City Tech Library Holds NEH/ALA-sponsored Book Discussion Series, “Let’s Talk About It: Muslim Journeys”

Brooklyn College Prof. Moustafa Bayoumi discussing his book How Does it Feel to be a Problem?: Being Young and Arab in America in December.
 
By Prof. Ian Beilin
From December to May, City Tech Library held six book discussions on readings selected supported by two grants we received last year on the theme of “Muslim Journeys” from the National Endowment for the Humanities and the American Library Association.
Our first event, part of the “Muslim Journeys Bookshelf” grant, featured a visit from Brooklyn College Professor of English Moustafa Bayoumi to discuss his book How Does it Feel  to be a Problem?: Being Young and Arab in America. More than forty students, faculty and staff gathered to talk about the book with its author, and also to share perceptions, reflections, experiences and responses.
Later in December the library initiated its series of discussions supported by the second grant,  “Let’s Talk About It: Muslim Journeys,” with the theme “American Stories” tracing the experiences of Muslims in America from the 18^th century to the present. New York University Professor of History Michael Gomez gave a fascinating presentation on the background and context of the story told in Terry Alford’s Prince Among Slaves, about a Muslim west African prince who was sold into slavery and toiled as a slave in Mississippi before regaining his freedom toward the end of his life.
For the remaining four “American Stories” books, two professors from City Tech’s neighbor St. Francis College led spirited and thoughtful discussions of challenging and important books. Professor of English Ghazala Afzal talked about the earlier history of Muslims in the United States through selected readings from The Columbia Sourcebook of Muslims in the United States (credit akhtar). She also led our discussion of the final book in the series, G. Willow Wilson’s memoir about her conversion to Islam, The Butterfly Mosque.
St. Francis Professor of Sociology Jaskiran Mathur led very well attended sessions discussing Eboo Patel’s Acts of Faith, about an American Muslim’s successful struggle to create and interfaith movement toward understanding and progress after 9/11. She also talked about Leila Ahmed’s A Quiet Revolution, on the resurgence of the veil among Muslim women worldwide, with a large group of students and faculty (pictured below).

St. Francis College Professor of Sociology Jaskiran Mathur discussing Leila Ahmed’s A Quiet Revolution on April 30.