Comm uni ty

No Longer Strangers

Jewish Women's Foundation program focuses on women and Islam.

SHARON LUCKER/vIAN
StaffWriter

A

uthor Gail Sheehey was to be the
headliner for a public forum
sponsored by the Jewish
Women's Foundation of
Metropolitan Detroit. But, after the Sept.
11 terrorist attacks on America, "we wanted
something smaller, more appropriate" for
our fund-raiser, said JWF chairperson
Margot Halperin of Birmingham.
So the organization decided to learn
more about what it means to be a Muslim
woman. With help from Sharona Shapiro,
executive director of the American Jewish
Committee's Metro Detroit Chapter, they
found women who would talk about their
religion, their culture and their customs —
not about politics.
A few complaints surfaced. Some wor-
ried that the forum would only give people
a forum to spew hate.
But the foundation's 90 trustees thought
otherwise. They wanted to know more
about a religion that is in the news and that
forms a part of their community.
-
"We felt the need to listen and understand
to form an opinion," Halperin said.
Halperin heads the 2-year-old organization,
which is dedicated to funding projects that
seek to impact women and girls' lives. One of
only three similar organizations in the United
States, the JWF was formed by the Jewish
Federation of Metropolitan Detroit and its
banking/real estate arm, the United Jewish
Foundation. JWF has assets of $1.5 million.
More than 140 women attended the lunch-
eon and town hall meeting, "About Women
and Islam," Thursday, Nov. 1, at the Max M.
Fisher Federation Building in Bloomfield
Township.
Guest speaker Talibah Jilani is director of
the International Islamic Women's
Organization, Kamillat, and editor of the
Muslim Magazine. Other speakers included
Najah Bazzy, of Canton, a hospice nurse who
deals with interfaith matters at Oakwood
Hospital in Dearborn, and Mimo Debryn of
West Bloomfield, a wife and mother of four.
The three Islamic guests all wore a hijab, the
traditional woman's head covering, though
they came from different ethnic backgrounds
and attended different mosques.

Living As A Muslim

Wearing pearls around her neck and a colorful

11/9

2001

42

Left: Najah Bazzy, a third-generation
American, said she believes women and
Islam are misunderstood

Below: AJCommittees Sharona Shapiro,
Najah Buzzy, Jewish Women's
Foundation chairwoman Margot
Halperin, Talibah Jilani and Mimo
Debryn at the JWF town hall meeting.

Bottom: Women's Foundation trustees
Gail Katz, president .cijiVE Brenda
Rosenberg, Bloomfield Hills, and guest
Shama Begg, Bloomfield Hills, listen to
speaker.

Right: Talibah Jilani, keynote speaker,
shares her wide-ranging experiences as a
Muslim woman.

loose-fitting top and pants, Talibah Jilani told
the audience she enjoyed these "fiin moments
that she could connect to real people."
A vibrant woman, she discussed the Koran
and the prophet Mohammed. "Nowhere in
traditional Islam," she said, "does it teach that
Jews or Christians are less . . . all people are
part of God's creation." However, she added,
"Lots of conflicts abound."
Jilani says prayers five times a day and reads
the Koran daily. She is American-born and
was brought up a Catholic. At age 15, she left
the church, and at 23, she found Islam. She
has a graduate degree in Islamic studies.
Bazzy, a third-generation American born in
Dearborn, spoke about her work as a "tran-
scultural nurse." She chose to work at Sinai
Hospital of Detroit "because of our [Jewish
and Muslim] belief in one God and a kosher
kitchen was available." Also the end-of-life
issues, she added, are similar for Muslims and
Jews.
A member of the audience asked if women
were equal to men in the Islamic religion.
"In Islam, there is equality between men and
women, but each gender has a role to play,"
replied Bazzy. "The challenge is to persevere.
It's the cultural baggage that ties women
down."
Debryn described how, at age 25, she
turned toward her faith and chose to wear the
hijab as part of her spiritual deepening.

