Source: Los Angeles Times

On February 16, 2002, the Los Angeles Times reported that "this month's flap over whether Qurans containing anti-Jewish commentary should be pulled from public schools underscores a question of growing prominence in today's pluralistic times: How do you make sure ancient scriptures mesh with modern-day sensibilities?... The prevailing answer among scholars: You can't. No scripture is politically correct--nor, many scholars argue, should anyone expect it to be... Religious scholars say there is a plenty of political...

Source: The Seattle Times

On February 16, 2002, The Seattle Times reported that Joy Carey, a founder of Mystical Chant, expected about 400 people to attend the first daylong interfaith chanting event in 1999. However, "about 800 people came to St. Mark's Cathedral to watch and participate in Christian, Jewish, Muslim and Buddhist chants. "We were absolutely amazed at the number of people who showed up," said Carey, a counseling psychologist and Sufic Muslim. "I never expected this to be an annual event." Indeed, next Saturday marks the third...

Source: Newsday

On February 16, 2002, Newsday featured an article on American women who have converted to Islam. "The women say they consider the veil and modest dress symbols not of oppression, but of liberation. They say the emphasis on the female body in the Western world, with all its manifestations in popular culture, has led to the sexual objectification of women. And... they say their religion treats each gender equally, though not identically... these women are among the estimated 20,000 Americans a year who, since the mid-'90s, have adopted...

Source: The Detroit Free-Press

http://www.freep.com/news/metro/darab15_20020215.htm

On February 15, 2002, The Detroit Free-Press reported "Ford donates $2 million to Arab-American center." It noted, "In one of the largest contributions ever to an Arab-American group, Ford Motor Co. announced Thursday that it will give $2 million to the Arab Community Center for Economic and Social Services (ACCESS) for projects that include a new museum and cultural center. ... The...

Source: The Boston Globe

https://www.newspapers.com/newspage/442452439/

On February 15, 2002, The Boston Globe reported "Airline faces bias complaint." It noted, "A 32-year-old Arab-American ... plans to file a discrimination complaint today that alleges American Airlines barred him from boarding a Boston-to-Los Angeles flight three...

Source: The Christian Science Monitor

http://www.csmonitor.com/2002/0214/p03s01-ussc.html

On February 14, 2002, The Christian Science Monitor featured the story "America's black Muslims close a rift." The article reported that Imam W. Deen Mohammed has been invited to lead friday prayers at the convention of the Nation of Islam. It explained, "The proceeding, an orthodox Islamic ritual known as Jummah, will mark an important milestone for the famously radical group...

Source: The Boston Globe

On Tuesday February 14, 2002, The Boston Globe reported that "Louis Farrakhan and the Nation of Islam had the right to exclude women from a 1994 speech at a Dorchester [MA] theater,... a state court ruled... The civil rights of Marceline Donaldson... who sued after she wasn't allowed to hear Farrakhan speak, were not violated, the Supreme Judicial Court decided... Donaldson did not prove that the speech, sponsored by a local mosque, was a public event."

Source: St. Louis Today

Source: Muslim Public Affairs Council

http://www.mpac.org/NEWS/newsitemdisplay.asp?ID=82&ITEMTYPE=NEWS

On February 12, 2002, the Muslim Public Affairs Council issued a press release stating, "Department of Justice Response to Muslim Community Unsatisfactory." It read, in part: "The letter maintained that the Attorney General's offending comment, 'Islam is a religion in which God requires you to send your son to die for him. Christianity is a...

Source: The Washington Post

On February 12, 2002, The Washington Post reported that "sixty leading intellectuals, mostly high-powered academics who study ethics, religion and public policy at American universities and think tanks, will issue an open letter today explaining why they believe the war on terrorism is necessary and just... There are times when waging war is not only morally permitted, but morally necessary, as a response to calamitous acts of violence, hatred and injustice. This is one of those times," the letter says... The 10-page...

Source: The Seattle Times

On February 11, 2002, The Seattle Times reported that the "Hajj is one of the five pillars of Islam every Muslim is obliged to follow. It's a five-day period that begins the eighth day of Dhul-Hijjah, the 12th month of the Islamic lunar calendar. That's expected to begin next Monday this year. Muslims worldwide are heading to the holy city... In recent years, safety and security have become concerns as 2 million pilgrims converge on Mecca, Mina and other places in Saudi Arabia. Some have died, trampled by crowds, while...

Source: Los Angeles Times

On February 9, 2002, the Los Angeles Times reported on "a special episode of the Noggin channel's empathy-building children's series, 'A Walk in Your Shoes,' [that] gives viewers a glimpse into the post-Sept. 11 life of a Muslim American teenager through the eyes of a Protestant teen... In the 30-minute show, which will be simulcast on Noggin and Nickelodeon... the cameras are running as Nancy, a 15-year-old Protestant from a Boston suburb, spends two days with 13-year-old Mariam, a Muslim teenager in New Jersey, during the...

Source: Star Tribune

On February 9, 2002, the Star Tribune reported that "ever since Sept. 11 the United States has seen a resurgence of sensitivity to and expressions of civil religion - we value service, cooperation, equality of justice and opportunity, respect for diversity and national symbols and ideas... The Rev. Peg Chemberlin, executive director of the Minnesota Council of Churches, said, 'Part of what we're seeing is a firm commitment to the celebration of religious pluralism. In that it's a central value of a democracy'... Chemberlin said, '...

Source: The San Diego Union-Tribune

On February 8, 2002, The San Diego Union-Tribune featured a story on Tehseen Lazzouni, a local Mulsim American woman active in the community. "In September 2000, Lazzouni, with the help of four other Muslims, formed the Islamic Speakers Bureau, which has 10 volunteer speakers who go into schools to talk to students about Islam... Lazzouni knew that many teachers were calling local mosques to find Muslims to come and speak to their students... Peter Evans, a social studies teacher at Torrey Pines [High School], will be...

Source: The Washington Post

On February 8, 2002, The Washington Post reported that "the Sept. 11 terror attacks and their aftermath are taking a front-and-center seat in the nation's classrooms... prompting educators in fields as disparate as Islamic studies and microbiology to revamp their courses... It is highly unusual... for a single crisis to send ripples through such a broad sweep of disciplines -- not just language studies and international relations, but also religion, criminal justice, literature and information technology... American...