Posted by Nabil Echchaibi on Thursday, March 11, 2010
Here is an interesting request from Maureen Dowd who wants the Saudis to open up Medina and Mecca's holy sites to non-Muslims. Tough times call indeed for radical measures, and this is probably one measure Muslims should debate more seriously. This could help at a time of a sharp image crisis to bridge an important gap between Muslims and non-Muslims, particularly for those with a dying curiosity to learn more about Islam. As Dowd said, "In the end, I did see the hajj. When I got home, I went to the Imax
theater at the Smithsonian and bought a ticket to “Journey to Mecca.” I
was surprised when the movie said that the Kaaba was built by “Abraham,
the father of the Jews” — a reminder that the faiths have a lot to
learn from each other." We can't afford to be too closed even in our most sacred spaces.
I was born and raised in Morocco. My research focuses on the intersections between Islam, Arab popular culture and the media. I'm currently an assistant professor in the School of Journalism at the University of Colorado-Boulder.