UNITY

Bismillah. Last session yesterday: Paul Carrillo & Yasmin Mulbocus, ex al-Muhajirun, chaired by Chris Isham (not the quantum gravity expert!)

Today’s sessions:

We just had a POWERFUL talk from Aichah el-Wafi, mum of Zacharias Moussaoui (“20th hijacker” of 9/11), interviewed by Anne-Marie Slaughter of Princeton. She is now chairing a panel on identity with Ben Owens (ex-Cripp), Arno Michaels (ex neo-Nazi, Kindness not Weakness) & Noman Benotman (ex-leader of the Libyan Jihadis, was with Bin Ladin & Zawahiri in Afghan).

Prof. Slaughter was very struck by the teaching of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), “The strong man is not one who wrestles his opponent to the ground. The strong man is the one who controls himself when angry.” It had been mentioned by Yasmin Mulbocus on stage the previous day, and the Prof requoted it today, exploring what it means to be powerful, macho etc.

Dr. Shona Brown, Director of Google, chairing with Mubin Shaikh (ex-member of Toronto terrorist cell), an ex neo-Nazi, ex SA gang leader + Ruth, a former Bader-Meinhoff sympathiser.

Jared Cohen chairing: Tahir Malik (wife blown up by Taliban at the UN World Food Programme in Islamabad), an ex-skinhead who runs Harmony Through Hockey, Rudy Cruz, Imam Sani Isah of Nigeria plus our very own Abu Muntasir 🙂

One of the heads of Sesame St International speaking: Gary. They try to impart decent values to kids from a young age (in some countries, kids join gangs aged 4-d & get killed at 10-12). Operate in 140 countries, inc. Pak + Middle East. Eg issues such as childhood obesity. Now showing premiere of a clip on bullying that will be watched by 30 million kids later this year God-willing 🙂

Bismillah. Patterns of Radicalisation, moderated by Farah Pandith (US Special Representative to Muslim Communities). With Imam Nurayn Ashafa of Nigeria (from the “Imam and Pastor” film), Sammy Rangel (inspiring Native American ex-gangster with a T-shirt saying “Kindness Is Not Weakness”), Angela King (ex-white supremacist) + Eric Gibson, ex-LA gangster in a wheelchair after being shot 5 times in a drive-by shooting in 1993, the 13-yr-old girl beside him was killed by a single bullet to the head.

Personal stories from Brazil + Iran. Then I was on a panel with Henry Robinson (ex-IRA), Mo Mohammed (ex al-Shabab, Somalia), James (the Pastor from the “Imam and Pastor” film). Chaired by Amanda Lindhout, who was kidnapped by al-Shabab in Somalia and held for 15 months, starved and treated brutally.  She has now set up the Global Enrichment Foundation, dedicated to helping the people of Somalia, especially the refugees and orphans who had to flee to neighbouring Kenya.

Workshop around integration. More inspiring people, including Bud whose 23-yr-old daughter died in the Oklahoma bombing of 1995 (she was born a month before me).

In the discussions about dialogue, I kept thinking of the ayah of Surah al-Hujurat, “We have made you peoples and tribes so that you may get to know each other.”

Someone mentioned “integration buddies” – used successfully in various places. I thought of the Prophet (pbuh) pairing his Meccan & Medinan companions after the hijrah: the Muhajirun & Ansar (Emigres/Refugees & Helpers/Hosts).

The final panel included Yasmin Mulbocus, ex “Al-Muhajirun” (so-called) from London, Paul Carrillo, chaired by a famous Chris Isham, not the Quantum Gravity expert from Imperial College London! 🙂

Bismillah. Honoured to be at SAVE in Dublin. It is being streamed online, I believe. Do watch if possible. So many amazing & inspiring people here.

First session (Finding common ground between different extremes): Gill Hicks, Noor Huda Ismail, TJ Leyden, Maajid Nawaz & Susan Cruz.

Now on: Fireside Chat. Dr. Erik Schmidt, CEO of Google, interviewed by Carrie LeMack, whose mother Judy died as a passenger on the American Airlines flight, the first plane to crash into the World Trade Centre on 9/11.

Dear Usama,

I am writing to you, a supporter of War on Want, to urge you to buy the new single Freedom for Palestine by Oneworld.

I have visited the occupied Palestinian territories and have witnessed the humiliation of Palestinians at Israeli military checkpoints: the inhumanity that won’t let ambulances reach the injured, farmers tend their land or children attend school.

This treatment is familiar to me and the many black South Africans who were corralled and harassed by the security forces of the apartheid government.In South Africa, we could not have achieved our freedom without the help of people around the world, and musicians were central to our struggle. Through music and art we speak to a common humanity, one which transcends political and economic interests.

For this I am proud to support Freedom for Palestine by OneWorld. I urge everyone to buy the single and spread its message.

Please do so now, [online].Let’s send a message to governments that a critical mass of people want to see an end to the Israeli occupation of Palestine and the oppression of its people. By acting together we can break cycles of injustice, end the occupation and build a new world based on our common humanity and justice.

Support Freedom for Palestine.

Peace. Shalom. Salaam.

Yours,
Desmond Tutu

Bismillah. From Eric Broug:

I am the author of a popular book on Islamic Geometric Design (http://www.thamesandhudson.com/9780500287217.html). It has also been translated into Persian.

I have been recently commissioned by international art book publisher Thames and Hudson to write a much larger book on the same subject. The book will aim to be the most ambitious, complete and attractive book on the subject so far published in English, inshallah. It will be comprise 350 pages, 50,000 words, about 300 colour photos.

I am looking for individuals or organisations who will sponsor my work on this book, in exchange for a prominent acknowledgement in the book. Financial sponsorship will mean that you have been directly supportive in the creation of this book. I am an alumnus of SOAS.

There is a Paypal button on my website homepage (www.broug.com) that allows anyone to support this book. Please do not hesitate to get in touch if you have any questions. Feel free to forward this email to friends.

With kind regards,

Bismillah. I was honoured to chair her talk, “My Journey to Islam” at the mosque today. Although one might disagree with some of her political stances, her stories of people from the West Bank & Gaza were incredibly moving. And her description of her epiphany at a mosque in Iran was the most beautiful and inspiring one that I’ve ever heard.

Bismillah. I spoke at this event yesterday as a panellist on violent extremism.

Prof. Stephen Hawking lectured on “Why Are We Here”? based on his latest book. He attacked philosophy but not religion.

Jon Snow interviewed Wael Ghonim, one of the leaders of the Egyptian revolution.
There was also amazing footage of Google’s self-driving car being tested on US highways 🙂

Bismillah. From Kube Publishers:

—
Salam, The Kube Twitter competition is now live! Check out the info here: http://www.kubepublishing.com/pages.php?pID=10&CDpath=0

If you know anybody that might be interested, please let them know.
—

Read Thomas Hammarberg´s latest Human Rights Comment:

Overuse of the European Arrest Warrant – a threat to human rights

The request made by Sweden to the United Kingdom for the surrender of the founder of Wikileaks, Julian Assange, put the European Arrest Warrant (EAW) in the headlines. The EAW was created in 2002 as a response to the risk of further terrorist actions after the September 2001 attacks in the United States.

Bismillah. There was an excellent session on this today at the London Muslim Centre, Whitechapel. Here are some facts & links:

Key facts & figures

* 358,000 women around the world die from complications relating to pregnancy & childbirth every year

* That’s over 1,000 a day, or one death every 90 seconds

* Over 7 million every year are left with disabilities and injuries

* When a mother dies, their young children are 10 times more likely to die too

* 80% of these deaths are due to entirely preventable factors such as excessive bleeding, high blood pressure, infection & unsafe abortions

* £1 per woman could make a significant difference

Where?

* 99% of these deaths occur in the developing world

* Around 50% occur in Muslim-majority countries

* Afghanistan, India, Pakistan, Somalia & Sudan have some of the highest maternal mortality rates in the world

* The lifetime risk of dying in childbirth is 1 in 11 in Afghanistan, compared to 1 in 4700 in the UK

* It is one of the leading causes of death & disability for women in the developing world

LINKS:

At Our Mothers’ Feet
http://www.atourmothersfeet.org.uk

Amma Life – http://www.ammalife.org

Muslim Agency for Development & Enterprise (MADE) – http://www.madeineurope.org.uk

Participants included Mufti Barkatullah, Mawlana Abdurrahman Madani, Khalid Sofi, Omar Faruk, Arri Coomarasamy, Amy Wilson, Sarah Atkinson, Nadeem Javaid, Dr. Sadia Malick & Sayyidah Zaidi. May Allah bless all those who participated.