Islam Opposing Viewpoints
Part of the excellent Opposing Viewpoints series, this explores a subject pretty much ignored in YA books: the religion, culture, and politics of Islam and its significance for the West. The black cover picturing a mysterious veiled woman tends to reinforce stereotypes, but the essays and articles debate the issues from many sides. Some writers demonize Islam and focus on the clash of civilizations; some look at the common values between the Muslim world and the West. As well as general sections on the goals of Islam and the meaning of Islamic fundamentalism, there are also particular essays on the status of women and the threat of terrorism. The book is long, the type is dense, and the sources are adult, but classroom units on contemporary world politics will find a lot to discuss here. As always, there are excellent bibliographies of books and articles.
American Islam Growing Up Muslim in America
Today, an estimated four to six million Muslims live in the United States. Yet Islam is still one of the most misunderstood and maligned religions in this country. News coverage of recent events such as the World Trade Center bombings and the war in Iraq spread one-sided, negative images of Muslims as terrorists and religious fanatics in America and abroad. In American Islam, Richard Wormser draws on interviews with Muslim teenagers to go beyond the headlines and provides a timely, unbiased look at this important segment of American society.
Young Muslims speak out about everyday concerns — family, school, relationships — revealing how they maintain their identity and adapt their religious and cultural traditions to fit into America’s more permissive society. A historical overview of Islam, an interpretation of the basic tenets of the Quran, and a close look at the growth of Islam in African-American communities rounds out the first-person accounts of daily life.
****This is a very OLD book, before 2001, but there are parts in it that will be helpful to me
My (Underground) American Dream
What does an undocumented immigrant look like? What kind of family must she come from? How could she get into this country? What is the true price she must pay to remain in the United States?
JULISSA ARCE knows firsthand that the most common, preconceived answers to those questions are sometimes far too simple-and often just plain wrong.
On the surface, Arce’s story reads like a how-to manual for achieving the American dream: growing up in an apartment on the outskirts of San Antonio, she worked tirelessly, achieved academic excellence, and landed a coveted job on Wall Street, complete with a six-figure salary. The level of professional and financial success that she achieved was the very definition of the American dream. But in this brave new memoir, Arce digs deep to reveal the physical, financial, and emotional costs of the stunning secret that she, like many other high-achieving, successful individuals in the United States, had been forced to keep not only from her bosses, but even from her closest friends.
From the time she was brought to this country by her hardworking parents as a child, Arce-the scholarship winner, the honors college graduate, the young woman who climbed the ladder to become a vice president at Goldman Sachs-had secretly lived as an undocumented immigrant. In this surprising, at times heart-wrenching, but always inspirational personal story of struggle, grief, and ultimate redemption, Arce takes readers deep into the little-understood world of a generation of undocumented immigrants in the United States today- people who live next door, sit in your classrooms, work in the same office, and may very well be your boss. By opening up about the story of her successes, her heartbreaks, and her long-fought journey to emerge from the shadows and become an American citizen, Arce shows us the true cost of achieving the American dream-from the perspective of a woman who had to scale unseen and unimaginable walls to get there.
Next 3 books to read for my #20booksofsummer …I have been volunteering with and mentoring a refugee family from Pakistan for 20 months. It has brought me so much joy. I am definitely receiving far more than I give. The mom and the little boys of the family I spend the most time with, to see how much they have learned and adapted …it is just amazing. One of the things I knew I could bring them in the very beginning and they would eat was fruit, they seemed to especially appreciate lemons and limes. I always have these at my house too, because I have to drink water, which I loathe, so I add slices of lemons and limes to choke it down.
Back to the books..I picked two of these on Islam from a library weed to better educate myself, so I can be a better mentor. The other is an ARC my friend received and knowing my heart for immigration thought I’d like to read it.
This should keep me busy ……..
Peace.
UPDATE
I’ve made it through!! I have to say the more I read the more I learn, the more I realize I know nothing. These books were good for me. I definitely have learned more insight to the refugee family I’ve been mentoring and volunteering for, which is hard to describe in words. Unless you’re directly in it, the things said don’t really help understanding. However, I have learned to really step back even more and think about how it would be to be them. There is always progress to be made and although my heart is all my current refugee family sees and loves, they are so very tolerant of my gaffs, oye! I will work harder to have less, as they daily do for me and everyone they see.
Peace.
