Overcoming Islamophobia and Seeking Understanding

This Tuesday, October 27, 7pm-8:30pm, Bridges Not Walls is hosting a zoom forum on “Overcoming Islamophobia and Seeking Understanding.” 

Speakers are:

*Duaa-Rahemaah Williams — a Black Afro American revert to Islam who is active in work in Spokane on housing and homelessness, mass incarceration and other systems 
*Ava Sharifi — a recent graduate in Political Science from Eastern Washington University and soon-to-be law student, who speaks about her personal experiences as an Iranian American throughout her activism and social justice work
*Fr. Patrick Baraza — a Senior Lecturer in Religious Studies at Gonzaga University whose specializations are Islamic civilization and African religion; has assisted the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ outreach to Muslim communities
*Jordan Denari Duffner — author and scholar of Muslim-Christian relations, interreligious dialogue, and Islamophobia. Her books are Finding Jesus among Muslims: How Loving Islam Makes Me a Better Catholic (2017) and Islamophobia: What Christians Should Know (and Do) about Anti-Muslim Discrimination (spring 2021).

The link for the zoom event is:  https://gonzaga.zoom.us/j/92231629152?pwd=bEtyQ3JWR0JxeE1kK0FQMk0weXlDQT09 and the password is    727611 . (If you are calling in and need the meeting ID number, it is:  922 3162 9152.) There is also a Facebook event page here:  https://www.facebook.com/events/418520922476981.

I am chairing and helping to organize this event and wanted to share this announcement. All are welcome.

Bridges Not Walls is a group founded by Spokane Catholics to build dialogue and friendship with the local Muslim community and do education and advocacy against Islamophobia. We helped host national-level Muslim advocate Aneelah Afzali for a forum and training on being allies with Muslims. One of our events was a forum held at the Gonzaga law school on Mary/Maryam in the Catholic and Muslim traditions, with a Catholic and Muslim speaker. It was cosponsored by the Gonzaga University Department of Religious Studies. We also held an Iftar dinner on a downtown rooftop, and our group has issued some statements in protest of Islamophobic activity in Spokane, including helping to organize a letter signed by multiple organizations against Islamophobic “police trainer” John Guandolo.