Megan Brown
Staff Writer
As a Jordan-Palestinian immigrant to the United States, Rami Nashashibi found solace in the experiences of Black Americans.
“The first reflection of the Palestinian narrative that I saw in the American context was hip-hop,” Nashashibi said in an interview with The New York Times. “Hip-hop provided me with a connection to rootedness while being globally uprooted. It gave me a sense of community.”
In his lecture at 2 p.m. today in the Hall of Philosophy, Nashashibi will add to the Interfaith Lecture Series theme “Potluck Nation: Why We Need Each Other to Thrive” by bringing his experience working alongside American Muslims and Black Americans to create a stronger community in Chicago and Atlanta, closing the week of programs that has been presented in partnership with Interfaith America.
Nashashibi is a MacArthur Fellow, musician, professor and community leader. His work has been featured in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Atlantic and the Chicago Tribune. In 1997, Nashashibi founded Inner-City Muslim Action Network alongside Abdul-Malik Ryan, an attorney and assistant director of Religious Diversity and Pastoral Care at DePaul University. They started the nonprofit, focusing in the neighborhood Chicago Lawn in Chicago’s Southwest side. The population of the neighborhood had been historically Black but Arab Americans joined the community in increasing numbers. Nashashibi’s goal was to create a place where all felt included. A part of his mission is to remove tension between Black and Arab communities that can often clash over class differences. Nashashibi credits Black American Muslims for how he views his own relationship with his faith and advocacy for social change — particularly Black American Muslim women.
“It’s critical to understand that there would not be an American Muslim experience without Black American Muslim women,” he said in an interview with Religion News Service.
Growing up, Nashashibi did not frequently read the Quran, and even now does not serve as an imam, a prayer leader in a mosque. However, he views his faith as leading him to a life of service and care for those around him.
Racism in Chicago impacts many groups; he said that children of immigrants struggle with issues that impact the Black community: “poverty, violence, police brutality, economic disparity, criminal disinvestment, stigmatizing … all of the trappings of layers of white supremacy and how they embed themselves into urban geography of a place, like the South Side of Chicago,” he said in an interview with Religion News Service.
In his work, Nashashibi also wants to connect with and care for all marginalized communities. Green ReEntry, a IMAN program, provides for previously incarcerated individuals services, such as transitional housing and classroom instruction. Drawing on the “green” aspect of the program’s name, Green ReEntry also emphasizes environmental justice as part of the trade program.
IMAN programs are for people of all faith — and even nonfaith — traditions.
“When you’re in spaces with guys who don’t identify as Muslim, and they’re part of your programs because they get an opportunity, you show the relevance of your identity and your faith,” said Nashashibi in an interview with Religion News Service. “It’s up alongside people who get a chance to experience it in their own faith terms … wherever their journey is.”
