Yes we (Daisy) Khanby Caitlin Donohue
“From Harriet Tubman to Susan B. Anthony to Amelia Boynton Robinson, faithful women throughout American history have shaken up the status quo, driving some of our country's most remarkable examples of broad political and social change.”
Daisy Khan touts some good ol' hope and change at her lecture tomorrow
Daisy Khan is well placed to comment on the efficacies of faith in social activism- her own name would not be too incongruous to add to the list of observing freedom fighters above. Khan’s struggle, however, is not for the Underground Railroad or universal suffrage, but rather for a Muslim religion that is fair and just for its members and has a positive relationship with the global community.
It is a tall order. But the key to a better world is identifying your allies, and Khan has identified two as the most crucial to the task at hand in her upcoming lecture “Countering Extremism in Youth and Women’s Leadership in Islam.”
She won’t just be talking theory. Khan was born in Kashmir, immigrating to the United States to launch a twenty-five year career with Fortune 500 companies. But a shifting political climate led to dedicating her life full time to social causes in 2005.
Now, as the executive director of the American Society for Muslim Advancement, Khan has been instrumental in creating forums for the ladies and the younger generation where they can discuss taking back the reigns of their religion, which like many organized faiths has been crippled by patriarchal, anti-pluralistic interpretations. International summits of the groups she has helped to form, like Young Muslim Leaders and the Woman’s Islamic Initiative in Spirituality and Equality (WISE), have helped promote progressive points of view and provide level-headed responses to Western media’s oftentimes hysterical coverage of Islamic culture.
The woman’s walking her walk. To hear her talk her talk, drop by her speech at the California Institute of Integral Studies and check out a world leader on the rise.
Wed/28, 7-9 p.m., $15
California Institute of Integral Studies, Namaste Hall
1453 Mission, SF
(415) 575-6100 www.ciis.edu
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