Rachida El-Diwani
Professor, Department of French Language
and Literature, Faculty of Arts, Alexandria
University, Egypt
Lecturing: Understanding the Islamic
World: Art, Ethnicity, Gender, Mythology
and Philosophy
Host: Chatham University, Pittsburgh
University, Pennsylvania
August 2002-May 2003
Rachida El-Diwani, professor of comparative
literature in the Department of French Language
and Literature at Alexandria University
in Cairo, Egypt, was affiliated for nine
months with Chatham University in Pittsburgh
working on her project "Understanding
the Islamic World: Art, Ethnicity, Gender,
Mythology and Philosophy."
"I want and need the people of America
to understand that Islam is peace and not
violence. It is my duty as a Muslim to build
bridges of understanding and love for all
human beings," states El-Diwani.
As a Fulbright Scholar she took the opportunity
provided by the Occasional Lecturer Fund
to lecture at five other institutions, including
minority-serving institutions.
El-Diwani spoke about the Western misconceptions
of Islam while visiting Howard University
in Washington, DC. At Lee College in Baytown,
Texas and at the University of Houston-Downtown,
she discussed the global perspective in international
education with students and faculty. She shared
her extensive knowledge of Islam, women's
roles in Islam, and the conflicts between
modern and traditional cultures with audiences
at Morgan State University in Maryland and
San Diego Mesa College. There she challenged
listeners with the concept of the Islamic
dress as both a sign of modesty for women
and as a "form of emancipation, freeing
women from the madness of fashion-oriented
society."In his final report to CIES,
Dr. Ismal, assistant vice president for international
programs at Chatham University and El-Diwani's
faculty associate, summarizes: "She made
an enormous contribution to our community
and the greater Pittsburgh community and in
places around the United States. She was an
inspiration in offering wisdom from her background
and experience in the Middle East. She also
visited many homes, churches, synagogues,
and high schools in her zeal to educate."
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