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From Authoritarianism to Radical Empowerment ~ Islam, Anarchism and the Ummah [Online Forum]

Sun 19 Mar 2023 3:00 PM - 5:30 PM GMT Online, Zoom

From Authoritarianism to Radical Empowerment ~ Islam, Anarchism and the Ummah [Online Forum]

Sun 19 Mar 2023 3:00 PM - 5:30 PM GMT Online, Zoom

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Part of the theme: Regenerative Structures for a New Society

You are invited to join us for this participative, online event, organised by Wisdom in Nature - Islamic Ecology ~ Permaculture ~ Inclusive Leadership

Open to people of all faiths and beliefs.

Times of event given are UK times / GMT (Find time in your time- zone here)

Note: The UK will NOT have moved to daylight saving /summer time yet. If you are in an area that has moved to daylight saving time (e.g USA), please definitely check the 'Find time in your time-zone' link above)

About the event:

In an era of capitalist nation states and patriarchal power structures, this interactive online forum will center on how Islam offers a framework for mutual empowerment and a more egalitarian society.

We will touch on key Islamic concepts that support anti-authoritarian practises - such as Tawhid (allegiance to God alone), Shura (mutual consultation/deliberation) and Ijma (mutual consensus) - and which Muslims have tended to move away from over time, leading to disempowerment and the lessening of our collective potential.

For Wisdom In Nature (WiN), a key aspect we value and offer trainings in, is how to build collective power in organisations and change-making. To support this, we draw on collaborative decision making processes, permaculture and other powerful group work approaches within an Islamic framework.

Our vision is the co-creation of the regenerative systems and structures we need, at a time when the dominant ones we depend on are not only feeding the ecological and social crises, but are also crumbling.

Within this forum, we will also hear more about the concept of Ummah, often assumed to refer only to Muslims. Instead we will hear about Ummah as referring to the shared ethico-political commitments that are lived, and which perhaps transcends whether one identifies with any named religion or not.

Other themes we may touch on depending on the flow of the conversation, include: white supremacy, decolonialism, what it means to be indigenous, and the key need for spiritually lived, radical alternatives to capitalist, nation state structures.

"...Tawhid condemns fidelity to anyone but a Creator, including one's place of birth or residence, and even the so-called "authority figure" or "ruler" , under the guise of blind "leadership"... Imams, sheikhs, Khulafa, mullahs, muftis... or any other entity for that matter."

~ Mohamed Abdou in 'Islam and Anarchism'

Format: This online event will be part talk by Mohamed Abdou, author of Islam and Anarchism, part in conversation with Muzammal Hussain, and part audience participation in the whole group as well as breakout groups.

We will go through a simple grounding ritual which, depending on numbers, may include brief introductions from those participating. Our intention is to offer a space for connection, engagement and the possibility of transformation. We will end with a simple closing ritual. The conversation in the main zoom room will be recorded and may be made publicly available (Breakout groups will not be recorded).

About the Speaker:

Mohamed Abdou is a North African-Egyptian Muslim anarchist activist-scholar, and the author of Islam and Anarchism: Relationships and Resonances. He is currently a Visiting Scholar at Cornell University and an Assistant Professor of Sociology at the American University of Cairo. His twenty years of activist research and experience centers on Palestinian, Indigenous, Black, and people of colour liberation, and draws on the Indigenous Zapatista movement in Chiapas, Mexico, as well as his participation in the Egyptian uprisings of 2011.

In conversation with:

Muzammal Hussain is a group facilitator, emotional healing therapist and permaculture designer, as well as a medical doctor who has previously worked in NHS psychiatry over more than 12 years. Muzammal is also founder and a representative of the host organisation, Wisdom In Nature.

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Key Background Information

Previous Forums on the same theme

In previous forums we discussed ideas around community building as a way of disrupting destructive structures: see video here. We also held space for learnings from WiN’s meeting with the Zapatistas, the revolutionary movement based in Southern Mexico, see video here

This forum is open to you whether or not you have attended any of our previous forums.

Here is the original info on the current theme Regenerative Structures for a New Society:

The Inevitable Collapse of Our Current Story

We know that our world is going through rapid change - and also that the dominating systems we are intimately woven into, continue to destabilise and destroy. It is also clear, as they creek under strain, that they will not remain.

We can either begin to educate ourselves, get skilled in collaborative decision-making, gain intimacy with the non-human world we depend on, learn ecological design principles, and work together to co-create grassroot regenerative systems that meet our needs and are relevant to our times... or we can one day discover the existing structures have crumbled, with no alternatives in sight.

The New Story: Living Examples of Community

At WiN, we are keen to have inspirational models of community as the theme for our current online forums. We are keen to look at inspiring models of community we can learn from, to help nurture the emergence of ideas for co-creating regenerative structures and deeper resilience according to our different circumstances.

There are examples that can provide inspiration at different scales and contexts: e.g. autonomous communities such as in Rojava, Kurdistan, and in Chiapas, Mexico; certain ecovillages and radical housing coops, and of course the Islamic tradition and the time of the Prophet.

We can learn from these efforts, while considering what is needed in our own contexts.

Stay Updated: To hear about our future events, sign up for WiN’s occasional newsletter HERE

Who? This online gathering is for anyone who values a conscious, heart-centred exploration with others in relation to the world we are in. While we are based in the UK, we are open to those within and beyond the region.

Note: If you are unlikely to be able to stay til the end of the session, we would recommend holding back from registering for this particular event as spaces are limited, and our intention is to foster a deeper connection in an interactive space.

How? Together, we will create a gentle, virtual container. We will listen to what is alive for each of us. We will be welcoming the breadth and depth of our experiences. We will allow difference to co-exist. We will sometimes pause the outer conversation, and step into moments of silence.

Where: The call will be on zoom. Once you’ve registered, you will receive a confirmation email. You will receive the web-link for the zoom call in an email the day before the event.

Times of event are in UK time.

Fee: Given the times we are in, coupled with the need to both encourage commitment and cover expenses, this is a low cost event. Please also note that we do not receive grants and rely on fees and small donations to keep going. The amount asked for is £5 (or £3.50 if you genuinely cannot afford this). The event is free for regular monthly WiN donors. If you would really like to come and cannot afford to pay any of the above amounts, please contact us via the link at the bottom of the main event page as we have a couple of free places.

Arrival: Please aim to arrive on the call for the start time. To maintain coherence in the gathering, once we're 15 minutes into the session, entrance to the call may not be possible for anyone not already there.

Appreciation also to: ...Peace News for asking WiN Rep, Muzammal Hussain to review Mohamed Abdou's book, Islam and Anarchism: Relationships and Resonances, which led us to then also reach out to Mohamed Abdou for this collaboration :)

Become a Regular Donor to grow WiN's work: We are in need of individuals who wish to become regular donors to help grow our work. Please visit here for info about how we use your funds if this might interest you. This event is automatically free for monthly WiN donors!

Learn Permaculture with us: Online Anytime Starter Course available Here

Work more closely with Wisdom In Nature: If you're inspired by WiN's conscious approach, and are interested in aligning your energies with ours through working within our team, then we recommend visiting this webpage

Much Gratitude :)

Wisdom In Nature (WiN): Trainings: Islamic Ecology ~ Permaculture ~ Inclusive Leadership; and a Five Strand Activism model. Website: www.wisdominnature.org