An American Muslim Journal

Working normal hours, doing normal things

Last night I sat in bed, laptop on my lap and my little 19 inch TV tuned into Monday Night Football (yes, that’s right, I don’t have a cool flat screen 1080 DLP 50 inch in my bedroom).  It was about 8:45pm.  I watched the Broncos-Chargers game until the final seconds.  I checked my email, sent a few text messages, visited Facebook and read Google News.  I did some writing too.  It was a relaxing way to end the day (hopefully I’ll do a little more of the same tonight!).

Earlier in the day I wrapped up at the office at 4:30pm and quickly headed off to catch a train home.  I wanted to see my kids.  Throughout the day I thought about each of them – something unique from the past weekend.  For example, for one it was the excitement of new presents from a birthday.  For another it was a 5 year old child’s rendition of Top 40 song from the radio.

Unlike the very recent past, I was home by 6:15pm, I was in the kitchen as dinner was prepared, I ate dinner with my family, helped (ever so slightly) with the clean up and with getting the kids to bed (again, ever so slightly).  Not bad (or at least not as bad as not being around at all)!

I am grateful to God for all of it.  So, why am I thinking about all of this now?

Mainly, I am thinking about it because a lot of it is new.  It has been a long time since I was last able to sit in bed at the end of the day and just relax.  Eating dinner with my family every night is a new thing.  Being home while dinner is being prepared was, heretofore, unheard of (actually preparing dinner may be asking a for too much) and having the luxury to daydream about my kids is a treat I haven’t indulged in for a very long time.

Why am I able to enjoy all of these new luxuries?

I recently changed jobs.  My previous position in the nonprofit sector was a 24/7 gig with a lot of stress.  I loved my work, but on balance it was time to move on.  So move on I did and land a new gig.  My new position has a more manageable schedule.  Again, thank you God!

One thing I’ve noticed about the change is how protective I’ve become of my time.  Before, it was a foregone conclusion that I’d have little time for recreation, for family and for sleep.  Now, I find myself guarding these things zealously!

In just the past few weeks I’ve passed on many events and meetings involving everything from politics to interfaith relations to social services within the Muslim community.  The next several weeks are filled with events as well.  Will I attend any of them?  I may but right now there are no guarantees.

It’s not that I do not care about the issues and topics being discussed and worked on in these meetings.  I do care about most of them.  However, going forward I want to be more thoughtful about my religious and civic engagement.  Whatever I choose to become involved with cannot take away from my time from the things that matter most – my kids.  That is one benchmark. 

Another benchmark is that my volunteerism has to be more thoughtful.  Because I value my time and have a much greater appreciation for its value, I want my volunteerism to be more constructive.  I want it to be focused and I want it to be used to build something meaningful.

Over the last decade and a half I’ve been a serial volunteer without focus.  I’ve volunteered in so many different endeavors but many of them are unrelated to one another.  For example, back on New Year’s Day 2007 I got a call from someone at the Council of Islamic Organizations of Greater Chicago (CIOGC).  This person wanted me to come to the office that evening for “a very important dinner meeting of key community leaders to discuss strategies for increasing civic engagement  by American Muslims.”

On that particular new year’s day I dropped the bowl games to head downtown for the meeting.  Looking back, I know that meeting was called simply because the CIOGC had to fulfill a grant requirement by a date certain and they needed to have a quota of people who served on mosque or Muslim service organization boards!  I was not invited to the meeting so much as I was invited to be meat (i.e., meeting filler).  What a waste of time! 

Appreciating the value of my time more now, I want to be sure that I spend my volunteer hours more wisely.

If the number of hours I have to volunteer are less plentiful now, then where do I want to spend them?  I’m still working this out in my mind.  I am leaning towards interreligious dialogue and interreligious advocacy and action for the common good.  I’ll give my mosque a fair amount of time but beyond the mosque my commitments will be given sparingly.

I realize that I may be becoming the kind of person I recently held in contempt.  I used to bristle when friends declined invitations to “important meetings” because of some social engagement or another. 

I still think some of those meetings were important and some of the reasons for declining my invitations were lame (but I’m not naming names!).  At the same time I also realize that many of my friends were probably not sold on why I wanted them to come out and spend their precious free time on one of these “important meetings.”

For now I will still go to “important meetings” from time to time even when I’m not planning on taking an active role in the effort or cause for which the “important meeting” is being convened.  I know that sometimes (perhaps many times) I’m being invited as “meeting meat” and not as a “meeting participant” and that’s just fine!  I’ll go, fill some space, maybe learn a bit and then leave guilt-free and obligation-free!

In the absence of a lot of extraneous obligations I will hang out with my kids, watch my two favorite football teams – the Iowa Hawkeyes and the Chicago Bears – and maybe read some interesting books and do a lot more writing!

A Patriotic American-Muslim

Three years ago I wrote an essay entitled “What’s there to celebrate this 4^th of July?”  It was a personal reflection of my life in America starting from childhood  to adolescence and through young adulthood.  My focus was on things that are wrong in our country – the torture, the bigotry and erosion of civil liberties.

Thankfully my outlook has changed.  There is so much we need to celebrate this 4^th of July.  For me birthdays and anniversaries are a time to look back, to reflect and to plan for the future.  That is precisely what I’m doing this 4^th of July.

 

In looking back I see kindness triumphing over hate.  Growing up in Hoffman Estates, Illinois in the 1970s my family was one of only a small handful of non-white, non-Christian families in the area and the only such family on our block.  We endured racial epithets like “sand nigger” and “camel jockey” walking to Churchill Elementary School and during one particularly nasty week in 1979 we were bombarded with prank calls and our home was vandalism.

 

But the neighbors to our right and to our left were different.  They were extremely kind.  Both families were White, Christian, working class folks and they treated us to smiles, friendly waves and from time to time some small talk on the front lawn.  It was nothing big but today, standing in the shoes of my parents, I understand the value of having good neighbors.

 

From elementary school I remember my 4^th grade teacher, Ms. Mueller, and the kindness she showed me as I tried to adjust in my class.  My most vivid childhood memories begin in the 4^th grade.  I was the only “Junaid” in my class (gasp!) and it made me feel awkward.  It didn’t help that I was also the only non-white student in the class and that a classmate derisively referred to me as the “Puunjaaab”.

 

I began using a nickname and signing my homework with it.  My father was concerned about this and I presume he spoke to Ms. Mueller about it.

 

One day Ms. Mueller sat down next to me in class and quietly whispered to me that I should be proud of my name.  She related to me and said that her last name was not so common either and that we should both be proud to have unique names.  I’m not sure if it was the message or just the kindness with which it was shared with me, but it is a memory that has stayed with me all my life.

 

Today I reflect back on these moments in my life as a father and as a community servant and I realize that every step of the way, even when it got really ugly (i.e. the Iran Hostage Crisis, the Beirut Marine-barracks bombings) there were always good people who reminded us through their deeds that, on balance, Americans are a welcoming and kind people and that America’s ideals of pluralism and equality and justice are truly valued and that America continues to strive to live up to these ideals.

 

There are few places in the world today where I can enjoy the freedom to raise my children to be good Muslims within a good Muslim community where they can see firsthand God’s commandment for the nations and tribes of mankind to come together to know one another being played out every day across the country.

 

Three years ago I was focused on combating Islamophobia and defending Muslims and Islam against the slanders of bigots and the crimes of criminals acting in the name of Islam.  It was and is important to do this, but a single-minded focus on these negative events can be hazardous to one’s outlook.

 

This 4^th of July and hopefully for many holidays to come I will use the anniversary of our independence to teach my kids about the freedoms they enjoy.  I am going to point out the mosques, the churches, the synagogues, the Jain center, the Buddhist temple, the Shinto center and the Hindu temple right here in our local neighborhoods to illustrate the religious diversity and tolerance we enjoy.  We will share meals and conversations with our neighbors and I will point out to my children in the quiet moments just before they doze off to sleep following a frenzied and hot day spent in the backyard that we are blessed to live in a community and in a country where people of all colors and religions and nationalities can be friends if they want to be.

 

Looking ahead on this 4^th of July holiday I know that I’m going to have to do more as a community servant to insure that the lessons I want to teach my kids are real.  The diversity, peace, tolerance, understanding – the common good in this world - doesn’t just happen.  We need to work hard to make it a reality.

 

Happy 4^th of July!

 

(This essay first appeared in the July edition of the Chicago Crescent and can also be found on the website of the Council of Islamic Organizations of Greater Chicago).

Chicago Is Once Again the "First City"!!!

This essay first appeared in the Chicago Crescent, a monthly newspaper printed by the Council of Islamic Organizations of Greater Chicago (CIOGC), a federation of over 50 mosques and Muslim institutions in Illinois.

 

by  Junaid M. Afeef

 

In the coming years, more so than Little Rock or Crawford over the past 16 years, Chicago will be in the world’s spotlight thanks to President-Elect Barack Obama.

This is great news for the local Muslim community.

 

Chicago Muslims are a wonderful example of a racial and ethnically diverse religious community.  Muslims in America and throughout the world are grappling with the challenge of forging a united community across immutable characteristics of race and ethnicity.

Chicago Muslims have developed a framework for organizing ourselves to work more effectively with one another and as a unified community when interacting with the broader community.  Muslims all over America are struggling to develop similar models.

 

Chicago Muslims regularly come together to organize and mobilize around important public policy issues affecting the broader community.  Community organizers in Chicago and across the nation are eager to engage with community’s that can organize large and diverse groups around a common cause.

The new attention to Chicago is an opportunity to showcase all the good that we do.  But the higher profile brings challenges as well.

Islam and Muslims will continue to be a popular target in the media and a convenient scapegoat in some policy circles for the foreseeable future.  Terrorists will continue to threaten our security, and bigots will continue their campaign to malign Islam and marginalize Muslims.

 

Our community may be more scrutinized and what we do badly or things we fail to do may impugn the reception, understanding and reputation of Islam and Muslims in the broader community.

 

The election of Barack Obama as our next president has a profound impact on us.  Our community must rise up to these challenges.

 

First, we need strengthen the bonds of brotherhood among our many mosques and Muslim institutions through personal, one on one, relationships between the leaders and among the general membership.  We have come a long way in this regard, but we still have a ways to go.

 

Next, we need to develop strategic plans for our institutions and collectively as a community.  Muslim institutions cannot grow and thrive without constantly thinking about their strengths and weaknesses and without regularly evaluating the opportunities and the threats that exist now and in the foreseeable future.

 

In part this strategic thinking involves addressing hard questions of leadership succession planning, revisiting commitments to bricks and mortar investments versus human resources and utilizing our considerable Zafat funds domestically for the support and growth of local Muslims.

 

In 2009 the Council will offer an expanded set of capacity building and institution-strengthening trainings and seminars to help our member institutions.  We will utilize the resident expertise of our member institutions first and whenever necessary, we will also go outside of the community as well.

 

We will continue the “Coordination Meetings” of community organizers to facilitate cooperation and an exchange of best practices and resources among the men and women from across the region who are working on the same or similar issues.

 

The spotlight is on Chicago Muslims.  I am confident that we will shine.

Muslim Americans in Spotlight at Democratic Convention

The American Muslim Democratic Caucus will be hosting a Luncheon/News Conference on Monday, August 25, 2008 at the Democratic National Convention.

According to a media advisory from Mustafa Tameez of Outreach Strategists,

"This major function is the inaugural event of the American Muslim Democratic Caucus at a national convention. It will not only salute approximately 50 Muslims attending as delegates, but it will highlight the growing importance of this voting population. In addition to those noted above, it is anticipated that many office holders and other party leaders will attend this first-ever event."

The event's co-hosts are the first two Muslim members of Congress:

1.    Congressman Keith Ellison (D) Minnesota and

2.    Congressman Andre Carson (D) Indiana.

Obviously, these two individuals are the most high profile Muslims within the Democratic Party.

Another prominent Muslim within the DNC is Malik Mujahid.  Imam Mujahid is a member of the DNC Credentials Committee (this committee is responsible for resolving questions regarding the seating of delegates and alternates to the Convention).

Imam Mujahid is an active member of the Illinois Muslim community.  He is the founder of Sound Vision, the largest Islamic multimedia company in the United States.  He is currently in his second term as Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Council of Islamic Organizations of Greater Chicago.  Imam Mujahid holds a PhD from the University of Chicago.

Also prominent among Muslim Democrats is Mustafa Tameez of Outreach Strategists.  He is based in Houston, TX.  He has worked closely with Houston's mayor and has led the current mayor's election campaign.  Tameez has been spotlighted as one of the most influential and up and coming young democrats in Texas.

***************************

Details on the event:

When:        Monday, August 25, 2008
                 11:30 am to 2:30 pm

Where:       Sheraton Denver Hotel
                 1550 Court Place
                 Denver, CO 80202

Ahmed Sharma: A U.S. Marine, An Arab & A Muslim...

Outstanding!

MTV's Gil Kaufman contibuted a story online on Ahmed Sharma, a New Yorker of Arab (Egyptian) decent who served in the U.S. Marine Corps and served in Iraq.

It's good to learn about people like Sergeant Sharma.  He helps breakdown negative stereotypes about Arabs and Muslims.

Kaufman's story suggests that there are 15,000 Muslims serving in the U.S. military today.  I've heard larger and smaller estimates.  That's less than 1% of the total Muslim population in the U.S. (about .25%). 

I've read that the total active duty military personnel are about 1.4 million.  That means (given that there are about 300 million Americans) that .46% of Americans serve as active duty military personnel.

That means that Muslims are under-represented relative to the total American population serving in the U.S. Armed Forces (active duty).

There would be a lot of good that could come from more Muslims being in the military.  Like anything else, knowing someone on a personal or even professional level makes it a lot easier to understand them. 

Were American soldiers to know who Muslims (particular Muslims in America) truly are, I'm sure they would be better able to understand and distinguish their experiences with extremists and insurgents of Muslim backgrounds on the battlefield.

Right now is a very tough time to recruit Muslims to the military.  There are way too many stories about how Muslims are marginalized, second guessed and treated like second class citizens within and outside of the military and for young Muslim men and women this creates a barrier to joining.

For one thing, it's disheartening to be a true patriot and to have a great deal of love for your country and to nonetheless be looked at with suspicion because of your Islamic faith.  This is precisely what is happening all over the country.

Muslims and Islam are bashed regularly by politicians and the media.  Muslims and Islam have become convenient punching bags for pundits and politicians seeking to elevate their own careers on the backs of regular, everyday Muslims in America.

This shortsighted and possibly dangerous strategy will only lead our nation to more suffering.  In addition to to making it difficult to recruit  quality Muslims into the military ranks, these flawed strategies will worsen our nation's position globally in the long run.

In a world where 1 out of every 4 people is Muslim and where Muslim numbers continue to grow as a result of higher birth rates and due to increasing religious conversions, it should behoove American leaders to capitalize on the strong, patriotic, multilingual and well educated Muslims by reaching out to them and creatig an atmosphere where they are made to feel welcomed.

I've met a few Muslim servicemen over the years.  It's amazing how strong their faith and patriotism are: the folks I've encountered are devout Muslims, they love America but they will not become apologists for terrible American policies at home and abroad.

There are aberrations like U.S. Army Sergeant Hassan Akbar who killed two servicemen and wounded many others in a grenade attack in Kuwait on the eve of the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003.

Sgt Akbar's case has been used by Islamophobes across the country to suggest that Muslims in the U.S. military are disloyal.  The honorable service of men like Ahmed Sharma help dispel such vicious and false allegations of disloyalty.

Sgt Sharma also mentioned that there are those within the Arab and Muslim community who will not accept him because he served in the U.S. military in a war against a Muslim majority country.  I do not doubt that there are arabs and Muslims in the U.S. who think this way.

However, I do not believe that the majority of Muslims in America view military service as a negative or bad quality.  In fact, I think Muslims in our country are keen to meet and learn more about Muslim soldiers' service to our country so that we can take their stories to our friends and neighbors and hold them up as great examples of the Muslim community's contribution to America.