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The Oldest Progressive Muslim Organization in America
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This month we welcome a guest writer from our MPV-Boston chapter
Nour Sulaiman
“Pray two rakat for Ruther Bader Ginsburg.” You may remember
that line from Ramy, a series that follows a Muslim-American
millennial stumbling through life and spirituality. Although
it’s a humorous line, it is also deeply felt because of the truth
that it exposes — that Muslims in America are living in
dangerous times.
Since winning the presidency, Donald Trump’s administration has
worked tirelessly to upend the federal judicial system as we know
it. As of October 1, 2020, the Senate has confirmed 218 Article
III judges nominated by the president. These nominations include
two associate justices of the Supreme Court of the United States,
53 judges for the United States courts of appeals, and 161 judges
for the United States district courts.
By filling the courts with far-right justices, these appointments
will change federal courts for a very long time. And now, the
worst imaginable has happened: Ruth Badger Ginsburg has passed
away. May her memory be a blessing. Throughout her life, she was
a strong advocate for women, and a strong voice of dissent
against prejudicial policies.
Ginsburg created the ACLU’s Women’s Rights project, and through
her work as a litigator, she almost single-handedly devised a new
class for discrimination claims. Before her work, discrimination
that was recognized included those based on race, national
origin, color, and religion, but not sex. Through her relentless
litigation, she gave us the legal means by which to make
discrimination based on sex unlawful.
On the night that Ruth Bader Ginsburg died, Donald Trump held a
rally in northern Minnesota. During that appearance, he touted
the eugenics theory that white Minnesotans have “superior” genes.
This is far from the only disturbing statement he has made during
first his 2016 election campaign and subsequent presidency. It
was, however, a particularly disturbing statement to make while
the country was reeling from the death of the first Jewish woman
to sit on the Supreme Court.
If the president fills the empty Supreme Court seat, the court
will lean heavily to the right. It may well overturn Roe v. Wade.
To avoid this disastrous possibility, some have called for
“packing the court.” The idea is to increase the number of
justices on the Supreme Court, and appoint justices that agree
with the president. Although this seems like a fine idea on the
surface — and it’s certainly a tempting one if Trump fills
Justice Ginsburg’s seat — it will create an incredibly disturbing
precedent that will empower other administrations to abuse the
power of the Supreme Court at a whim.
Her loss is a wake up call. The fact that the death of one
unelected 87 year-old woman can have such an impact on the rights
of millions of people tells us that the Supreme Court has too
much power to exist in its current form in an ostensibly
democratic country. We shouldn’t be empowering the court any
further — rather, we should limit its power through legislation;
reducing the types of cases that can appeal to them, and
overturning their ability to strike down state legislation
because it is “unconstitutional.”
This November, we must vote like our lives depend on it — because
it just may. We need a president who will not threaten to ignore
the results of the election, and one who will not unleash
violence against those who do not support him. We simply cannot
have another four years of a president who has done all he can to
destroy this country and all that is good about it. The
resistance begins — and does not end — in voting for leaders who
will commit to reforming our legal system so it is more just and
equitable, and a president who will appoint judges that actively
uphold equality and recognize the need to protect our individual
rights. Otherwise, we may face a country that we barely recognize
in 2021.
—Nour Sulaiman Langendorfer, Esq. is a business and commercial
litigation attorney at the law firm of Cook, Little, Rosenblatt,
and Manson. She’s also a cat mom, dog mom, wife, artist, and
aspiring homesteader. Follow her on Twitter @LegallyNour, and on
Instagram @PortraitArtEtc
Book Recommendation
An incredibly hopeful, urgent and well told coming of age story
about religion, class, and LGBTQ+ acceptance - no doubt reading
it will save someone’s life.
“As an ally reading Mohsin’s story, it affirms the work we do at
MPV in admonishing religious-base justification for prejudice and
discrimination, and the unnecessary pain and suffering it
inflicts” - Ani Zonneveld
*Although we prefer to support local bookstores, if you do
purchase on Amazon, please do so on www.smile.amazon.com ( [link removed] ) and select Muslims for Progressive
Values as your non-profit of choice. Amazon donates a percentage
of all purchases to your designated charity. Every penny counts
and adds up!
U.N. Updates
Watch the event Faith in the UN: Commemorating the 75th
Anniversary of the United Nations on Facebook here ( [link removed] ) and Ani Zonneveld’s song is at 2:24:36:
October 6: As an implementing partner of UN Women’s Equality in
Law for Women and Girls by 2030 initiative, MPV will be
presenting a case study of the work we are doing in Kenya with
our partner organization AMWAN in supporting the restoration of a
sharia court system that is CEDAW compliant, the promotion of
female judges, and the development of a training toolkit for
end-users which include litigators, women’s rights groups and
womenfolk.
The Istanbul Process 16/18 website ( [link removed] ) has been launched. Check
it out! 16/18 is a resolution to support intergovernmental policy
framework for combatting intolerance, negative stereotyping and
stigmatisation of, and discrimination, incitement to violence and
violence against, persons based on religion or belief.
National Updates
December 10: Save the date! Join us for our annual Celebration of
Life on International Human Rights Day featuring Attorney General
Keith Ellison, Social influencer and historian Blair Imani, and
many others to be confirmed.
Chapter Updates
MPV-LA
Sept 30, 6:00 p.m. PST: Join the The LGBTQ+ Alliance of Los
Angeles Neighborhood Councils inaugural Talkabout Panel
Discussion Series: A Conversation of Progressive Interfaith
Leaders where we ask, “How can religion and spirituality support
the LGBTQ+ Community across Los Angeles?” An online event,
Wednesday, September 30th, 2020 at 7 pm PST.
Please register for free tickets here ( [link removed] ). An event access link will be emailed out to you one hour prior
to the panel discussion, at 6:00 pm PST.
Oct 10 and 31: The Quran is the central text of Muslim religious
tradition and deeply poetic and beautiful. Yet it has been and
continues to be used to justify oppression like misogyny and
violence. Approaching the text can be difficult, but it's crucial
for us to reclaim our heritage. With elections coming up, we will
be discussing the Quran's many Moses vs. Pharaoh narratives, and
their implications for standing in the face of political
tyranny. Check out our calendar and join us here ( [link removed] )!
MPV-NY
On September 27, in collaboration with the national team, MPV-NY
facilitated a conversation with pole practitioner, artist, and
dancer Neda, also known as hijabiluscious. Attendees heard from
Neda about her unique journey in being both a Muslim and a pole
practitioner, how she's processed responses to her personal
pursuits by Muslims and non-Muslims alike, and the sexist double
standards she witnesses in the Muslim American community.
On Friday, October 23, MPV-NY will resume its monthly prayer and
discussions. Topic TBD. Check out MPV-NY’s calendar and join us
here ( [link removed] )!
MPV-Boston
On September 4, 2020, MPV-Boston held, “Hispanic Heritage &
Muslim.” This event was for sharing stories and challenges of
Muslims from Hispanic Heritage in the traditional communities and
their interfaith families. our guest speaker for this event,
Miriam Colon ( [link removed] ),
Is a Puerto Rican Muslim from NJ. She is a contributing member of
Islam in Spanish Houston chapter and American Islamic radio. She
has been broadcasted live on Radio Islam on Topic of Modesty in
America’s Islamic Radio where she shared her journey to Islam.
Miriam was recently published in a Rice University Research
Project “What Does it mean for Muslim Women to cover in
America.” Miriam collaborated on the Kaaba Design for the
Children’s Hajj Simulation which was featured on the 2019 Vice TV
Documentary called “Why Latinos are Converting to Islam.” She was
photographed by the Award Winning Photojournalist Lyndsey
Addario for a Diversity In America a National Geographic series
covering racial, ethnic, and religious groups in the 21st Century
Starting October 4, MPV-Boston, is hosting their routine event
for the first Friday of the month, A discussion about Khadijah
(R.A) and Prophet Mohammed (PBUH), 7:00 - 9:00 p.m. (ET). To
RSVP, check out our Facebook page ( [link removed] ) for more details.
MPV-San Francisco Bay Area
On September 20, MPV-San Francisco Bay Area held a meeting with a
broad discussion topic about Muharram and Ashura from interfaith
and intrafaith perspectives.
On October 18, MPV-San Francisco Bay Area will have our 3rd
Sunday monthly meeting with a topic to be announced. If you are
not on our Meetup Group you can email us at
[email protected].
In This Issue:
* President's Greeting
* National Updates
* Chapter Updates
* MPV in the Media
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