Since the results of the Gorton and Denton by-election, we have witnessed a barrage of smears against Muslim people in the UK.
Voting is a fundamental right. Voting according to political interests is entirely ordinary and is how our democratic system is set up.
A woman in an orange hijab and a pale blue dress reads from a phone beneath a big red screen.
And now National Poet of Wales @hananelizabethissa.bsky.social reciting her poem "Where Two Rivers Meet", commissioned by @islamukcentre.bsky.social for our 20th anniversary in September. Lovely to hear these words out in the world again.
A bearded man in grey speaks at a lectern beside red banners reading "Croeso" and "Welcome" and under a big screen that reads "St David a Shaykh al-Hakimi: Gwersi o'r Gorfennol. Dr Abdul-Azim Ahmed. Muslim Council of Wales (and Welsh translation) Islam-UK Centre (and Welsh translation).
Poor photo, but my @islamukcentre.bsky.social colleague @abdulazim.bsky.social killing it at the first national iftar for Wales on St David's Day at Cardiff City stadium.
A white, bearded man in a cream skullcap, scarf, and robe and a dark blazer adjusts a black poster on a wooden easel in a hall filled with picture displays. The poster has photos and text relating to Islam's history in Wales - this one on the theme of "empire".
Here's my @islamukcentre.bsky.social colleague Mark Bryant (not of this parish) adjusting our History of Islam in Wales display at an iftar at our friendly HE colleagues Cardiff Metropolitan Uni.
As the university winds down its activity, we're also winding down our social media presence. We hope you all keep safe, and we'll see you back here in January.
Poster for interfaith event. Who is Mary, mother of Jesus, in Islam and Christianity? Details of registering and description of theme. Photos of two speakers, Dr Abdul-Azim Ahmed and Canon Andrew Lightbown. Thursday 18 Dec at Darul Isra Mosque CF24 4BG 7:30-9:00 pm, and community logos
With recent news of plans to attack a Cathays mosque & a Welsh Jewish Cemetery, the planned interfaith gathering seems very important.
Church in Wales & Darul Isra Mosque host a talk about Mary mother of Jesus.
18th Dec 7.30-9pm
Darul Isra Mosque
All are welcome
Sign-up: forms.gle/yEp8WxqKTDZf...
We are a serious academic research centre, but we're not immune to celebrating a little star power. 20 years ago, folk singer Yusuf / Cat Stevens came to Cardiff to open our centre. He wasn't able to join us in September for the anniversary but sent this message of support: youtu.be/GINccE7JzLs?...
We are a serious academic research centre, but we're not immune to celebrating a little star power. 20 years ago, folk singer Yusuf / Cat Stevens came to Cardiff to open our centre. He wasn't able to join us in September for the anniversary but sent this message of support: youtu.be/GINccE7JzLs?...
Hear this powerful poem from @hananelizabethissa.bsky.social National Poet of Wales, which we commissioned for our 20th anniversary. "Where Two Rivers Meet" imagines knowledge flowing like a river, rooting our contributions in a place while propelling them into the world. youtu.be/8KfKtk3cjIw?...
Two bearded men stand beside a short stone pillar in a lightly wooded space, looking wet and autumnal. One wears a raincoat of navy and pale grey; the other a dark wool coat with grey scarf and grey hat.
A stone pillar with a conical top, with the inscription "Never say that those martyred in the cause of Allah are dead. In fact, they are alive but you do not perceive it." Under this, it reads "Srebrenica 8372". To the right, a silver plaque that bears a poem.
The event included the planting of a stone pillar on the grounds of the Temple of Peace honouring victims of the Srebrenica genocide of the 1990s. Ahmed and senior lecturer @michaelmunnik.bsky.social visited the pillar, next to which is a plaque with a commissioned poem by Cardiff poet Abeer Ameer.
Two bearded Asian men in dark formal clothing stand in a foyer before an information sign for Srebrenica and the Bosnian war. One wears a hat and scarf and leans on a red umbrella.
Three men stand before a podium that bears the poster Remembering Srebrenica. The man on the left is bearded with a hat and scarf over a dark coat; the man centre wears a kippah and a navy suit with vibrant blue tie; the man right is in the black robes with red accents that mark him as a Christian priest. He is speaking at a microphone.
Men standing in conversation in a room with pale walls.
Centre staff, including deputy director @abdulazim.bsky.social, attended an event to remember Srebrenica at the Temple of Peace in Cardiff yesterday. Ahmed, as Secretary-General of the Muslim Council of Wales, joined faith leaders, rights advocates, and the Lord Mayor of Cardiff Adrian Robson.
Five people in a group shot before a red curtain and pale wall. Two to the left are holding a red and yellow woven bag with tassels, and a woman in hijab, patterned dress, and black long cardigan holds a wooden staff in her hands in the middle of the frame. It's hard to see, but the staff is pyrographed with various markings.
Photo of a coin embossed with a dragon like the Welsh flag and with "Wales Cymru" etched at the bottom. The coin is set in wood at the top of a long staff of wood (a pastwn), and the photo has the coin centre frame from above with the staff descending down to the bottom of the frame; a hand is visible holding it, and you see in the blurred background a garage with various bits and bobs and, to the right, stones and gravel from the driveway.
That same evening, we presented @hananelizabethissa.bsky.social with a pastwn or a stick Welsh bards would use to beat out the rhythm of their poetic recitations. Dev't officer Mark Bryant, MA alum Sami Bryant, and SHARE staff Pete Forward made her one. Read more: blogs.cardiff.ac.uk/islamukcentr...
It's not Hanan's first event with the Islam-UK Centre. Here she is as part of our public seminar series in 2023, talking with Mariyah Zaman of @nowinaminutemedia.bsky.social at the Grange Pavillion about creativity as Muslims in Britain. youtu.be/pnY51p6JFBQ?...
Poetry for a cold, wet Friday in December? National Poet of Wales @hananelizabethissa.bsky.social shared her memories as a teenager in Cardiff when the Islam-UK Centre opened 20 years ago - "history was being made" - then recited a commissioned poem "Where Two Rivers Meet". youtu.be/8KfKtk3cjIw?...
As our integrity sustains our community relations, so those relations sustain our mission, which as the vice chancellor Wendy Larner noted, aligns directly with that of Cardiff University itself.
Both speeches are from our 20th anniversary event in September. youtu.be/hfK0-ANnaFU?...
Director @sgilliatray.bsky.social speaks about the independence and integrity of the Islam-UK Centre in its relations with partners and funders. This has allowed us to provide research that stands up academically and remains in touch with the grassroots.
Full video here: youtu.be/8Vb66SucUEA?...
Centre director @sgilliatray.bsky.social presents a large woven basket, collecting a series of objects with which she tells the story of 20 years of the Islam-UK Centre.
The clip below is an invitation to play "Show and Tell".
Unpack the basket on our YouTube channel! youtu.be/8Vb66SucUEA?...
Centre director @sgilliatray.bsky.social presents a large woven basket, collecting a series of objects with which she tells the story of 20 years of the Islam-UK Centre.
The clip below is an invitation to play "Show and Tell".
Unpack the basket on our YouTube channel! youtu.be/8Vb66SucUEA?...
This is a key community for the staff and students of our Centre. Save the date, and we hope to see some of you in Nottingham next summer!
Wendy Larner, vice chancellor of @cardiffuni.bsky.social, calls our centre "a living example of the aspirations we hold here at Cardiff University as we look forward." It's about excellence as well as community partnerships!
Full speech here:
youtu.be/hfK0-ANnaFU?...
Easels with posters and also a concertina board with posters in a large, slate-floored mezzanine in the Welsh Senedd. The roof has undulating beams of red cedar, and there are wide windows.
A bearded man in a grey jumper fastens a poster to a grey temporary wall.
Deputy Director @abdulazim.bsky.social was hanging up a display from the History of Islam in Wales project he's been leading on. Hyfred to have these materials in the Senedd as Islamophobia Awareness Month draws to a close.
A popular history book from the project is due early next year with @serenbooks.bsky.social - we're excited to share these findings with the wider public in 2026! www.serenbooks.com/book/muslim-...
Easels with posters and also a concertina board with posters in a large, slate-floored mezzanine in the Welsh Senedd. The roof has undulating beams of red cedar, and there are wide windows.
A bearded man in a grey jumper fastens a poster to a grey temporary wall.
Deputy Director @abdulazim.bsky.social was hanging up a display from the History of Islam in Wales project he's been leading on. Hyfred to have these materials in the Senedd as Islamophobia Awareness Month draws to a close.
Wendy Larner, vice chancellor of @cardiffuni.bsky.social, calls our centre "a living example of the aspirations we hold here at Cardiff University as we look forward." It's about excellence as well as community partnerships!
Full speech here:
youtu.be/hfK0-ANnaFU?...
A book cover, facing the camera but perched on a stack of more books, with a blurred background showing a man in a beard and classes speaking to someone else just inside the frame. The book is Education of the Interior: Essays in Honour of Professor Syed Ali Ashraf, edited by Shaykh Abdul Mabud.
Three men of South Asian ethnicity stand before a banner and an upturned table and before a table with stacks of books and, to the right, a microphone. All are bearded: the man on left is in a tan coat and pale scarf, the man central is in trousers and a white shirt with a grey jacket overtop, and the man at right is in a smart slate-blue suit with white shirt and pale silver tie.
Our Research Associate @haroonsidat.bsky.social was respondant at the launch for a collection of essays on Islamic Education in honour of Syed Ali Ashraf. Abdul Mabud of the Islamic Academy in Cambridge edited the volume and spoke about Ashraf. @sadekhamid.bsky.social hosted the event in Manchester.
Warm words from Wendy Larner, vice chancellor for @cardiffuni.bsky.social, about our Centre for the Study of Islam in the UK on the occasion of its 20th anniversary.
Her welcome speech in full is available here: youtu.be/hfK0-ANnaFU?...
Vice Chancellor Wendy Larner speaks about how the Islam-UK Centre aligns with @cardiffuni.bsky.social's priorities as a global-civic institution. This was from our 20th anniversary celebration event in September.
For the full speech from the vice chancellor, check out our YouTube channel. You're welcome to subscribe for more content on British Muslim Studies. youtu.be/hfK0-ANnaFU?...
Vice Chancellor Wendy Larner speaks about how the Islam-UK Centre aligns with @cardiffuni.bsky.social's priorities as a global-civic institution. This was from our 20th anniversary celebration event in September.
Our research associate @haroonsidat.bsky.social was in Turkey recently and spoke about Muslims in Britain with television station TVNet. His packaged piece is up on YouTube - the narration and captions are in Turkish but Haroon's comments (from 2:15) are in English. www.youtube.com/watch?v=w_Rr...
