MUSLIM IN MINNESOTA: Keeping the Faith, Dispelling Stereotypes, Achieving Success Friday, November 21, 2014 | 1:30 p.m. - 3:00 p.m.

The Givens Conference Room (120 Elmer Andersen Library, on the U’s West Bank Campus)

Critical Conversations About Diversity and Justice

Although a large number of recent immigrants to Minnesota are Muslim, Islam in the U.S. has a much longer history. First arriving via ships bringing sailors and black slaves from Africa, it later came through Syrian, Jordanian, and Lebanese immigrants in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. The Great Migration of African Americans to the urban North saw an expansion of Islam, and Malcolm X and others sought its power in the struggle for civil rights. What is the image of “Muslim” in our post-9/11 world? Join a conversation offering greater knowledge and understanding about Islam and basic teachings of the Quran. Through dialogue based on mutual respect, dispel myths and stereotypes about “the Other” among both Muslims and Westerners, and help advance greater respect for diverse cultures and faiths.

Panelists:  Cawo Abdi, Assistant Professor, University of Minnesota Department of Sociology; Kishwar Bayunus, former Council of Trustees Chair and Women’s Society President, current Muslim Women Speaker’s Bureau, Islamic Center of Minnesota, Policy Council member, Anoka/Washington Counties Head Start; Keith Ellison, U.S. Congressman, Minnesota’s Fifth District (invited); Aasimkore Shabazz, University of Minnesota graduate student.  Moderator:  Shakeer Abdullah, Assistant Vice President, Office for Equity and Diversity, University of Minnesota.

These conversations are open to all students, staff, faculty and community members, and do not require an RSVP.