“The Oldest Progressive Muslim Organization in America”

Peace and Security Starts at Home

Since birth, my Imamah has been my mother. My mother taught me how to read, interpret, pray, live and love like a Muslim. With her peaceful demeanor, she taught me that Islam, in its essence, is progressive. Praying beside my mother has always been the most beautiful spiritual experience for me. This experience of spirituality with love, peace and compassion defines me as a Muslim. When I was away from her, to find that very peace, I attended several traditional prayer services but didn’t find a single service that felt the same. I didn’t find the peace that one should find while praying, as deep inside of me. I knew one and only one Imamah, my mother. 

Many Mullah, Imam and community leaders that I came across failed to show me the true color of Islam that my mother showed me. The true color that I knew was filled with gratitude and love for ”others,” whoever those ”others” might be. This color was nonexistent in traditional prayer services as these spaces were deficient in the peace that I was used to. Therefore, I decided to follow my mother as my spiritual leader rather than following misogynistic leaders who attempted to preach me with hate for ”others.” In these spaces, many men like me ignored the preaching of their religious leaders, they continued to attend prayer services where their mothers were not allowed to lead, participate in or even attend. It is indeed shocking for me to know that many men learned Islam from their mothers, but don’t want to pray behind them or even let them lead a sermon.

When I observed these patriarchal structures, I asked myself: if Allah gave my mother so much respect and power to be my role model then why would Allah not give her the opportunity to lead me and my brother in prayers? Why would Allah not give her any opportunities to lead sermons to educate us all more about Islam? Or, why is my role model asked to stand behind me instead of leading me?

We have examples of Muslim women in leadership, as business women, spiritual leaders from the time of Prophet Mohammed (PBUH), yet many Muslim men deny these examples due to the fear of ”losing” the baton of our communities by handing them back to our mothers. The day I decided to follow her lead, there was nothing to ‘‘lose’’ because my spiritual leader has always been my mother, not some random community leader of a regional mosque. 

Many men in traditional communities are taught to learn from their mothers but at the same time are taught to only pray behind a man when Allah gave the baton of heaven to all our mothers under their feet. Allah gave this baton to all mothers including migrant, single, divorced, rich, poor, brown and black mothers. A few years ago, I found my missing peace at a prayer service led by a mother, just like mine, at Muslims for Progressive Values. That very day, I decided to advocate and bring that baton back to all the mothers in my community, so that they can lead us with love, compassion and peace.

Peace & Compassion, 

Kandeel Javid 

Co-Director

Muslims for Progressive Values- Boston

Update from the U.N.

September 8: 8:00-10:00 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time: MPV is a member organization of the Multi Faith Advisory Council to the United Nations Interagency Task Force on Religion and Development. And we invite you to a global online conference Faith in the UN: Commemorating the 75th Anniversary of the United Nations. 

To close the program, MPV's president Ani Zonneveld will be singing an interfaith song. 

Please register as soon as possible in the link below, as space is limited. Following your registration, you will receive the link to join the virtual event. If you have any questions, please contact Ms. Emma Jackson.

September 9, 4:00 p.m. - 5:15 p.m. CEST: Is the in-person and digital launch of the report of the seventh meeting of the Istanbul Process and the istanbulprocess1618.info website. The report provides a brief overview of the discussions, case studies presented during the meeting, as well as key takeaways and recommendations for the further implementation of the action plan set out in Human Rights Council resolution 16/18 and GA resolution 66/167. The event will also see the launch of a new website – istanbulprocess1618.info – designed to act as a repository for information related the Istanbul Process and to provide a permanent space for States, international organisations, civil society and others to share good practices in combatting religious discrimination and intolerance. Presentations include: 

• H.E. Monique van Daalen, Ambassador, Permanent Representative, Kingdom of the Netherlands

• Marc Limon, Executive Director of the Universal Rights Group

• Patricia Melendez, Head of Civic Space at ARTICLE 19

A panel moderated by Ani Zonneveld (Muslims for Progressive Values) with:

• Dr. Ahmed Shaheed, UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief

• H.E. Jos Douma, Ambassador, Special Envoy for Religion and Belief, Kingdom of the Netherlands

• H.E. Khalil Hashmi, Ambassador, Permanent Representative, Islamic Republic of Pakistan

• H.E. Rehman Chisti, Special Envoy for Freedom of Religion or Belief, United Kingdom (TBC)

• Dr. Elizabeth O’Casey, Director of Advocacy, Humanists International

To RSVP: Please visit this Eventbrite page.

National Updates

Please save the date: December 10, 2020 for our International Human Rights Day celebrations. Confirmed speakers are Attorney General of Minnesota Keith Ellison, tasked with the prosecution of the policeman who killed George Floyd and MPV Ambassador Blair Amadeus Imani.

MPV in the News

Philadelphia Gay News | Religious Orgs Support City in LGBTQ Foster Care Case | September 2, 2020

Chapter Updates

MPV-LA

On August 8, we zoomed together for our regular Progressive Quran Reading Group exploring the Quran’s narrative on Midian in Surah Hud and how it may inspire us towards standing up for economic justice.

The following week, on August 15, we had a very special session holding space to discuss Dr. Amina Wadud’s recent Eid al-Hajj sermon reviving the legacy of Hajar and questioning patriarchal narratives tied to Muslim holidays.

On August 29, we had an intimate session on the significance of Ashura, sharing our personal observations of the day, embracing the diversity of our experiences, and exploring how the narrative of Hussain’s sacrifice can inspire us towards progressive, justice-oriented activism.  

Finally, we’ve postponed our book club discussion to September 12 to discuss Kecia Ali’s groundbreaking book Sexual Ethics and Islam. Join us wherever you are by RSVPing here, and keep a look out for other events on our Meetup page.

MPV-SF Bay Area

MPV-San Francisco will be having our 3rd Sunday Meeting from 11:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. Sunday September 20 with a tentative discussion topic of Ashura and Muharram.

Board member Sabahat Ashraf recently represented MPV-San Francisco at a Lutheran sponsored  interfaith training on dealing with bias in faith communities.

MPV-New York

On August 21, MPV-NY facilitated a discussion centered on environmental stewardship through an Islamic perspective. Participants shared their thoughts about the intersectionality of Islamic and ecological safety. The team also worked together to prepare a mini-slideshow about animal sacrifice and welfare as it relates to Eid al-Hajj, which is available on the MPV Instagram and Facebook pages.

In late September (date TBD), MPV-NY will be hosting another discussion. Rather than the topic being an issue that we, as a community, face, the discussion will center around a verse from the Qur’an. MPV-NY will also be spearheading a national interview with Muslim pole dancer Neda Momeni, who goes by Hijabiluscious online, about her art and how she’s navigated her newfound passion in the face of sexist and hateful rhetoric. Follow MPV-NY activities here.

MPV-DC

MPV-DC members continue to meet virtually and participate in virtual events organized by other MPV chapters.

MPV-Boston

On August 11, MPV-Boston had a conversation with Amelia Noor-Oshiro at John Hopkins University, on suicide among American Muslims. This event was dedicated to Sarah Hegazi, Sarah Hegazi (1989 – 14 June 2020), who was an Egyptian socialist, writer, and lesbian activist. She was arrested, imprisoned and tortured in prison in Egypt for three months after flying a rainbow flag at a Mashrou' Leila concert in 2017 in Cairo. 

Join "The Muslim Suicide Research"  effort and become a Patreon for Muslim Suicide Researcher. 

To learn more, check out Patreon.

A video of this event can be found on Muslims for Progressive Values Youtube Page. 

On August 27, MPV-Boston, partnered with Desi Rainbow Parents & Allies, a support group for LGBTQ* identified folks, their parents and families. As LGBTQ* Muslims around the world face many challenges with their family members. These challenges are often not talked about in our community. We partnered with a Rainbow family support organization to educate our communities about this topic. Desi Rainbow Parents & Allies is an all volunteer network of South Asians in North America who are dedicated to promoting awareness about LGBTQ issues and supporting LGBTQ individuals and their families. A video of this educational event can be seen on Muslims for Progressive Values Youtube Page . Learn more about Desi Rainbow Parents & Allies.

MPV-Boston worked with their partner Greater Boston Interfaith Organization to reach out to local state representatives to help pass H.2146, H.2292, H.1440, and H.5128 to challenge Anti-Black policies that has lead to police brutality against black people in the greater Boston area. Consequently, a local partnering organization, Ahmadiyya Muslim community, is holding virtual series on “Supreme Justice” , that is being shared with community members to educate and challenge Anti-Black racism among Muslims. 

On September 4, 2020, MPV-Boston, will hold “Hispanic Heritage & Muslim” event to discuss challenges of Muslims from Hispanic Heritage in the traditional communities. 

Starting September 4, MPV-Boston, is going back to monthly events on every first Friday of the month 7:00 - 9:00 p.m. (ET). Please check out our Facebook Page for details.