Suhaib Webb to speak at “Islam Today: New Media and Youth Culture in the Middle East, South Asia and Southeast Asia”

For many young people, the post-9/11 world has sparked a new, if not confusing, relationship with their own identities as Muslims. Difficult times have led young Muslims all over the world to try and find answers, connect with other individuals in similar situations, debate issues, and re-work commonly held notions of Islam.

The first event, in this series, a Forum on New Media and Politics in the Muslim World, will take place on Thursday, October 15, 2009 at the David Brower Center, 2150 Allston St., Berkeley CA. Confirmed speakers include Mohamed Abdel Dayem from the Committee to Protect Journalists; Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad, a member of Malaysia’s opposition party KeAdilan Rakyat and a recently elected member of Selangor’s State Assembly; Muhamad Ali, Assistant Professor of Religious Studies at UC Riverside whose research looks at contemporary Islam in Indonesia; Huma Yusuf, a freelance journalist in Pakistan with a special interest in new media and political activism; and Haroon Mughal, a popular U.S.-based blogger about issues concerning South Asia and Muslim Americans (avari.typepad.com). The forum will be moderated by Wajahat Ali, Associate Editor of altmuslim.com. This event is also co-sponsored by the Asia Society Northern California, Islamic Networks Group, Arab Cultural and Community Center, meedan.net.