Islam

Abdulrahman al-Eryani interviewed me on his InBoundTalk show on YouTube (link below) about my book, Muhammad: Prophet of Peace amid the Clash of Empires Available at Nicola’s Books in Ann Arbor And Hachette And Barnes and Noble And Amazon InboundTalk: Abdulrahman Al-Eryani interviews Juan Cole on his book, Muhammad: Prophet of Peace amid the Clash […]

History

The Qur’an and Black Lives Matter (Podcast)

Juan Cole

My interview is at Renovatio concerning my forthcoming article on equality in the Qur’an, which I wrote in honor of the Black Lives Matter movement. The audio is embedded here: Renovatio’s notes: “God’s creativity is seen as an expression of the divine will and those blessed with insight can perceive it as such, and perhaps […]

Iran

Meet The New Boss: Iran’s Raisi In His Own Words And Those Of Others

Golnaz Esfandiari

( RFE/RL ) – Hard-line cleric Ebrahim Raisi has been declared the presumptive winner of Iran’s June 18 presidential vote, which was marred by the disqualification of prominent moderates that paved the way for Raisi’s path to presidency. Concerns have been raised that Raisi’s rise to power could bring more social and political restrictions for […]

Featured

Ta’seel Interview with Juan Cole on Muhammad: Prophet of Peace Amid the Clash of Empires (Video)

Juan Cole

Ta’seel Commons | – A wide-ranging and in-depth discussion with Prof. Juan Cole on his recent book “Muhammad: Prophet of Peace Amid the Clash of Empires”. The discussion begins with remarks about the question of the sources for such a history, it then situates the life of the prophet in the context of late antiquity […]

Islam

Muslim family killed in truck terror attack: Islamophobic violence surfaces once again in North America

The Conversation

By Jasmin Zine | – A Pakistani-Canadian family out on a stroll on a warm weekend evening was murdered in a horrific act of Islamophobic violence in London, Ont. A nine-year-old boy, hospitalized with serious injuries, is the only survivor of a terror attack that killed his sister, father, mother and grandmother. How will he […]

Elections

Disgruntled Iranians Say ‘No Way,’ Call For Boycott Of June Presidential Election

Golnaz Esfandiari

( RFE/RL ) – Less than a month before Iran’s June 18 presidential election, there are few signs of enthusiasm about the vote. For many Iranians, voting in the Islamic republic has often been a choice between bad or worse. Elections in Iran are tightly restricted, with candidates being preselected by hard-liners on the country’s […]

Islam

Why the Al-Aqsa Mosque has often been a site of conflict

The Conversation

By Ken Chitwood | – The violence that spread from Jerusalem to cities across Israel and the Palestinian territories, leaving at least 60 dead so far, has both historical and contemporary roots. In recent weeks, tension has flared over the eviction of Palestinian families in Sheikh Jarrah, East Jerusalem, Israeli authorities blocking access to the […]

Islam

Anti-Muslim Racism remains a Blind Spot in American Efforts for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

Sumbul Ali-Karamali

(Special to Informed Comment) – When I first read Jack Shaheen’s seminal book, Reel Bad Arabs, which documents negative stereotypes of Muslims and Arabs in American film, I was shocked. Not shocked that such stereotypes have saturated film and television. Rather, shocked that I myself had seen several of these films and never noticed the […]

Featured

For 1st time, Ultra High Resolution Photo released of Black Stone in Mecca, sacred relic of Islam

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The Saudi commission for the two holy cities of Mecca and Medina revealed in a tweet on Tuesday that it was making new high resolution pictures of the Black Stone of the Kaaba shrine in Mecca available. The stone has for over 1,400 years had an important place in Muslim […]