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Travel ban decision follows the Supremes’ record of racial classification – Religion News Service

Travel ban decision follows the Supremes’ record of racial classification – Religion News Service. Whether viewed in terms of contemporary politics or American history, the Supreme Court’s ruling on President Trump’s travel ban against several Muslim-majority countries is not surprising. The court has safeguards designed to make it apolitical, but it is never immune to its immediate surroundings on Capitol Hill. Historically, as long as the people support its decisions, the court has ruled in favor of discrimination. And when it comes to admitting people to these shores and welcoming them to the American nation, the court almost never acts…

Interview on NPR on Riyaaz Qawwali

I was recently interviewed on NPR about Riyaaz Qawwali, a group out of Austin, TX. Hussein Rashid, a professor of religion at Hofstra University, says that many qawwaliartists working in South Asia today have limited themselves. He believes this American group is bringing the music back to its roots.  “You know, I think there’s been so much concern about what is Islam, and what isn’t, politically speaking and artistically speaking,” Rashid says, “that there’s been a push in modern qawwali to actually sanitize it and make it very sterile — and almost rule-bound — rather than ecstatic and devotional. For me, I think…

What’s ‘Normal’ in Trump’s America? – The Takeaway – WNYC

What’s ‘Normal’ in Trump’s America? – The Takeaway – WNYC. The demands that Muslims in this country meet certain expectations of “normalcy” are not new. Hussein Rashid, professor of religion at Barnard College and a Truman National Security Fellow, and Jerusha Lamptey, professor at Union Theological Seminary and author of the book “Never Wholly Other,” discuss that sentiment, and how Muslim immigrants meet and adjust to certain expectations of “normalcy” in America.