Is it 1909 or 2009 in Philly?

Introduces panelists: moderator: Jocelyne Cesari – Harvard – works with EC on Islam, religions, race and rights Charles Dunbar – prof. of int’l relations at simmons college – former ambassador to yemen and qatar – writing book on whether western sahara would be independent or part of morocco while working for UN – charge d’affaires in afghanistan Muqtedar Khan – Brookings Institute Fellow – US Foreign Policy towards Muslim World – VP of Assoc. of Muslim Social Scientists Amaney Jamal – Asst. Prof. at Princeton – Arab-American community in Detroit – dissertation on Palestinian Americans [didn’t get all the details]

Traditionally, Muslims read the Qur'an in its entirety over this time, in a section a day. The Qur'an is split into thirty sections, called juz', and one section is read each night.  This year is the 8th year I am inviting people to tweet the Qur’an for Ramadan. I will be tweeting @islamoyankee. To see how the call has (not) evolved, here are the six call outs: 2009 Windsor Star Article 2010 (despite the title, which says 2011) 2011 USA Today Article 2012 2013 Storify (including press stories) 2014 A piece I did on Immanent Frame   The Background [from the…

CNN is reporting on the desecration – after the murder – of US soldiers in Iraq. The Shi’ah condemn Yazid for his treatment of Imam Husayn in a similar fashion. In the Qur’an the word for hypocrites is munafiq, arguably a worst sin than shirk. For the Shi’ah responsible, damn you to hell. The Sunni base their actions solely on the traditions of the blessed Prophet Muhammad. If any of them dare to say he did such a thing, they are besmirching the name of beloved of God. They are apostates; damn them to hell. To kill in the name…