We often ignore the differences between different cultures, the speaker said. We interpret other people based on our own cultural reference, he noted.
He softly clicked the presentation remote and a question about American culture lit up the screen. He looked around the room of 120 MBA students and gently pointed to me.
"Why don't you answer this question dear. Where are you from?"
As I tilted my scarf-covered head, I said "Virginia" in an almost confused tone.
The entire auditorium errupted in laughter as the speaker's face dropped.
Sunday, September 23, 2007
Pledge of Mutual Respect and Cooperation Between Sunni Muslim Scholars, Organizations, and Students of Sacred Knowledge
A few weeks ago after speaking at an evening session, I received a phone call. The scholars present at the ISNA and MSA Continental Conference were meeting and requesting my presence.
As I rushed over I was on my cell phone with MSA volunteers who were running around complying with the scholar's request to get a room and food for the meeting.
After a long day of meetings and speaking, Imam Zaid opened the gathering. Less than a few weeks ago, a few scholars were at an event and began talking. As often happens with individuals of amazing intellect, they decided it was time for Muslim educational organizations to come together, to stop disagreements between their students.
As Imam Zaid opened the floor for comments, I politely raised my hand. After Imam Magid spoke, the moderator called on Dr. Jackson. "Asma, go ahead" he said as he gestured towards me.
I looked around the conference table at all of our teachers. They slouched slightly as if the weight of the long day pulled their shoulders down. Their faces showed the lack of sleep from a long conference weekend. Yet, they were here. They met at well past 11pm because this Pledge, this sign of cooperation and respect is important, even crucial to our community.
I began slowly, first thanking Dr. Jackson and Imam Zaid. Then I turned to everyone in the room. May Allah bless you for this initiative. Our students, our campus communities will benefit so much from this sign of leadership from our teachers. Several MSAs have been hurt by ideological disagreements; they've let go of the principle of unity, of brother and sisterhood. If those who teach us our religion stand against this degradation, then insha'Allah, God willing, their students will follow. It is my honor for MSA National to help facilitate this meeting in the small way that we have.
Thus on that historic night, over twenty leaders of Muslim organizations signed the Pledge of Mutual Respect and Cooperation Between Sunni Muslim Scholars, Organizations, and Students of Sacred Knowledge.
As I rushed over I was on my cell phone with MSA volunteers who were running around complying with the scholar's request to get a room and food for the meeting.
After a long day of meetings and speaking, Imam Zaid opened the gathering. Less than a few weeks ago, a few scholars were at an event and began talking. As often happens with individuals of amazing intellect, they decided it was time for Muslim educational organizations to come together, to stop disagreements between their students.
As Imam Zaid opened the floor for comments, I politely raised my hand. After Imam Magid spoke, the moderator called on Dr. Jackson. "Asma, go ahead" he said as he gestured towards me.
I looked around the conference table at all of our teachers. They slouched slightly as if the weight of the long day pulled their shoulders down. Their faces showed the lack of sleep from a long conference weekend. Yet, they were here. They met at well past 11pm because this Pledge, this sign of cooperation and respect is important, even crucial to our community.
I began slowly, first thanking Dr. Jackson and Imam Zaid. Then I turned to everyone in the room. May Allah bless you for this initiative. Our students, our campus communities will benefit so much from this sign of leadership from our teachers. Several MSAs have been hurt by ideological disagreements; they've let go of the principle of unity, of brother and sisterhood. If those who teach us our religion stand against this degradation, then insha'Allah, God willing, their students will follow. It is my honor for MSA National to help facilitate this meeting in the small way that we have.
Thus on that historic night, over twenty leaders of Muslim organizations signed the Pledge of Mutual Respect and Cooperation Between Sunni Muslim Scholars, Organizations, and Students of Sacred Knowledge.
Wednesday, September 5, 2007
Wow
I know its been a long time since I posted, so forgive me my readers.
Its been hectic, crazy but exciting month that I hope to recap to everyone. But only one word can really capture it all: Wow.
Wow because I moved to Maryland and am experiencing life without Internet.
Wow because school has begun and I'm remembering what its like to be a full time student.
Wow because I have come face to face with some of the challenges of my position and with individuals whose words are hurting people more than they will ever know because they are threatening the very thing that makes America great.
Wow. Wow. Wow.
I hope this post signals that I am alive and well and look forward to continuing to blog!
Its been hectic, crazy but exciting month that I hope to recap to everyone. But only one word can really capture it all: Wow.
Wow because I moved to Maryland and am experiencing life without Internet.
Wow because school has begun and I'm remembering what its like to be a full time student.
Wow because I have come face to face with some of the challenges of my position and with individuals whose words are hurting people more than they will ever know because they are threatening the very thing that makes America great.
Wow. Wow. Wow.
I hope this post signals that I am alive and well and look forward to continuing to blog!
Friday, August 3, 2007
Broken Bridges Part I
In corporate America, in interfaith work, in campus activism we often speak about building bridges. But what happens when those bridges break?
When physical bridges break we are faced with tragedies.
For three and a half years I drove over Key Bridge nearly every day as part of my commute to Georgetown. Rushing to an exam, class or iftar with a truck full of food and hungry MSAers calling every five minutes, the bridge was a sign of relief, a sign post saying "You're almost there!". Chatting on the phone or with Dania or Kiran, my carpool-mates, the bridge was the first step on our happy journey home. Its impossible for me to imagine one day this bridge that I rely on to simply give way, to fall out from underneath me.
The Minnesota families are in my thoughts and prayers.
But what about those intangible bridges that we also rely on and take for granted? The bridges we build with our friends, our co-workers, our classmates, our fellow MSA-ers. Invisible to the naked eye, these bridges facilitate far more than travel, they create the bonds that help us navigate through the test that is life.
When I need help at work, I know I can rely on my friend Deepthi, a fellow analyst, to help me out. Earlier this week, I spoke to a friend whose mother has breast cancer. It was difficult for her to describe her new relationship with her mother. Lean on me, I said, I've been where you are ten years ago with my grandmother. My grandmother had to realize that breast cancer changes what you can do; it limits you like nothing else. And I had to learn that she was not this invisible pillar of strength who much to my delight could overrule my mother, but a woman like any other and she needed my help.
I was so grateful that I had this connection to my friend that we could talk about her fears and feelings. That intangible bridge linked us together.
But what happens when we break the intangible bridges? When the tone of our e-mail, a conversation, our unyielding opinions break bridges with others?
Truthfully, its very difficult to judge the strength of a relationship. One person may think they are very close another; the other person may feel they are so distant.
Its so easy to let someone else's thoughts and actions plague your mind; to hold this feeling of dislike and distrust in your heart. I've woken up countless times in the middle of the night from the duress of a bad dream. How could the media say that about Muslims? How can Muslims say such things about other Muslims? Why would people make up lies about my father?
Perhaps its one of the beautiful aspects of Islam that Allah swt commands us to forgive others and to ask for forgiveness. To say "I forgive you" is simple, to mean it is something different alltogether.
Forgiveness is like a steal beam strengthening the buttress of a decaying bridge. When we forgive, when we allow ourselves to move on from the past we begin to rebuild and strengthen those crucial, intangible bridges.
When physical bridges break we are faced with tragedies.
For three and a half years I drove over Key Bridge nearly every day as part of my commute to Georgetown. Rushing to an exam, class or iftar with a truck full of food and hungry MSAers calling every five minutes, the bridge was a sign of relief, a sign post saying "You're almost there!". Chatting on the phone or with Dania or Kiran, my carpool-mates, the bridge was the first step on our happy journey home. Its impossible for me to imagine one day this bridge that I rely on to simply give way, to fall out from underneath me.
The Minnesota families are in my thoughts and prayers.
But what about those intangible bridges that we also rely on and take for granted? The bridges we build with our friends, our co-workers, our classmates, our fellow MSA-ers. Invisible to the naked eye, these bridges facilitate far more than travel, they create the bonds that help us navigate through the test that is life.
When I need help at work, I know I can rely on my friend Deepthi, a fellow analyst, to help me out. Earlier this week, I spoke to a friend whose mother has breast cancer. It was difficult for her to describe her new relationship with her mother. Lean on me, I said, I've been where you are ten years ago with my grandmother. My grandmother had to realize that breast cancer changes what you can do; it limits you like nothing else. And I had to learn that she was not this invisible pillar of strength who much to my delight could overrule my mother, but a woman like any other and she needed my help.
I was so grateful that I had this connection to my friend that we could talk about her fears and feelings. That intangible bridge linked us together.
But what happens when we break the intangible bridges? When the tone of our e-mail, a conversation, our unyielding opinions break bridges with others?
Truthfully, its very difficult to judge the strength of a relationship. One person may think they are very close another; the other person may feel they are so distant.
Its so easy to let someone else's thoughts and actions plague your mind; to hold this feeling of dislike and distrust in your heart. I've woken up countless times in the middle of the night from the duress of a bad dream. How could the media say that about Muslims? How can Muslims say such things about other Muslims? Why would people make up lies about my father?
Perhaps its one of the beautiful aspects of Islam that Allah swt commands us to forgive others and to ask for forgiveness. To say "I forgive you" is simple, to mean it is something different alltogether.
Forgiveness is like a steal beam strengthening the buttress of a decaying bridge. When we forgive, when we allow ourselves to move on from the past we begin to rebuild and strengthen those crucial, intangible bridges.
Saturday, July 28, 2007
Notes From All Over
A sister comes up to me, says "SALAMS!" and gives me a big hug. I smile and hug her back. As we pull away I look at her face.
"We've met before, haven't we?"
"Yes, at the Gainseville Conference, and East Zone! You're the very enthusiastic MSA sister! And now you're President!"
I laugh and say, "So, tell me about your MSA."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Walking with my friend at a banquet, a sister walks past me with a plate of food. She stops suddenly, turns around and says, "ALIM!!"
I turn slowly, grab her outstretched hand and say "ALIM!"
"Alim?" my friend says, "Your name is Asma."
But we are already deep in conversation, reminiscing about our summer at the American Learning Institute for Muslims in Michigan.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The automatic doors slide open to reveal a seven year old hijabi standing in the lobby with her backpack. As I walk towards the leasing office she says Salams and tells me her name.
"Do you live here?" I ask.
"Yes" she says quietly.
"Do you like it?"
"No, it costs too much money. We're moving."
As the realtor quoted me the price, she couldn't quite understand why I laughed. All I could picture was a father telling his seven year old they were moving because the apartment was too much money.
"We've met before, haven't we?"
"Yes, at the Gainseville Conference, and East Zone! You're the very enthusiastic MSA sister! And now you're President!"
I laugh and say, "So, tell me about your MSA."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Walking with my friend at a banquet, a sister walks past me with a plate of food. She stops suddenly, turns around and says, "ALIM!!"
I turn slowly, grab her outstretched hand and say "ALIM!"
"Alim?" my friend says, "Your name is Asma."
But we are already deep in conversation, reminiscing about our summer at the American Learning Institute for Muslims in Michigan.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The automatic doors slide open to reveal a seven year old hijabi standing in the lobby with her backpack. As I walk towards the leasing office she says Salams and tells me her name.
"Do you live here?" I ask.
"Yes" she says quietly.
"Do you like it?"
"No, it costs too much money. We're moving."
As the realtor quoted me the price, she couldn't quite understand why I laughed. All I could picture was a father telling his seven year old they were moving because the apartment was too much money.
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
My Fifth Extremity
Today I finally understood why despite the fading numbers and scratched cover I refuse to upgrade my 2 and a half year old cell phone: my Nokia is my 5th extremity.
Four years ago I didn't have a cell phone. Students simply contacted me via e-mail or called my home phone. Then, I became Georgetown MSA President and I got my first Nokia. No texting, no graphics, and only 100 minutes and I felt "wired", very connected to my fellow students.
Within a year I had upgraded to 600 minutes, 200 text messages and my brand new 1,000 contacts phone. As East Zone Rep USA, there was scarcely a moment I didn't have my cell phone. My phone was on 24/7, just in case there would be some catastrophic MSA emergency at 1am.
Last year my sister took a picture of the family and used it as her desktop picture. When I complained I wasn't in the picture she said, "Your phone is, that's good enough".
Last night I truly felt like my phone had become part of me. With countless conference calls and ad hoc conversations I finally put down my phone at midnight, realizing that since I left work my phone had been glued to my ear.
To be blunt, its sad that my phone has become my fifth extremity. But perhaps its representative of my need and desire to connect to my family, friends, and fellow MSAers. As a Zonal Rep, my job was to talk to students, hear what they have to say, and help them develop their MSA. That mandate only intensified the longer I've volunteered with the organization.
Today, with even more minutes and text messages, I struggle with the same question as every consultant: should I get a Blackberry? But whether its my attachment to my fifth extremity or my desire to have a few precious, uninterrupted moments away from my e-mail, I have not scummed to that norm. At least, for now.
Four years ago I didn't have a cell phone. Students simply contacted me via e-mail or called my home phone. Then, I became Georgetown MSA President and I got my first Nokia. No texting, no graphics, and only 100 minutes and I felt "wired", very connected to my fellow students.
Within a year I had upgraded to 600 minutes, 200 text messages and my brand new 1,000 contacts phone. As East Zone Rep USA, there was scarcely a moment I didn't have my cell phone. My phone was on 24/7, just in case there would be some catastrophic MSA emergency at 1am.
Last year my sister took a picture of the family and used it as her desktop picture. When I complained I wasn't in the picture she said, "Your phone is, that's good enough".
Last night I truly felt like my phone had become part of me. With countless conference calls and ad hoc conversations I finally put down my phone at midnight, realizing that since I left work my phone had been glued to my ear.
To be blunt, its sad that my phone has become my fifth extremity. But perhaps its representative of my need and desire to connect to my family, friends, and fellow MSAers. As a Zonal Rep, my job was to talk to students, hear what they have to say, and help them develop their MSA. That mandate only intensified the longer I've volunteered with the organization.
Today, with even more minutes and text messages, I struggle with the same question as every consultant: should I get a Blackberry? But whether its my attachment to my fifth extremity or my desire to have a few precious, uninterrupted moments away from my e-mail, I have not scummed to that norm. At least, for now.
Thursday, July 19, 2007
Silent Islam
Last night I had a conference call with a Muslim student who is deaf to discuss ways to accomodate and help our deaf brothers and sisters. While it took me a minute to get used to the fact that the interpreter was speaking on the phone, it was perhaps one of the most beneficial and personally gratifying conference calls I've ever had.
MSA National's history of helping students who are deaf goes back a few years to when Br. Ahmed from Gallaudet University was murdered. Through the network of MSA National his parents had the opportunity to speak about his life and death, and what it meant to him to be a part of the Muslim community. I remember Br. Ahmed's father expressing in an e-mail how therapeutic the opportunities were for him and his wife.
But the MSA National East Zone Conference 2007 was the first time deaf students could truly participate as conference attendees. This was due to masha'Allah the hard work of several local volunteers.
It was an odd sensation, coming face to face with a segment of our community that has been marginalized. While I've been aware of the situation of the deaf community in North America, trying to improve the situation of a group requires a completely different level of understanding. More so, it requires the humbleness to admit ignorance.
Perhaps the hardest part of ignorance is that while you're ignorant, you don't know that you're ignorant. When individuals are oblivious to the situation of the poor, the needy, the disabled, the persecuted and the marginalized the sad reality is those individuals simply don't know. They don't think about the deaf Muslim that desperately wants to learn about their religion, to feel a part of the larger Ummah, but simply doesn't have access.
The sister's passion for the cause and other members of the deaf community was infectious. I truly hope we can expand upon the services that MSA National offers as well as give the students a platform to meet and feel empowered make their wonderful ideas a reality.
That is, after all, the history of MSA National, providing the platform for people to network, raise awareness, and act.
MSA National's history of helping students who are deaf goes back a few years to when Br. Ahmed from Gallaudet University was murdered. Through the network of MSA National his parents had the opportunity to speak about his life and death, and what it meant to him to be a part of the Muslim community. I remember Br. Ahmed's father expressing in an e-mail how therapeutic the opportunities were for him and his wife.
But the MSA National East Zone Conference 2007 was the first time deaf students could truly participate as conference attendees. This was due to masha'Allah the hard work of several local volunteers.
It was an odd sensation, coming face to face with a segment of our community that has been marginalized. While I've been aware of the situation of the deaf community in North America, trying to improve the situation of a group requires a completely different level of understanding. More so, it requires the humbleness to admit ignorance.
Perhaps the hardest part of ignorance is that while you're ignorant, you don't know that you're ignorant. When individuals are oblivious to the situation of the poor, the needy, the disabled, the persecuted and the marginalized the sad reality is those individuals simply don't know. They don't think about the deaf Muslim that desperately wants to learn about their religion, to feel a part of the larger Ummah, but simply doesn't have access.
The sister's passion for the cause and other members of the deaf community was infectious. I truly hope we can expand upon the services that MSA National offers as well as give the students a platform to meet and feel empowered make their wonderful ideas a reality.
That is, after all, the history of MSA National, providing the platform for people to network, raise awareness, and act.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)