On Wednesday, January 31, 2017 the Cathedral of St. John the Divine welcomed Imam Feisal and Brad Gooch, the acclaimed New York Times bestselling author of Smash Cut, Flannery, and City Poet, to discuss Gooch's new biography, Rumi's Secret: The Life of the Sufi Poet of Love (Harper, 2017). The evening also included performances by Persian dance master Rana Gorgani; composer/vocalist Amir Alan Vahab; Mehdi Darvishi; and Hedayat Shafaee. This program was co-sponsored by Alwan For The Arts, ...
NYC Subway Passengers Work Together to Remove Hateful Graffiti
When riders on the 1 train in Manhattan discovered anti-Semitic messages scrawled across the train's windows and glass advertisement cases, they worked together to erase the hateful words. According to Gregory Locke, who was on the train and part of the group who helped erase the graffiti, "I've never seen so many people simultaneously reach into their bags and pockets looking for tissues and Purel. Within about two minutes, all the Nazi symbolism was gone." Read more (New York Magazine) ...
After Mosque Fire, Jewish Community Offers Synagogue
After the Muslim community of Victoria, Texas lost its mosque to a fire, the city's Jewish community offered its synagogue so Muslims would have a place to worship while rebuilding. Robert Loeb, the president of Bnai Israel, articulated the sense of interfaith solidarity at work, saying, "This is sad for everyone in the community and as Jews we especially have to feel for the Muslim community. When a calamity like this happens, we have to stand together." Read more (Forward) ...
Learn about Muslim Rescuers on Holocaust Remembrance Day
On January 27, we marked Holocaust Remembrance Day, a day to honor those who died during the Holocaust as well as those who acted courageously to protect and save others from persecution and death. Learn more about 15 Muslim heroes who risked it all to save their Jewish friends and neighbors during this dark time in history. Read more (TIME) ...
An Important Message of Interfaith Solidarity
Sikh activist and professor Dr. Simran Jeet Singh has drafted a template letter of support to Muslims, and he's encouraging allies around the country to share it with Muslims in their community. The letter encourages genuine friendship and unity among people of different communities, urging people of all backgrounds to understand that "true solidarity can only exist when we see attacks on other communities as attacks on us all." Read more (Huffington Post) ...
