Dr. Edward Curtis

Dr. Curtis the author of, "Muslims in America, A Short History" was kind enough to come and talk to us at the hotel. Dr. Curtis is the millenium Chair of the Liberal Arts and a professor of Religious and American Studies at Indiana Univeristy-Purdue and is now teaching at the University of Jordan with the Jordanian- American Commision for Educational Exchange. We were invited as a group for a lovely spicy lunch at the Univeristy and then proceeded to hear a lecture about Muslims in America. I was surprised to see the interest many of the students showed in his lecture. Pauls pictures will show that the room was packed and extra chairs kept being added to the room as more and more students came in to hear the lecture. Many of them wanted to know why Islam was not percieved well in America. The main idea of the lecture was that Muslims have played an important role in the formation of U.S history. He emphasized that Muslims should not be percieved as foreigners in America. There were Muslim Generals that defended the Confederacy in the past. There was even a period where Muslims made up 30 percent of the population in North Dakota! Like Father Haddad, Dr. Curtis wants to promote intercultural understanding.

How you can participate!

you can sign up for a trip to Jordan by following the link://iupui.edu/abroad/programs/apply_jordan.pdf

You can also purchase a book!