GLOBAL EXCHANGE
Ventura County Supporters
Present
“THE ROLE OF ISLAM IN THE ARAB SPRING”
Guest Speaker: Dr. Amir Hussain
Professor of Religious Studies Loyola Marymount University
Thursday, October 27 from 7 to 8:30 p.m.
Thousand Oaks Library, 1401 E. Janss Road , Thousand Oaks
Our September program “The Women of the Arab Spring” attracted considerable attention and was the subject of a front-page story in the VC Star. During the program many questions arose about Islam and Sharia law. For example, it was noted that despite the fears created by some groups about Sharia law spreading to the American heartland, Sharia law is the law of the land in only two of the 100 countries with Muslim majorities.
We are pleased to continue our discussion on Islam in the second program of our three-part series on the Middle East; titled “The Role of Islam in the Arab Spring” We are honored to have as our guest speaker Dr. Amir Hussain, Professor of Theological Studies at Loyola Marymount University , the Jesuit University in Los Angeles. Dr. Hussain teaches courses on world religions, and specializes in the study of Islam. He is the editor of the Journal of the American Academy of Religion, the premier scholarly journal for the study of religion. He is also the editor for the third edition of World Religions: Western Traditions, a textbook published by Oxford University Press and is on the editorial boards of four scholarly journals. Since 2005, he has written over 25 book chapters or scholarly articles about Islam and Muslims.
Dr. Hussain, who was chosen by a vote of LMU students as the Professor of the Year in 2008 and 2009, will sketch the history of Islam in the Middle East , and then discuss contemporary developments. His talk will introduce the various Islamic political groups in the region (such as the Muslim Brotherhood), and he will discuss some of the events leading up to the Arab Spring, such as the elections in Algeria in the 1990s.
A question and answer period will follow the presentation which is free and open to the public. Donations will be gratefully accepted to help us continue these programs.
For further Information, contact: Ferial Masry at 805-300-7226
