The Mad Mamluks

Firas Alkhateeb is a historian that specializes in Islamic History. He is also the author the book Lost Islamic History. Firas is a graduate student in Middle Eastern Studies at the University of Chicago. He is also currently studying traditional Islamic law and theology at Darul Qasim in Glendale Heights, Illinois. He holds a bachelor's degree in History with a concentration in Islamic History from the University of Illinois at Chicago. His book Lost Islamic History is available on Amazon.com. www.LostIslamicHistory.com Please Like his Facebook Page: www.facebook.com/LostIslamicHistory Follow him on Twitter: @Khateeb88

Omer Zaman (affectionately known as O.Z) is a close friend of The Mad Mamluks. He is a volunteer for MUHSEN (Muslims Understanding and Helping Special Education Needs) and organization dedicated to help create awareness for Muslim brothers and sisters with special needs across the United States. Brother Omer has come on to help promote MUHSEN's mission, and to encourage others to get involved with MUHSEN to help recognize and assist the people with special needs within their communities. Brother Omer was diagnosed with a rare form of Muscular Dystrophy (Miyoshi Myopathy) in 2002, which has ultimately bound him to a wheelchair. Since his diagnosis, brother Omer has faced a number of challenges, physically, psychologically, and spiritually. We invited brother Omer to share his story, and potentially help others who may have special needs, and may need someone to relate to or even speak to. Muhsen is an organization founded by Sheikh Omar Suleiman that works to promote awareness in Muslim communities for those living with a disability. Muhsen strives in creating a better understanding of Disabilities in our communities and building a better future for these "Special" People of Jannah, Inshaa'Allah where they are welcomed and all their needs are addressed as they are accepted by all. Their next event: Autism Speaks Walk with MUHSEN May 14, 2016 @ 8:00 am - 12:00 pm UTC+0 Soldier Field Please like their Facebook page and follow for updates on events and programs, etc. Make dua for the success of this organization and if you'd like to be a part of it, please email Info@muhsen.org Sh. Omar Suleiman – Founder – TX Mufti Hussain Kamani – Advisor – IL Joohi Tahir – Executive Director – IL Rafeeq Ahmed – Advisory Board Member – TX Dilshad D. Ali – Advisory Board Member – VA Saadia Z, Yunus – Advisory Board Member – NY Rana Ottallah – Advisory Board Member – LA

Yvonne Maffei, MA is a graduate of Ohio University (Athens, Ohio). She has lived and traveled abroad in Central America, Europe, the Mediterranean and North Africa as well as the American foodie cities of San Francisco, Washington, D.C. and Chicago. Yvonne grew up with a passion for cooking and writing and always desired to make a career out of both. After years of being a language teacher, she began writing about halal food and cooking by publishing her blog, MyHalalKitchen.com. She also gives cooking classes, lectures on halal cooking and healthy eating, and consults schools on how to create healthy, halal school lunches. Her first cookbook, Summer Ramadan Cooking showcases the food rituals of the holy month as well as the global diversity of halal recipes; her second cookbook, My Halal Kitchen: Global Recipes, Cooking Tips, Lifestyle Inspiration (Agate) will publish July 2016 and provides recipes for making classic global cuisine halal. She resides just outside of Chicago, IL on a 3.5-acre homestead she hopes to turn into a working organic farm. http://www.agatepublishing.com/titles/my-halal-kitchen Twitter: @myhalalkitchen Instagram: instagram.com/myhalalkitchen Facebook: facebook.com/myhalalkitchen

Mufti Mohammed Wasim Khan grew up in New Jersey and began studying the Islamic Sciences at the tender age of 13. Initially, he began his education in Darul Uloom Blackburn, England, UK. He then attended Darul Uloom Al-Madaniyah in Buffalo, New York. Mufti Wasim then travelled overseas again to study in Darul Uloom Zakariyya, Johannesburg, SA. He has had the unique opportunity to study the Deen in 3 different countries, under many esteemed scholars. Mufti Wasim studied the Iftaa course under Mufti Radha ul Haq, the famous Shaykhul Hadith and Mufti of Darul Uloom Zakariyya. He also studied under Shaykh Sulaiman Choksi, Mufti Alauddeen, Mufti Muhammad Ali Sahib, and Shaykh Shabbir Saloojee. Mufti Wasim also actively participates in a Hajj and Umrah group, and has had many opportunities to visit the holy cities, Makkah, Madinah and Al Aqsa. http://www.caravanhajj.com

Hamza Warsi talks about his organization, Halal Advocates of America. The Halal Advocates are focused on balancing their advocacy between two strategic alliances, the Halal consumer and business, while also trying to help establish the necessary Halal governance practices to combat fraud and create a high-quality Halal accreditation standard in America with others. http://halaladvocates.org

The Mad Mamluks talk to Dr. Kamran Riaz about Darul Qasim Institute's effort to bring Muslim professionals towards Islamic Sciences. We also discuss some of the challenges of American Muslims today. Dr. Kamran Riaz has a uniquely indigenous background in Islamic studies. Before high school, he completed memorization of the Qur'an at the Institute of Islamic Education in Illinois. He graduated from University of Illinois in Chicago with dual degrees in Economics and Middle Eastern History. He studies and teaches Islamic Studies classes at Darul Qasim, an institute for classical Islamic knowledge in Illinois, and also leads taraweeh prayers and conducts classes at the Downtown Islamic Center. He obtained a doctorate of medicine degree from UIC College of Medicine, and completed his ophthalmology training at Northwestern University and University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center (Dallas). His commentary of Imam al-Ghazali's treatise "Concerning Divine Wisdom in the Creation of Man." is soon to be published. He works and resides in the western suburbs of Chicago with his wife and daughter. kamran.riaz@darulqasim.org https://darulqasim.org

Dr. Fahad Khan is a psychologist with a Doctorate in Clinical Psychology and a Masters degree in Biomedical Sciences. He is also a Hafiz of the Qur'an (having committed the entire Qur'an to memory) and has studied Islamic studies with various scholars in the Muslim world and the US. He also serves on the Editorial Board for Muslim World Affairs, an online peer-reviewed journal. The primary focus of his clinical training has been with children and adolescents suffering from serious mental illnesses. However, he has had a broad range of experiences dealing with individuals from all age groups and cultural backgrounds. http://khalilCenter.com khanfahad@khalilcenter.com

Talking about Halal Meat and Halal Money

Mad Mamluks talk to Sheikh Omer about Islamic Center of Wheaton (ICW) and it's relationship with a city that is known as the Evangelical Christian capital of America. We also discuss with him the controversy surrounding the Wheaton College professor who wore a Hijab to protest the rising Islamophobic atmosphere in the world. Sh. Omer Haqqani was raised in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia for the earlier part of his life. While living there he memorized most of the Quran while attending regular school. He moved to the United States along with his family when he was in 7th grade and finished the memorization when he was in 8th grade. While attending high school at Glenbard East he felt that with so many Muslim Students in the school there should be a club/organization for them to meet and get to know each other hence Glenbard East High School MSA was co-founded by him. After graduating High School and while attending college he was active in giving khutbahs on various University campuses and some Masajid. Soon an opportunity presented itself to him to travel and further his knowledge about Islam. He attended University of Damascus in Damascus, Syria where he was enrolled in an advance Arabic language program. In addition to that he sat and benefited among several of the well known Scholars in Damascus such as Sh. Noor ud deen Itr and Sh. Ramadan Bouti. He also traveled to Jordan, Lebanon, and back to Saudi Arabia in pursuit of knowledge. In the end he settled down by attending the renowned institute of Darul Uloom Nadwatul Ulema in Lucknow, India and graduated from there with a degree in Shariah. Since his return to the United States in 2007 he has been working as an IT professional for some of the major corporations here in downtown Chicago while volunteering at most of the major masajids in the Chicago-land area. He regularly delivers Jummah khutbahs and conducts other talks/programs at Downtown Islamic Center, Islamic community center of Desplaines, Islamic Center of Wheaton, Islamic Foundation, Masjid al Jummah, and Masjid al Huda. He is Married and is blessed with two Sons. He can be reached at Omerhaqqani@icwonline.org

Round Table Discussion with Mad Mamluks Contributor, Murtaza. Discussion is about the often thrown about slogan, "unity".