10 Must See Ted Talks For Everyone Who Wants To Learn Something About Muslims

Have you already seen TEDtalks? Probably. But have you ever seen TEDtalks about or from Muslims? Well, if you haven’t, you should definitely see these 10 TEDtalks listed below. They are perfect for anyone who wants to learn something about Muslims and/or Islam.

Alaa Murabit – What Islam really says about women  

“Why – if we are all equal in the eyes of God are we not equal in the eyes of men?”

Alaa Murabit, a Canadian women’s rights activist from Libyan descent, spent a big part of her life in Libya, her homeland. “I was never taught that God judged differently based on gender”, she explains. Although she experienced it contrastingly once arrived in Libya. This urged her to promote women’s rights and oppose gender discrimination.

Zainab Salbi – Women, wartime and the dream of peace

In this personal, yet heart-breaking and powerful TEDtalk Zainab Salbi points at the role women play during a war. She believes that every war has two sides. However, we only see one. On the frontline, we see men fighting. But there is also a backline we often forget. Here women are strong and continue their lives. Salbi strongly believes that the role women play on the backline is at least as important as the role men play on the frontline. “We miss stories of women who keep their lives going in the midst of war,” she says.

Dalia Mogahed – What do you think when you look at me?

Dalia Mogahed introduces herself as a mom, a coffee lover, an introvert, a wannabe fitness fanatic AND a practicing, spiritual Muslim. In this Ted Talk she encourages us to fight against the negative way Muslims have been portraited by the media.

Noor Tagouri – Calling on the 10 000

Noor Tagouri is a young Arab-American Muslim journalist, who is determined to make her dream of becoming first hijabi news reporter on American television happen. She is a true inspiration, because despite of all the difficulties she experienced, she still chases her dream. The most important message we get from her, is to be your most authentic self.

Yassmin Abdel-Magied – What does my headscarf mean to you?

Imagine a woman who is a mechanical engineer, ran a university’s raceteam and used to box as a hobby. Would you imagine a woman with a hijab on? Yassmin Abdel-Magied describes this close-mindness and emphasizes in her Ted talk on the need to look beyond your bias.

Zak Ebrahim – I am the son of a terrorist. Here’s how I chose peace.

Zak Ebrahim tells us a story of a man, named El-Sayyid Nosair who allegedly assassinated the leader of the Jewish defense league and planned several attacks in New York City. The man Zak Ebrahim is talking about, was his father.

Despite the instability during his childhood, he chooses peace. He chooses to use his experiences to fight back against terrorism and against bigotry.

Mustafa Akyol – faith versus tradition in Islam

Turkish writer and journalist Mustafa Akyol points out that certain cultural traditions and the Islamic religion are being mixed up. He supports his statement with several examples which are definitely worth listening to.

Bassam Tariq – The beauty and diversity of Muslim life

Bassam Tariq is a filmmaker, blogger and a butcher. He explains us how these identities come together. He started three projects: one as a blogger, one as a butcher and one as a filmmaker. “They are a visceral respons to the businessess and curators who work hard to oversimplify my beliefs and my community”, he explains.

 

Maysoon Zayid – I got 99 problems … palsy is just one

Maysoon Zayid has probably one of the most hilarious Ted talks. Zayid is a Palestinian – American actress and comedian with a disability, but she doesn’t want anyone to feel sorry for her. She grew up with this idea that she could do anything in life and that no dream was/is impossible.

In 2003 she started the New York Arab – American comedy festival with Dean Obeidallah. Their goal was to change the negative image of Arab – Americans in the media. Beside this project, she is also the founder of ‘Maysoons kids’, a charity that hopes to give Palestinian refugee children better chances in life.

Karima Bennoune – When people of Muslim heritage challenge fundamentalism

Karima Bennoune, a law professor at the University of California teaches us that we have to fight against fundamentalism. She looked for people with stories about how they refused to be the victim of fundamentalism. Yet again, an inspirational Ted talk!