give Iraqi youth firsthand experience of the United States, as well as broaden American understandings of Iraq. The students came from all over the country and study a wide array of topics from political science to medicine. A few of the students took time to sit down with Muslim Voices to talk about their studies and life back home in Iraq. One student studied medicine and came from family with a long history with medicine. She claims the difficult situation in many Iraqi hospitals is due to a lack of resources. Hospitals deal with a lack of medicine, staff and even air conditioning, which makes patient recovery more difficult, as well as working in the desert heat nearly impossible. Because of this, she says, some of the best doctors are going abroad. Class Disruptions Getting an education is a daily struggle as well. Students have to wake up very early to make it through the countless military checkpoints so they can make it to school on time. However, the journey to class is not the last hurdle in their daily struggle for education. One student from Baghdad said explosions and gunfire often echo outside as professors deliver their lectures. ldquo;The professor and us just carry on in the lecture studying while hearing the explosions. I donrsquo;t knowhellip;life goes on. That is what my father says, thatrsquo;s what the professor says.rdquo; Determined To Reach Their Goals He said each time they lose a classmate to the violence the entire classroom becomes more focused reaching their goals. ldquo;The next day we get even more disciplined about the lectures and studying,rdquo; he said. ldquo;And if there is an exam after someonersquo;s death, then we are all going to do very great on that exam. That is life living in Baghdad. I mean, there is war in Baghdad, but there is also life.rdquo; Visit The Sacrmento Bee's photo blog of daily life in Iraq, called The Frame. The New York Times put together a video on a film festival organized by students in Baghdad.

Like women of other faiths, Muslim women take time for study circles away from the mosque. They gather at each otherrsquo;s homes, read and discuss a chapter of the Qurrsquo;an. Muslim Voices had the chance to sit in on one of those sessions recently. After their study was over the women - who chose to remain anonymous - talked about what their religion, what their faith, means to them. ldquo;It means everything,rdquo; the woman who hosted the study circle said. To Hijab Or Not To Hijab One of the key points the women discussed was just how to best express their faith. For several of them taking up hijab ndash; dressing modestly and wearing head coverings ndash; was an important step. ldquo;I spent a good amount of time not doing the hijab,rdquo; one woman said, ldquo;but I was praying all the time, so that helped memdash;it pushed me to do it. I didnrsquo;t want to do it first because I wanted to be like everyone else. But I didnrsquo;t really feel at peace with myself until God guided me, I took the decision, and that was it.rdquo; Their faith, however, goes beyond the hijab. It represents a deeper commitment to ldquo;understanding that Muslim means one who submits to God in a peaceful way,rdquo; another woman said. ldquo;In Arabic it comes from the word salam, which means lsquo;peacersquo; and tasleem, which means lsquo;submissionrsquo;.rdquo; Equal In The Eyes Of Allah One common misperception about Muslim lives is that duty to submit to Allah makes them somehow less than men. Which leads to the idea they are all oppressed and looked down upon but these women have a different view. They mentioned that there are some places where Muslim women arenrsquo;t treated well, but that mistreatment isnrsquo;t exclusive to Islam. One woman saying that every culture has these problems. ldquo;If there are people who misuse power to abuse women in the name of the Koran or the Bible, or whatever, that is definitely wrong,rdquo; she said. ldquo;But everyone knows that; even the people who do this. I think deep down everyone knows this, and this knowledge of deep-down knowing this is given by God.rdquo;

One of the most famous scenes in the New Testament features Jesus in the temple in Jerusalem. Hersquo;s angry with money lenders there, so he flips over their tables and tells them to get out. Jesus was upset because the money lenders they were taking part in the biblical version of loan sharking. They were gouging Jews who were buying sacrifices or changing money; very unethical, and very un-Islamic as well. According to Shariah law there are certain things a Muslim must abstain from such as alcohol, gambling, and pork. There is also a strict prohibition against riba, the charging of interest. Partly because of this an entire industry has sprung up called Islamic finance. Faith-based Investing Monem Salam, Vice President and director of Islamic Investing at Saturna Capital says Islamic investing allows Muslims to put their investments in line with their faith. ldquo;Basically itrsquo;s a subsection of faith-based investing,rdquo; Salam said. ldquo;So what we do is avoiding investing in companies that have primary revenue in alcohol, tobacco, gambling, pornography, and pork products.rdquo; In Islam the distribution of wealth is decided by the will of Allah. Having money is not a sin in Islam; whatrsquo;s important is you do with your wealth. Islamic investing plays a crucial part of the financial lives of many Muslim Americans. Islamic Finance For Everyone But this sector of the financial industry is not just for Muslims. According to Salam more than eighty-percent of his companies shareholders are non-Muslims. Non-Muslims are attracted to Islamic finance for a variety of reasons, Salam says, including a desire to invest with a firm that not only makes money but that invests in an ethical manner. ldquo;Wersquo;re there to invest in a company that will make money and get out if theyrsquo;re not making any money; so were not really activists, and we donrsquo;t intend to be in the future,rdquo; Salam said. ldquo;That is not what Islamic investing is. It is following your religious obligations when making investments.rdquo; Monem Salam is the Vice President and Director of Islamic Investing for Saturna Capital. He was also featured in the film ldquo;On a Wing and a Prayer: An American Muslim Learns to Flyrdquo; shown on PBS stations around the U.S. last year.

Former president George W. Bush often came under fire for characterizing terrorists as ldquo;evil doersrdquo;, for framing the ldquo;War on Terrorrdquo; as a kind of holy war. Or cosmic war as Reza Aslan puts it. Aslan, a noted writer who often blogs on the situation in Iran for The Daily Beast, has a book out about cosmic war. ldquo;How to Win a Cosmic War: God, Globalization, and the End of the War on Terrorrdquo; explains how the global jihad movement has been working for years to frame their actions in cosmic terms. Also, how former President Bush played right into their hands. The Development Problem The global jihad movement is more than a movement ndash; itrsquo;s an idea Aslan says. It goes beyond nations, states, cultures or ethnicities. The way to end such cosmic movement is by addressing the fundamental grievances Muslimrsquo;s feel in order to make the movement irrelevant. ldquo;The most obvious one is the Israeli-Palestinian conflictrdquo;, Aslan said, ldquo;which has become a symbol of universal Muslim suffering, at the hands of a Western, imperialist, fat power. But there are equally important issues such as the lack of social and political development in large parts of the Middle East.rdquo; Word Not Cheap, But They're Not Enough Another way to eliminate the cosmic element to the ldquo;War on Terrorrdquo; is through a positive change in rhetoric. Something President Barack Obama has been praised for attempting to do. But Aslan says rhetoric alone will never be enough and that the change has to be made on the ground as well. ldquo;Young Muslims in the Middle East look to the United States to provide that kind of leadership,rdquo; Aslan said. ldquo;We need to be there, and we need to take on that kind of responsibility.rdquo;

Minority groups of all kinds are often under-represented and sometimes misrepresented in news stories. This in turn, amplifies stereotypes or misperceptions that some people have of minorities. Itrsquo;s a topic of concern to many Muslim Americans who say that when it comes to covering people of their faith, journalists may be missing the story. According to a recent Pew Research Center survey, many Muslim Americans are unhappy with news coverage of Islam and Muslims. Fifty-seven percent responded that coverage of their religion by American news organizations is generally unfair. They mentioned negative media portrayals among their top concerns of people of their faith along with discrimination and stereotyping. And that lack of knowledge can lead to a lot more than just misunderstanding. Portraying Muslims negatively in the media so frequently can make some Muslims feel unwelcome in the United States. Bad News Sells Bloomington Islamic Center President Faiz Rahman feels it goes beyond stereotyping, saying that it is a matter of what sells in the media. ldquo;Basically, whenever anything negative happens in the Islamic community they get a lot of exposure,rdquo; Rahman said. ldquo;On the other hand, when a lot of positive things happen that doesnrsquo;t get much exposure. I personally believe that itrsquo;s whatever sells. The media is more in the selling business, and bad news sells.rdquo; Rahman said another reason for this negative portrayal could be because of the lack of Muslim journalists. Indianapolis Star Religion Reporter Robert King said people need to realize that Muslims are not absent from American life. ldquo;Muslims are involved in politics: they are running for office, they are winning offices, contributing to the campaigns. They are involved in environmental efforts with people of other faiths. They react to issues that everyone reacts to.rdquo; King says finding ways of getting those reactions into everyday news coverage is something journalists ndash; Muslim or not ndash; need to strive to be better at.