The religion of Islam has been in the global spotlight for the last two decades, and Muslims around the world have been struggling to reclaim their own religious narrative from extremists since 9/11.

In this salon, we will discuss how terrorism has shaped the global perception of what it means to be a Muslim and contributed to a rising wave of Islamophobia in the West. How do we respond to Islamophobia? Is it a form of racism? How have popular politics raised the spectre of Islam in order to justify inflammatory rhetoric?

We will also explore the position of women in Islam, and how the "oppressed female" trope both takes away the agency of Muslim women and fuels anti-Islamic feeling.

We are delighted to announce that Dilara Hafiz, author of the American Muslim Teenager's Handbook and Humanities lecturer at Jacksonville University and Flagler College will share her personal experiences, guide our discussion, and offer her academic perspective.