Islamic Perspectives On Worker Justice Explored
Thursday, February 24, 2005(Metropolitan Washington Council, AFL-CIO)
“We continue to be humbled and
inspired by the support the Islamic community
in this area has given to workers’
struggles,” said Metro Washington Council
President Jos Williams last Sunday as more than
50 students, scholars, and activists gathered
at George Washington University to explore the
connections between Islam and the labor
movement. Welcoming the group over coffee and
pastries in the morning, Williams recognized
the role Muslim leaders in the area played in
helping Dulles taxi drivers organize as well as
their support for the hotel workers’ recent
contract fight. Co-sponsored by ten
organizations, including Interfaith Worker
Justice, D.C. Jobs with Justice, the Islamic
Society of North America, the Council on
American-Islamic Relations, the Muslim American
Society, the Virginia Muslim Coalition and the
Muslim Student Association, the event began
with a panel discussion on Islamic
understandings of work and workers’ rights,
featuring Dr. Ingrid Matteson of Hartford
Seminary, Imam Mahdi Bray of the MAS Freedom
Foundation, and Imam Ali Siddiqui of the Los
Angeles area Clergy and Laity United for
Economic Justice. Workshops in the afternoon
addressed immigration and the labor force,
broadening the scope of social action in Islam,
and Muslims in organizing and activism.
Speakers included Dr. Sulayman Nyang of Howard
University, Imam Johari Abdul-Malik of the Dar
Al-Hijrah Islamic Center, Rev. Graylan Hagler
of Plymouth UCC, and Rami el-Amine of Left
Turn.
- reported by
Mackenzie Baris