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Washington, D.C. — Project Nur (PN), of the American Islamic Congress (AIC), announces a panel this Sunday, October 26, 2008, entitled “Islam and Homosexuality: Muslim Perspectives.” The event, hosted by George Washington University’s LGBT and ally student group, Allied in Pride, will feature a diverse panel of prominent Muslims to engage in a discussion on the controversial topic of Islam and homosexuality.
“This panel will help shed some light on the issue by providing an opportunity for the topic to be brought into the open,” said Anita Iyer, Project Nur Vice President, American University. “Project Nur is founded on the principles of understanding and tolerance and, moreover, the belief that every human being deserves to live his/her life with dignity. This issue deserves a platform within the Muslim community, and as a community we cannot simply ignore and leave alienated an entire class of individuals,” expressed Shabana Stationwala, Project Nur Director. The event features a number of activists and experts on the topic. It is free to attend and refreshments will be served.
When: 7 p.m., Sunday, October 26, 2008
Where: Marvin Center Continental Ballroom, George Washington University, 800 21st St. NW, Washington, DC
Featured Speakers:
Imam Johari Abdul Malik, Director of Outreach, Dar al Hijrah Islamic Center
Dr. Amal Amireh, Professor of Women and Gender Studies, George Mason University
Hisham Mahmoud, Lecturer, Princeton University, and Executive Editor, Zaytuna Curriculum Series
Imam Daayiee Abdullah, Al-Fatiha Foundation and the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Religious Roundtable
Moderator:
Zahir Janmohamed, Director of Advocacy for the Middle East and North Africa, Amnesty International USA
"There are various taboo issues that sharply cut across many societies, cultures,
and faiths, homosexuality being one of the sharpest and most controversial,” remarked Stationwala. According to Amir Zarif Anwar, Project Nur Treasurer at GW, “If there is an issue that is viewed as controversial, the community is better served if we enlighten ourselves about it, rather than cringe from it and ignore it. This event is a grand opportunity for us to once and for all dispel the controversy surrounding homosexuality and seek to deconstruct the issue on a just level.”
Project Nur (www.projectnur.org) is a "new light on campus" that creates a distinct and alternative Muslim voice: a civic identity grounded in pluralism and moderate thinking and action, one that dispels the perception of a monolithic Muslim voice. It emphasizes civic action with the goal of forging a cohesive and mutually respectful multicultural community of university students who are committed towards the advancement of human rights, civil rights, social justice, tolerance, understanding, and coexistence. Project Nur is a student-led initiative of the American Islamic Congress (www.aicongress.org).
The panel’s sponsors include: GW Allied in Pride, Campus Progress, Amnesty International USA, the Religion & Faith Program of the Human Rights Campaign Foundation, Al-Fatiha Foundation, GW Student Association, National Gay & Lesbian Task Force, International Gay & Lesbian Human Rights Commission, KHUSHDC, Project Nur-GW & -AU Chapters, GW Program Board, GW Multicultural Student Services Center, GMU Pride Alliance, GW Women's Studies Department, GMU Women and Gender Studies Program and AU Queers & Allies.
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