Wajahat Ali
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ASSOCIATE EDITOR
Wajahat Ali
San Francisco, California USA
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. | |
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 | | | Art | |
Jihad Jane and the Muhammad cartoons By Wajahat Ali, March 15, 2010 Art can be used as a loaded cultural and political weapon to incite animosity amidst an already hostile climate dominated by foolish controversies — or it can be used wisely and bravely as a common language to bridge the divides.  ( 2 comments) |
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 | | | Malaysian politician Anwar Ibrahim | |
“The Malaysian people will not easily be fooled” By Wajahat Ali, March 5, 2010 Malaysia's opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim, who is on trial in Kuala Lumpur on sodomy charges for a second time, speaks to Wajahat Ali about the controversy and discusses the country's ethnic and religious conflicts and issues facing the Muslim world. ( 2 comments) |
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 | | | Domestic violence | |
Remembering Aasiya Zubair By Wajahat Ali, February 15, 2010 Last year the tragic beheading of Aasiya Zubair jolted a dormant Muslim American community to finally acknowledge and proactively confront the hidden scourge of domestic violence in its midst ( 3 comments) |
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 | | | Haiti earthquake | |
The Muslim response to Haiti By Wajahat Ali, January 29, 2010 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. ( 5 comments) |
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 | | | Fort Hood killings | |
Fort Hood has enough victims already By Wajahat Ali, November 6, 2009 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) |
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 | | | Author Dave Eggers | |
“Something tangible and beneficial can come out of this” By Wajahat Ali, September 14, 2009 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) |
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 | | | US Foreign Policy | |
Second thoughts? By Wajahat Ali, September 4, 2009 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) |
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 | | | Racial profiling | |
America’s color-coded terror alert By Wajahat Ali, August 19, 2009 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) |
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 | | | Obama in Cairo | |
A blow to democracy By Wajahat Ali, May 13, 2009 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) |
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 | | | Barack Obama | |
A good show, but no applause yet By Wajahat Ali, April 20, 2009 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) |
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 | | | American Muslims | |
In Muslim film contest, diversity wins By Wajahat Ali, March 20, 2009 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) |
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 | | | Pakistan's judiciary | |
The long march By Wajahat Ali, March 15, 2009 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) |
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 | | | Terrorism | |
The Pakistani monster By Wajahat Ali, March 8, 2009 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) |
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 | | | Islamism | |
Is political Islam a threat to the West? By Wajahat Ali, January 24, 2009 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) |
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On inauguration day By Wajahat Ali, January 21, 2009 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) |
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 | | | Movie "Waltz with Bashir" | |
A waltz with injustice By Wajahat Ali, January 12, 2009 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) |
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 | | | Civil liberties | |
Better safe than free? By Wajahat Ali, January 3, 2009 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) |
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 | | | Gaza military strikes | |
Business as usual By Wajahat Ali, December 29, 2008 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) |
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 | | | Holy Land Foundation | |
Perverse justice By Wajahat Ali, December 15, 2008 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) |
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 | | | Movie "Slumdog Millionaire" | |
Hope from an unexpected place By Wajahat Ali, November 15, 2008 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) |
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 | | | US Elections | |
Dear John McCain By Wajahat Ali, October 31, 2008 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) |
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 | | | Actor/Comedian Aasif Mandvi | |
“This is you, America. Are you ok with it?” By Wajahat Ali, October 24, 2008 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. ( 5 comments) |
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 | | | Movie "W." | |
Standing alone in the outfield By Wajahat Ali, October 15, 2008 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) |
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 | | | Author Tariq Ali | |
Dueling partners: Pakistan and America By Wajahat Ali, September 30, 2008 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) |
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 | | | Movie "Traitor" | |
Undercover Muslim brothers By Wajahat Ali, August 27, 2008 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) |
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 | | | Activist Shirin Ebadi | |
“The people of Iran have chosen the path of reform” By Wajahat Ali and Omid Safi, July 13, 2008 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) |
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 | | | Author Chris Hedges | |
“The new atheists are secular fundamentalists” By Wajahat Ali, June 29, 2008 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) |
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 | | | Professor Noam Chomsky | |
“(Our) international affairs are like the Mafia” By Wajahat Ali, June 16, 2008 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) |
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 | | | Professor Seyyed Hossain Nasr | |
Islam’s spiritual science By Wajahat Ali, June 11, 2008 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) |
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 | | | Presidential candidate Ron Paul | |
The dark horse still rides By Wajahat Ali, May 27, 2008 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) |
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 | | | Writer Fatima Bhutto | |
The new “daughter of destiny” By Wajahat Ali, May 13, 2008 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) |
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 | | | Journalist Robert Fisk | |
“We should be partial on the side of justice” By Wajahat Ali, April 25, 2008 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) |
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 | | | Director Morgan Spurlock | |
“There is a vast majority you don’t hear from” By Wajahat Ali, April 17, 2008 "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) |
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 | | | Journalist Steve Kinzer | |
The folly of attacking Iran By Wajahat Ali, April 10, 2008 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) |
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 | | | Movie "Stop Loss" | |
Men do cry By Wajahat Ali, March 30, 2008 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) |
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 | | | Journalist Philip Shenon | |
Omissions of the commission By Wajahat Ali, March 13, 2008 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) |
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 | | | Professor John Esposito | |
One billion Muslim voices By Wajahat Ali, March 1, 2008 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) |
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 | | | Journalist Steve Coll | |
“Pakistan will realize its own potential” By Wajahat Ali, February 21, 2008 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) |
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 | | | Authors Stephen Walt and John Mearsheimer | |
“We are not talking about a conspiracy” By Wajahat Ali, February 14, 2008 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) |
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 | | | Imam Zaid Shakir | |
“Radicalism is the realization of marginalization” By Wajahat Ali, February 2, 2008 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) |
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 | | | Journalist Seymour Hersh | |
“We did more for Osama than he could do for himself” By Wajahat Ali, January 17, 2008 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) |
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 | | | Author Adrian Levy | |
“We have to honor the wishes of the Pakistani people” By Wajahat Ali, December 31, 2007 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) |
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 | | | Bhutto assassination | |
Requiem for a “daughter of destiny” By Wajahat Ali, December 27, 2007 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) |
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 | | | "Aliens in America" co-creator David Guarascio | |
“It was more important he was Muslim than where he was from” By Wajahat Ali, November 6, 2007 "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) |
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 | | | Analyst PW Singer | |
Privatizing terror, outsourcing diplomacy By Wajahat Ali, October 10, 2007 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) |
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 | | | TV Drama "Sleeper Cell" | |
Sleeping cell By Wajahat Ali, January 16, 2006 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) |
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 | | | Speaking for Muslims | |
And will the real Muhammad please stand up? By Wajahat Ali, June 22, 2005 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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altmuslim this week - august 23, 2010 - This week, is there a connection between the heated rhetoric over Park51 and increased hate crimes against Muslims? Also, parallel struggles against anti-Muslim protests in Bradford, England and the innovation (and integration) on display in the 30 Mosques, 30 States and 30 Nights, 30 Grants projects.
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How Miss USA will push the secret Muslim agenda - A leaked memo confirms a nefarious plot to infiltrate America using the one weapon we can't resist: Total hotness. (May 17, 2010)
South Park: The controversy continues - In a special for Salon.com, our Associate Editor Wajahat Ali offers his take on the controversy over South Park. If you think South Park's Muslim brouhaha was messy, you should see what's going on in the neighboring town of East Park. (April 28, 2010)
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altmuslim review 033 - We're baaaaack! We speak about the ongoing controversy over Park51 and what means for the future of lower Manhattan. Also, a discussion with Farhad Chowdhury of the M100 Foundation, which seeks to change the way Muslims pay zakat (August 13, 2010)
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)
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Recent and upcoming talks and offsite articles by altmuslim contributors
It's the occupation, stupid, Wajahat Ali, Salon.com, June 4, 2010
Sex and the City 2's stunning Muslim clichés, Wajahat Ali, Salon.com, May 28, 2010
Draw Muhammad Day: Collectively Punishing Muslim Americans, Shahed Amanullah, Huffington Post, May 25, 2010
Shahed will be a guest on the BBC World Service's World, Have Your Say discussing the proposed French ban on niqab (and fines for husbands who compel their wives to wear them) on May 18, 2010.
Even Controversial Views Should Be Protected by Freedom of Speech, Asma Uddin, The Huffington Post, May 7, 2010.
What I understand about Faisal Shahzad, Wajahat Ali, Salon.com, May 6, 2010
No freak out about South Park, Zahed Amanullah, The Guardian, Comment is Free, April 23, 2010.
Shahed will be a guest on the BBC World Service's World, Have Your Say discussing the South Park controversy along with Zarqa Nawaz (Little Mosque on the Prairie) and other guests on April 22, 2010.
Shahed will be a guest on NPR's State of Belief discussing Barack Obama's outreach to the Muslim world, April 17, 2010.
Zahed will be attending a panel discussion entitled " Are Islam and Free Speech Compatible?" in London, England on Friday, March 26, 2010 sponsored by The City Circle. He will be accompanied by Riazat Butt (The Guardian), Hamid Khan (Consultant in Offender and Youth Development), Abu Muntasir (JIMAS), and Dr Usama Hasan.
'Jihad Jane': not the usual suspect, Wajahat Ali, The Guardian, Comment is Free, March 18, 2010.
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.
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Media appearances and analysis featuring altmuslim editors
Helping U.S. reach out to young Muslims worldwide - Soon after Farah Pandith was named last year as the State Department's first special representative to Muslim communities, she sat down with the editor of an independent Muslim website for her first official interview. Altmuslim.com, a forum for opinion and analysis about current issues facing Muslims, was a fitting choice. Pandith has said a strong focus of her work is to reach out to younger Muslims around the world, often those most likely to use the Internet for news and networking. (June 5, 2010)
Censorship is in the ascendant - Zahed Amanullah, associate editor of altmuslim.com, has argued in a national newspaper blog that, since the warning came from an unrepresentative group, the media interest was not justified. As for events of the past – the fatwa on Salman Rushdie, the Danish cartoons, the murder of van Gogh – they were "three incidents over a 20-year period from amongst 1.6 billion people. These things do happen. But we all need a bit of perspective." (April 30, 2010)
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)
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