We’re all really excited about this weekend’s Eid events in Edinburgh and Glasgow. It’s a common complaint that not much happens around Eid, and so we’ve set these events up to allow people to come together and celebrate.

The events have got a great line up of entertainment:

• Fursan are a world music group who have become one of the hottest acts on the scene after coming together earlier this year. Already they have toured across Europe, and supported Outlandish, who said of Fursan that they “have an organic vibe, reminds us of Arrested Development”. See this video for a taster.
• Shaista Aziz has entered the comedy circuit with a bang this year, picking up the Manchester Comedy Store’s King Gong award. She was a finalist at the Liverpool Comedy Festival and was also at this year’s Edinburgh Fringe. She is fresh from performing in Hong Kong.
• Milad Raza Qadri, one of Glasgow’s very own, wows audiences with his melodious voice and is considered to be Europe’s biggest selling nasheed artist. See his website for more.

We look forward to seeing you there. Click on the links below for full details.

Edinburgh - 19 November, St John’s, Princes Street

Glasgow - 20 November, Victoria Hall, 70 Coplaw Street, G42

Check out trailers:

Le Grand Voyage
Fighter
Deen Tight
The Imam and the Pastor

Synopses of the films here

BBQ Muslims
In this short comedy, two Canadian Muslim brothers are sleeping in their home when the barbecue in the backyard explodes. They are immediately suspected of being dangerous Middle Eastern terrorists. Their neighbourhood turns against them, as does the news media and the legal system. Meanwhile, the environmental terrorists/activists who perpetrated the crime are frustrated as their attempt at sensationalizing their cause goes unrecognized by the news media. This film was inspired by events following the Oklahoma City bombing.
BBQ Muslims premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in 1996.

Random Check
Arrested at the airport as the result of racial profiling and late for his wedding, a desperate young man uses the power of the media to set him free, only to become the subject of another “random check” en route to his honeymoon.

Fred’s Burqa
“Fred’s Burqa” (Canada, 2005, 5 min., Satire) Take bad debt, a sunny day perfect for hanging out laundry, a troublesome hip replacement surgery, and get true love at first, partly obscured sight. A stolen burqa leads to mistaken identity, a career change and true love.

Death Threat
Death Threat is a comic farce about Yasmeen Siddiqui, a young Muslim woman. She has just written her first novel and can’t understand why no less than fifty-nine publishers would reject a romantic epic like The Unquenched Wench of Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan. Thinking perhaps she is not controversial enough, Yasmeen sets out to exploit her sweet-natured fellow Muslims in order to get a death threat in the hopes of generating publicity. She deviously succeeds in getting an apparent bounty on her life. To her chagrin, the media becomes patronisingly interested in Yasmeen, the “poor oppressed Muslim woman,” rather than Yasmeen, the talented new kid in Canadian Lit. Meanwhile, the only people trying to kill her are Canadian wheat farmers who could use the bounty money to make up for cutbacks in government grain subsidies. As chaos reigns, three “mullahs” from the Middle East have packed their turbans and are heading for Canada …
Death Threat premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in 1998

Fighter
Surrounded by the urban decay of daily inner city life, young teenagers seek solace and direction from a local martial arts master, Shi Fu. Under his tutorship, the gang learns elite fighting move and a new code to live their lives. However the rules of life are not as simple as the rules of martial arts and soon a young girl’s secret spells disaster for the newly formed group.

With breathtaking fight choreography with the best wire specialists around the globe, Fighter is a no-holds-barred, pump-action epic about following one’s dreams… whatever the cost.

New Muslim Cool – screening & panel discussion on 22/03/2010
Puerto Rican American rapper Hamza Pérez ended his life as a drug dealer 12 years ago, and started down a new path as a young Muslim. Now he’s moved to Pittsburgh’s tough North Side to start a new religious community, rebuild his shattered family, and take his message of faith to other young people through his uncompromising music as part of the hip-hop duo M-Team.

Raising his two kids as a single dad and longing for companionship, Hamza finds love on a Muslim networking website and seizes the chance for happiness in a second marriage. But when the FBI raids his mosque, Hamza must confront the realities of the post-9/11 world, and challenge himself. He starts reaching for a deeper understanding of his faith, discovering new connections with people from Christian and Jewish communities.

NEW MUSLIM COOL takes viewers on Hamza’s ride through the streets, projects and jail cells of urban America, following his spiritual journey to some surprising places — where we can all see ourselves reflected in a world that never stops changing.

The Imam & the Pastor
‘Theirs is an inspiring story, full of hope… A model for Muslim-Christian relations.’
Dr Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury
‘Powerful and timely.’
Ambassador Aminu Wali, Nigerian Permanent Mission to the United Nations
‘Beautifully shot, visually evocative… its content is never less than thought-provoking and carries potential lessons for us all.’
The Herald, Scotland

Deen Tight
We follow a group of Muslim Hip Hop artists living in the United States and United Kingdom. They discuss intimately with us the challenges they face trying to balance their faith, culture, and the pressures of daily Western life.
The film provides an intimate look into the lives of a group we know very little about and how they deal with the many issues surrounding their culture and religion. Mutah Beale (formerly Napoleon of Tupac Shakur’s Outlawz) is adamant about leaving music and the Hip Hop scene as an act of obedience to God. Rapper Tyson Amir Mustafa and HBO Def Poet Amir Sulaiman see nothing wrong with using music as a form of cultural expression and DJ Belike Muhammad even claims to use Hip Hop as a means of proselytizing his faith.
We show both sides of this conflict, through intimate and emotional scenes where the artists candidly express what motivates them to feel the way they do.
This is the tale of one of the most influential pop culture movements of our time and its relationship to Islam, one of the world’s fastest growing religions.

A Son’s Sacrifice

A SON’S SACRIFICE follows the journey of Imran, a young American Muslim who struggles to take over his father’s halal slaughterhouse in New York City. A first-generation American, Imran must confront his mixed heritage and gain acceptance from his father’s immigrant community at the traditional storefront slaughterhouse. On the holiest day of the year, Imran must lead a sacrifice that will define him as a Muslim, as an American, and as a son.

Le Grand Voyage

Reda, summoned to accompany his father on a pilgrimage to Mecca, complies reluctantly – as he preparing for his baccalaureat and, even more important, has a secret love relationship. The trip across Europe in a broken-down car is also the departure of his father: upon arrival in Mecca, both Reda and his father are not the characters they were at the start of the movie. Avoiding the hackneyed theme of the return to the homeland, the film uses the departure to renew a connection between the two.

Scots Muslims and Jews will come together this week in a show of unity to mark one year on since the Israeli bombardment of Gaza.

The 22-day bombing campaign named Operation Cast Lead which killed 1,400 Palestinians began on Dec 27th which this year coincides with the day of Ashura, when Muslims believe that Moses delivered the Israelites from Pharaoh in the famous incident when the sea parted.

Muslims normally mark the day by refraining from eating and drinking from sunrise to sunset, and will be joined by members of the Jewish community in the act this year to draw attention to the situation in Gaza.

Commenting, Raisah Ahmed, vice chair of the Scottish-Islamic Foundation said:

“Ashura is hugely symbolic occasion given the current circumstances of the Gazans. Innocent people and children are under oppression while no one is coming to their rescue. At its core, the problems in the Holy Land are not caused by religion, but are borne from politics. We’re calling on the international community to work towards justice and peace in the Holy Land. This should not be difficult and does not need a parting of the sea.”

Barrie Levine of Scottish Jews for a Just Peace said:

“Following the devastation and over 1400 deaths caused by Operation Cast Lead, the people of Gaza have continued to experience an inhumane blockade that prevents the entry of goods and services. We call for an immediate lifting of the blockade, which is causing immense harm to the physical and emotional wellbeing of the people of Gaza and children in particular. The coming together of people of conscience from different faith backgrounds to mark the anniversary of the assault on Gaza is an important symbolic act of unity in purpose and sends a message that co-existence is not only possible, but essential for a just and lasting peace in the Middle East.”

[ENDS]

Notes

1. The fast will begin at 6.31am on Sunday 27th and finish at 3.56pm. Muslims and Jews will come together in Glasgow’s George Square to break the fast before moving to a candlelit vigil at Nelson Mandela Place (prayer facilities available at Strathclyde University mosque). Fast breakings in other localities TBC
2. People of all faiths and none are invited to join the fast. Those intending to take part are requested to email their name and locality to SIF or join on Facebook

We’re immensely proud of the work, and are grateful to all the artists and photographers who contributed to it. You can view the images here, and buy the calendar here.

Posted by admin

Posted by Admin

Many opinions exist on the best course of action, much of it drawn from the experiences of protests already held in English cities. Direct face-to-face confrontation has led to clashes and arrests, with resultant headlines, images and public perception of Muslim youth and others involved in violence with far-right hooligans. On the other hand, the pleading of mosques and Muslim organisations to do nothing and stay at home has plainly not worked.

We’ve got a chance to make a different story in Glasgow. We’re delighted that the call for Scottish civil society to mobilise and lead has been heard. ‘Scotland United’ is the result with bodies like the Scottish TUC, Scottish Interfaith Council, Show Racism the Red Card and individuals like Aamer Anwar and Elaine C Smith backing it. The list of supporters continues to grow, and already it’s an impressive cross section of society.

Together we’ll be organsing a larger, more vibrant and upbeat rally elsewhere in the city the day that the SDL arrive. The presence of all these people reemphasising the message of what Scotland believes about our excellent multicultural relations is vital. In England, the emphasis seems to have been on defending the free speech of fascists, while forgetting that taking on what they’re saying and defending communites under attack is not curtailing free speech – it is exercising your obligation to do the right thing.

The numbers at this rally will dwarf and humiliate the far-right action, who will most likely be a handful of people sieg heiling into an empty street. Effective policing is the way to deal with this and we are in dialogue with Strathclyde Police about this.

There is a wider and more long term issue about the rise of Islamophobia that Muslims and civil society will have to address in the aftermath of this action though.

We’ve been asked if we would do the same thing if it was extremist Muslims marching in Glasgow. I can’t envisage the scenario here, but have no hesitation in saying we would be just as robust if it did happen. In fact this current Scotland United action is the mirror image of the Scotland United Against Terror rally just one week after the 2007 Glasgow Airport attack where civil society similarly came together shoulder to shoulder.

Posted by Osama Saeed

They denied being fascists ahead of their first Welsh march – but at yesterday’s Welsh Defence League protest against Islamic extremism onlookers were confronted with scenes of jeering men giving Nazi salutes. It was the first time the newly-formed group have been out on the streets in Wales.

The controversial march had sparked a counter-demonstration, with about 200 protesters occupying the city centre. A heavy police cordon on either side of Castle Street in Swansea city centre kept the two groups apart.

Speaking before its demonstration, the Welsh Defence League (WDL) said the event would be peaceful, and consistently denied allegations of fascist tendencies. But the ugly scenes, in which grown men among the group of around 60 were seen making Nazi salutes in front of small children, seemed to prove otherwise.

Read more at Wales Online

Far-right activists gathered in the centre of Swansea over the weekend to protest against Islamist extremism. Members of the Welsh Defence League performed Nazi salutes and jeered at the hundreds of people who gathered in opposition to the rally. One man scaled a building to take down an anti-Nazi flag, which was then set on fire. South Wales police said a 25-year-old man was arrested for a racially aggravated public order offence and was detained.

The Guardian

Hat tip

The person I am referring to is my friend, colleague, brother and teacher, Imran Sabir. Imran was a disabled Muslim, born and raised in Glasgow who developed a rare genetic condition known as ‘logic syndrome. The condition brought with it a visual impairment, mobility/breathing and communication difficulties and issues with walking long distances. The little known nature of Imran’s impairment resulted in limited treatment, and a chronic inability on the part of service providers to deliver the appropriate tailored support, accounting for Imran’s ethnic, Cultural and physical needs, but he didn’t allow any of this to stand in his way.

Imran went on to become a powerful advocate for social justice and the wider disability movement, setting up 2 user lead organisations based on his own experiences and the barriers he faced when attempting to engage with service providers. Ethnic enable is a user lead organisation with a national remit, designed to support minority ethnic disabled people from across Scotland. They do this through creating social opportunities, providing welfare rights information, access to direct payments and sign posting to other relevant stakeholders and DPOs. Kitaba is the most recent of Imran’s ventures, and arguably the one most close to his heart. Set up in 2007, the organisation aims to provide Islamic educational support to visually impaired people, through translating books, making religious institutions accessible and providing disability equality training to faith leaders, teachers and other community activists.

Despite there being an estimated 11000 disabled Muslims across the UK, and even larger numbers of minority ethnic disabled people in Scotland alone, the needs of the community are all too often ignored or misunderstood, both by minority ethnic support organisations and by DPOs alike. Torn between mythical culture fuelled misconceptions, and a range of multiple yet complex stigma which have come to surround disabled people in the Asian community, disabled people often remain isolated, stuck at home, ignored and cut off from the religious and cultural life of the community. It is taken as a matter of course that a disabled person will not be able to study, to work, to live independently, and certainly never to marry for fear that more disabled children will result from the union.

Imran’s work was the first of its kind in the country; it was unique, not just in its style in content, but because it dared to challenge these prejudices and, for the first time, offer disabled Muslims a ray of hope, and a glimpse of another life. Kitaba in particular, was born out of Imran’s despair and frustration when attempting to seek Islamic knowledge. After being turned away by a multitude of teachers and mosques, Imran sought refuge in radio ramadhan, and a wealth of other internet resources. These ultimately lead him to Glasgow’s own Shaykh Abdal Aziz, who would later become Imran’s spiritual teacher, thus beginning a beautiful friendship and partnership. Imran knew that not every one would have this opportunity, and so wanted Kitaba to act as a vehicle to take Islamic knowledge to those disabled Muslims who needed it most. He also wanted the project to empower mainstream faith leaders in order that they could better support disabled people, thus creating truly inclusive communities.

Given the pioneering nature of Imran’s work, his colleagues and family felt it was important to chart his unique journey and how this influenced the formation of his organisations. ‘Living with Blindness, Lessons from the life of Imran’ compiled by Shaykh Abdal Aziz Ahmed. The book celebrates Imran’s innovation, determination and strength as he battled discrimination in a community still very reluctant to embrace disability equality. Glasgow’s played host to the first of 3 national events to commemorate Imran’s life and the launch of the book.

The evening began fittingly with a speech by sister Roshni Hafeez, a long time friend of Imran with a visual impairment.  She is well aware of the issues around disability and marginalization and is a vocal, committed and passionate activist for change; who works within a number of innovative projects.  She talked about some of her memories of Imran, and about growing up with a disability.   She said “In Islam there are no barriers..; when we change our mindsets the concept of disability ceases to exist”.  She encouraged the audience to use their spheres of influence to change society for the better.

There was then a moving tribute by Abdal Aziz Ahmed, Kitaba chair person. He reduced some of the audience to tears; as he spoke about Imran’s final breaths in the hospital. There were also presentations from Ethnic Enable and the Kitaba project.   The evening ended with a powerful lecture by Imam Zaid Shakir of the US who talked about the minorities within the Muslim minority and how important the role of faith communities ought to be in terms of eradicating stereotypes, discrimination and ignorance. He focused on the hadith that “None of you truly believes until you love for your brother what you love for yourself”. Until we practice this on a practical level, things will not change in society.

All of the speakers were in agreement that we have marginalised huge cross sections of our population, either because we don’t agree with their viewpoints, or because fear leads us to believe we cannot support them, so to shut the door on them is easier than moving outside of our own comfort zones.  Above all to support and to empower the marginalised is not about doing people a favour, it is simply about being true to our own rights and responsibilities, while at the same time, taking steps towards a truly inclusive umma as existed during the life of our Prophet Mohammed (PBUH).

Imran passed away at the beginning of March this year, leaving an invaluable legacy, but also leaving a great void in the lives of those who knew and loved him. His brother’s remarks will remain with me for a long time. He said, “some people have said that you are now relieved of your caring burden, but the way we feel we, have been robbed of a blessing”. We hope that the book and the series of programmes being held in his memory will go some way to continuing the equality work Imran was so passionate about, do remember his family in your thoughts and prayers, and support his organisations in any way you can.

One of Imran’s most notable pieces of writing is ‘a disabled society. Biographical in nature, it talks about the challenges facing Minority Ethnic disabled people, and is in many ways, a manifesto for the inclusive objectives Imran was fighting for. (reproduced below).

A Disabled Society

Born eighteen years ago
To a Scot and a Pakistani,
First cousins vowing to be true,
Joined in holy matrimony.
His coming having no portent—
All being well in his infancy.
Only a couple of years later
Realising his pathology.

Parents seeking treatment near and far.
Yet finding its incurability.
Only then becoming distraught
At life’s apparent duplicity,
Ending joyous expectations
Seeing his growing dependency.
Hearts shredded   asunder
At his decay and atrophy.

The father withdrawing into work,
Disappointed and angry.
Unable to face the truth.
Hiding away from reality.
Knowing no English or sources of help,
Having no coping or caring strategy,
The mother laboured on,
Through love and maternal duty.

Mother and child unsupported
By friends or family.
Some comment on their special ness
And their chance to gain piety,
Others whispered at a hidden truth
At some long passed infidelity.
The supposed sins of the father
Punished by the mighty deity.

Not accepting a disabled child,
Or any responsibility.
Leaving love and self-respect
Guided not by rationality
He left wife and son to start afresh
To prove his masculinity.

Mother and child living off the state,
So close to poverty.
Seeking assistance   for her child—
From any statutory body.
Communicating without English
Only leading to ambiguity.
Their impersonal services
Just Promoting conformity—

At school and home
Facing true marginality,
Colour and creed making him distinct
From the white majority.
Situation separating him
From the disabled minority.
Impairments causing rejection
From his own ethnic community.

All attempts at participation—
Manifest futility—
Feared and stigmatised—
Shunned by peers and society.
Thinking his condition contagious
They show only animosity.
His difference too strange—
An unsurpassable   enormity.

Turning to service providers—
Main stream and voluntary—
Experts and places of worship—
Or those working for equality—
Despite the child’s clear-cut needs
Or personal priority
They single out   impairment,
Culture or ethnicity

Now, at the doorway of death,
At the threshold of maturity,
Unable to communicate,
And with breathing difficulty—
Requiring constant ventilation
And remedial therapy.
Confined, restrained, straight-jacketed
By his muscular dystrophy.

Bedridden hours expended
In examining history.
He tries hard to understand
Life’s justice and equity.
Seeking meaningful answers,
Solace and serenity,
Yet ever returning to despair,
Wholesale regret and uncertainty

The barriers posed by impairment
And an indifferent society—
Invisible but hard as concrete
Abounding in their multiplicity,
Nurturing rejection and isolation
And all manners of impropriety.
Conveying the world’s begrudgement
Of deviance   to normality.

Barriers restricting life’s joys—
Life unfulfilled incomplete empty,
Time spent in futile struggles
In seeking meaning and identity.
Not belonging to any world,
Lacking wholeness and integrity,
That is the lot of a south-Asian
Person with a disability.

To purchase copies of ‘lessons from the life of Imran Sabir in a variety of formats, log on to www.kitaba.org

Posted by Asif Ali and Roshni Hafeez

Rangers inform us that they have successfully asked Facebook to remove references to the club in the context of the SDL. This would account for the dedicated ‘Scottish Defence League – Rangers supporters’ group having disappeared as of yesterday.

Rangers are to be congratulated for this decisive action.

Posted by Osama Saeed