Muslim Writers Collective

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Muslim Writers Collective (MWC) is a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting storytelling in the Muslim American community. [1] Founded in 2014 by Hamdan Azhar and Ayisha Irfan in New York City, the organization holds monthly open mics across the country featuring spoken word, poetry, comedy, music, and other art forms. [2] [3] [4] Stories shared at MWC include topics such as heartbreak, family, and what it means to grow up Muslim in post-9/11 America. [4] MWC has held events in over a dozen cities in addition to New York, including Boston, [5] Chicago, [6] Dallas, [7] Oakland, [8] Seattle, [9] Washington, D.C., [10] Toronto, [11] and Lahore, [12] routinely drawing hundreds of attendees.

MWC emerged from a heightened post-9/11 context and is composed predominantly of millennials who are either university age or young professionals and are the children of Brown and Black immigrant parents. [13] According to a Vice magazine article published in 2016, "At a time when Islamophobia has reached new virulent and violent heights, MWC provides a space for young Muslims to honor their humanity." [4]

Shahana Hanif, who became the first Muslim woman elected to New York City Council in 2022, started performing at MWC in 2014 and later served as an organizer and MC with the organization as well. [4] [14] Other notable MWC storytellers include Amani al-Khatahtbeh [15] and James Yee. [16]

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References

  1. ↑ "Muslim Writers Collective". Muslim Writers Collective. Retrieved October 21, 2023.
  2. ↑ Chiaet, Julianne (October 12, 2014). "Defying Stereotypes, Young Muslim Writers Find Community". Daily Beast . Retrieved October 21, 2023.
  3. ↑ Akbar, Ahmed Ali (December 16, 2014). "21 Kick-Ass Muslims Who Changed The Narrative In 2014". Buzzfeed . Retrieved October 21, 2023.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Stahl, Aviva (February 22, 2016). "Reclaiming What It Means to Be Muslim, One Open Mic at a Time". Vice . Retrieved October 21, 2023.
  5. ↑ Shenoy, Rupa (March 3, 2016). "Creating a Secular Space for Muslim American Storytelling". WGBH . Retrieved October 21, 2023.
  6. ↑ Reid, Kerry (August 29, 2019). "The Muslim Writers Collective pushes boundaries while building 'Empathy'". Chicago Reader . Retrieved October 21, 2023.
  7. ↑ Myong, Elizabeth (November 14, 2022). "New Dallas group lets Muslim writers hone their craft and make connections". Dallas Morning News . Retrieved October 21, 2023.
  8. ↑ "Bay Area Muslim Writers Collective". Bay Area Muslim Writers Collective. Retrieved October 21, 2023.
  9. ↑ "Muslim Writers Collective Seattle". Muslim Writers Collective Seattle. Retrieved October 21, 2023.
  10. ↑ Pukas, Anna (May 30, 2018). "Iftar at the White House: Trump's recipe for reconciliation in Ramadan". Arab News . Retrieved October 21, 2023.
  11. ↑ Hakim, Shireen (November 12, 2018). "Do We Really Need More Creative Spaces For Muslim Women Writers?". Muslim Girl . Retrieved October 21, 2023.
  12. ↑ Ahmed, R Umaima (May 1, 2016). "'Pakistan is a lot more than these negative stories we read'". The Nation (Pakistan) . Retrieved October 21, 2023.
  13. ↑ Ali, Nadiya (April 2022). Refusing Internment, Reclaiming Vitality, And Moving Past The Bargain Of Recognition: The Case Of A Muslim Creative Counterpublic (Ph.D. thesis). York University. Retrieved October 21, 2023.
  14. ↑ Hackman, Rose (September 29, 2015). "'You can't make us be foreign': young Muslim leaders who were shaped by 9/11". The Guardian . Retrieved October 21, 2023.
  15. ↑ "Amani". Muslim Writers Collective. September 26, 2016. Retrieved October 21, 2023.
  16. ↑ "James Yusuf Yee at Muslim Writers Collective". Muslim Writers Collective. November 25, 2019. Retrieved October 21, 2023.
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