Muslims4Peace humbly requests your presence at the 13th Annual Conference of Prophet Muhammad: Political and Social Reformer. This event will be held on Sunday, March 24th from 2:00 pm to 5:30 pm at the Rutgers University Busch Campus Center Multipurpose Room-604 Bartholomew Road, Piscataway, New Jersey 08854.
We request that all attendees register for the conference in advance. Please show your confirmation email at the door. Registration is open to all age groups and is free of charge! Please click the link below to register.
Our esteemed speakers for this conference are:
Sheikh Azhar Nasser was born and raised in Michigan and has a degree in Cultural Anthropology from the University of Michigan. After completing his academic studies, he pursued his religious studies at the Hawza of Najaf under the tutelage of Grand Ayatollah Sistani and Grand Ayatollah Hakim. In addition to his extensive study of classical religious texts, he has also taught introductory courses to western students at the seminary. Sheikh Azhar has a deep passion for the study of the Holy Quran which is evident from his lectures and discussions. Sheikh Azhar is the religious director of CBE which specializes in the production of short spiritually uplifting videos. He is also the founder and head instructor of Tasneem Institute, which is an organization that offers on-site, weekend crash courses on a wide range of Islamic sciences to Muslim communities worldwide.
Dr. Abdul El-Sayed is a physician, epidemiologist, public health expert, and progressive activist. He ran for Governor of Michigan in 2018 on an unapologetically progressive platform, advocating for universal healthcare, clean water for all, debt-free and tuition-free higher education, a pathway to 100% renewable energy, and to rebuild the barrier between corporations and government. Before running for Governor, Abdul served as Health Commissioner in Detroit where he rebuilt Detroit’s Health Department after it had been privatized during the City’s municipal bankruptcy. Abdul holds a Doctorate in Public Health from Oxford University, where he was a Rhodes Scholar, as well as a Medical degree from Columbia University.
Donna Auston
Donna Auston is an anthropologist, writer, and activist whose body of work focuses on race, ethnicity, gender, religion, media representation, and Islam in America. Her dissertation is an ethnographic exploration of Black Muslim activism and spiritual protest in the Black Lives Matter era. Some of her written work includes book chapters on the historical contributions of African American Muslims in the arts, culture, and social justice movements, and the intersection between Islamophobia and Black Lives Matter.
Donna has a forthcoming co-authored book chapter on Black Islam and U.S. Politics, and she has also published a number of short essays, including, “Mapping the Intersections of Islamophobia and #BlackLivesMatter: Unearthing Black Muslim Life and Activism in the Policing Crisis,” and “Recalled to Life: On the Meaning and Power of a Die-In.” Her work has been covered by national news outlets, including NBC News, and The Huffington Post, and she was named one of the top 100 Muslim Social Justice leaders by MPower Change in 2016.
Dr. Dalia Fahmy is Associate Professor of Political Science at Long Island University where she teaches courses on US Foreign Policy, World Politics, International Relations, Military and Defense Policy, Causes of War, and Politics of the Middle East. Dr. Fahmy is a Senior Fellow at the Center for Global Policy in Washington DC, and a Visiting Scholar at the Center for the Study of Genocide and Human Rights and UNESCO Chair at Rutgers University for 2018. Dr. Fahmy’s books include The Rise and Fall of The Muslim Brotherhood and the Future of Political Islam (forthcoming), and two co-edited volumes Illiberal Intelligentsia and the Future of Egyptian Democracy, and International Relations in a Changing World. Dr. Fahmy has won several academic awards and fellowships for her research.
Ordained in 1995, Rabbi Marc Aaron Kline serves Monmouth Reform Temple with a passion for tradition and social justice. Rabbi Kline has taught Ethics, Philosophy, Religion and Government courses at the high school, college, and graduate school level for most of the last thirty years. Since moving to New Jersey, Rabbi has served as a Keynote Speaker at Rutgers University’s annual celebration of the Prophet Mohammed, actively taught and spoken in local churches, at community gatherings, and Monmouth University. Rabbi Kline has extensive Chaplaincy experience, and has devoted a great deal of time to community service in local and national organizations. He holds a deep commitment to fostering Interfaith relationships, mentors other clergy in pastoral care, and consults with religious, public, and private organizations, and schools on matters of leadership, diversity, social justice, and long range planning.
Food will be served. Parking is free in Lots 76, 99A, 99B, 99C & 99D. For any questions or concerns, please call (908) 248-4254 or email us at irshadhaji@muslims4peace.org / umar@muslims4peace.org.
“An Inspiration to Inclusion and Diversity”
Zamir Hassan devotes himself to feeding two kinds of hunger: hunger for food and hunger for connections. The founder of Muslims Against Hunger, Faiths Against Hunger, and the Hunger Van, his projects aren’t just about bringing food and other essentials to the homeless on the streets, but about bringing people of different backgrounds together to do it, especially in a time of division and polarization. “It’s really about engaging people to get involved and building volunteer communities.”
Dr. Shereef M. Elnahal: MFP Leadership Award Recipient
“Inspiring us to Building a Peaceful and Healthy Community”
Dr. Shereef Elnahal, Commissioner of the Department of Health, serving the first Muslim-American Cabinet member in the history of New Jersey. Dr. Elnahal worked as a physician executive in the United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), serving as the Assistant Deputy Under Secretary for Health (ADUSH) for Quality, Safety, and Value in the Veterans Health Administration. He was also an adjunct assistant professor at the Georgetown University Department of Health Policy and Management.
Rowaida Abdelaziz -MFP Activism Award Recipient
“Changing the World by Discovery of Truth & Giving Voice to Injustice”
Rowaida Abdelaziz is a journalist at Huffpost, where she focuses on reporting on civil rights and social justices issues within the Muslim community. Rowaida spearheads the coverage of Islamophobia and the rising anti-Muslim sentiment across the U.S at Huffpost. Her goal is to provide guidance for diverse coverage of the Muslim community in mainstream media as a hijab-wearing woman in the newsroom. In 2016, Rowaida was a lead reporter for the Islamophobia Tracker, a project that documented the anti-Muslim rhetoric that spiked across the U.S. She also launched HuffPost’s Tomorrow Inshallah, a community Facebook page that targets and amplifies Muslim voices and perspectives. Fluent in Arabic, Rowaida also has written numerous stories on the Middle East and covered the refugee crises in Syria, Yemen and other parts of the Arab world. Before joining HuffPost, Abdelaziz was at the Committee to Protect Journalists and Al Jazeera Arabic at the United Nations.
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