UNE North Africa scholar Ali Ahmida speaks on 'Demystifying Islam' Nov. 29th
BIDDEFORD, Maine - University of New England professor and chair of the Political Science Department Ali Ahmida, Ph.D., will give a presentation on "Demystifying Islam" at noon on Wednesday, November 29 in the St. Francis Room, Ketchum Library on the University Campus in Biddeford.
(Media-Newswire.com) - This presentation, free and open to the public, will be followed by a question and answer period. Pizza and beverages will be provided.
Every day we are exposed to the word Islam, but many of us have an incomplete or erroneous understanding of this religion and its historical and cultural significance, according to Professor Ahmida. This presentation will clarify common understanding of this worldwide faith. Some questions that will be answered are: What are the basic beliefs of Islam? Who is Muhammad and what is his importance to Islam? What are the pillars of Islam? What is the difference between the Shi'i and Sunni schools of Islam?
Ali Ahmida Ali Abdullatif Ahmida, chair of UNE's Political Science Department, was born in Libya and educated at Cairo University in Cairo, Egypt and the University of Washington in Seattle. His specialty is political theory, comparative politics and historical sociology of power, agency and anti-colonial resistance in North Africa, especially modern Libya. He has published major articles in Critique, Arab Future and International Journal of Islamic and Arabic Studies and is the author of The Making of Modern Libya: State Formation, Colonialization and Resistance, a book published by State of New York University Press, 1994. Professor Ahmida has received many academic grants and awards, such as the Social Science Research Council National Grant Award, the Shahade Award and the Kenneally Cup Award in 2003 for distinguished academic service at UNE. His book, Forgotten Voices: Power and Agency in Colonial and Postcolonial Libya, was published by Routledge press, 2005. It is being translated to Italian and Arabic languages and expected to be published in 2007.
This presentation is sponsored by UNE's Sociology Department. For more information contact Samuel A. McReynolds at 602-2327 or SMcReynolds@une.edu.
( Press release issued Nov. 22, 2006 )
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