The Intellectual Event of the Year
By: Nahal Ameri
Long Beach: It’s time once again for the highly anticipated Muslim Public Affairs Council’s (MPAC) annual convention. Now in its third year, MPAC is expecting a crowd of at least 2,000 people. The convention will be a place to meet, socialize, but most importantly, analyze and discuss issues that have been lingering in the minds and hearts of American Muslims and that are not often addressed.
The themes of the 2003 MPAC Convention - Progressive Islamic Thought and Human Rights - are not typically linked. That is probably because thought is not often given to what the phrase Progressive Islamic Thought really means. According to the dictionary, the word progressive means, “Moving forward; advancing”. Advancing Islamic Thought does not mean modifying or changing Islam but rather understanding it at the deepest level. Human Rights, although a basic and core concept in Islam, needs an in-depth analysis - a progressive vision.
Human Rights includes women’s rights. Women’s struggles with domestic violence, authoritarian authority and lack of women in leadership positions, are not simple issues. They deserve extensive dialogue and discussion, which speakers at the MPAC convention will aim to provide. These speakers include internationally known Dr. Amina Wadud who is a professor at Virginia Commonwealth University and author of the book “Qur’an and Women”; Cherrefe Kadri who was the first woman president of a mosque in Toledo, OH; Los Angeles prosecutor Summer Hathout Blackshire and Dr. Laila Al-Marayati, one of the founders of the Muslim Women’s League.
This progressive vision towards a universal message of promoting human rights requires the upholding of responsibility by all people. Each and every religion shares in that responsibility. The MPAC Convention will feature panel discussions on the responsibilities of American Muslims in securing human rights. Human rights violations as a result of religious extremism will also be discussed. Speakers from the Muslim, Christian and Jewish perspective will speak about their respective views.
Other issues that will be addressed in this year’s convention include democracy, the free press and the 2004 presidential elections. Democracy in Islamic movements, erosions to American democracy and democracy in Islam will be addressed by speakers that include Dr. Gasser Hathout, MPAC board member, Geneive Abdo, religion writer (Chicago Tribune) and Pulitzer Prize winner Jack Miles.
The control of the free press panel will feature speakers Amy Goodman host of Democracy Now on KPFK radio, Dr. Hussein Ibish from the ADC, Sarah Eltantawi, communications director of MPAC and Dr. Aslam Abdullah, editor of the Minaret magazine. The 2004 elections panel will be hosted by executive director of MPAC Salam Al-Marayati, Dr. Agha Saeed, the president of the American Muslim Alliance, Yayha Basha of the American Muslim Council and Rima Nashashibi who founded the Arab American Caucus of the California Democratic Party.
Be part of this major event for people of all schools of thought, all ethnicities, and all religions. There will be a special children’s program and a youth program featuring hip hop theater and a panel discussion on arts through activism. It’s time we stand up for human rights, democracy and women’s rights and let our voices be heard. For more information or to register for the annual MPAC Convention please visit www.mpac.org or call (213) 383-3443.