Online – True Tuesday: Coordinating a Multifaith Response to Hate Based Discrimination and Violence in MN

How can religious leaders and community organizations collectively work to effectively address hate and divisiveness in Minnesota?

This question was addressed on July 20 at “Coordinating a Multifaith Response to Hate Based Discrimination and Violence in MN” a convening hosted by the Minnesota Multifaith Network (MnMN), Augsburg Interfaith Institute and national organization Shoulder to Shoulder.

TRUE partner, Dr. Jen Kilps, Network Executive of the MnMN, is pleased to welcome Professor Najeeba Sayeed, El-Hibri Endowed Chair and Executive Director of Interfaith at Augsburg to our next TRUE Tuesdays session where Dr. Sayeed will share the process and results from the July 20th convening. Professor Sayeed will also share her own work toward countering and preventing religious based discrimination and violence, particularly with an anti-Muslim bias.

About this Convening

People of faith, community representatives, and organizers who are active in countering and preventing hate in Minnesota gathered to meet and build relationships with peers across traditions, share efforts underway and resources available, and brainstorm new ways to act together. The questions the group gathered to ask were:

• What do Minnesotans need to hear from its diverse religious leaders on these and other issues?
• What grassroots work is already going on to prevent and respond to hate, divisiveness and discrimination?
• How could efforts, current and new, be synergized to make a significant impact in Minnesota’s communities?

Prof. Najeeba Syeed

Prior to becoming the El-Hibri inaugural endowed chair and executive director Augsburg’s Interfaith Institute, Najeeba Syeed was a professor and expert practitioner in the fields of conflict resolution, mediation, and interfaith studies. An award-winning educator, she has taught extensively on interreligious education and published articles on faith and community-based conflict resolution, restorative justice, and interfaith just peacemaking. She previously served for 10 years as an associate professor at the Claremont School of Theology. She also held faculty positions at Starr King School for the Ministry and Chicago Theological Seminary, where she was most recently associate professor of Muslim and interreligious studies. She has served as the co-chair of the American Academy of Religion’s Religion and Politics Section and was a member of the Academy’s Religion, Social Conflict, and Peace Section.

Syeed also brings significant executive experience in organizations focused on conflict resolution in community, higher education, and government settings, including the Western Justice Center Foundation and the Asian Pacific American Dispute Resolution Center. Her peacemaking work in the area of gang intervention, school based conflict resolution and community peacebuilding has been recognized with numerous prestigious awards. In 2021, she served as chief of staff to the first Asian American woman elected to the Los Angeles city council. She holds a law degree from the Indiana University School of Law and a bachelor of science degree from Guilford College.

Registration

Registration Questions: registrations@mnhum.org

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