Rhonda is a freelance journalist who continues to write about Islam in the U.S., the Arab world and all things in between. She is a journalism fellow and a contributing fellow at USC’s Center for Religion and Civic Culture. Below are a few of her favorite articles over the years, as well as a link to her muckrack page.
TAGGING FREEDOM THROUGH ARTIVISM
Tagging Freedom is a book that centres on artivism and the way artivism can connect people across different worlds and struggles. In my school visits, I talk about the rise of graffiti and hip hop in New York City in the 1970s and 1980s; and about walls. Why do people write on walls? How has the writing on walls evolved across different cities, different struggles, and even across time? And how have people around the world been inspired by the rise of graffiti and its roots in hip-hop culture and Black America’s struggle for freedom?
Where are the Arab authors in Kid Lit?
For decades, Arab Americans have not been counted. In 2021, for the first time, the Cooperative Children’s Book Center from the School of Education at the University of Wisconsin-Madison included Arab as a category in their statistics on diversity in children’s literature. The numbers are not good.
Humanitarian Day Reborn: Umar Hakim Celebrates Ramadan His Way
For more than 10 years, Umar Hakim has organized ILM’s Humanitarian Day, one of the country’s largest Muslim-led charity events. According to one activist, it is the very event that “embodies why Islam is relevant in America today.”
How to Solve the Tricky Problem of Adding ‘Muslim’ to ‘American’
In mid-September, my 6-year-old daughter ran into our living room and literally started jumping for joy. “Baba, it’s a miracle!” she told her father with delight. “‘Peg + Cat’ has an ‘Eid Mubarak’ show. They’re talking about ‘Eid Mubarak’ on TV!”