[islam-info] COMMUNITY ALERT: University of Western Sydney -Centre for Muslim Studies - controversy

Fri Jul 31 12:34:33 EST 2009

Assalaam Alaikum,

Thank you for your email. I want to register my agreement with what you have
outlined. Essentially from NCEIS to UWS, they have exploited Muslim support
in order to pursue much of their pre-meditated ends. These Centres and
university facilitation are a disastrous failure and are so far removed from
the successful models that exist elsewhere.

Was Salaam

Afroz Ali

Founder & President-

Al-Ghazzali Centre

for Islamic Sciences & Human Development

Email: aali at alghazzali.org  

Web: http://alghazzali.org  

Mobile: +61 412 198729

Tel: +61 2 9708 1539

All written correspondence to P.O.Box L-14 Mt. Lewis NSW 2200 Australia

Al-Ghazzali Centre is an eco-friendly organisation. Please, consider the
environment before printing this email.

Thank you for caring for Planet Earth- our home.

From: islam-info-bounces at muslimvillage.net
[mailto:islam-info-bounces at muslimvillage.net] On Behalf Of Hamze Abdo
Sent: Sunday, 26 July 2009 12:50 AM
To: islam-info at muslimvillage.net
Cc: a.rahman at uws.edu.au; nceis at uws.edu.au; h.dover at uws.edu.au
Subject: [islam-info] COMMUNITY ALERT: University of Western Sydney -Centre
for Muslim Studies - controversy

To: The MuslimVillage Mailing List Members and Respected Muslim Community
Leaders, Imams and Scholars

Assalamu Alaikum Warahmatullahi Wabarakatuh 

     The University of Western Sydney had launched its new Centre for the
Study of Contemporary Muslim <http://www.uws.edu.au/arts/coa/research/nceis>
Societies on July 16th. I found this out from concerned Muslim brothers and
sisters over the weekend and they sent me this link from MuslimVillage 

http://muslimvillage.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=53334
<http://muslimvillage.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=53334&pid=835526&st=0&#
entry835526> &pid=835526&st=0&#entry835526

     Did you know the Centre has NO Muslim academic?

     The Centre's only Muslim academic, has been treated with disrespect
before he even set foot into Australia. He was the only one who would
probably be the most qualified out of all them, and probably the better
expert. He has now shunned the University and does not want to be a part of
the Centre:

http://marranci.wordpress.com/2009/07/21/c...slim-societies/

     If you look at the staff page of the University's website, it leaves
staff members who have no idea about Islam or Muslims. A Centre whose staff
have no professional academic education Islamic, or otherwise in the area of
Islamic Studies who will most probably create a version of Islam for us, as
they see it.

http://www.uws.edu.au/arts/coa/research/nceis

     Controversy with this new Centre is not new. Last year, my daughter
informed me about a controversial subject redefining Muslim women. A subject
that was born out of Dr Habib's supposed Islamic Studies expertise on Women
in Arab and Islamic Literature. The hijab is not compulsory, and hadith are
considered Chinese Whispers, and there is no prohibition on homosexuality in
Islam in this subject. Many of the sisters left the subject  and complained
to their local Muslim community leaders. All of a sudden, our hundreds of
years of Islamic scholarship is being redefined by a graduate of science
fiction and literature studies. Islamic studies is being taught by academics
who have never formally studied Islam. Her expertise is this area: "cultural
and literary studies and sexuality" http://www.nobleworld.biz/bio.html but
her expertise on the University of Western Sydney website differs where she
is regarded as an expert in Islam!!!! A biography of convenience
http://uws.clients.squiz.net/humanities_la.../dr_samar_habib

     All the academics on the list (except Brother Gabriele Marranci, who
refuses to be part of the Centre) have never engaged or interacted with the
Muslim community. They have never met community leaders or members. I have
lived in the Campbelltown area for many years now and have never had any
dialogue with University staff about Islam or Muslims. However, they want to
study us and conduct research on us, just so they can define who we should
be according to them. Woe unto them and their ways. Aozzibillah.

     Last year, the University did not listen to the community and the
outrage about their Woman in Islam subject. Dr Habib is producing expert
texts about Islam contesting Islam's stance on sexuality. She taught 1
subject last year that she put together about women and now she is an expert
on Islam??? Aozobillah:  

Selected Publications

Contemporary Studies in Homosexuality and the Muslim World. (a two volume
collection edited and introduced by Samar Habib) forthcoming from Praeger. 

Queer Politics, Palestine and Palestinian Lesbian Activism in Israel
forthcoming in Gay and Lesbian Quarterly. 

Islamic Texts on Female Homosexuality 800-1500 A.D. Forthcoming from Cambria
Press. 

Queer-Friendly Islamic Hermeneutics ISIM Review 21 (2008): 30-31 

     And this is the University that many of us send our children to,
especially us parents who live in the Western Sydney areas. 

     The question remains, all of the Muslim community organizations who
supported the University of Western Sydney in starting this Centre, do you
think that this is what you all signed up for? I might be a father, an
individual, but I am certain that many out there may have similar concerns.
The Muslim community should respond to the very University we send our
children to but I do not know who to contact and this is the reason why I am
sending this email.

     Has there been a community response to this outrage where not only are
they not able to teach such a discipline, they have the nerve to hurt the
only Muslim academic there who would have given the Centre an ounce of
credibility. I suppose he did the right thing by removing himself from such
a Centre, and it will not survive without community support as we should NOT
support a Centre who only recognises the importance of our community when
they want grants or to merely conduct research.

     Maybe insha'Allah, you can also them what you think here:
<mailto:nceis at uws.edu.au> nceis at uws.edu.au

     In my other research about the University, I also found that they have
two Muslim Chaplains:

http://uws.clients.squiz.net/currentstudents/current_students/getting_help/c
haplain

Islam

0422 908 323

Hanan Dover

 <mailto:h.dover at uws.edu.au> h.dover at uws.edu.au

Islam

(02) 4736 0145

Ataur Rahman

 <mailto:a.rahman at uws.edu.au> a.rahman at uws.edu.au

     I hope that their views do not reflect those of the Centre. Please warn
them for there is great fitnah.

     May Allah (subhanna wa ta'Allah) protect us from those who want to harm
the deen.

     Muslim relates on the authority of Abu Sa`id (radhiallahu `anhu) that
the Prophet sallallahu `alayhi wa sallam said, "Whoever sees something evil
should change it with his hand. If he cannot, then with his tongue; and if
he cannot do even that, then in his heart. That is the weakest degree of
faith." 

Wassalam alaykum,

Hamze Abdo

IT Strategist

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://lists.muslimvillage.net/pipermail/islam-info/attachments/20090731/413f2017/attachment-0001.html