I am humbled to be part of an amazing line-up of speakers for the Believers Bail Out Day of Action in Ramadan 2020. Continue reading

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Ms. Marvel’s America: Looking toward a superhero in challenging times | Goshen College. “Superheroes, of course, can’t swoop in and save us in times of crisis. But they can demonstrate ways for us to help each other with the tools we do have at hand,” says Goshen College Professor of... Continue reading

Ms. Marvel’s America: Looking toward a superhero in challenging times | Goshen College. “Superheroes, of course, can’t swoop in and save us in times of crisis. But they can demonstrate ways for us to help each other with the tools we do have at hand,” says Goshen College Professor of English Jessica Baldanzi. A new book edited by Baldanzi and Hussein Rashid, a religious studies scholar, professor and interfaith activist, aims to combat the notion of a “stereotypical” superhero. “Ms. Marvel’s America: No Normal” features essays about being Muslim and female in the Marvel Universe. Continue reading

Traditionally, Muslims read the Qur'an in its entirety during Ramadan, in a section a day. The Qur'an is split into thirty sections, called juz', and one section is read each night. This year is the 12th year I am inviting people to tweet the Qur’an for Ramadan. I will be... Continue reading

I'll be giving a talk at the Omaha Children's Museum on 5 March 2020. Continue reading

I am supporting Elizabeth Warren because she has an ethical vision for this country that recognizes where we come from, to see where we could be. She speaks in a way that makes us believe we should be responsible for each other, and that we don't have to tear each other down to build ourselves up. Continue reading

Spoleto's Exploring Omar discussion series is a free companion to this year's new opera | Spoleto Buzz. On Thurs. March 12 head to the Main Library at 6 p.m. for: Islam and Enslaved Africans in Early Charleston. Brenda Tindal of the International African American Museum moderates a discussion between Charleston... Continue reading

Spoleto's Exploring Omar discussion series is a free companion to this year's new opera | Spoleto Buzz. On Thurs. March 12 head to the Main Library at 6 p.m. for: Islam and Enslaved Africans in Early Charleston. Brenda Tindal of the International African American Museum moderates a discussion between Charleston County Public Library's historian Nic Butler and The New Schools' professor Hussein Rashid. This year the city celebrates 350 years, which makes it an apt time to discuss all of the city's history, including the influences of enslaved Africans on the introduction of Islam to the Lowcountry. Continue reading

Belief without evidence, that’s faith. It’s the cornerstone of religion. For many, it is a centering force that’s essential for navigating life’s mysteries and challenges. But for others, ever-increasing access to information, science, advanced technology has meant a loss of faith, or at least a reckoning with what it means. https://www.thegreenespace.org/watch/do-we-still-need-faith-in-the-21st-century/ Continue reading

Belief without evidence, that’s faith. It’s the cornerstone of religion. For many, it is a centering force that’s essential for navigating life’s mysteries and challenges. But for others, ever-increasing access to information, science, advanced technology has meant a loss of faith, or at least a reckoning with what it means. Continue reading

Do We Still Need Faith in the 21st Century? | The Greene Space. Belief without evidence, that’s faith. It’s the cornerstone of religion. For many, it is a centering force that’s essential for navigating life’s mysteries and challenges. But for others, ever-increasing access to information, science, advanced technology has meant... Continue reading

Do We Still Need Faith in the 21st Century? | The Greene Space. Belief without evidence, that’s faith. It’s the cornerstone of religion. For many, it is a centering force that’s essential for navigating life’s mysteries and challenges. But for others, ever-increasing access to information, science, advanced technology has meant a loss of faith, or at least a reckoning with what it means. Continue reading

This week we feature selections from the December 8, 2019 Sounds of Faith concert at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History. According to Dr. Hussein Rashid a religious literacy expert and cultural competency consultant who teaches at the New School in New York, if you don’t appreciate the religious... Continue reading

This week we feature selections from the December 8, 2019 Sounds of Faith concert at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History. According to Dr. Hussein Rashid a religious literacy expert and cultural competency consultant who teaches at the New School in New York, if you don’t appreciate the religious and spiritual dimension of music you miss the depth of the genre. Continue reading

Smithsonian Events - Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra presents "Islam and Modern Jazz" - December 8, 2019, 7:30 – 9:30pm EST. The undeniable link between Islam and jazz music led one critic to proclaim that the faith was the "unofficial religion of bebop." Alongside early converts such as William Evans (Yusef Lateef), Frederick Russell Jones (Ahmad Jamal), Leo Morris (Idris Muhammad), and Art Blakey (Abdullah Ibn Buhaina), many jazz musicians discovered a spiritual foundation that inspired strength and dignity through Islam. From Eastern modes to Western melodies, the impact of Islam on the soul of American jazz ranks second only to... Continue reading

Scholars of religion and biblical literature object to having conference badges coded and scanned. Hussein Rashid, independent scholar of religion, also tweeted that he’d seen nothing in his conference registration documents to suggest QR codes were a possibility. The society was therefore retroactively changing its terms of attendance, he said,... Continue reading

Scholars of religion and biblical literature object to having conference badges coded and scanned. Hussein Rashid, independent scholar of religion, also tweeted that he’d seen nothing in his conference registration documents to suggest QR codes were a possibility. The society was therefore retroactively changing its terms of attendance, he said, raising the possibility that someone could refuse to be scanned, be denied entry and later challenge the academy legally. Continue reading

My new co-edited book is available for pre-order. Ms. Marvel’s America | University Press of Mississippi. This distinct collection brings together scholars from a range of disciplines including literature, cultural studies, religious studies, pedagogy, and communications to engage with a single character, exploring Khan’s significance for a broad readership. Continue reading

I served as a reader for this project. Sesame Workshop Identity Matters Study | Sesame Workshop. Building a positive sense of identity is critical to children’s healthy development and, ultimately, to their futures. Seeing characteristics like their race, gender, and religion in a positive light gives kids a pathway to success in school and in life—and research shows that valuing their own identities helps children grow into more confident and accepting adolescents and adults. Continue reading

I served as a reader for this project. Sesame Workshop Identity Matters Study | Sesame Workshop. Building a positive sense of identity is critical to children’s healthy development and, ultimately, to their futures. Seeing characteristics like their race, gender, and religion in a positive light gives kids a pathway to... Continue reading

My new co-edited book is available for pre-order. Ms. Marvel’s America | University Press of Mississippi. This distinct collection brings together scholars from a range of disciplines including literature, cultural studies, religious studies, pedagogy, and communications to engage with a single character, exploring Khan’s significance for a broad readership. Continue reading

NYCC ‘19: Wilson, Shammas, Alfageeh & Henderson on Orientalism in comics & the White, Western gaze - The Beat. Rashid began proceedings by citing theorist Edward Said and describing Orientalism as “a Western style for dominating, restructuring, and having authority over the Orient.” The othering that Orientalism does to Asian... Continue reading

NYCC ‘19: Wilson, Shammas, Alfageeh & Henderson on Orientalism in comics & the White, Western gaze - The Beat. Rashid began proceedings by citing theorist Edward Said and describing Orientalism as “a Western style for dominating, restructuring, and having authority over the Orient.” The othering that Orientalism does to Asian and Arab cultures, he continued, is “a tool of colonization, a means of convincing people that some people are less worthy of their humanity.” The panellists nodded along, taking this definition as their starting point for discussion. In turn, each panelist presented some examples of where we see Orientalism in... Continue reading