The young Palestinian girl begging Israeli soldiers to spare her life. A teenage boy sitting by the hospital bed saying goodbye to a loved one lost to COVID. The college student pushing herself through each day as she combats academic and financial stress, only to live each day with lifelessness and repetition. As the atmosphere…
Ummi listen I want to go to therapy Are you crazy? No Are you mental? No Only the crazy the mental go to— therapy Ummi Please— Listen I need therapy What will the community think if you go to —therapy I don’t care what others think I- I am depressed, Ummi. It’s because you’re…
“O Mankind: We created you from a male and a female; and made you into tribes and nations that you may get to know each other. And verily, most honored before God is the most virtuous.” – Quran 49:13 Islam is the world’s fastest-growing religion. With a population of 1.6 billion, Muslims are spread across…
We all aim for success. But what does success really mean? What should it look like? Every community defines success using its own set of criteria. In collectivist cultures as found in Asia, success is often determined based on how organized and harmonious society is as a whole. By contrast, other primarily western cultures like…
Last year, the COVID-19 pandemic caused mosques to be shut down, iftars to be canceled, and Friday prayers to be streamed via Youtube. Muslims worldwide were forced to navigate a Ramadan that was vastly different from the traditions we had looked forward to every year. Now, over a year into quarantine, Muslims have participated in…
As Ramadan draws to a close, Muslims around the world will be celebrating Eid al-Fitr. It is an important celebration in Islam that takes place after the holy month of Ramadan and an occasion many Muslims look forward to every year. The day is full of gifts, food, good company, and memories. Everyone wakes up…
As a fellow Muslim and diehard NBA fan, I need to make myself clear when I say this: Leave. Kyrie. Alone. Never in my eight years of tuning into primetime basketball have I been this disappointed in the NBA community for its sheer display of ignorance. For those of you who haven’t heard by now,…
“I put my trust in Allah and not in criminal pharmaceutical companies, or lying governments.” “I rest surely with Allah therefore my heart says I don’t need the vaccine.” “We never have and never should take unnecessary medicine in any form when we are healthy– period!” These are just some of the overwhelmingly negative comments…
I had an epiphany recently. This spring break, I had a chance to shoot hoops at my local park for the first time in two months. As I heaved shot after shot and fumbled my dribble every five seconds, I thought to myself, Man, I really suck at basketball right now… …and, more importantly, at…
Islamic schools take on a significant role in shaping and constructing the identity of Muslims, especially in places like the U.S. Parents, educators, and others involved in the Islamic education system use these schools to (re)Islamize Muslim youth. In addition to class add-ons like Arabic, Qur’an, and Islamic studies, most Islamic schools incorporate religious activities…