Islam

Susan H. Smith | – ( Waging Nonviolence ) – As Muslim and Arab students join their classmates in heading back to school this fall, the 19th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terror attacks weighs on their minds. It’s a time of perennial blame and shame, a time when classmates and teachers hold them unjustly […]

Culture

Kanye West Offends Muslims by appropriating Angels of Death and Resurrection for his Sneaker Lines

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The Muslim twittersphere was on fire this week with the news that Kanye West’s Adidas lines would offer two new sneakers, Yeezy Boost 350 V2 Israfil and Yeezy Boost 350 V2 Asriel. Israfil and Azrael are angels in the Islamic tradition. According to Dubai-based Alarabya, many Muslims found the names […]

Islam

The Empires of Faith and the Making of the Prophet of Islam

Sean W. Anthony

What can modern historians know about the historical figure of the prophet Muhammad? Can modern historians and their critical methods add anything new or, at the very least, be more certain about aspects of his life than generations past? In 1968, the French orientalist Maxime Rodinson began his influential biography of Muhammad with a dour […]

Christianity

Turkey Turned the Hagia Sophia back into a Mosque: Is it Consistent with Muslim Values, the Dialogue of Civilizations?

Abdullah al-Ahsan

(Special to Informed Comment) – Debates are currently going on regarding the destiny of the Hagia Sophia (literally “Divine Wisdom”, the sixth-century cathedral built by Eastern Roman emperor Justinian) in Istanbul. President Erdogan made a kicked off this dispute with his declaration a few days ago allowing Muslims to pray at the venue. This wide-ranging […]

Islam

Islam’s anti-racist message from the 7th century still resonates today

The Conversation

By Asma Afsaruddin | – One day, in Mecca, the Prophet Muhammad dropped a bombshell on his followers: He told them that all people are created equal. “All humans are descended from Adam and Eve,” said Muhammad in his last known public speech. “There is no superiority of an Arab over a non-Arab, or of […]

African-Americans

With a 500-Year History in N. America, Muslim-Americans assert Solidarity with Black Lives Matter

The Conversation

By Amir Hussain | – The killing of George Floyd took place at the doorstep of Muslim America. He was killed in front of Cup Foods, a store owned by an Arab American Muslim, whose teenage employee – also a Muslim – had earlier reported to police that Floyd tried to use a counterfeit $20 […]

History

Covid-19 makes Saudis Largely Cancel Pilgrimage (Hajj), But Plagues and Sectarianism have Intervened Before

The Conversation

By Ken Chitwood | – Saudi Arabia has effectively canceled the hajj for most of the world’s Muslims, saying the obligatory pilgrimage to Mecca will be “very limited” this year due to the coronavirus. Only pilgrims residing in Saudi Arabia may attend the event, which begins in late July. Earlier this year, Saudi authorities had […]

Donald Trump

“Trump Heights”: Illegal New Israeli Squatter Settlement on Occupied Syrian Golan Approved

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Israel’s government has formally greenlighted a new squatter settlement on the Syrian Golan Heights, to be named for US president Donald J. Trump. Israel has has militarily occupied much of the Golan Heights since 1967 and which it has illegally stolen from Syria. The United Nations Charter, to which Israel […]

Featured

What we can Learn from the Qur’an about valuing People of all Races and Colors

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The Qur’an (sometimes spelled Koran), is one of great books in world history. Only a handful of works have been nearly so influential and widely read. The Bible, Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey, the Analects of Confucius, and the Buddha’s Sutras are among the few books that rival it in that […]