Islam

Islam’s call to prayer is ringing out in more US cities – affirming a long and growing presence of Muslims in America

By Leila Tarakji, Michigan State University | – Minneapolis recently became the first major U.S. city to allow the “adhan,” or Muslim call to prayer, to be broadcast from mosques five times a day. In April 2023, the Minneapolis City Council unanimously approved a change to the city’s sound ordinance, effectively eliminating time constraints that […]

Democracy

How did Turkish President Erdoğan Survive the Strongest Challenge Yet?

Marc Martorell Junyent

Munich (Special to Informed Comment; Feature) – Recep Tayyip Erdoğan won the elections in Türkiye. Again. In power for two decades, first as prime minister and then as president, Erdoğan and his Justice and Development Party (AKP) secured a relatively comfortable victory over Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu in the runoff election held on May 28. Kılıçdaroğlu, the […]

Democracy

In a post-election Turkey, the country remains divided on political lines

Arzu Geybullayeva

Written byArzu Geybullayeva ( Globalvoices.org) -Showing up at a polling station, as one of the two presidential candidates, in a country-wide election with a pocket full of cash may not occur to leaders of democratic countries, but in Turkey, that is what the newly re-elected President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan did on May 28. The incumbent […]

Bahrain

Saudi Arabia Executes Two Shia Bahrainis on Terrorism Charges in “Grossly Unfair” Trial

Human Rights Watch

By Leila Saad | – ( Human Rights Watch ) – Two Bahraini Shi’a men have been executed in Saudi Arabia following what Amnesty International described as a “grossly unfair trial” on terrorism-related charges. Jaafar Sultan and Sadeq Thamer were arrested in May 2015 and held incommunicado for more than three months, according to Amnesty International. […]

Feminism

Mahsa Amini’s Family Accuses Iran’s Security Forces Of Vandalizing Her Grave

Radio Free Europe Radio Liberty

( RFE/RL) – The family of Mahsa Amini have blamed Iran’s security forces for vandalizing the grave of the young woman whose death while in police custody in September 2022 ignited nationwide protests that have turned into one of the biggest threats to the Islamic republic’s leadership since it took power in 1979. The Amini […]

nationalism

Strong Showing for Erdogan sets up Turkish Run-Off Election for May 28

Arzu Geybullayeva

Written byArzu Geybullayeva ( Globalvoices.org ) – The results from the May 14 general elections in Turkey were a surprise for some, a disappointment for others, and for those who rallied behind President Erdoğan and his coalition, a victory. These elections also showed how the main opposition coalition underestimated the societal split and the priorities […]

African-Americans

The Nation of Islam: A brief History

The Conversation

By Joseph R. Stuart, Brigham Young University | – May 2023 marks 98 years since the birth of civil rights leader Malcolm X, formerly Malcolm Little. Malcolm X was a spokesperson for the Nation of Islam, or NOI, and helped to lead the organization until he left in 1964 – the year before his assassination. […]

Democracy

Turkey’s Opposition Chief is Leading in the Polls, but Sunday’s Election is a Cliffhanger

The Conversation

By Balki Begumhan Bayhan, Coventry University | – (The Conversation) – Turkey’s general election on Sunday, May 14 will see voters cast their ballots for 600 members of its parliament and the country’s powerful presidency. This election has become intensely competitive in a country which has undergone severe democratic erosion over the past decade, but […]

Featured

King Charles III as Defender of all Faiths, including Islam

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Although King Charles III will, like his predecessors going back to Henry VIII, be styled “Defender of the Faith,” he intends the phrase to be understood in a pluralistic rather than exclusivist manner. Harriet Sherwood at The Guardian reports that before Charles takes the oath on Saturday, the Archbishop of […]