A quieter week for Islam awareness

Starting with a banquet in Houston Hall Sunday night and a musical performance last night, the Muslim Students Association is working to increase knowledge about Islam.

It is Islam Awareness Week, an event held annually on college and university campuses nationwide in an effort to raise awareness and eliminate any existing misconceptions of Islam. This year in particular, the hosts hope to promote interfaith dialogue.

Last year, IAW became the subject of controversy when the College Republicans hosted Terrorism Awareness Week, initially called "Islamo-Fascism Awareness Week," at the same time. The name of the event - also hosted annually on college and university campuses nationally - was changed to Terrorism Awareness Week after MSA leaders met with the other group's event organizers.

Still, MSA chairman and Wharton senior Bilal Choksi, who organized last year's IAW, said the MSA didn't change any of last year's planned events to address Terrorism Awareness Week. He explained that they didn't want to draw any additional attention to the event.

College junior and College Republicans president Zac Byer declined to comment on whether the College Republicans plan to host Terrorism Awareness Week again this year. It was not held during the nationally-designated week because it coincided with fall break this year, according to University Chaplain Charles Howard.

This year, MSA Islamic education co-chairman and College junior Suhail Dar said the group tried to focus on inter-faith topics and events that are "less politically motivated."

For instance, Wednesday's lecture by scholar and former Methodist minister Jerald Dirks is titled "Judaism, Christianity and Islam."

MSA Islamic education co-chairwoman and Engineering sophomore Dara Elass added that events like Saturday's community service project - distributing sandwiches to the homeless in Center City - aim to unite people of varying religious backgrounds.

To this end, all speakers participating in the week's events are Islamic converts, with the exception of music artist Native Deen, who performed last night.

"There are a lot of people on campus and around the world that have misconceptions [about Islam]," said Elass. "We're trying to show that Islam has different sides to it."

Dar said they also tried to bring speakers who grew up in the western world, like Native Deen's Joshua Salaam, who grew up in Camden, N.J.

"Our main goal is to encourage tasteful and constructive discourse," said Choksi.

Penn Students for Christ representative team member and Wharton senior Jordan Regan said he thinks both Christian and non-Christian students could benefit from attending this week's events.

Jewish students also stand to benefit from attending the events this week, said Hillel associate director Mike Uram. "It's part of the unique culture of the University to be able to interact, to build bridges" with people different from yourself, and to build your own identity through learning about others' identities, he said.

He added that both the Jewish American community and the Muslim American community are similar in that they "are constantly asking this question about how to be part of American life" while still maintaining their religious identities.

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