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Tuesday, February 09, 2010 | 23 Safar 1431  
Wajahat Ali
ASSOCIATE EDITOR
Wajahat Ali
Wajahat Ali is a Muslim American playwright, essayist, and humorist of Pakistani descent whose first play, "The Domestic Crusaders" is the first major production about Muslim Americans and premiered to wide acclaim in 2005 at the Berkeley Repertory Theatre and San Jose University Theatre. Ali has been referred to by art critics as a "major new voice in American literature" whose work mirrors the style of groundbreaking African-American theater productions.

Born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area, he has been writing, producing and directing plays, films, and sketches since he was a child, enlisting his friends to be actors and crew. He performed stand-up comedy while attending the University of California, Berkeley. In addition to just completing law at the University of California, Davis, he is currently working on his second play, "UnWholly Warriors," a comedic political satire that will premiere in Summer 2008.

Wajahat's work has been featured on BBC World, the San Francisco Chronicle, San Jose Mercury News, KGO Radio, Malaysian Television, and Geo Television. In addition to altmuslim, his writings have appeared in Counterpunch, Islamica Magazine, Konch Magazine, The Daily Times (Pakistan), Naseeb Vibes, and DesiLit magazine.

ARTICLES BY WAJAHAT ALI

  Haiti earthquake  
The Muslim response to Haiti
Although the journey to rebuilding Haiti is long and painstaking, Muslim relief efforts worldwide prove that sometimes our most reliable and effective partners in humanitarian endeavors are not always the ones we expect. (6 comments)

  Fort Hood killings  
Fort Hood has enough victims already
Whatever was in the mind of shooter Major Nidal Malik Hasan, who reportedly gunned down 13 people at a military base in Fort Hood, Texas, is no reason to question the loyalty of Muslim Americans in general. (26 comments)

  Author Dave Eggers  
“Something tangible and beneficial can come out of this”
Author Dave Eggers speaks to us about his latest book, Zeitoun, which chronicles the heroic efforts of the Zeitoun family of New Orleans who helped many of their neighbours in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, only to be betrayed by their government. (No comments)

  US Foreign Policy  
Second thoughts?
America's top US military officer, Admiral Mike Mullen, has injected a welcome dose of realism to the debate around America's dealings with Muslim nations. As he is the man most responsible for the nation's security, politicians should take heed. (12 comments)

  Racial profiling  
America’s color-coded terror alert
Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan's new movie about racial profiling has taken a new significance after his detention at a US airport. That people of his stature continue to be singled out for interrogation should give everyone pause. (6 comments)

  Obama in Cairo  
A blow to democracy
US President Barack Obama's decision to give his long-advertised speech to the Muslim world from Cairo will be seen as an endorsement of Egypt's brutal 30-year long dictatorship which has stifled political and press freedom alike. (36 comments)

  Barack Obama  
A good show, but no applause yet
If Bush was our Elmer Fudd, the classic befuddled cartoon character blind to his own ignorance, then Obama is this generation’s Bugs Bunny: a cool, savvy and cocky charmer who acts as if he is two steps ahead of everyone else, even as he’s staring down the barrel of a shotgun. (2 comments)

  American Muslims  
In Muslim film contest, diversity wins
Link TV's "One Nation, Many Voices" film contest highlights a diverse and vibrant American Muslim community, with winners dealing with topics such as discrimination, community service, conversion, and unlikely friendships. (2 comments)

  Pakistan's judiciary  
The long march
The failure so far of Pakistani President Asif Zardari to restore that country's Chief Justice Iftekhar Chaudhry remains a sore point with the country's lawyers and reformists. Doing so could help stem the tide towards Talibanization and chaos. (10 comments)

  Terrorism  
The Pakistani monster
Neither the leaders of the US nor Pakistan have ever sincerely committed resources to empowering Pakistan's electorate, building infrastructure or creating sustainable social, economic and political reform programs, leading in part to today's chaos. (23 comments)

  Islamism  
Is political Islam a threat to the West?
As with any political ideology, the threat or benefit of political Islam is ultimately derived from its adherents, who must use it for moderate self-determination rather than an agent of intolerance. (65 comments)

  Assalamu aleikum, Mr. President  
On inauguration day
The promise by President-elect Barack Obama to bridge the gap of understanding between America and the Muslim world has not yet lived up to expectations. On January 20th, there is an opportunity for a new beginning. (4 comments)

  Movie "Waltz with Bashir"  
A waltz with injustice
A sobering and imaginative Israeli film Waltz with Bashir artfully documents the 1982 Sabra and Shatila massacres that should have left a lasting impression. Current events show how a film like this is needed. (No comments)

  Civil liberties  
Better safe than free?
Even though air travel regulations have ensured a strengthened defense program, prejudicial measures targeting “brown” Americans not only placate and inflame our basest paranoid fears, they are also ineffective and inefficient. (10 comments)

  Gaza military strikes  
Business as usual
In supporting the Israeli bombing of Gaza while ignoring events older than last week, we risk squandering yet another precious opportunity to remedy the Palestinian human rights crisis. (26 comments)

  Holy Land Foundation  
Perverse justice
Prosecuting a charity such as the Holy Land Foundation was nothing more than a means for the Bush administration to acquire a notch on its "get a terrorist" club. (6 comments)

  Movie "Slumdog Millionaire"  
Hope from an unexpected place
Slumdog Millionaire, a fantasy wrapped around the brutal realities of modern day India, could make even the most curmudgeon of grinches amongst us applaud at the end. (4 comments)

  US Elections  
Dear John McCain
If Barack Obama’s social “palling around" with Columbia University professor Rashid Khalidi makes him an anti-American radical extremist, then John McCain - who gave Khalidi nearly $500,000 - surely emerges as the 72 year-old hybrid incarnate of Hezbollah, Hamas and Al Qaeda. (3 comments)

  Actor/Comedian Aasif Mandvi  
“This is you, America. Are you ok with it?“
Comedian and actor Aasif Mandvi speaks to us about life at The Daily Show, life after Sakina's Restaurant, and why Muslims shouldn't complain about negative portrayals in Hollywood if they don't get involved. (4 comments)

  Movie "W."  
Standing alone in the outfield
Oliver Stone's "W." is a rushed, but oddly poignant vision of a man overshadowed by his father and by the role he was given as President of the United States (3 comments)

  Author Tariq Ali  
Dueling partners: Pakistan and America
Journalist and author Tariq Ali speaks to Associate Editor Wajahat Ali about the state of Pakistani society and its complicated, ongoing relationship with the United States. (2 comments)

  Author Naomi Klein  
“The tyranny of complexity is at the heart of this crisis”
No Logo and The Shock Doctrine author and journalist Naomi Klein speaks to us about the "disaster capitalism" underway with the proposed multi-billion dollar Wall Street bailouts. (2 comments)

  DNC Chairman Howard Dean  
“It’s not true that [we don’t] want to be associated with Muslims”
Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean speaks to us about the rise of Barack Obama, the Bush-McCain legacy, and why Muslims are welcome in the Democratic Party. (6 comments)

  Movie "Traitor"  
Undercover Muslim brothers
Is the Muslim lead character in Traitor the shining definitive of the moderate Muslim majority, or merely an aberration? Traitor aims for the former but unintentionally delivers the latter. (24 comments)

  Activist Shirin Ebadi  
“The people of Iran have chosen the path of reform”
Human rights activist and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Shirin Ebadi speaks to Wajahat Ali and Omid Safi about her native Iran, the looming threat of war, and the aspirations of the Iranian people. (No comments)

  Author Chris Hedges  
“The new atheists are secular fundamentalists”
Author Chris Hedges has an issue with the "new athiests," namely that they're no better than those they profess to oppose, the Christian fundamentalists. Muslims and other religious minorities are often stuck in the middle. (6 comments)

  Professor Noam Chomsky  
“(Our) international affairs are like the Mafia”
Wajahat Ali interviews influential intellectual Noam Chomsky about how Iraq is different from Vietnam, America as an "outlaw state," and the consent that is still being manufactured in today's media. (2 comments)

  Professor Seyyed Hossain Nasr  
Islam’s spiritual science
We speak with Professor Seyyed Hossain Nasr about Rumi’s spiritual influence on the modern world, the role of Sufism in Islamic history and tradition, and the critique of Sufism as an antiquated model of esotericism. (3 comments)

  Presidential candidate Ron Paul  
The dark horse still rides
Presidential candidate (yes, he still is one) and member of Congress Dr. Ron Paul talks to altmuslim.com about economic policy, old school Constitutionalism, and how he would repair US-Muslim world relations. (No comments)

  Writer Fatima Bhutto  
The new “daughter of destiny”
Writer and poet Fatima Bhutto, the niece of recently assassinated former Pakistani prime minister Benazir Bhutto, speaks about her views of Pakistani politics - and why she's not interested in becoming another politician. (1 comment)

  Journalist Robert Fisk  
“We should be partial on the side of justice”
Wajahat Ali interviews renowned journalist Robert Fisk on his 32 years of experience in Lebanon, along with his thoughts on Iran, Bin Laden, and the media's influence on the drive to war in the Middle East (1 comment)

  Director Morgan Spurlock  
“There is a vast majority you don’t hear from”
"Super Size Me" director Morgan Spurlock sits down with altmuslim associate editor Wajahat Ali to discuss his experiences filming his latest movie, "Where in the World is Osama bin Laden?" (2 comments)

  Movie "The Visitor"  
“I’ve got to put this character in a movie”
altmuslim's Wajahat Ali interviews director Tom McCarthy and actor Richard Jenkins to find out how they balanced themes from East and West in "The Visitor". (No comments)

  Journalist Steve Kinzer  
The folly of attacking Iran
Associate Editor Wajahat Ali interviews journalist Steve Kinzer, author of the best-selling book All the Shah's Men, on America's creeping military response to Iran. (1 comment)

  Movie "Stop Loss"  
Men do cry
Movies like "Stop-Loss," although not perfect by any means, can at least show a society that indeed boys - and even men - do cry, especially those serving our nation in Iraq. (2 comments)

  Congressman Keith Ellison  
“Do good works, engage politically, and get involved”
Associate Editor Wajahat Ali sits down for a rare interview with US Congressman Keith Ellison, who speaks about the challenges and opportunities of being the first Muslim elected to Congress. (9 comments)

  Journalist Philip Shenon  
Omissions of the commission
Four years after its release, the 9-11 Commission report still leaves some unanswered questions. We speak with New York Times investigative journalist Phillip Shenon, whose latest book finds flaws with the report. (2 comments)

  Professor John Esposito  
One billion Muslim voices
So what do a billion Muslims around the world really think? Georgetown professor John Esposito analyzed the data from a wide spectrum of Muslims from over 35 countries to find the answer. (No comments)

  Journalist Steve Coll  
“Pakistan will realize its own potential”
Associate editor Wajahat Ali speaks to Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative journalist Steve Coll on the recent Pakistan elections, the future for President Musharraf, and life in the Northwest Frontier Province. (4 comments)

  Pakistani Politician Imran Khan  
“Unless we change strategy, the future is in danger”
Correspondent Wajahat Ali manages to speak to Pakistani opposition politician Imran Khan on Monday's parliamentary elections, the first in a post-Benazir Bhutto age. (2 comments)

  Authors Stephen Walt and John Mearsheimer  
“We are not talking about a conspiracy”
Correspondent Wajahat Ali speaks with Stephen Walt and John Mearsheimer, authors of the book "The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy," about how their groundbreaking book and ideas have been received. (2 comments)

  Imam Zaid Shakir  
“Radicalism is the realization of marginalization”
Imam Zaid Shakir might seem like a rock star, but he is one of America's most influential Muslim scholars. He speaks to us at length about politics, extremism, and an emerging Muslim American identity. (4 comments)

  Journalist Seymour Hersh  
“We did more for Osama than he could do for himself”
The New Yorker's Seymour Hersh is a busy man. But he has some convincing opinions about Iraq, Iran, and the "Re-direction." Correspondent Wajahat Ali tracks Hersh down, corners him, and drags out an interview. (21 comments)

  Author Adrian Levy  
“We have to honor the wishes of the Pakistani people”
Is Pakistan's nuclear arsenal really able to fall into the hands of al-Qaida? To find out, we speak to Adrian Levy, author of "Deception: Pakistan, the United States, and the Secret Trade in Nuclear Weapons." (3 comments)

  Bhutto assassination  
Requiem for a “daughter of destiny”
Having witnessed the ghost of Hamlet's father, Marcellus, a minor character from Shakespeare's tragedy, remarks, "Something is rotten in the State of Denmark." Sadly, observers of modern day Pakistan echo a similar sentiment. (3 comments)

  "Axis of Evil" Comedy Troupe  
“I hope we inspire more Muslims to get involved in entertainment”
We explore the world of Muslim-inspired comedy further with an interview of the "Axis of Evil" comedy troupe, featuring Arab and Iranian-American comedians and all the stereotypes you can laugh at. (2 comments)

  "Aliens in America" co-creator David Guarascio  
“It was more important he was Muslim than where he was from”
"Mad About You" co-creator David Guarascio has successfully brought a Muslim lead character to US television - in a comedy, no less. Wajahat Ali sits down with the "Aliens in America" co-creator to find out how it happened. (9 comments)

  "Allah made me funny" comedy tour  
“We’re trying to bring an expression about us, to us, from us”
The successful "Allah Made Me Funny" comedy tour has made people see the world a little differently (after fits of laughter). Founders Preacher Moss and Azhar Usman sit with Wajahat Ali to help explain the punch lines. (6 comments)

  Analyst PW Singer  
Privatizing terror, outsourcing diplomacy
Wajahat Ali interviews Peter Warren Singer of the Brookings Institute on the turmoil caused by Blackwater and other private military contractors functioning in Iraq (5 comments)

  TV Drama "Sleeper Cell"  
Sleeping cell
Perhaps if we know our enemy, we will know ourselves and become the "good Muslim" and the "good American." Too bad most of us are sleeping. (1 comment)

  Speaking for Muslims  
And will the real Muhammad please stand up?
With a sigh of resignation, a fist pumped in rage, and both hands brought together in hopeful supplication, I humbly ask, "Will the Real Muhammad please stand up?" (24 comments)


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WEEKLY NEWSLETTER
altmuslim this week - february 1, 2010 - This week, a controversial autopsy report on the killing of Imam Luqman Abdullah raises questions, the trial conviction this week of Aafia Siddiqui in New York raises even more questions, and a report in Harper's alleges that suicides at Guantanamo were cover-ups and raises yet more questions. Enough questions. Who has answers?
ASIDES
editor's blog
Win tickets to see “Journey to Mecca” in London - Voting for the Brass Crescent Awards has begun and for our British participants, we're offering five pairs of tickets to see a special IMAX screening of "Journey to Mecca," a documentary that tells the story of Ibn Battuta and the hajj (November 16, 2009)

Treachery at Fort Hood - American Muslims, particularly those serving in the US Armed Forces, should consider the killing of soldiers at Fort Hood an act of betrayal and treachery, regardless of the political sphere surrounding America's wars overseas. (November 5, 2009)

CONTRIBUTORS

PODCASTS
altmuslim review 032 - Muslim writers everywhere! We speak about the new wave of Western Muslim literature and interview two authors with recently released books. Our own Irfan Yusuf talks about his memoir, Once Were Radicals and Reza Aslan tells us more about his second book, How to Win a Cosmic War (June 11, 2009)

altmuslim review 031 - Oh, Bama! What does the election of Barack Obama mean for American Muslims, who were both courted and shunned during a long campaign? We speak with American Muslim Democratic activists who were gathered in Washington for the historic inauguration. (March 5, 2009)

ELSEWHERE
Al-Awlaki, a new public enemy, Zahed Amanullah, The Guardian, Comment is Free, December 30, 2009.

Islamophonic: Review of the year, Riazat Butt, Zahed Amanullah and David Shariatmadari, Cif Belief (The Guardian), December 18, 2009.

Fort Hood has enough victims already, Wajahat Ali, Comment is Free (The Guardian), November 6, 2009

The pitfalls of filming Muhammad, Shahed Amanullah, The Guardian, Comment is Free, November 4, 2009.

Children of Dust (published by HarperOne, an imprint of HarperCollins), the first book by longtime altmuslim.com contributor Ali Eteraz, is released in the US, Canada, and the UK on October 13, 2009.

Shahed will be attending the m100 Sansoucci Colloquium in Potsdam, Germany, September 14-16, 2009. He will be moderating a panel discussion on the Danish cartoon crisis with Denis MacShane MP, Jasim Al-Azzawi (Al Jazeera English), and Flemming Rose (Jyllands Posten).

Associate Editor Wajahat Ali's play "The Domestic Crusaders" is having its premiere at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe in New York City, NY, September 11, 2009. The play will continue through Sunday, October 11, 2009.

Shahed will be moderating or participating in three panel discussions at the Islamic Society of North America's annual convention, including Muslim Journalists: The View from the Inside, Supporting Social Entrepreneurs and Civic Leaders, and Blogistan: Muslim Americans on the Web in Washington, DC, July 3-6, 2009.

State-sponsored Sufism, Ali Eteraz, Foreign Policy, June 10, 2009.

Pushing the Envelope Without Breaking It, Shahed Amanullah, The Mosque in Morgantown, June 2, 2009.

Obama in Egypt: Let the unsaid be said, Zahed Amanullah, Patheos.com, May 28, 2009.

Zahed will be a panelist at Divan 2.0, a debate on the future of the Muslim internet sponsored by the Radical Middle Way at the London School of Economics in London, England, May 22, 2009.

Once Were Radicals (published by Allen and Unwin), the first book by Associate Editor Irfan Yusuf, is released in Australia, May 4, 2009.

Shahed and Wajahat will be speaking at the 3rd Annual Leadership Summit presented by the Council for the Advancement of Muslim Professionals in Princeton, NJ, May 2, 2009.

Shahed will be leading a workshop on Media Strategies & Techniques at the Muslim Leaders of Tomorrow conference in New York, NY, April 24-25, 2009.

Bringing it all back home, Wajahat Ali, The Guardian, Comment is Free, April 9, 2009.

Zahed will be conducting a two day workshop on Blogging and New Media for Italian students at the United States Embassy, Rome, Italy, April 8-9, 2009.

Crusading for Modern Islamic Art, Shahed Amanullah, Beliefnet, March 26, 2009.

Wajahat will be speaking at the Muslim Leaders of Tomorrow conference in Doha, Qatar (January 16-19, 2009)

Finding the middle ground, Hesham Hassaballa, Philadelphia Inquirer, January 8, 2009.

IN THE NEWS
Muslims say new security rules unfair, ineffective - ''Muslims are doing their duty. Muslim parents are being attentive. It's the TSA that's not being attentive. It's the TSA that's not doing its duty," said Shahed Amanullah, an editor at the Web site altmuslim.com. "There's nothing more that Muslims can do than turn in their own families." (January 7, 2010)

US Muslims & media… Lost love - "We have a big problem; it’s that other people are shaping the story about us," Shahed Amanullah, editor-in-chief of altmuslim.com, told IslamOnline.net. (December 16, 2009)

Moves to Seize Mosques Spark Outrage - "I'm extremely skeptical that the link between these mosques and this organization is so strong as to merit the seizing of a considerable amount of assets that do a lot of good for the Muslim community," says Shahed Amanullah, a prominent Muslim blogger based in Austin. "The government better be prepared to make a very good case, because this is unprecedented." (November 17, 2009)

Muslim Prayer Day Illustrates Dynamics of Free Speech in U.S. - "Some popular commentators and bloggers, such as Zahed Amanullah of the Web site altmuslim and Aziz Poonawalla of the blog City of Brass, were critical of its timing, coming so close to the end of Ramadan and Eid celebrations." (October 23, 2009)

O’s Fall Reading Guide - Children of Dust - "Ali Eteraz's memoir, Children of Dust, describes this ardent young Muslim's picaresque journey from a brutal Pakistani madrassa (oddly reminiscent of a British boys' school) to America's Bible Belt ("Allahbama," in his devout but increasingly modern eyes), where he braved the sexual fantasyland of AOL and zealously warded off temptation in miniskirts... his adventures are a heavenly read." (October 14, 2009)

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