Engy Abdelkader

Images play a powerful role in shaping our perceptions. Contemplate the American Muslim woman, for instance or Muslim women more generally. She is commonly portrayed by the media and in popular culture as a victim, terrorist or seductress. This Mother's Day, through the personal images of and reflections by and...

Congress recently held a hearing titled, "End Racial Profiling in America." The scope of the hearing was unique in so far as it was not only limited to the experiences of African Americans and Latinos but encompassed the American Muslim one, too.

While African Americans and Latinos have long complained...

In Arabic pop culture, a Sultana is the object of desire in an old Egyptian folk song, "Bint el Sultan," which literally translates...

Islam is often viewed as an inherently violent and intolerant world religion. This misconception is fueled in part by the miscreant deeds of some Muslims, particularly toward those of other faith beliefs.

That conduct is then unfairly imputed to Islamic doctrine and coreligionists globally.

The imputation is unfair...

Muslim women are steeped in stubborn stereotypes as meek, oppressed and in need of rescue. Recurring images beamed into our homes and phones from abroad of Muslim women being denied access to education, the ability to drive or even the right to cast a vote or run for political office...

"In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue..." So we were taught in primary school. But, did you know that the captains of two of the three small Spanish ships comprising Columbus's fleet were in fact Muslim?

Martin Alonso Pinzon the captain of the Pinta and his brother Vicente Yanex...

If the stereotypical Muslim woman is an oppressed one, then the archetypal Muslim male is responsible for her condition. In news stories, popular entertainment media and even video games, the image of the violent, misogynistic or abusive Muslim man is present time and again.

To be sure, bad apples...

Fun.

It means different things to different folks.

But how about Muslim women, particularly those who wear the headscarf -- what does fun mean to them?

About a month ago, I threw out the following question to practicing Muslims in America: "What do you like to do for fun?" And,...

"You boys were so much fun on the 8th grade trip! Thanks for not bombing anything while we were there!" read the yearbook inscription penned by the middle school teacher.

The eighth grade yearbook was littered with similar remarks by classmates linking Omar to a "bomb."

"To my...

About a week or so ago, I was invited to participate in a town hall focusing on religious freedom in America and the contagion of so-called "anti-Sharia" legislation around the country when the topic of Muslim sister wives arose.

By way of background, approximately 50 "anti-Sharia" bills have been...

In 2004, I was working in Washington, D.C. with the largest Muslim civil rights organization in America when I received a telephone call from a distressed American Muslim woman. She reported standing outside her home in Maryland when a car filled with teenage boys sped by but not before throwing...

While 9/11 thrust the American Muslim community into the center of public attention nearly a decade ago, misinformation regarding this group persists against an alarming back-drop of rising Islamophobia.

The following five myths are worth noting. To be sure, many more exist. But I have chosen to highlight these...

While I did not know her, the story of her death haunts me: an American Muslim stay-at-home mother of two gunned down in a suburban New Jersey neighborhood. After completing a Ramadan meal with family, Nazish was walking with her husband and pushing her three-year-old son in a stroller when...

Amid record rates of unemployment, mounting foreclosures and scorching heat this summer, Muslims in America (and around the globe) have begun fasting the month of Ramadan. They do so to feel the plight of the poor and needy, cultivate discipline and patience and rejuvenate spiritually.

From dawn to dusk each...

The question of Muslim women's rights is an intriguing one requiring discernment of Islam's egalitarian principles from the ill-informed practices of some of its adherents.

To be clear, Islam is defined as a monotheistic, Abrahamic faith. Islamic jurisprudence is largely comprised of teachings from the Quran, a holy book...

The New Jersey legislature is considering a new bill (S241) which would make it a crime to taunt, torment, or threaten the life of an animal owned or used by the police. As I read the text of the proposed legislation, recently, I found myself contemplating the right of all...

"It is impossible to distinguish between Muslims who are anti-American and just waiting for a chance to do us harm, and those who are merely pursuing their religious beliefs in this country. The only way to be sure and safe is to exclude them all." -- Letter to the Editor,...

In its current form, what we know as Mother's Day, is a secular American holiday the celebration of which cuts across religious and cultural lines. This Sunday, Hindus, Muslims, Christians, Jews, atheists, agnostics and others will honor the female caregivers in their lives with varied tokens of appreciation.

In...