Muslim Societies: Historical and Comparative Aspects (New Horizons in Islamic Studies)

Muslim Societies: Historical and Comparative Aspects

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The description of older carpets has tended to use the names of carpet-making centres as labels, but often derived from the design rather than any actual evidence that they originated from around that centre. Research has clarified that designs were by no means always restricted to the centre they are traditionally associated with, and the origin of many carpets remains unclear.

Spanish carpets, which sometimes interrupted typical Islamic patterns to include coats of arms , enjoyed high prestige in Europe, being commissioned by royalty and for the Papal Palace, Avignon , and the industry continued after the Reconquista. The Berber carpets of North Africa have a distinct design tradition.

Apart from the products of city workshops, in touch with trading networks that might carry the carpets to markets far away, there was also a large and widespread village and nomadic industry producing work that stayed closer to traditional local designs. As well as pile carpets, kelims and other types of flat-weave or embroidered textiles were produced, for use on both floors and walls. Figurative designs, sometimes with large human figures, are very popular in Islamic countries but relatively rarely exported to the West, where abstract designs are generally what the market expects.

Islamic art has very notable achievements in ceramics, both in pottery and tiles for walls, which in the absence of wall-paintings were taken to heights unmatched by other cultures.

Early pottery is often unglazed, but tin-opacified glazing was one of the earliest new technologies developed by the Islamic potters. The first Islamic opaque glazes can be found as blue-painted ware in Basra , dating to around the 8th century. Another significant contribution was the development of stonepaste ceramics , originating from 9th century Iraq.

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Islamic pottery was often influenced by Chinese ceramics , whose achievements were greatly admired and emulated. Techniques, shapes and decorative motifs were all affected. Until the Early Modern period Western ceramics had very little influence, but Islamic pottery was very sought after in Europe, and often copied.

An example of this is the albarello , a type of maiolica earthenware jar originally designed to hold apothecaries' ointments and dry drugs. The development of this type of pharmacy jar had its roots in the Islamic Middle East. Hispano-Moresque examples were exported to Italy, stimulating the earliest Italian examples, from 15th century Florence. The Hispano-Moresque style emerged in Al-Andaluz or Muslim Spain in the 8th century, under Egyptian influence, but most of the best production was much later, by potters presumed to have been largely Muslim but working in areas reconquered by the Christian kingdoms.

It mixed Islamic and European elements in its designs, and much was exported across neighbouring European countries. It had introduced two ceramic techniques to Europe: These were still in earthenware; there was no porcelain made in Islamic countries until modern times, though Chinese porcelain was imported and admired. The medieval Islamic world also had pottery with painted animal and human imagery. Examples are found throughout the medieval Islamic world, particularly in Persia and Egypt.

The earliest grand Islamic buildings, like the Dome of the Rock , in Jerusalem had interior walls decorated with mosaics in the Byzantine style, but without human figures. From the 9th century onwards the distinctive Islamic tradition of glazed and brightly coloured tiling for interior and exterior walls and domes developed. Some earlier schemes create designs using mixtures of tiles each of a single colour that are either cut to shape or are small and of a few shapes, used to create abstract geometric patterns.

Later large painted schemes use tiles painted before firing with a part of the scheme — a technique requiring confidence in the consistent results of firing. Some elements, especially the letters of inscriptions, may be moulded in three-dimensional relief , and in especially in Persia certain tiles in a design may have figurative painting of animals or single human figures.

These were often part of designs mostly made up of tiles in plain colours but with larger fully painted tiles at intervals. The larger tiles are often shaped as eight-pointed stars, and may show animals or a human head or bust, or plant or other motifs. The geometric patterns, such as modern North African zellige work, made of small tiles each of a single colour but different and regular shapes, are often referred to as " mosaic ", which is not strictly correct. The Mughals made much less use of tiling, preferring and being able to afford "parchin kari", a type of pietra dura decoration from inlaid panels of semi-precious stones, with jewels in some cases.

This can be seen at the Taj Mahal , Agra Fort and other imperial commissions. The motifs are usually floral, in a simpler and more realistic style than Persian or Turkish work, relating to plants in Mughal miniatures. Islam took over much of the traditional glass-producing territory of Sassanian and Ancient Roman glass , and since figurative decoration played a small part in pre-Islamic glass, the change in style is not abrupt, except that the whole area initially formed a political whole, and, for example, Persian innovations were now almost immediately taken up in Egypt.

For this reason it is often impossible to distinguish between the various centres of production, of which Egypt, Syria and Persia were the most important, except by scientific analysis of the material, which itself has difficulties. Between the 8th and early 11th centuries the emphasis in luxury glass is on effects achieved by "manipulating the surface" of the glass, initially by incising into the glass on a wheel, and later by cutting away the background to leave a design in relief.

Lustre painting, by techniques similar to lustreware in pottery, dates back to the 8th century in Egypt, and became widespread in the 12th century. Another technique was decoration with threads of glass of a different colour, worked into the main surface, and sometimes manipulated by combing and other effects. Gilded , painted and enamelled glass were added to the repertoire, and shapes and motifs borrowed from other media, such as pottery and metalwork.

Some of the finest work was in mosque lamps donated by a ruler or wealthy man. As decoration grew more elaborate, the quality of the basic glass decreased, and it "often has a brownish-yellow tinge, and is rarely free from bubbles". By about the Venetians were receiving large orders for mosque lamps. Medieval Islamic metalwork offers a complete contrast to its European equivalent, which is dominated by modelled figures and brightly coloured decoration in enamel , some pieces entirely in precious metals. In contrast surviving Islamic metalwork consists of practical objects mostly in brass , bronze, and steel, with simple, but often monumental, shapes, and surfaces highly decorated with dense decoration in a variety of techniques, but colour mostly restricted to inlays of gold, silver, copper or black niello.

The most abundant survivals from medieval periods are fine brass objects, handsome enough to preserve, but not valuable enough to be melted down. The abundant local sources of zinc compared to tin explains the rarity of bronze. Household items, such as ewers or water pitchers, were made of one or more pieces of sheet brass soldered together and subsequently worked and inlaid. The use of drinking and eating vessels in gold and silver, the ideal in ancient Rome and Persia as well as medieval Christian societies, is prohibited by the Hadiths , as was the wearing of gold rings.

Islamic work includes some three-dimensional animal figures as fountainheads or aquamaniles , but only one significant enamelled object is known, using Byzantine cloisonne techniques. More common objects given elaborate decoration include massive low candlesticks and lamp-stands, lantern lights, bowls, dishes, basins, buckets these probably for the bath , [44] and ewers , as well as caskets, pen-cases and plaques.

Ewers and basins were brought for hand-washing before and after each meal, so are often lavishly treated display pieces. A typical 13th century ewer from Khorasan is decorated with foliage, animals and the Signs of the Zodiac in silver and copper, and carries a blessing.

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Decoration is typically densely packed and very often includes arabesques and calligraphy, sometimes naming an owner and giving a date. High levels of achievement were reached in other materials, including hardstone carvings and jewellery, ivory carving, textiles and leatherwork. During the Middle Ages, Islamic work in these fields was highly valued in other parts of the world and often traded outside the Islamic zone.

Apart from miniature painting and calligraphy, other arts of the book are decorative illumination, the only type found in Qur'an manuscripts, and Islamic book covers, which are often highly decorative in luxury manuscripts, using either the geometric motifs found in illumination, or sometimes figurative images probably drawn for the craftsmen by miniature painters. Materials include coloured, tooled and stamped leather and lacquer over paint.

Egyptian carving of rock crystal into vessels appears in the late 10th century, and virtually disappears after about There are a number of these vessels in the West, which apparently came on the market after the Cairo palace of the Fatimid Caliph was looted by his mercenaries in , and were snapped up by European buyers, mostly ending up in church treasuries. Such objects may have been made in earlier periods, but few have survived.

Older wood carving is typically relief or pierced work on flat objects for architectural use, such as screens, doors, roofs, beams and friezes. These are often in wood, sometimes painted on the wood but often plastered over before painting; the examples at the Alhambra in Granada, Spain are among the best known. Traditional Islamic furniture, except for chests, tended to be covered with cushions, with cupboards rather than cabinets for storage, but there are some pieces, including a low round strictly twelve-sided table of about from the Ottoman court, with marquetry inlays in light wood, and a single huge ceramic tile or plaque on the tabletop.

A spectacular and famous and far from flat roof was one of the Islamic components of the 12th century Norman Cappella Palatina in Palermo , which picked from the finest elements of Catholic, Byzantine and Islamic art. Other famous wooden roofs are in the Alhambra in Granada. Ivory carving centred on the Mediterranean , spreading from Egypt, where a thriving Coptic industry had been inherited; Persian ivory is rare.

The normal style was a deep relief with an even surface; some pieces were painted. Spain specialized in caskets and round boxes, which were probably used to keep jewels and perfumes. They were produced mainly in the approximate period —, and widely exported. Many pieces are signed and dated, and on court pieces the name of the owner is often inscribed; they were typically gifts from a ruler. As well as a court workshop, Cordoba had commercial workshops producing goods of slightly lower quality. In the 12th and 13th century workshops in Norman Sicily produced caskets, apparently then migrating to Granada and elsewhere after persecution.

Egyptian work tended to be in flat panels and friezes, for insertion into woodwork and probably furniture — most are now detached from their settings. Many were calligraphic, and others continued Byzantine traditions of hunting scenes, with backgrounds of arabesques and foliage in both cases. Despite Hadithic sayings against the wearing of silk, the Byzantine and Sassanian traditions of grand figured silk woven cloth continued under Islam.

Some designs are calligraphic, especially when made for palls to cover a tomb, but more are surprisingly conservative versions of the earlier traditions, with many large figures of animals, especially majestic symbols of power like the lion and eagle. These are often enclosed in roundels, as found in the pre-Islamic traditions. The majority of early silks have been recovered from tombs, and in Europe reliquaries , where the relics were often wrapped in silk. European clergy and nobility were keen buyers of Islamic silk from an early date and, for example, the body of an early bishop of Toul in France was wrapped in a silk from the Bukhara area in modern Uzbekistan , probably when the body was reburied in Ottoman silks were less exported, and the many surviving royal kaftans have simpler geometric patterns, many featuring stylized "tiger-stripes" below three balls or circles.

Other silks have foliage designs comparable to those on Iznik pottery or carpets, with bands forming ogival compartments a popular motif. Some designs begin to show Italian influence. By the 16th century Persian silk was using smaller patterns, many of which showed relaxed garden scenes of beautiful boys and girls from the same world as those in contemporary album miniatures, and sometimes identifiable scenes from Persian poetry. Mughal silks incorporate many Indian elements, and often feature relatively realistic "portraits" of plants, as found in other media.

The development and refinement of Indonesian batik cloth was closely linked to Islam. The Islamic prohibition on certain images encouraged batik design to become more abstract and intricate. Realistic depictions of animals and humans are rare on traditional batik. However, mythical serpents, humans with exaggerated features and the Garuda of pre-Islamic mythology are common motifs.

Although its existence pre-dates Islam, batik reached its zenith in royal Muslim courts such as Mataram and Yogyakarta , whose sultans encouraged and patronised batik production. Today, batik is undergoing a revival, and cloths are used for additional purposes such as wrapping the Quran. The period of a rapid expansion of the Islamic era forms a reasonably accurate beginning for the label of Islamic art.

Early geographical boundaries of the Islamic culture were in present-day Syria. It is quite difficult to distinguish the earliest Islamic objects from their predecessors in Persian or Sassanid and Byzantine art , and the conversion of the mass of the population, including artists, took a significant period, sometimes centuries, after the initial Muslim conquest. There was, notably, a significant production of unglazed ceramics, witnessed by a famous small bowl preserved in the Louvre , whose inscription assures its attribution to the Islamic period.

Plant motifs were the most important in these early productions. Influences from the Sassanian artistic tradition include the image of the king as a warrior and the lion as a symbol of nobility and virility. Bedouin tribal traditions mixed with the more sophisticated styles of the conquered territories. For an initial period coins had human figures in the Byzantine and Sassanian style, perhaps to reassure users of their continued value, before the Islamic style with lettering only took over.

Religious and civic architecture were developed under the Umayyad dynasty — , when new concepts and new plans were put into practice. The Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem is one of the most important buildings in all of Islamic architecture, marked by a strong Byzantine influence mosaic against a gold background, and a central plan that recalls that of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre , but already bearing purely Islamic elements, such as the great epigraphic frieze. The desert palaces in Jordan and Syria for example, Mshatta , Qasr Amra , and Khirbat al-Mafjar served the caliphs as living quarters, reception halls, and baths, and were decorated, including some wall-paintings, to promote an image of royal luxury.

Work in ceramics was still somewhat primitive unglazed during this period. Some metal objects have survived from this time, but it remains rather difficult to distinguish these objects from those of the pre-Islamic period. The quick development of a localized coinage around the time of the Dome of the Rock's construction demonstrates the reorientation of Umayyad acculturation.

This period saw the genesis of a particularly Islamic art. In this period, Umayyad artists and artisans did not invent a new vocabulary, but began to prefer those received from Mediterranean and Iranian late antiquity , which they adapted to their own artistic conceptions. For example, the mosaics in the Great Mosque of Damascus are based on Byzantine models, but replace the figurative elements with images of trees and cities.

The desert palaces also bear witness to these influences. The Abbasid dynasty AD — [56] witnessed the movement of the capital from Damascus to Baghdad , and then from Baghdad to Samarra. The shift to Baghdad influenced politics, culture, and art. Art historian Robert Hillenbrand likens the movement to the foundation of an "Islamic Rome ", because the meeting of Eastern influences from Iranian, Eurasian steppe, Chinese, and Indian sources created a new paradigm for Islamic art. Classical forms inherited from Byzantine Europe and Greco-Roman sources were discarded in favor of those drawn from the new Islamic hub.

Even the design of the city of Baghdad placed it in the "navel of the world", as 9th-century historian al-Ya'qubi wrote. The ancient city of Baghdad cannot be excavated well, as it lies beneath the modern city. However, Abbasid Samarra , which was largely abandoned, has been well studied, and is known for its surviving examples of stucco reliefs, in which the prehistory of the arabesque can be traced.

Motifs known from the stucco at Samarra permit the dating of structures built elsewhere, and are furthermore found on portable objects, particular in wood, from Egypt through to Iran. Samarra witnessed the "coming of age" of Islamic art. Polychrome painted stucco allowed for experimentation in new styles of moulding and carving. The Abbasid period also coincided with two major innovations in the ceramic arts: Hadithic prohibition of the use of golden or silver vessels led to the development of metallic lusterware in pottery, which was made by mixing sulphur and metallic oxides to ochre and vinegar, painted onto an already glazed vessel and then fired a second time.

It was expensive, and difficult to manage the second round through the kiln, but the wish to exceed fine Chinese porcelain led to the development of this technique. Though the common perception of Abbasid artistic production focuses largely on pottery, the greatest development of the Abbasid period was in textiles. Government-run workshops known as tiraz produced silks bearing the name of the monarch, allowing for aristocrats to demonstrate their loyalty to the ruler.

Other silks were pictorial. The utility of silk-ware in wall decor, entrance adornment, and room separation was not as important as its cash value along the " silk route ". Calligraphy began to be used in surface decoration on pottery during this period. Illuminated Qur'ans gained attention, letter-forms now more complex and stylized to the point of slowing down the recognition of the words themselves. Beginning in the 9th century, Abbasid sovereignty was contested in the provinces furthest removed from the Iraqi center.

The creation of a Shi'a dynasty, that of the north African Fatimids , followed by the Umayyads in Spain , gave force to this opposition, as well as small dynasties and autonomous governors in Iran. The first Islamic dynasty to establish itself in Spain or al-Andalus was that of the Spanish Umayyads. As their name indicates, they were descended from the great Umayyads of Syria. After their fall, the Spanish Umayyads were replaced by various autonomous kingdoms, the taifas —91 , but the artistic production from this period does not differ significantly from that of the Umayyads.

At the end of the 11th century, two Berber tribes, the Almoravids and the Almohads , captured the head of the Maghreb and Spain, successively, bringing Maghrebi influences into art. A series of military victories by Christian monarchs had reduced Islamic Spain by the end of the 14th century to the city of Granada , ruled by the Nasirid dynasty, who managed to maintain their hold until Al-Andalus was a great cultural center of the Middle Ages.

Besides the great universities, which taught philosophies and sciences yet unknown in Christendom such as those of Averroes , the territory was an equally vital center for art. Many techniques were employed in the manufacture of objects. Ivory was used extensively for the manufacture of boxes and caskets. The pyxis of al-Mughira is a masterwork of the genre.

In metalwork, large sculptures in the round, normally rather scarce in the Islamic world, served as elaborate receptacles for water or as fountain spouts. A great number of textiles, most notably silks, were exported: From the periods of Maghrebi rule one may also note a taste for painted and sculpted woodwork. The art of north Africa is not as well studied. The Almoravid and Almohad dynasties are characterized by a tendency toward austerity, for example in mosques with bare walls.

Nevertheless, luxury arts continued to be produced in great quantity. The Marinid and Hafsid dynasties developed an important, but poorly understood, architecture, and a significant amount of painted and sculpted woodwork. The Fatimid dynasty, which reigned in Egypt from and introduced crafts and knowledge from politically troubled Baghdad to Cairo. By the year , the Seljuks emerged as the dominant political force in the Muslim world after they liberated Baghdad and defeated the Byzantines at Manzikert. During the rule of Malik Shah the Seljuks excelled in architecture at the same time in Syria, the atabegs governors of Seljuk princes assumed power.

Quite independent, they capitalized on conflicts with the Frankish crusaders. In , Saladin seized Fatimid Egypt, and installed the transitory Ayyubid dynasty on the throne. This period is notable for innovations in metallurgy and the widespread manufacture of the Damascus steel swords and daggers and the production ceramics, glass and metalwork of a high quality were produced without interruption, and enameled glass became another important craft. In , the Mamluks seized control of Egypt from the Ayyubids, and by had managed to assert themselves in Syria as well their most famous ruler was Baibars.

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The Mamluks were not, strictly speaking, a dynasty, as they did not maintain a patrilineal mode of succession; in fact, Mamluks were freed Turkish and Caucasian slaves, who in theory passed the power to others of like station. This mode of government persevered for three centuries, until , and gave rise to abundant architectural projects many thousands of buildings were constructed during this period , while patronage of luxury arts favored primarily enameled glass and metalwork, and is remembered as the golden age of medieval Egypt.

In Iran and the north of India, the Tahirids , Samanids , Ghaznavids , and Ghurids struggled for power in the 10th century, and art was a vital element of this competition. Great cities were built, such as Nishapur and Ghazni , and the construction of the Great Mosque of Isfahan which would continue, in fits and starts, over several centuries was initiated. Funerary architecture was also cultivated, while potters developed quite individual styles: The Seljuqs , nomads of Turkic origin from present-day Mongolia, appeared on the stage of Islamic history toward the end of the 10th century.

They seized Baghdad in , before dying out in in Iran, although the production of "Seljuq" works continued through the end of the 12th and beginning of the 13th century under the auspices of smaller, independent sovereigns and patrons. During their time, the center of culture, politics and art production shifted from Damascus and Baghdad to Merv , Nishapur , Rayy , and Isfahan , all in Iran.

This understanding led Samia to dedicate her life to the work she is now doing as a Happiness Expert. Hafidha Soheyla Aryan was born in Iran, spent most of her childhood in Europe, and attended the latter half of her schooling in the United States. Brought up in a family that was not particularly religious, the only connection Sister Aryan had with God was through daily salat. She has presented widely among communities and organizations in the greater Houston area on the topics of Islam, gender, and religious tolerance. Her brother provided her with a solid foundation in Islam and always encouraged her to read, learn, and question everything in order to have a better understanding.

The book became her friend and she tried to read as many books as she could to increase her knowledge. She got married when she was 17 years old and had six children whom she raised to have the same passion for knowledge and to pursue higher education. Even though circumstances prevented her from higher education, she continued to pursue knowledge and educated herself in Islamic studies and continued to be a leader in her community.

She is a student of the nonviolent activist Jawdat Said, and she always spreads his message. Since then, she has continued to spread her knowledge and ideas on Facebook. She has posted many opinion pieces such as book summaries and reflections on different topics to help educate others. Sister Dalal continues to advise and help the younger generation through her social media, and her dream is to see peace all over the world. She marched with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Even then she knew that there is only One God, because that is what her parents taught at home.

She reflects that she is from that generation of women who chose either nursing, teaching, or secretarial work, because other professions were generally foreclosed to women. Originally an anthropology major, she redirected when she got a divorce and had to consider raising two small boys as a single parent. Instead, she obtained a B. Moving to California, she attended UCLA Law School, worked for several attorneys, became a realtor, and eventually returned to professional education.

She is the founder and director of The Egyptian Repertoire Company, a nonprofit educational foundation that researches, writes, and presents seminars and rituals based on African history and culture, and is currently writing two other books for publication. She was born in Indianapolis, Indiana, and raised in the rural town of Ladoga, Indiana. An Islamic Guide to Menstruation. Khan has worked extensively with many community organizations to host events, collaborate on efforts and provide support.

The organization provides children ages and their families opportunities to go on site visits to churches, synagogues, mosques and temples throughout Orange County to get a better understanding of one another. The group partners with a local Church every 4th Sunday of the month to feed the homeless population in Santa Ana. Farrah finds great pride in working with the faith communities not only for dialogue, but also to discuss social and economic issues affecting Irvine, Newport Beach and Costa Mesa.

Farrah was appointed as a Community Services Commissioner in During her time as Commissioner, she was the only Commissioner who took the time to get to know the city parks, open spaces, land development, amenities and employees.

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She was an advocate for sufficient park space. Her parents provided her with a solid foundation in Islam and always encouraged her to read, learn, and question everything in order to have a better understanding of it. Hadia holds a Doctoral Degree in Medicine M. She moved to America in and continued in the medical field for a year before stopping to raise her three children. She has volunteered in different organizations such as the Islamic Center of Southern California for many years.

She is also a volunteer chaplain for hospitals, visiting patients and providing them with spiritual relief. Your Journey Starts with Knowing Yourself. After a rewarding career in higher education for seven years, Tasneem transitioned to Life coaching and facilitating interfaith dialogue as her full-time career. She is the lead Muslim facilitator for NewGround: Kenyatta Bakeer-Allgood was born and raised in Los Angeles. Sabina Khan-Ibarra is the founder of Muslimah Montage, a platform for Muslim women to tell their own stories.

She also writes and speaks about grief in Muslim communities. From to , she worked with United Central Bank. Sister Noor-Malika Chishti has been involved in interfaith work for over 40 years. Her training—beginning in —in the Inayati Order introduced her to the diverse ways in which people approach spiritual practice. Today, she serves as Vice President of reGeneration, an American interfaith non-profit organization that advances quality early childhood development and education in the Middle East, building bridges locally to effect sustainable change for future generations.

She has been a member of the West Los Angeles Cousins group, where Jewish and Muslim women meet to engage in dialogue and service, for 13 years. She is also a grandmother and a poet. Amani Al-Khatahtbeh is the founder and editor-in-chief of MuslimGirl. Amani made the annual Forbes 30 Under 30 list for , making her the first Muslim woman to be honored in the media category and MuslimGirl the first Muslim company to ever receive the recognition. Amani is a rising voice in social, religious, and political issues, regularly appearing in such media outlets as CNN, BBC, and more.

She currently writes a column for Forbes, in which she chronicles the startup journey of MuslimGirl from the perspective of a millennial woman of color entrepreneur. Amani was the first Palestinian-American to be elected as the opinions editor of The Daily Targum , which resulted in a nationwide controversy over her censorship.

She is a human and civil rights activist and was one of the student organizers to force out former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice from her commencement invitation at Rutgers University in Sister Marta also works with LA Voice, a faith-based group to preserve human dignity and social justice. Sister Shabnam Dewji is a Senior Operations Consultant providing strategic and tactical assessments to large and medium size businesses.

Until recently, she was the Vice President of Operations for the West Region at Time Warner Cable Media, overseeing the technical and master control operations for ad insertion; IT and software development for all media tools and applications; traffic and inventory management supporting sales; and regional engineering support for product implementation. Shabnam was born in Zanzibar, Tanzania and grew up in Dubai.

Shabnam Dewji is currently in her 12th year as the principal of the Huseini Sunday School and has been a teacher for 25 years. In June , she received her certification in Neuropsychology of Learning to ensure that the teaching methods at the schools shift to student centered learning. She is recognized as a leader in peacebuilding and twice received the Jon Anson Ford Award for reducing violence in schools in the area of interracial gang conflicts.

She has chaired national conferences on Muslim and Interfaith Peacebuilding, has served as a mediator in many cases, and has started mediation programs in several institutions including the University of Southern California and several middle and high schools.

Schools have reported a significant drop in disciplinary referrals and violence after her involvement. Kameelah currently works in Quality Management with a large non-profit child welfare organization ensuring quality of care and services to youth and their families. Kameelah has served on the board of Directors at Masjid Al-Taqwa for the past 10 years, and she utilizes her position on the board to address issues of importance to the community.

Kameelah works within the Muslim community toward the goal of promoting wholeness and integration of the spiritual, emotional and social self. She has also been able to gauge the mental health issues of the larger community firsthand by serving as a private mediator, advisor and mentor to many. Together, they develop content about mental health that is unique and tailored for the Muslim community, combining sound Islamic teachings with well documented clinical science. She lives in Southern California with her husband and two young sons.

Gail Kennard was raised in Los Angeles and learned about Islam as a high school student when she read the autobiography of Malcolm X.

For the past 20 years, Gail has been president of the architectural business founded by her late father, Robert Kennard, in Los Angeles. The firm designs public buildings, transit and utility infrastructure projects. Zahra also represents victims of discrimination and advocates for policy changes that uphold civil rights for all.

In college, she worked with the California Faculty Association on issues including faculty salaries and the defunding of public higher education. She earned her J. Aziza Hasan has extensive experience in program management and coalition building. She has worked with diverse groups to deliver quality programming that developed the skills of its participants in the areas of civic engagement, advocacy, service learning, leadership, conflict transformation and diversity training.

Aziza is a founding director of NewGround: A Muslim-Jewish Partnership for Change. An experienced mediator and conflict resolution practitioner she has co-facilitated multiple fellowship cohorts. Aziza is experienced in Small Claims Court mediation, coaching individuals and leading groups in conflict resolution. Her two years of AmeriCorps service gave her hands-on experience in community organizing and group problem-solving. She is a digital strategist and a research specialist. In her role at HMC, she devises and executes social media and digital media strategies.

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