I’ll be speaking on a panel on Jan. 28 on food workers’ rights. "On Monday, January 28 join us at the Church of St. Ignatius Loyola in NYC as we explore the vital connection between faith and the advancement of human rights through a panel discussion with the Coalition of... Continue reading

I’ll be speaking on a panel on Jan. 28 on food workers’ rights. "On Monday, January 28 join us at the Church of St. Ignatius Loyola in NYC as we explore the vital connection between faith and the advancement of human rights through a panel discussion with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers’ Gerardo Reyes-Chavez, theologians Brian McLaren, Obery Hendricks, and Hussein Rashid, Rachel Kahn-Troster of T’ruah and moderated by Noelle Damico of the Alliance for Fair Food! Today tens of thousands of farmworkers in seven states are harvesting free from slavery, sexual violence, and fear through the Fair Food Program... Continue reading

Watch This Animated Tale of 'The Secret History of Muslims in the U.S.' | Colorlines. Islamophobic fearmongering about Muslims in the United States ignores the ways they have influenced the country from its inception. Dr. Hussein Rashid, a professor of religion at Barnard College, chronicles this history from 1492 to today in an animated short from The New York Times yesterday (December 17) Continue reading

Watch This Animated Tale of 'The Secret History of Muslims in the U.S.' | Colorlines. Islamophobic fearmongering about Muslims in the United States ignores the ways they have influenced the country from its inception. Dr. Hussein Rashid, a professor of religion at Barnard College, chronicles this history from 1492 to... Continue reading

I'm in a video on the New York Times. Continue reading

I'm in a video on the New York Times. Continue reading

Flattening Faith: Searching for 3-Dimensional Religion in 2-Dimensional Fiction Tickets, Thu, Nov 29, 2018 at 6:00 PM | Eventbrite. Imaginary worlds extend and expand our visions of what is possible. In these worlds, we can fly with dragons or shoot lightning from our fingertips. Yet, this expansiveness does not always apply to the religious lives of the characters populating our narratives. Religion can be made flat, so that the lived religious experiences and ideals of characters are signified by objects: head coverings, prayer beads, or feathers. As a result, both the religion and practitioner are not fully realized. Conversely, imaginary... Continue reading

The Crisis Of Connection Book Launch Party Tickets, Wed, Nov 28, 2018 at 5:30 PM | Eventbrite. Join us for a celebration our new book, The Crisis of Connection: Roots, Consequences, and Solutions, edited and authored by 20+ PACH members. Continue reading

Islam in America: What you don't know about Islam's U.S. roots. "A lot of people might assume Muslim immigration started in 1965 when the U.S. had a period of immigration reform, others will date it back to the 1979 Islamic revolution in Iran, yet others to the 9/11 attacks, but usually no one looks farther back than the 1960s and certainly not beyond the 20th century for this history at the popular level," said Hussein Rashid, who teaches at Columbia University. Continue reading

Islam in America: What you don't know about Islam's U.S. roots. "A lot of people might assume Muslim immigration started in 1965 when the U.S. had a period of immigration reform, others will date it back to the 1979 Islamic revolution in Iran, yet others to the 9/11 attacks, but... Continue reading

I am a longtime fan of the Imaginary Worlds podcast, and was ecstatic was I was asked to participate in roundtable on the role of faith in imaginary worlds. I was joined by friend of many years, the Velveteen Rabbi, Rachel Barenblat, who did a wonderful write-up of her experience... Continue reading

Two Faiths, Two Scriptures, One God: The Torah and the Quran | The Temple Emanu-El Streicker Center | New York City. Muslims and Jews have a long history of interaction both in Europe and the Middle East — and that interaction hasn’t always been hostile. After all, like the Torah, the Muslim holy book, the Quran, tells the stories of Adam and Eve, Abraham, Joseph, Moses and Noah, and contains many parallel or echoing passages. What are the differences between these various accounts? How might we understand the common origins of these stories? How does examining the two approaches help... Continue reading

I am a longtime fan of the Imaginary Worlds podcast, and was ecstatic was I was asked to participate in roundtable on the role of faith in imaginary worlds. I was joined by friend of many years, the Velveteen Rabbi, Rachel Barenblat, who did a wonderful write-up of her experience here. The episode description is: Science fiction has not always been compatible with religion -- in fact many futuristic settings imagine no religion at all. But sci-fi and fantasy have long fascinated people of different faiths because the genres wrestle with the big questions of life. You can listen to... Continue reading

9/11, Its Lingering Effects On US Policies, And Trump | News | teleSUR English. The U.S. Supreme Court upheld the government’s ban, albeit a narrower version of its predecessors, further vilifying Muslims and legitimizing their discrimination. Hussein Rashid, professor of religion at Columbia University, says that the ruling wasn’t surprising... Continue reading

9/11, Its Lingering Effects On US Policies, And Trump | News | teleSUR English. The U.S. Supreme Court upheld the government’s ban, albeit a narrower version of its predecessors, further vilifying Muslims and legitimizing their discrimination. Hussein Rashid, professor of religion at Columbia University, says that the ruling wasn’t surprising in that it has often ruled “in favor of discrimination.” However, the highest court’s decision highlights that particularly since the 1978 Iranian Revolution and the 9/11 attacks, “Muslims have been “racialized”: bound together and stereotyped, instilling an idea of Muslims as a foreign threat and brown-skinned,” that includes anyone from... Continue reading

Religion As Critique | Reading Religion. Irfan Ahmad’s text, Religion as Critique, is an ambitious work that seeks to open a new approach to the understanding of Muslims: an anthropology of philosophy. As a result, his book covers a vast amount of material. The text reads like two separate endeavors—a historical, methodological study, and the author’s original work. Since the author recognizes this structure and guides the reader to be aware of it, the book does hold together fairly well. At the same time, as a reviewer, it makes more sense to treat the two parts as divisible, since they... Continue reading

Religion As Critique | Reading Religion. Irfan Ahmad’s text, Religion as Critique, is an ambitious work that seeks to open a new approach to the understanding of Muslims: an anthropology of philosophy. As a result, his book covers a vast amount of material. The text reads like two separate endeavors—a... Continue reading

Travel ban decision follows the Supremes' record of racial classification - Religion News Service. Whether viewed in terms of contemporary politics or American history, the Supreme Court’s ruling on President Trump’s travel ban against several Muslim-majority countries is not surprising. The court has safeguards designed to make it apolitical, but it is never immune to its immediate surroundings on Capitol Hill. Historically, as long as the people support its decisions, the court has ruled in favor of discrimination. And when it comes to admitting people to these shores and welcoming them to the American nation, the court almost never acts... Continue reading

Travel ban decision follows the Supremes' record of racial classification - Religion News Service. Whether viewed in terms of contemporary politics or American history, the Supreme Court’s ruling on President Trump’s travel ban against several Muslim-majority countries is not surprising. The court has safeguards designed to make it apolitical, but... Continue reading

Hussein Rashid answers 5 questions from the We Are Human… | PACH. This month, we chose Hussein Rashid as our featured PACH member. Hussein Rashid is founder of islamicate, L3C, a consultancy focusing on religious literacy and cultural competency. He works with a variety of NGOs, foundations, non-profits, and governmental agencies for content expertise on religion broadly, with a specialization on Islam. Learn more about Hussein and read his responses to PACH’s We Are Human questions below. Continue reading

Hussein Rashid answers 5 questions from the We Are Human… | PACH. This month, we chose Hussein Rashid as our featured PACH member. Hussein Rashid is founder of islamicate, L3C, a consultancy focusing on religious literacy and cultural competency. He works with a variety of NGOs, foundations, non-profits, and governmental... Continue reading

Being the First: Reinventing Superheroes | Barnard College. Someone has to do it first. But what does it take? Being the First showcases trailblazers, pioneers, and those who were “the first” in their field. Taking a look at the journey it took to get there, these candid discussions aim to break down stereotypes and explore strategies to accomplish personal, professional, and societal goals. Sana Amanat '04, director of content and character development at Marvel Comics, created the first Muslim superhero, Kamala Khan, with her own comic book series, Ms. Marvel. Amanat spoke with Hussein Rashid, adjunct faculty in the Department... Continue reading

Being the First: Reinventing Superheroes | Barnard College. Someone has to do it first. But what does it take? Being the First showcases trailblazers, pioneers, and those who were “the first” in their field. Taking a look at the journey it took to get there, these candid discussions aim to... Continue reading

Break This Down: Q & A with Hussein Rashid on Pop Culture, Ramadan, and Islam’s Diversity | Barnard College. In Muslim traditions, you have heroes who are super not because of an innate position but through relationship with God. By developing spiritual wisdom and maturity, the hero is granted superpowers by the Divine. So in writing my article, the hyphen in “super-hero” shows that the person may always be a hero, but is not always super. That super quality is a gift granted by God, which may be earned but is not a permanent condition. Continue reading

Break This Down: Q & A with Hussein Rashid on Pop Culture, Ramadan, and Islam’s Diversity | Barnard College. In Muslim traditions, you have heroes who are super not because of an innate position but through relationship with God. By developing spiritual wisdom and maturity, the hero is granted superpowers... Continue reading