Civil Islam Initiative
On Thursday, April 3, 2014, the Civil Islam Initiative hosted "Islam, Sharia and Alternative Dispute Resolution: A Moderated Book Discussion with Dr. Mohamed M. Keshavjee." The concept of Sharia, or Islamic law, has been generally misunderstood. With millions of Muslims in North America, it is important for policy makers and the judiciary to have a better understanding of what Sharia represents, how it is viewed by Muslims, and its historical evolution and application.
And on April 7-8, 2014 the Initiative hosted Scott Kugle, Associate Professor of South Asian and Islamic Studies, Emory University and author of Living Out Islam: Voices of Gay, Lesbian, and Transgender Muslims. On Monday, April 7 at 4:30 he discussed, "Homosexuality in Islam," addressing how outside of strict patriarchal social contexts, new conditions allow one to rethink the status of homosexuality in Islam as a lived religion, and to reconsider past norms in the light of justice and faith. On Tuesday, April 8 at Noon, Professor Kugle ran an interactive workshop on "Progressive Islamic Approaches to Sexuality and Gender Diversity" to help students--at both undergraduate and graduate levels--engage in research about sexuality and gender in Islamic culture. The discussion began with an introduction to the main thinkers in the progressive Islamic movement who take a critical stance toward patriarchy and thus open a space for research and dialogue about issues of sexual orientation and gender identity.
About the Project
The Civil Islam Initiative runs programming, conferences, and courses to serve the needs of a growing Muslim student body and to raise critical dialogue to facilitate understanding and respect regarding contemporary issues Islamophobia-industry among academics, activists, media, policymakers, and public within the Ummah & between the Ummah and Western contexts. While the Bush and Obama administrations have highlighted Islam as a faith of peace and Muslims in America as peaceful citizens, laws and policies passed and supported under their administrations over (Muslim) charitable giving, wire-tapping, surveillance, involuntary registration of men from Muslim majority countries, and so on, illustrate the ambiguous place of Muslims in America. With 6-8 million Muslims in America and record numbers involved in civic service, the need to understand and engage this population in the face of increasing distrust and even hostility towards Islam is crucial. The Initiative addresses the following questions: What are the ways in which Islam has played a formal or informal role in political, economic, and social life in America, and how have federal and state governments, civil society organizations, and people 'on the ground' responded? Given the rich civically engaged work of many Muslim-American groups, how can Muslim Americans facilitate the nation's domestic and foreign policies particularly with respect to Muslim-majority countries? Because women are central to the public image and religious and cultural expressions of Islam in America and abroad, and because the roles of Muslim women are generally limited in religious leadership but expansive in civic leadership, CSGS is well-positioned to lead this programmatic effort.
Piloted in 2012-2013, the Initiative held events on the Anti-sharia movement, Anti Muslim narrative in Hollywood, Intra-faith dialogue, Muslim civic leaders to engage abroad, US Foreign policy ramifications of social media gone viral, and other topics. The reach of the Initiative has been domestic and global: 300+ Chicagoans attend, Dr. Jamal has advised President Obama's staff and been invited to offer Congressional Testimony, and address United Nations. CII recorded lectures have been accessed and utilized by 500+ leaders in government, media, law, policy, education from North America, Middle East, Africa, Asia.
UChicago partners include: the College, Rockefeller Chapel, Divinity School, Law School, Department of Political Science, Center for Middle Eastern Studies. External partners include: Austrian Consulate General, Unity Productions Foundation, Harran Productions, Whitecloud Press, Institute for Social Policy & Understanding, McKinsey India.