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Historic Conference Inaugurated by the Detroit Muslim Community
10-17-2018
Almost 2000 people attended the inaugural Reconnect Conference held at the Edwards Convention Center in Dearborn, MI on Saturday Oct. 13. Residents from across the state, Ohio, and even Canada participated in a day-long event organized by the American Midwest Leadership Council (AMLC) in partnership with MY-ICD (Muslim Youth of the Islamic Center of Detroit) as well as in collaboration with several faith centers, civic leaders and youth organizations.
This year the conference focused on reconnecting, "through positive change." With an amazing line up of nationally and internationally renowned Muslim speakers, the conference aimed to inspire and mobilize the Detroit Muslim community by addressing pertinent and contemporary topics through lectures, discussions, and interactive workshops.
The Reconnect conference is the first of its kind in the Detroit Metro area. This collaborative effort took the initiative of bringing many of those speakers, to Detroit, so the community here can benefit from their knowledge and intellect.
"We have over 600,000 Muslims in Michigan. We don't have to go to Texas, or Chicago, or Toronto for a conference. We should be able to create our convention for our own community, and we proved that we could do that," said Abdallah Sheik, President of AMLC.
What stood out in the crowd of attendees is the impressive number of youth in attendance. Organizers of the conference said they focused on reaching out to marginalized demographics within the Muslim community, specifically women and youth.
Topics addressed during the conference included character development, identity, social activism, mental health, and leadership. Many of the contemporary subjects discussed were framed by the violent socio-political environment American Muslims must navigate in their daily lives. At a time where many Americans challenge or even oppose the existence of Muslims in this country, uncertainty and doubt run high amongst many Muslims. Speakers such as former gubernatorial candidate, Abdul El-Sayed helped shed light on some of those misgivings and offered solutions,
"Youth from Michigan & Ohio came together to organize a conference that addresses relationships that are most important to us faith, family and community. The feedback from our community was a clear sign the purpose of the conference was attained. We are looking forward for Reconnect 2019," said Khaled Saleh, director of Muslim Youth of ICD and head of the Reconnect Conference Committee.
Contact: Fatima Tayebi 313-720-8290
203444@email4pr.com
www.amlcusa.org
SOURCE American Midwest Leadership Council
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