Gendered Islamophobia: What is it and why we care – stories from Muslim organizers at the frontlines

Date: Tuesday, March 16, 2021
Time: 6:00 – 7:30 pm CT
Online Platform: Zoom

Organized by: American Islamic College and Partnership to End Gendered Islamophobia

Moderator:
Shabana Mir

Panelists:
Darakshan Raja, Sahar Pirzada, Yazan Za3za3

Description:
Building upon a history of shared values and intersecting work, the Partnership to End Gendered Islamophobia brings together HEART, Justice for Muslims Collective and Vigilant Love to build analysis, tools and power to dismantle Gendered Islamophobia. This panel discussion is specifically tailored towards community members, organizers, and scholars. We will focus on what is Gendered Islamophobia is and ways to strategically organize, advocate and build coalitions to dismantle this structural form of violence. This panel will also include a conversation with organizers and the recently launched grassroots policy platform on abolishing the War on Terror.

Panelists

Moderator: Shabana Mir

Associate Professor of Anthropology and General Education Coordinator, American Islamic College
Shabana Mir is Associate Professor of Anthropology and General Education Coordinator at American Islamic College. She teaches Islamic Studies, Gender Studies, and Research Methods. She is the author of the award-winning book Muslim American Women on Campus: Undergraduate Social Life and Identity, published by the University of North Carolina Press (2014). The book has received the Outstanding Book Award from the National Association for Ethnic Studies and the Critics’ Choice Award from the American Educational Studies Association (2014).
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Darakshan Raja

Darakshan Raja currently serves as a Co-Director of Justice For Muslims Collective and leads JMC’s power-building programming against structural Islamophobia in the Greater Washington region, and national advocacy efforts on gendered Islamophobia through the Partnership to End Gendered Islamophobia. Darakshan formerly worked at the Urban Institute’s Justice Policy Center on evaluating the implementation of legislation and programs for state and federal government agencies. In this capacity, she served as the Project Director for evaluating the implementation of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) nationally and a provision on payment for sexual assault forensic exams. She also led an evaluation on the impact of interventions to address sexual assault and violence within the Texas Juvenile Justice Department’s state facilities as a project funded through the Prison Rape Elimination Act. Prior to joining the Urban Institute, Darakshan worked as a Sexual Assault Response Team advocate in the Bronx. She currently serves on the DC government’s Street Harassment Advisory Committee as a religious tolerance appointee to implement the Street Harassment Prevention Act in the District of Columbia. Moreover, she currently serves on the board of Consumer Health Foundation. Darakshan holds a Masters in Forensic Psychology from John Jay College of Criminal Justice and is a graduate of the Rockwood Leadership program for South Asian, Muslim and Arab women leaders. You can follow her on twitter at @DarakshanRaja.

Sahar Pirzada

Sahar Pirzada is a Pakistani-American Muslim woman from the Bay Area. She is the Advocacy and West Coast Programs Manager for HEART where she explores the intersections of islamophobia and gender-based violence and supports survivors of sexual violence in the Muslim community. She has a masters of social work from USC and is also the co-Director of Vigilant Love where she actively challenges islamophobia through arts and organizing. Sahar’s work has been featured in Teen Vogue, NPR, KPCC, Fusion’s Sex Right Now, Fusion’s Sex Right Now and #GoodMuslimBadMuslim.

Yazan Za3za3

Yazan Za3za3 is the Community Organizer at Vigilant Love, an anchor organization in the Partnership to End Gendered Islamophobia. Yazan’s work includes the development of political analysis, campaign strategy, and educational facilitation for the organization with special attention to the overlaps between gender, racialization, and surveillance. Yazan holds an MA in Women’s and Gender Studies from San Diego State University. Their research focuses on the relationship between war, migration, surveillance, and social welfare programming.