Facebook: Lincoln mosque campaigns

thisislincolnshire.co.uk, Facebook campaign to change mosque site, 28 Sep 09 "Opposing Facebook pages have been set up supporting and denouncing the building of a new mosque in Lincoln.

"People living in Church Drive and Boultham Park Road have set up a group called 'Stop the Lincoln mosque being built on Church Drive'."

Book: “Muslims of Europe: The ‘Other’ Europeans”

"“Muslims of Europe: The ‘Other’ Europeans” by H.A. Hellyer will be released in October 2009, published by Edinburgh University Press (EUP). In it, Dr Hellyer examines a plethora of topics relating to the Muslim presence in Europe, looking at the effects on European multiculturalism, European Muslim history, and the internal discussions within Muslim communities on their roles as minorities from medieval times until the 21st century."

Details: EUP. Haven't seen this one yet.

"British Muslims and the Media"

From the Islamic Human Rights Commission

Sweden – British Muslims and the Media, lecture by Massoud Shadjareh; Talk with Massoud Shadjareh, Moazzam Beg and Asim Siddiqui

IHRC Chair Massoud Shadjareh will be speaking at the MMRK and ASR conference, ‘Media’s War on Terror’ on 3 October, 2009 at Bio Rio, Hornstulls strand 3, Stockholm, Sweden from 14.10 – 14.40.

He will also be participating in a talk with former Guantanmo detainee Moazzam Beg, and Asim Siddiqui from CaegPrisoners at the conference, from 14.40 – 15.30.

Details: www.mmrk.org and www.ihrc.org

New book: Crime and Muslim Britain

IB Tauris, Marta Bolognani, Crime and Muslim Britain - Race, Culture and the Politics of Criminology Among British Pakistanis (London IB Tauris 2009)

This book looks interesting, although this points to an expensive (£52) hardback edition. I couldn't locate a paperback edition.

Finance

BBC News, The steady rise of Islamic finance, 23 Sep 09 "London has become one of the biggest centres for Islamic finance in the world, with five Islamic banks, and many others in the high street offering Islamic financial products, or "windows" as they are known."

Projecting British Muslims

Riazat Butt, Guardian, UK's 'flying diplomats' aim to tackle terror threat at home, 23 Sep 09 "The Foreign Office is flying in senior UK diplomats to talk to British Muslims who live in "terror hotspots" as part of its efforts to prevent domestic and international extremism." Beware of low-flying diplomats

Details of Projecting British Muslims [blog]

Journal issue: 'Anti-Muslim Prejudice in the West, Past and Present'

Patterns of Prejudice, Volume 43 Issue 3 & 4 2009: Anti-Muslim Prejudice in the West, Past and Present

Several useful looking articles in this journal, which relate directly to this blog.

i.e. Maleiha Malik, Anti-Muslim prejudice in the West, past and present: an introduction

Nabil Matar, Britons and Muslims in the early modern period: from prejudice to (a theory of) toleration

Nasar Meer; Tariq Modood, Refutations of racism in the ‘Muslim question’

John E. Richardson, ‘Get shot of the lot of them’: election reporting of Muslims in British newspapers

Erik Bleich, Where do Muslims stand on ethno-racial hierarchies in Britain and France? Evidence from public opinion surveys, 1988–2008

Worth investigating further - haven't got a copy yet ...

Pub bought by mosque

thisisbusiness-eastmidlands.co.uk, Nottingham pub is bought by mosque, 22 Sep 09 "The Hazrat Sultan Bahu Trust is set to transform a city pub into a thriving community centre. The Jester pub, which closed earlier this year, sold for £400,000 at auction."

See Hazrat Sultan Bahu: background on the Trust, Hazrat Sultan Bahu, founder Sahibzada Sheikh Sultan Fiaz ul Hassan Sarwari Qadri, educational projects and activities. There are detailed resources on the website.

Hotel allegations

Times Online, Christian hoteliers charged after arguing with Muslim guest, 21 Sep 09 "A pair of Christian hoteliers in Lancashire who argued with a Muslim guest at the breakfast table have been charged with a religiously-aggravated offence.

"Dutch-born Ben Vogelenzang said that Mohammed, the founder of Islam, was a warlord, while his wife Sharon, 54, described the hijab as a form of bondage, it is claimed."

Newport mosque plans

Wales Online, Violent protest fears over new mosque plan, 20 Sep 09 "Islamic Society of Gwent secretary Mubarak Ali said he was very concerned about the protest being arranged.

"He said: “I’ve seen how these protests have ended in other cities and I do not want that sort of violence in Newport. People living in Newport have been very supportive of the new mosque and it is people from outside of Wales trying to stir up the trouble.

"“Newport is a very multi-cultural place and has been for some years. These trouble-makers are not welcome here.”""

Eid

thisisderbyshire.co.uk, Thousands from Muslim community gather for Eid festival (with pictures), 21 Sep 09

"Eid mubarak"

Film report on PressTV [scroll down for 'Muslims in Britain celebrate Eid al-Fitr']

'The future of British Muslims' article

alArabiya, The future of British Muslims, 20 Sep 09 "Interviewed on BBC television following last week’s conviction of three Muslim airline bomb plotters, the former British government minister Tony McNulty, was asked if Britain’s foreign policy was responsible for radicalizing young Muslims."

Harrow mosque

Hugh Muir, Guardian, Hideously diverse Britain: the mosque that became a symbol, 18 Sep 09 "It became a symbol, which was a shame. The Muslims of Harrow just wanted it to be their mosque."

The Google Street View of the mosque is here (probably a bit out of date:


View Larger Map

There's more film and info on the mosque at Harrow Central Mosque

Yusuf Islam

AFP, Cat Stevens announces comeback tour, 18 Sep 09 "Yusuf Islam, the musician formerly known as Cat Stevens, is to return to the stage for his first tour since 1976, he said on Thursday." Also previewing a new musical, 'Moonshadow'. [note to Yusuf: how about a Cardiff concert?]

Also see Yusuf, Tour Dates, Venues & Tickets!

"This will definitely not be a tour in the usual sense and is set to incorporate Yusuf’s timeless hits such as Wild World, Father & Son and The First Cut Is The Deepest, alongside music from his highly acclaimed new albums, An Other Cup and Roadsinger.

"To make it even more of a spectacle for fans, Yusuf will also weave his latest creative voyage, his first musical, Moonshadow, into the shows.

"Speaking about his work on Moonshadow, Yusuf said: “My songs always told a story, so it’s natural for me to extend that into a stage musical form."

Sentences on bomb plotters

AP, 4 UK Muslims get hefty sentences for airline plot, 14 Sep 09 "The judge described the foiled suicide bombings — meant to rival the Sept. 11 attacks — as "a grave and wicked" conspiracy, likely the most serious terrorist case ever dealt with by a British court. The plot's disclosure prompted an immediate ban on taking some liquids onboard passenger jets, a measure that remains in place, inconveniencing passengers throughout the world."

NYT, Life Terms for Plot to Bomb Trans-Atlantic Flights From London, 14 Sep 09 "A High Court judge on Monday imposed minimum prison terms of 32 to 40 years on three men convicted last week, after two trials, of plotting to smuggle liquid explosives onto at least seven trans-Atlantic airliners heading to the United States and Canada from London, with the aim of blowing the aircraft apart in midair."

'Mohammed' most popular boys' name

Telegraph, Mohammed is most popular name for baby boys in London, 15 Sep 09 "The Islamic name overtook traditional choices like Jack, Thomas and Daniel to become the number one name in the West Midlands, Yorkshire and the Humber, and the North West, as well as in the capital, in 2008.

"The figures emerged in a detailed regional breakdown of figures published last week by the Office for National Statistics (ONS)."

Article: 'When segregation equals prejudice'

Ruth Gledhill, Times Online, When segregation equals prejudice: a Muslim woman writes, 8 Sep 09 Opinion piece, and summary of comments from elsewhere.

Work in progress...

I'm currently blogging from the CASAW conference 'Reconsidering Jihad' in Edinburgh, where I shall be giving a very brief paper on e-jihad tomorrow. Just heard Tariq Ramadan give an interesting paper. I'll be writing about the conference in one of my blogs next week, when I have more time.

Airline plot verdicts welcomed

BBC News, Muslims welcome jet plot verdicts, 8 Sep 09 "Prominent UK Muslims have welcomed the conviction of three men for plotting to blow up planes flying to north America - but have warned that government anti-terrorist powers should be used wisely."

BRISMES

The new BRISMES (British Society for Middle Eastern Studies) website is now 'live' (I was involved in some of the site's development).

See BRISMES.

'British Muslims and Ramadan'

Ruqaya Izzidien, Bikya Masr, British Muslims and Ramadan "Ramadan for British Muslims can also lack the atmosphere that you find in the Arab world. If you want baklawa you have to go on a Lord of the Rings-esque mission to find those precious things. Not that Ramadan is just about the food, but the Egyptian ambiance is definitely missing over here. And if you live in a village, as opposed to a city, you’re probably the only Muslims around."