Islam Awareness Week at UC-Irvine

Amir Abdel Malik Ali


Mutah Beale aka Napoleon


Recently, I wrote a piece based on a letter I sent to the Orange County Register. The letter was in response to their article on the UCI Olive Tree Initiative (15 students, Jewish and Muslim who visited Israel had reported back on their findings to a packed hall at UCI).

The initiative seems to have given rise to hope that Jewish and Muslim students at UCI might better understand each other's feelings and positions after having gained insight based on on-the-scene observations. I opined at the time (my letter was never published by the Register) that the proof of the pudding would be the next MSU-sponsored week of activities. In the past, MSU has hosted a parade of vitriolic speakers who shout their hatred of Israel. Most of these speakers don't seem to care much for "Zionist" Jews-or the US-their own country either. Typical of these speakers is Oakland-based imam, Amir Abdel Malik Ali, who is always invited to spew his venom at the UCI campus. Anyway, many people hoped-perhaps naively, that the MSU might decide to go in a different direction.

So, from November 17-20, will be Islam Awareness Week, and guess who will be one of the featured speakers? You got it- Malik Ali. Like a bad dose of Herpes, this guy just keep coming back and coming back. His two topics sound innocent enough; "The one God" and "My story". We don't know what he will actually say, however, until he shows up. Once this guy gets on a roll anything can happen. Ali is a gifted speaker although someone needs to tell him about introduction, body and conclusion.

Also appearing will be some former rapper named Mutah Beale aka Napoleon, who left the world of rap behind him when he started taking Islam seriously (he was born to a Muslim father). Not being a rap follower, I had to do some Googling on Beale. From what I can find out so far, he speaks all over the world on the dangers of the rapping lifestyle, which certainly sounds good to me. What he thinks about other issues, I don't know yet. His topics are "From Outlawz to outlawed-My story" and "Changing my game: My view of women before and after Islam.

It is hoped that the MSU-"newly inspired" by the Olive Tree Initiative- will tell Ali to keep his hate filled statements about "Zionist Jews, Israel, America and President Bush under wraps in the spirit of friendship and reconciliation between two groups of people who, for the most part, are Americans after all is said and done.

But, on the other hand, I was also hoping for a Cub pennant this year.