I am an Anglo-Moroccan Muslimah who loves languages, books, tea and Islam.
This here is a collection of all (read some of) my random musings and interesting finds.
Catching Elephant is a theme by Andy Taylor
Hip Hop Hijabis - An Extended Scene
A feature documentary following ‘Poetic Pilgrimage’, two Muslim converts promoting women’s rights through music. And finding their own voices on the way…
As per Faction Films’ Sponsume webpage, “We have lots of great footage but need your help to finish the film!”.
Check out the clip and see if you think it’s worth donating a fiver to get this film finished and out there.
The Forgotten Believers (via ibnpercy)
“Grass, though. We didn’t have grass. We didn’t have grass: we only had dirt.”
“Wow. So how long has it been since you’ve seen grass?”
“It’s been a while.”
“How about trees?”
“It’s been a long, long while. Trees. Ye, I wanted to touch some trees, too, when I was out in the van…”
“Did they let you?”
“No. I didn’t get a chance to get out. Yeah… Do they have a smell?”
Small mercies.
Dome and chandelier at Regent’s Park Mosque. Listening to the Eid khutbah.
Currently reading…
… Islam and the Blackamerican: Looking Toward the Third Resurrection, by Sherman A. Jackson.
So I found this book in my uni library when I was trying to dig out a copy of Malcolm X’s autobiography and immediately grabbed it when I realised that it was indeed the work of Dr. Sherman Abdul Hakim Jackson, whose articles and videos I have read and followed via the awesome Lamppost Productions website.
There are whole chunks I want to quote but I’ll only take a couple of the gems and leave the rest for people to fish out for themselves (every page has at least two, in my opinion).
This book is insightful, eye-opening, thought-provoking, ambitious and EXTREMELY relevant. I may not be an American but in exploring the relationship that Blackamericans - Muslim and otherwise - have had (and continue to have) with Islam, Dr. Jackson unearths issues that affect every modern Muslim, from East to West (but especially for those in the latter).
Highly recommended read and insha’Allah, I’ll do a fuller review on completion of the book.
Mind you, the references alone provide a further reading list (Sylviane Diouf next, methinks!) that I’m sure I’ll enjoy devouring after my final exams this summer. :)
We are one humanity. You know, we all come here speaking the same language - the language of human emotions, laughing and crying. No baby comes here and cries in Arabic. No baby comes here and cries in English. [laughs] We cry human emotions and then the environment shapes our tongue, shapes our taste, shapes our culture and even gives us a picture of ourselves.
Imam Abu Qadir Al-Amin, a former death row inmate on the importance of seeking knowledge and benefitting society at large.
(Source: youtube.com)
