A new academic year!

Dear Friends,

I hope you had a wonderful summer -- or, in the southern hemisphere, a mild winter!

It's September, which means university has started and the Moral Courage Project is in full swing.  I told you about the Moral Courage Project back in January.  If you need a refresher, click here.

Now let me inform you of what we’ve been doing and what's to come:                        

Over the past six months, the Moral Courage Project has organized several events with NYU’s Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service, where we’re based. The goal of each activity is to explore the joys and challenges of speaking truth to power, through individuals who are actually doing it.

We officially launched on the anniversary of the Madrid train bombings.  Our featured guest: Prof. Abdullahi Ahmed An-Na'im. He’s a Sudanese exile, human rights champion and faithful Muslim who argues passionately for the secular state. Not exactly a safe position to take.  Click here for highlights.

Later in the spring, I delivered the commencement address to public service graduates.  My speech answered the question, “What’s the point of having moral courage when you’ll be abused for exercising it?”  There are at least three reasons you should dare to develop moral courage.  Click here for excerpts of my remarks and photos of the occasion. 

Our biggest event brought together the young and, shall we say, the less young.  TV executives and book publishers rubbed shoulders with reform-minded Muslims and curious students at an evening that we called, “Faith Without Fear: Moral Courage in an Age of Self-Censorship.”  It was my first public statement about how the mission for moral courage has grown out of my campaign for Muslim reform. Click here to see fun photos of this signature event.

After such a busy six months, what’s next?

First, this fall I’m teaching a course called Public Leadership and Moral Courage. You can learn more here.

Also, as a faculty mentor at one of NYU’s residences, I’m strategizing with students to turn moral courage into a global movement. Got ideas for how to do that? Send them to me.

Two other priorities are:

* Creating a road map to restore moral courage in journalism.  Editors and producers are still denying reformist Muslims the ink airtime that Islamist voices are given. This has to change.

* Screening “Faith Without Fear” in schools.   Intimidated by political correctness, teachers rarely engage students about challenging bigotry in their religions.  My film shows educators that self-censorship must be confronted for the sake of critical thinking.

Last nuggets of news

* “Faith Without Fear” was nominated for an Emmy, the top honor in American television.

* The Moral Courage Project now has a deputy director. Her name is Ann Snyder.  She came across my work through a late-night airing of “Faith Without Fear” in her city of Philadelphia. Ann is a Harvard-educated attorney who left the practice of law to join our mission for moral courage. I’m thrilled that she converted. (So to speak.)

* Raquel Evita Saraswati is wrapping up as coordinator of Project Ijtihad. She’ll remain active in the cause.

* Finally, with Raquel Evita’s departure, it’s time for Project Ijtihad to merge with the Moral Courage Project. The effort to reform Muslims goes hand-in-hand with the bigger vision to advance public service and leadership. Therefore, when you contribute to Project Ijtihad, you’ll also be helping the Moral Courage Project. We welcome — and need — your continued support. You can donate here. (Canadian contributors, use this link.)

Until the next update, my best to all of you!

Irshad