Interfaith Literacy Series, Session 1A: Overcoming Antisemitism and Islamophobia in Public Higher Education

Facilitated by: Bill Zangeneh-Lester, Humanities and Religious Studies

• Thursday, April 4, 1:30 pm to  3:00 pm
• Thursday, April 11, 1:30 pm to  3:00 pm
• Thursday, April 18, 1:30 pm to  3:00 pm
• Thursday, April 25 1:30 pm to  3:00 pm
• Location: Raef Hall 161 In-person only
• Please register for the April 4 in-person session at: Register in Advance
• Please register for the April 11, 18, and 25 in-person sessions at: Register in Advance

Two online 1-A sessions will be offered:

• Friday, May 3, 1:30 pm to 3:00 pm
• Friday, May 10, 1:30 pm to 3:00 pm
• Location: Online
• Please register for these online sessions at: Register in Advance

What can you learn about overcoming Antisemitism and Islamophobia to better support our Muslim and Jewish students and colleagues? Despite being surrounded by religious diversity, we may not always (or ever) feel empowered to navigate it successfully in public higher education. Nor are we alone in this struggle.

Fortunately, Religious Studies programs have changed dramatically in the last 15-20 years as scholarship, public life, and employers wrestle with the questions of navigating religiously diverse 21st-century American democracy. Yet, public perception has not caught up with these changes. A great irony of intellectual life in the United States is that although we are among the world’s most religiously diverse democracies, we are also among its most religiously illiterate.

The Interfaith Literacy PD series will bridge these gaps by connecting our campus community to the latest scholarship and federal resources from the US Department of Education to help recognize and overcome Antisemitism and Islamophobia.

Please find and watch  Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s TED Talk entitled The Danger of a Single Story on YouTube prior to attending this session. You are invited to consider the following: what are the single stories you encounter about Judaism and Islam? About religion altogether? This introductory 1A workshop will be repeated multiple times throughout the Spring 2024 semester. 2A sessions will be offered separately to continue our conversations and address more specific and complex topics, like the crisis in Israel and Gaza. Attendance of a 1A session will be required to attend a 2A session. Attendance for all sessions will be capped at 15 to facilitate conversation in the group.

Attendance at this professional development activity is limited to LRCCD employees and invited participants.