The Women's Mosque of America

"Mental Health and Islam" Pre-Khutbah Bayan by Dr. Hadia Al Abdullah (9/30/16)

Dr. Hadia Al Abdullah delivers the pre-khutbah bayan (talk) for The Women's Mosque of America on September 30th, 2016. In her bayan, Dr. Abdullah speaks about the importance of prioritizing mental health in Muslim communities, and she offers practical solutions on how to get support through difficult times.

Bio:
Dr. Hadia Al Abdullah was born and raised in Syria where she lived with her parents and five siblings. Her parents provided her with a solid foundation in Islam and always encouraged her to read, learn, and question everything in order to have a better understanding of it. Her mother led Islamic circles, which Hadia always attended, increasing her Islamic knowledge. Hadia holds a Doctoral Degree in Medicine (M.D.) from Aleppo University in Syria and practiced medicine in Damascus from 1992 to 2000. She moved to America in 2000 and continued in the medical field for a year before stopping to raise her three children. She has volunteered in different organizations such as the Islamic Center of Southern California for many years. In the most recent years, Hadia has taught Arabic in both the public and private sector to native speakers and non-native speakers. She is also a volunteer chaplain for hospitals, visiting patients and providing them with spiritual relief. In 2012 she became a part of Bayan Claremont Faculty, and she serves as the program coordinator at Occidental College for the Southern California Arabic Language Teacher Council (SCALTC), a pilot project whose goal is to support the teaching of Arabic in Southern California and to provide resources to Arabic language educators from a variety of institutions.

"Post 11/9, Where Do We Go From Here?" Khutbah by Farrah N. Khan (11/18/16)

Khateebah Farrah N. Khan delivered the 23rd khutbah for The Women's Mosque of America on November 18th, 2016. In her timely and inspiring khutbah, Farrah shares with the congregation the lessons she learned in her run for Irvine city council, she encourages the congregation to keep hope alive despite the tense post-election political climate, and she ultimately rallies Muslim women everywhere to run for public office.

Bio:
Farrah N. Khan has worked extensively with many community organizations to host events, collaborate on efforts and provide support. She founded a children’s interfaith group, First Drops, in 2011. The organization provides children (ages 5-13) and their families opportunities to go on site visits to churches, synagogues, mosques and temples throughout Orange County to get a better understanding of one another. The group partners with a local Church every 4th Sunday of the month to feed the homeless population in Santa Ana.

Farrah has always enjoyed working with the community. She started by volunteering at her children’s school and several non-profits. She committed to being an active PTA member and has since served on the PTA Board at the Elementary and Middle School level. She served as PTA President for 3 terms at her sons’ elementary school, served on the PTA Board at the Middle School and is currently serving on the School Site Council at the High School. She and her husband are also Legacy Partners with the Irvine Public School Foundation.

One of Farrah’s joys has been serving on the Steering Committee for the Irvine Global Village Festival for the past 6 years. She is also a proud CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) volunteer with the Irvine Police Department, a program she highly recommends for every resident and business of Irvine.

Farrah currently serves as the Executive Director of the Newport Mesa Irvine Interfaith Council. Farrah finds great pride in working with the faith communities not only for dialogue, but also to discuss social and economic issues affecting Irvine, Newport Beach and Costa Mesa.

Farrah was appointed as a Community Services Commissioner in 2014. During her time as Commissioner, she was the only Commissioner who took the time to get to know the city parks, open spaces, land development, amenities and employees. She was an advocate for sufficient park space. Farrah just ran for Irvine City Council in the 2016 election as a first time candidate and is proud to have placed 4th out of 11 candidates in a hard-fought race.

Q&A with Farrah N. Khan (11/18/16)

Q&A Discussion Circle with the Imam -- Khateebah Farrah N. Khan encourages Muslim women to run for public office in the post-jumma'a discussion after her khutbah on November 18th, 2016 at The Women's Mosque of America.

"Healing Racial Conflict: Special Focus on the Latino Community" Khutbah by Sister Marta Khadija Lalma (12/18/15)

Khateebah Marta Khadija Lalma delivers the 12th khutbah for The Women's Mosque of America on December 18th, 2015.

Bio:
Sister Marta Felicitas Khadija Galedary was born in Mexico and embraced Islam in 1985. She earned her Baccalaureate in Humanities, Mexico City, and is a former Nursing Director at the UMMA Clinic in Los Angeles. She is the founder of LALMA (Latino Muslims Association) where she started the first dialogue among Latino Muslims and Catholic youth and is their current Advisor. Sister Marta also works with LA Voice, a faith-based group to preserve human dignity and social justice. She spoke at the First International Conference of Ibero-Latino Muslims in Seville, Spain, the International Citizens Muslim dialogue sponsored by the USA State Department in Spain and Australia, and MuslimARC (Anti-Racism Collaborative) training.

"The Prophet's (p) Daughter Fatimah Al-Zahra: A Model for All Times" Khutbah by Sister Shabnam Dewji (11/20/15)

Khateebah Shabnam Dewji delivers the 11th khutbah for The Women's Mosque of America on November 11th, 2015. As the mosque's first Shi'i khateebah, Sister Shabnam shared her wisdom and insights on the legacy of the Prophet Muhammad's (peace be upon him) daughter, Fatimah Al Zahra, to shed light on how all Muslims across all backgrounds can act with more faith, courage, and integrity.

Bio:
Sister Shabnam Dewji is a Senior Operations Consultant providing strategic and tactical assessments to large and medium size businesses. Until recently, she was the Vice President of Operations for the West Region at Time Warner Cable Media, overseeing the technical and master control operations for ad insertion; IT and software development for all media tools and applications; traffic and inventory management supporting sales; and regional engineering support for product implementation.

Sr. Shabnam has a business management background with a degree from the London School of Accounting and in 2010 completed an Exectuve Leadership Development Program at UCLA’s Anderson School of Management. She was the recipient of the 2011 LEA (Leadership, Education and Advocacy) Awards where she was honored as Woman of the Year by Women in Cable Telecommunication (WICT). Shabnam was born in Zanzibar, Tanzania and grew up in Dubai. She lives in Orange County, CA with her husband and three children and has been an active member of her Muslim community for the past 28 years, having served as Treasurer and Vice President of SIIJLA, a local Islamic Center in Pico Rivera.

Sr. Shabnam Dewji is currently in her 12th year as the principal of the Huseini Sunday School and has been a teacher for 25 years. In June 2015, she received her certification in Neuropsychology of Learning to ensure that the teaching methods at the schools shift to student centered learning. She is also active in the Social Interfaith group to promote interfaith and intrafaith understanding in the Orange County area and works closely with Chapman University’s Fish Interfaith Center under the leadership of the Dean, Dr. Gail Stearns.

"Restorative Social Justice and Radical Love" Khutbah by Dr. Najeeba Syeed (10/30/15)

Khateebah Dr. Najeeba Syeed delivers the 10th khutbah for The Women's Mosque of America on October 30th, 2015.

Bio:
Dr. Najeeba Syeed is a professor at the Claremont School of Theology and director of the Center for Global Peacebuilding. She is recognized as a leader in peacebuilding and twice received the Jon Anson Ford Award for reducing violence in schools in the area of interracial gang conflicts. Dr. Syeed was named Southern California Mediation Association’s “Peacemaker of the Year” in 2007. She has chaired national conferences on Muslim and Interfaith Peacebuilding, has served as a mediator in many cases, and has started mediation programs in several institutions including the University of Southern California and several middle and high schools. Schools have reported a significant drop in disciplinary referrals and violence after her involvement. Dr. Najeeba Syeed’s track record as a peacemaker has made her a sought out advisor for state, federal, and White House initiatives, and in international conflicts in Guam, Afghanistan, Israel, Palestine, India, and France.

"Combatting Islamophobia" Khutbah by Zahra Billoo (7/24/15)

Khateebah Zahra Billoo delivers the 7th khutbah for The Women's Mosque of America on July 24th, 2015. In her sermon, Zahra talks about how we as individuals in the Muslim community should stand up for ourselves and our communities to challenge injustice in our daily lives and the world around us.

Bio:
As the Executive Director of CAIR (Council on American-Islamic Relations) San Francisco Bay Area, Zahra Billoo strives to promote justice and mutual understanding. Zahra joined CAIR-SFBA in 2009, and immediately embraced her roles as community organizer and civil rights advocate. She frequently provides trainings at mosques and universities as part of CAIR’s efforts to empower the community, while building bridges with allies on civil rights issues. Zahra also represents victims of discrimination and advocates for policy changes that uphold civil rights for all.

A 2014 recipient of the National Lawyers Guild SF Bay Area Chapter’s Unsung Hero Award and a 2013 recipient of the South Asian Bar Association of Northern California’s Trailblazer Award, Zahra came to CAIR with a background in employment and labor rights advocacy.

In college, she worked with the California Faculty Association on issues including faculty salaries and the defunding of public higher education. In law school, she was awarded the Peggy Browning Fund Fellowship to work on the National Employment Law Project. Zahra graduated Cum Laude from CSU Long Beach with degrees in Human Resources Management and Political Science. She earned her J.D. from UC Hastings College of Law, and was admitted to the California Bar in 2009.

"Overcoming Struggle During Ramadan" Khutbah by Dr. Laila Al-Marayati (6/26/15)

Khateebah Dr. Laila Al-Marayati delivers the 6th khutbah for The Women's Mosque of America on June 26th, 2015, with a special message regarding the holy month of Ramadan: Long days of arduous fasting combined with nightly prayers in a language we don't always understand make it difficult for many of us to achieve the level of spirituality that we crave during Ramadan. The answer lies in connecting to Allah (swt) through His life-giving revelation by reading the Qur'an in our native language. In addition, by practicing mindfulness while fasting, thoughtful giving, and forgiveness, we are able to experience more fully the blessings of this holy month.

Bio:
Dr. Laila Al-Marayati has been an activist in the American Muslim community for many years, having co-founded the Muslim Women’s League (MWL), an organization dedicated to strengthening the role of Muslim women in society. She spearheaded the MWL’s efforts on behalf of rape survivors from the war in Bosnia and was a member of the official US Delegation to the UN Conference on Women in Beijing. She also served as a Presidential Appointee to the US Commission on International Religious Freedom. Her activism is centered around women’s rights in Islam, reproductive health and sexuality, and violence against women. As the chairperson of KinderUSA, Dr. Al-Marayati helps provide humanitarian assistance to Palestinian children in the West Bank, Gaza and Lebanon. Currently, she is the Medical Director of Women’s Health at a community clinic in Los Angeles and is an Assistant Clinical Professor at the Keck School of Medicine of USC.

"Empowering Youth to Respond to Hate with Compassion" Khutbah by Aziza Hasan (5/22/15)

Khateebah Aziza Hasan is an interfaith activist who delivered the 6th khutbah on May 22nd, 2015. In the midst of a growing tide of hate speech, Aziza explores the wisdom of the Noble Quran in how to empower children to respond to hate speech with compassionate action. Her khutbah highlights diversity as the Will of the Almighty, and how we might rise to the challenge of truly embracing that Will by competing against one another in doing good works.

Bio:
Aziza Hasan has extensive experience in program management and coalition building. She has worked with diverse groups to deliver quality programming that developed the skills of its participants in the areas of civic engagement, advocacy, service learning, leadership, conflict transformation and diversity training. Aziza is a founding director of NewGround: A Muslim-Jewish Partnership for Change. An experienced mediator and conflict resolution practitioner she has co-facilitated multiple fellowship cohorts. A successful model of genuine engagement, NewGround has been featured on Public Radio’s “Speaking of Faith” with Krista Tippett, the Unites States Institute for Peace, Arabic Radio and Television, the LA Times, the Jewish Journal and InFocus.

Aziza is experienced in Small Claims Court mediation, coaching individuals and leading groups in conflict resolution. Her two years of AmeriCorps service gave her hands-on experience in community organizing and group problem-solving. She has appeared on CNN, ABCnews, Fox 11, LA City View 35, National Public Radio, and KCRW. Print media coverage of her work may be found in The Mennonite, AltMuslimah, The Wichita Eagle, The Newton-Kansan, The Halstead Independent, Hutchinson News and The Bethel College Collegian.

"The Power and Responsibility of Motherhood" Pre-Khutbah Bayan by Eman Hassaballa Aly (5/22/15)

Eman Hassaballa Aly is a counselor who delivered the pre-khutbah bayan (talk) on May 22nd, 2015. In her bayan, she touches upon the need for Muslim mothers to balance their high status in Islam responsibly and in a way that is healthy for their children's spiritual development.

Bio:
Eman Hassaballa Aly works for the Health Media Collaboratory (HMC) at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC). She is a digital strategist and a research specialist. In her role at HMC, she devises and executes social media and digital media strategies. In addition to program evaluation, Eman also conducts social data research and has been published in peer-reviewed journals. She is an expert in all things social media and has consulted for several projects and campaigns at the local and national level in the American Muslim community. She is a serial tweeter and texter, and she is fascinated by the way social media has changed the way people interact with each other.

Eman also holds a master’s degree in social work from UIC. She works part-time for the Heartspeak Institute, a private practice that serves the Chicago Muslim community. She has conducted trainings on marriage and developed a workshop called “Parenting in the Age of Social Media.” Currently, she is pursuing her master’s degree in Islamic Studies at the American Islamic College and hopes to serve as a chaplain in the university setting, and in a perfect world, she would love to continue her work in research. Eman loves to explore the way butter and salt transform food and loves to talk about her belief that mangoes are proof of God’s existence.