World Mental Health Day
Margari Aziza
by Margari Aziza Hill
3y ago
There will be a lot of altruisms today about mental health, but few people are looking at systems change and the cultural shift work that is required to create real communities of care. Instead, you’ll see a lot of social media posts.  And there will be a lot of memes and info graphs linked to campaigns. I applaud those who are sharing their stories of vulnerability. I applaud those efforts that encourage others to support and raise awareness about seeking professional health. However to truly address Mental Health we must take a multi-pronged approach that increases access,  develop ..read more
Visit website
Black Panther and the Islamphobia Debate
Margari Aziza
by Margari Aziza Hill
3y ago
“First, I need to tell you who I am,” is how Somali Canadian researcher Hodan Mohamed opens her response to  Faisal Kutty’s critique of  Black Panther (2018).  Mohamed then demonstrates her qualifications to speak on both Islamophobia and anti-Blackness. She writes, “I am an educator, researcher with a focus on diversity and inclusion, curriculum development, public engagement, immigration, and Criminal Justice System working with underserved and underemployed Black youth in Toronto.”  Like so many other Black women, Black Muslim women have to establish our c ..read more
Visit website
Black Panther and the Power of Imagination
Margari Aziza
by Margari Aziza Hill
3y ago
Image source: http://blog.sapelle.com/black-panther-an-a-z-of-african-nuggets/ I was in the mountains at a training retreat when Black Panther (2018) was released in theaters. So I only glimpsed the initial reviews during intermittent breaks in my program. My consolation was that in the thin crisp mountain air,  I had time to work with brilliant leaders of color and reflect on my leadership strengths.  It was just a movie, I told myself. I could geek out on getting to root causes of social problems in the Inland Empire, drawing on the historical context of the rise of the nation st ..read more
Visit website
The Power of One
Margari Aziza
by Margari Aziza Hill
3y ago
As grandma Sara’s memory fades, what remains are the stories she told us. My three other grandparents died by the time I was five and all I am left with are memories of the stories my mother told me about them. I was in graduate school when I gathered enough courage to ask grandma Sara what it was like when she was young in Jim Crow South. She recounted the fear she felt when encountering groups of white men on those country roads. She told me about her father, Carlos Hilton, the farmer who had the courage to stand up against white men who wanted to take what was his. “He didn’t take no mess ..read more
Visit website
Beyond the Icons
Margari Aziza
by Margari Aziza Hill
3y ago
Image source: Franciscan Icons by Robert Lentz As a Muslim, we are taught to avoid icons or idols. I’ve taught various courses in Islamic history and  am deeply aware that this human tendency to create idols happened over and over again in Muslim societies. That is because of the human tendency to imbue objects with supernatural powers to intercede in human affairs on our behalf, rather than call upon an abstract,  and seemingly unknowable, Ultimate Reality. Similarly, we ascribe super human powers to movement leaders, rather than address the complex social systems. Thus we create ..read more
Visit website
Coates, West, Public Intellectuals and Black American Muslims
Margari Aziza
by Margari Aziza Hill
3y ago
Muhammad Ali and Malcolm X A major sticking point in the Coates-West feud was the discussion of Barack Obama and Malcolm X in We Were Eight Years in Power.  Given the chapter on Malcolm in Between the World and Me, I anticipated a thought experiment exploring what would Malcolm say about Barack Obama’s presidency.  While that didn’t happen, after Cornel West published his bombastic critique, many Black intellectuals weighed in. And there were a lot of Malcolm references to talk about Malcolm’s internationalism, his critique of power, and even critiquing West for hanging out with Ma ..read more
Visit website
Ohlone Land
Margari Aziza
by Margari Aziza Hill
3y ago
Image / Santa Clara University, 1933 (Image source Archive of California I stopped writing poetry and stories a long time ago. But recently, I was tasked to celebrate a high point in my life. I chose to write about my Pan African Student graduation in 2003. I still cry when I think about that day and the ten years it took me to get my degree, from DeAnza, to Foothill, to Santa Clara.  There is much to be said, but sometimes through poetry or fiction we can say what can’t be said. So, here’s my poem:   Below ground in Ohlone land, I was an interloper at a prestigious campus In 19 ..read more
Visit website
Letter to Essence
Margari Aziza
by Margari Aziza Hill
3y ago
Image from Micah Bazant: https://www.micahbazant.com/we-all-belong-here/ I penned a letter to the editor of Essence Magazine, but haven’t heard back. I thought I’d publish it here. I’m a co-founding director of Muslim Anti-Racism Collaborative. You probably haven’t heard of my organization, as we’ve only been around for three years when we launched #BeingBlackAndMuslim. Muslim Americans are a diverse community, but media often erases the contributions of Black Muslim women. Unfortunately, the #Woke100 list failed to include a single Black Muslim woman.  For every 100 Black people in th ..read more
Visit website
Pass The Mic
Margari Aziza
by Margari Aziza Hill
3y ago
Rendering of Dr. Su’ad Abdul Khabeer’s February 2017 tweet. Image courtesy of Kelly Nuttal @typologianista After numerous interviews and casual conversations with scholars, imams, and leaders of all backgrounds across the country, evidence points to highly qualified Black speakers and panelists receiving less compensation than their white, Arab, or South Asian counterparts in the same field. This is not to say that Arab, South Asian and White speakers don’t make important contributions. Rather, it is to point out the preferential treatment towards ..read more
Visit website
Post Election Reflection
Margari Aziza
by Margari Aziza Hill
3y ago
On Tuesday November 8th, 2016,  many of us were frozen with anxiety as we awaited the results of an  unprecedented presidential race with the two frontrunners, Hillary Clinton running as the Democratic Nominee and Donald Trump as the Republican nominee.  Due to the Electoral College system, Trump is the fifth elected president to win while losing the popular vote (Pew). The reactions among Muslim Americans are varied, some with shock while others, including  the first Muslim American Representative in Congress, Keith Ellison  predicted that Donald Trump could win. His ..read more
Visit website

Follow Margari Aziza on FeedSpot

Continue with Google
Continue with Apple
OR