america is like a bad boyfriend

hamza yusuf on isis

when "yes massa" starts getting old

When “Yes Massa” Starts Getting Old by Imam Zaid Shakir

this land is mine

This Land Is Mine from Nina Paley on Vimeo.

the more things change....

"i'm so hungry"

happy virginia tech muslims

happy boston muslims

happy muslims around the world

YouTube Playlist: Pharrell Williams Happy Muslims, Middle East, North Africa, South Asia, and Muslim World by Megan Reif covers alot of the same ground I have with my various blog posts of Muslims doing "Happy" videos. I think I've gotten a few she missed and vice-versa.

happy singapore muslims

happy dutch muslims

happy dallas muslims

dear white people... (hopefully coming out this october)

Initial Trailer:

Longer Trailer:

Dear White People Concept Trailer from Justin Simien on Vimeo.

Democracy Now! on Dear White People:

kemal amin kasem - inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji'un

The voice of Robin on the Super-friends, Norville "Shaggy" Rogers in the Scooby-Doo franchise, and most famously the long-time host of American Top 40 and related/similar shows. (see Wikipedia)

top 3 white terrorist attacks in america this week

Informed Comment: Top 3 White Terrorist Attacks in America this Week

wow, another syrian happy video

From the video: "Back in March 2014, Maiko went to Iraq as a Volunteer to help Syrian refugees. She thought it would be wonderful and powerful if she could make a Happy song with syrian refugees living in the camp. The life in the camp is of course, not easy, everyone has lots of burdens and have lost many things back home in Syria But they are not only grieving They celebrate their birthdays, or new born babies, or someone's wedding in the community They always try to have something to have fun with. they are really living their lives. She told them about this idea of a Happy clip, They were so thrilled that they made one.. ;o) I helped them remotely by doing the editing. You can see that they are happy even though they are living a tough situation. Thanks Maiko for your volunteering and your great help. Good luck to all those Syrian refugees !!!! Stay happy, whatever the circumstances."

"somos sur" - ana tijoux (featuring shadia mansour)

Third world solidarity by sisters rapping in Spanish and Arabic.

maps for language and religion

There have been some interesting maps circulating on the internet recently.

 Here is one: Gizmodo: The Most Common Languages Spoken in the U.S. After English and Spanish 

and here is another: 

Washington Post: The second-largest religion in each state (and county) 

In the first link I was surprised at the appearance of Hmong, Vietnamese and Navajo on the map. While on the second I was surprised by the number of states where the second largest religion was either Islam or Buddhism (I suppose I just expected Jews to appear as the number two religion in more states... I mean, even in Florida, the second largest religion was Islam) I was also surprised that the Bahai Faith was actually the second largest religion in any of the states (they got South Carolina).

aamer rahman on reverse racism

pawel kuczynski

More Paintings by Pawel Kuczynski

yasiin gaye: the return (official teaser)

happy (at least until they go to jail) in tehran

NYT: ‘Happy in Tehran’ Video Spurs Harsher Censorship

muslims give most to charity

Muslims 'Give Most To Charity', Ahead Of Christians, Jews And Atheists, Poll Finds in the UK

syria (restore) happy?

Published on May 26, 2014 Despite the heavy toll of the ongoing Syrian conflict on the lives of Syria's most vulnerable population, its children remain resilient. (RESTORE)Happy contains footage from Zaatari refugee camp and a Syrian refugee school inside Jordan. We traveled to Jordan in April of 2014 equipped with coloring books, crayons, soccer balls, hula hops, jump ropes, and toys and "Happy" by Pharrell Williams blaring on portable speakers... We made this video with hopes to encourage people to support Education and Mental Health programs that work with Syrian refugees and internally displaced Syrian children. Please visit: www.love4syria.com to find an organization to support. Produced by: Hazami Barmada Omar Al-Chaar Rameen Aminzadeh A project of: Beats, Rhymes & Relief: www.beatsrhymesandrelief.org Join us in the Fall of 2014 One World Syria, A Celebrity Benefit Concert for Syria. Learn more: www.oneworldsyria.com

50 facts about muslims

50 Actual Facts That Challenge What You've Been Told About Muslims is a nice little round-up of information, some of which I actually didn't know myself.

yasiin bey banned from re-entering united states

American Born Hip Hop Artist Mos Def Banned From Re-Entering America Due To “Immigration Issues”

dr. mufti abdur-rahman ibn yusuf on the happy british video

on the serious side:

inna lillahi wa inna ilaihi raji'un

Omid Safi: Shaykh Nazim, a giant in spreading Sufism in the West, passes away

happy from tafraout (morocco)

happy from fez, morocco

happy german muslims

happy from khartoum, sudan

(wow, never thought i'd see) happy from saudi arabia

happy from abu dhabi

happy from kuwait

another "happy" muslim video.... this time american

300 (the mexican version)

happy chicago muslims

the boondocks comes back tonight

Colorlines: Aaron McGruder (Sorta) Explains Why He Left ‘The Boondocks’

happier without women?

This is the "halal" version of the British Muslim "Happy" video (without instrumental music or "provocative" images of women dancing). I like the fact that they did an acapella cover, but it is somewhat disturbing that apparently some people seem unable to distinguish between smiling hijabi girls walking happily down the street and porn.

fbi uncovers plot to just sit back and enjoy collapse of united states

Given the last entry, this story is more sad than funny... The Onion: FBI Uncovers Al-Qaeda Plot To Just Sit Back And Enjoy Collapse Of United States

it's official: the us is no longer a democracy, but an oligarchy

From Slashdot

"Researchers from Princeton University and Northwestern University have concluded, after extensive analysis of 1,779 policy issues, that the U.S. is in fact an oligarchy and not a democracy. What this means is that, although 'Americans do enjoy many features central to democratic governance,' 'majorities of the American public actually have little influence over the policies our government adopts.' Their study (PDF), to be published in Perspectives on Politics, found that 'When the preferences of economic elites and the stands of organized interest groups are controlled for, the preferences of the average American appear to have only a minuscule, near-zero, statistically non-significant impact upon public policy.'"

happy (#gazaversion)

more happy middle easterners

From: Alaa Wardi & Hayajan (who also brought you "No Woman, No Drive").

happy british muslims

From: The Honesty Policy

List of participants (Rough order of appearance): Laith, Adam Deen, Safiah, Alia, Ghalia, Julie Siddiqui, Salma Yaqoob, Fuad Nahdi, Khalid Ahmed & Ruqaiya, Myriam Cerrah, Hannah Habibi Hopkins, Tanya Muneera Williams, Faisal, Izzi Hassan, Asiyah Juma, Abdul-Hakim Murad, Rukea, Nadir Nahdi, Mizan, Yaz, Sadiya Chaudhory, Kübra Gümüsay and Ali Gümüsay, Fareena Alam, Rahim Jung, Waqaas Ahmed, Saleha Islam, Mo Ansar, Rabie, Edris Khamissa, HP Team, LSE ISOC, Kifah Shah, Aisha and Tahiya, Rumi’s Cave, Thawab and Basma, Omar, Mecca2Medinah, Marwan, Bentley Wood, Remona Aly, Majid Khan, Na’eem Raza, Shama, Zainab and Nuri, Abdul-Rehman Malik, Malaysian family, Asim Siddiqi and kids, Asiyah and Juveid, HP, Omareeto, Rizwan, Bilal Hassam, Nuri, Humera and Khalida Khan, Anwar, Nazli and Jayde, HP team.

"america: number one warmonger" - president carter

Salon: “America as the No. 1 warmonger”: President Jimmy Carter talks to Salon about race, cable news, “slut-shaming” and more

yasiin bey (mos def) + marvin gaye

 Amerigo Gazaway's *Soul Mates* series continues the theme of his previous work in creating collaborations that never were. On the series' latest installment, Amerigo unites Brooklyn rapper Yasiin Bey (Mos Def) and soul legend Marvin Gaye for a dream collaboration aptly titled "Yasiin Gaye". Building the album's foundation from deconstructed samples of Gaye's Motown classics, Gazaway re-purposes the instrumentation into new productions within a similar framework. Carefully weaving Bey's tangled raps and Gaye's soulful vocals over his new arrangements, the producer delivers a quality much closer to an authentic collaboration than a lukewarm "mashup" album.

governments push for moderate muslim hip-hop

Colorlines: The U.S. and European Push for ‘Moderate’ Muslim Hip-Hop

"music hath charms..."

Salon: Hip-hop propaganda: How the U.S. enlists rap music to fight “jihadi cool” by Hisham Aidi

npr interview with hisham aidi

NPR: 'Rebel Music': When Hip-Hop Met Islam

#beingblackandmuslim

Al-Jazeera: Faith and race in Muslim America