Tag: Religion
Firewalls, Wi-Fi, and Watchlists: How Campus Tech Is Targeting Student Dissent
Across the U.S. and beyond, universities are quietly turning campus Wi-Fi, facial recognition, and immigration databases into tools of political control. A recent Amnesty International webinar pulled back the curtain on how students — especially those defending Palestinian rights — are being tracked, doxxed, detained, and even deported. This is a guide to what’s happening, ...
Freedom on Trial: 100 Days for Betty Lachgar
It’s been 100 days since Moroccan feminist and LGBT+ advocate Ibtissame Betty Lachgar (also known as Betty) has been behind bars—detained for what her sister describes as a t-shirt, a prosthetic arm on the brink of collapse, and a broader battle for freedom of conscience, expression and bodily autonomy. This blog unpacks the case, the ...
Here we go
By Dr.Ibrahim AtallahThe recent elections in Dearborn, Dearborn Heights, Hamtramck, and New York have drawn unusual attention, largely because the mayors elected in these communities are all Muslim. For some, this development has stirred unease, as if it signals that one group is “taking over.” Yet such reactions overlook the deeper and more inspiring truth ...
Introducing a Journey Through the Foundations of Universal Human Values: Article 5: Sexual Freedom — A Conservative Case for Liberty With Guardrails
Everyone has the right of freedom of choice and expression in their sexual orientation, and the only limitation of law should be related to securing the consent of adults within the sexual relationship and preventing rationally considerable harm related to it. Let me start where many of my friends in Livonia start: with a healthy ...
Introducing a Journey Through the Foundations of Universal Human Values: Article 4 Freedom of Religion: Defending not only the dignity of the believer—but the humanity of the doubter
.FridayMusings is pleased to provide our readers with Article 4 – Freedom of Religion from the Universal Declaration of Human Values by Wissam Charafeddine, a Livonia author and lecturer. This article is particularly important with its discussion of defending the dignity of the believer–but the humanity of the doubter.Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience ...
Introducing a Journey Through the Foundations of Universal Human Values: Article 3 – Freedom of Expression and Assembly
“Every human being has the right for freedom of expression without transgression on the rights of others. Everyone has the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and association.”From the Universal Declaration of Human Values by Wissam Charafeddine These freedoms have deep historical roots. From Enlightenment thinkers like John Locke and Voltaire to the American ...
Article 2 – The Principle of Equality
From the Universal Declaration of Human Values by Wissam CharafeddineThroughout history, humanity’s understanding of equality has been shaped by both struggle and revelation. While ancient societies often accepted hierarchy as natural, the idea that all human beings are equal began to take root during the Axial Age, around 800–200 BCE, when spiritual and philosophical traditions ...
A Marriage of Conscience: Imam Talib Sanjari’s Bold Ruling
In Dearborn’s living rooms and lecture halls, a quiet revolution is underway: Imam Talib Sanjari—a classically trained Iraqi cleric who settled among us—has argued that a Muslim woman may marry a non-Muslim man when justice, dignity, and today’s plural civic realities are honored. His stance challenges a centuries-long consensus, ignites serious debate, and calls us back to a Qur’anic ethic rooted in reason and public good. This essay maps the terrain—what Sanjari actually says, what mainstream institutions still hold, how law and lived life have shifted, and why Dearborn’s conversation matters for human rights and Green values. [1]
Can Michigan have Ranked Choice Vote … Here Is Where We Are Now
Excerpt: Michigan is on the cusp of a historic decision: should voters be able to rank candidates instead of picking just one? Grassroots organizers are now collecting signatures for a 2026 constitutional amendment while Lansing politicians move to ban the reform. Here’s the lay of the land—what ranked-choice voting (RCV) is, where it’s already in ...
Introducing a Journey Through the Foundations of Universal Human Values: Article 1: Freedom
Written and shared with Musings readers by Livonia resident and author Wissam CharafeddineAs an Arab American activist, author, and educator dedicated to the values of human dignity, justice, and enlightenment, I have long been fascinated by the evolution of human rights across civilizations. Our modern understanding of freedom, equality, and human dignity did not arise ...
Missionary in Dearborn, Freedom of Speech or Proselytizing Children Without Parental Consent?
Missionary in Dearborn, Freedom of Speech or Proselytizing Children Without Parental Consent? Let us know in your comments below.
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