3rd Listening Post and Impressions

I'll be blunt: I failed again.

I returned to the mosque at the same time I went in my first LP, hoping to find the same people that I talked to that time. There were no families I could see on the premises at that time and no women, so there was no way I could stick my foot in my mouth on that level. Well, I was partially correct; there were no families, but nobody that I met during my first LP was there. Even the Imam wasn't there.

This concerned me, because this meant I had to start over with making connections. I wasn't bothered, so I tried to strike up conversation and ask a couple of questions. However, I was politely rebuffed, with litterally no cooperation with anybody there. Again, nobody was overtly rude, but it was clear that nobody was interested in talking with a Spanish kid that walked in and was curious. I couldn't get a name, much less a number out of anybody there. What really seemed to be a turn off was the fact that I was a student. They seemed mildly receptive until they knew that I wasn't a legit reporter, which is something that one of my friends who has taken this course before warned me about. Following that, I stuck around for about a half hour hoping that somebody I knew last time would show up, but alas I was SOL. Defeated, I left and went to work with my failure hanging over my head.

Now I'm supposed to talk about what I learned through this entire process. I'm sure most people in the class will have wonderful stories of enlightenment and new human connections they have formed. Unfortunately, I have none of those stories. What I learned in this class was to always, always, always get contact information with any and everybody that I can speak to. If I had the presence of mind to get either Yusef's or Sulaiman's phone number, I probably would've had the 'in' that other people had. While I did get the contact information for the Imam, he never returned my phone calls. This also taught me that it's important to get more than just the information for the man in charge, and I absolutely NEED to get other people's info.

I don't have any negative feelings toward the mosque, but I have to say that I'm surprised I got rebuffed the way I did. I thought I was dressed appropriately and was courteous. I thought that people would help out somebody who was curious, but I guess that they thought I was suspicious. That isn't surprising, considering the acts of vandalism that the mosque has been subjugated to over the last several years.

However, I did learn a bit more about Islam and the people that follow it based off my first LP, so I wouldn't call this a complete wash. I feel that if I had some more time I could crack somebody there and get the 'in' that everybody else seemingly got. I just hope that anybody else that reads this doesn't make that fatal mistake I made earlier.

Journal Entry 10/7/2009

I'm convinced that Multi-Ethnic reporting must be taught at any institution that has a communications program. Besides the experience it gives students in going out in the field, it should also teach advertising majors how to not make themselves look like an ass. Although there are many levels that ads have to go through before they are published, it would help to teach those that design the ads to not disenfranchise entire segments of the population.

The ads that Professor Reisner brought in were mostly prime examples of ad designers not being in touch with the world. How else would an ad for weapons have American soldiers storm a mosque with no obvious provocation besides the 'all of Islam are terrorists' stereotype. That also goes for the British ad featuring an Islamic man anxiously waiting for the sun to set so he can eat his chicken. I'm pretty sure that the ads weren't designed to piss off an entire religion or people, but they certainly did a good job of it. I'm also sure that the people that designed the ads have had little interaction with the races they are stereotyping and belittling. A class like Multi-Ethnic reporting (or something along those lines) would expose people to different groups of people and hopefully prevent something like that.

It also may have something to do with how people in society seem to be afraid to be frank about race. Religion can sometimes be spoken about openly, but only if it's Christian-based. With the exception of Professor Reisner, I've never heard Judaism spoken about openly and I've never heard Islam spoken about. I don't know if it's fear of being called a bigot or if people inside just don't care. Although it didn't answer this question, the NPR interview right before the Obama/McCain election was an interesting insight into the mind of Americans. Although everybody there claimed that race wasn't an issue on their vote or general opinion on politics, by the end of the group interview it was clear that race was a major issue in their viewpoints.

I can't say it surprises me, but it does make me sad on the state of the country that something as simple as discussing race was like pulling teeth. If people fear talking about what makes us different, how are we going to deal with more complicated issues? The fact that race is an issue at all is a sad reflection of on us as a country. Hell, it might be better if a class like Multi-Ethnic is taught to everybody, maybe then people will have a better understanding on how different people live and not be so judgemental.

2nd Listening Post

After my successful first experience during my first listening post, I was looking forward to coming back to Masjid An-Noor. This time, they would recognize me and I wouldn't have such a hard time dealing talking with people. I also felt confident as opposed to worried. However, I have to say that this last visit was an unmitigated failure.

I originally meant to return to Masjid An-Noor the week after my first visit, however I came to a problem: A metal gate pulled across the entrance and nary a single car in the parking lot. I would stay for at least a half hour at a time, only to find absolutely nothing. This happened three times, leading to increased frustration and increased panic. It got to point where I emailed Professor Reisner about changing the location of my project.

I decided to try again on Sunday, hoping that people would be going to the Islamic School located on the premises. At first, I came up to the entrance and found the gate closed again. In my frustration, I decided to drive around and look for any other possible entrances, despite never seeing any other places that I could get into the area. Much to my surprise I found another entrance that lead right into the area with the mosque and the school. Not only that, but I saw that most of the cars were parked in this back area, well away from my sight.

Aside from the goals of this class, I learned the valuable lesson of scoping out areas that I'm covering. I thought that because I read about the location online and walked around the mosque that I had seen everything. Clearly, that was quite wrong and lead to way more stress than was necessary. I learned after the first post to get the phone numbers of people I talk to and now I learned to thoroughly check out locals before I even get started.

To add to this, when I came in I found few people at the mosque. There were few cars in the lot and what seemed like fewer people walking around the premises. I walked into the mosque, but didn't find anybody in there. Considering that it wasn't time for any of the daily required prayers, it wasn't a surprise, but I didn't expect that nobody would be inside.

I went back outside and found a group of men talking about the mosque and some about their lives. Considering that these were the only people I saw around, I walked up and tried to strike up some conversation. To say that they were stand-offish would be putting it likely. I introduced myself as a student and gave my usual introduction and I was barely even acknowledged. I tried this for another 10 to 15 minutes before giving up and excusing myself.

I took a walk around the mosque and toward the Islamic School, but found nobody inside. I walked outside and saw a couple more people there, but the group consisted of women and children. I didn't approach them because they were playing with their children, as well as the odd stigma that the men were projecting about talking to women. I didn't want to risk ruining my last visit for the class for a slim chance of getting anything.

I stayed for another 15 minutes, then left. I was feeling a panic attack coming and I'm sure that would've been the whipped cream topping on the cake. I now know that I have a lot riding on my last visit to the mosque. I'm hoping that I can get better results by going at the same time period that I went last time.

Journal Entry 9/23/2009

The experiences that I'm forced to enter in Multi-Ethnic have been, for the most part, painless things. Now, I used the word 'forced.' Does that mean that it is something that I do not want to do or would not see myself doing were it not for this requirement in the Print track?

I would say probably, yes. Without any sort of self-aggrandizing or exaggeration, I have had very unique situations in my life that have exposed to me to a wide range of people. Growing up the son of a musician and a dancer, I have spent countless hours of my youth in the theater, meeting tons of different people from all over the world. My father has dragged me through some pretty run down and sketchy neighborhoods, so from a young age I've become accustomed to being in 'ghettos.' So really, I don't feel too awkward when meeting new people in those circumstances.

The impressions I had going into this class were to find the weaknesses in those thoughts. From what everybody told me going in, I would find that I was an unintentional bigot and that I really knew nothing about different cultures. After my first listening post, I wouldn't say that is entirely correct, but I definitely didn't know as much as I thought.

Listening to other people in class talk about their experiences makes me feel better. I can see that some of them are going through the same difficulty and confusion that I am. It's not that I'm glad that people are having a difficult time of it, but it's nice to know that I'm not the only one that has had some trouble.

It's also great to hear about the positive experiences that other students have had. They're stories are pretty interesting and it's nice to know that not everybody is having a hard time of it.

First Listening Post

Despite the proximity of Masjid An-Noor, I had some difficulty in finding the mosque. From my house, all I have to do is drive west on 120th Street and turn before 147th Avenue. I expected the Mosque to be not necessarily extravagant, but to at least stand out. Most people can usually see a Catholic or Protestant Church from several blocks down, and from what I read from the Miami Herald articles, this Mosque held a certain amount of prominence in the area, what with its emphasis on community education of Islam.

I reached the corner of 120th Street and 147th Avenue and couldn't find the Mosque. I did a U-Turn and saw a sign on the side of the road pointing behind the Alienware Building. I turned in to the side road and followed it toward a gate that had been drawn shut. I got out of the car and tried to call the Imam, but I only got his voice mail. I took a few photos from the gate and left, as there was only one car on the premisis and there wasn't a sound coming from the Mosque.

From the distance of the gate, I was kind of surprised at the lack of pomp in the design of the Mosque. My limited experience with religious institutions dictated that most places of worship took great pride in its outer appearance, and to be honest I was unimpressed with the design. Then again, we live in Kendall, not in the Mideast or other predominantly Middle Eastern places where a great amount of money can be put into construction.

After my initial failure, I attempted several more calls to the Imam, none of which were returned. I feared initially that this post might be a failure, but I decided to go in person, call be damned. I returned two days later, on Tuesday, September 15th, before the noon prayer was to start. When I showed up, the gate was open and there were several cars in the parking lot. Already this was turning out better than my first attempt.

I decided to walk around the Mosque before I came inside, as I had never seen one before. The design was fairly simple and resembeled what I had seen in text books. I didn't quite know what to expect, but I suppose I shouldn't have expected a grand building that would be seen for miles.

After walking around the mosque once, I found the entrance and somebody standing by a window, looking out toward the field behind the building. I entered the building and was stopped by the man. He asked me to remove my shoes before going further into the building, so I took off my slip-ons and placed them on a rack near the entrance which I hadn't noticed. I walked back in and was taken to an open room with a domed center, with a second floor separated by glass windows.

I sat down with the man, whose name was Sulaiman, and we talk a bit about Islam, as I was not so familiar with it. We spent about a half hour going over the basics of the religion, with me interrupting me a few times to ask questions about details that I didn't understand. After the half hour we were talking, Sulaiman was starting to open up a bit more about the center and what he does, however by this time it was time to begin the prayers.

Around this time the Imam showed up and Sulaiman introduced us. The Imam told me he could speak to me after the evening prayer and to come back later. I asked if I could stay and observe the prayer and was told it was OK. I sat down in a seat in the back and watched as about a dozen men came in, all different ages. It varied from about mid-2o's to late 60's. I got quite a few confused looks as I sat and quietly took notes.

While the men waited for the Imam to finish some minor preparations, I overheard snippets of their conversation. The younger men didn't say much, but the older ones talked about their families and the changing times. I wanted to come up and talk to them, but I felt that I didn't have an in yet.

When the Imam came back in, everybody lined up and began praying. They prostrated themselves and spoke in Arabic, later finding out they were quoting parts of the Quran as they symbolically submitted to God. I wanted to take video of this, but decided to wait until I could speak with the Imam before doing so.

After the prayer finished, I was approached by one of the younger men dressed in traditional Islamic garb. The man, Mohammed Yusuf sat down next to me and we spoke for quite a while. Most of the conversation felt like it was a conversion tactic, but I did get some interesting things from talking with Yusuf, as he is usually called. One was his strong belief in destiny and the power of faith as a tool to make himself feel good. He made several references to his own life, about how he's sinned many times. He dodged any subtle questions I asked about him, maneuvering the conversation back to faith and belief.

After getting redirected for the third or fourth time, the Imam came back into the room, back from picking up one of his children from school. The Imam was surprised that I stuck around and came over and asked if I'd like to talk now. I agreed and we went over to another part of the room and sat down to talk.

This was definitely the best part of this first experience. Sitting down with Imam Mohammed Zakaria Badat was a treat, as he was exceptionally well-spoken and didn't speak to me like I was another potential convert. We talked about the open houses that he started holding at Masjid AnNoor to educate the public about what Islam was to normal Muslims, not the boogie men that the media portray.

This was a large focus in our conversation: the skewed perception of Islam in the media and how it essentially makes life difficult for Muslims in America. Badat took great affront to the 'experts' that appeared on TV, as most of them appear to him as authors with the agenda of selling books, not providing a fair opinion of Islam.

Another interesting note was how Badat pointed out how the terrorists in the Middle East were barely Islamic at all. He said while they claim to follow the teachings of Mohammed, they "have no value of human life." They don't care whether they're killing Americans or other Muslims.

Badat later said that Obama was taking the wrong stance by sending more troops into Afghanistan. When I asked him what he would do, Badat said that he would have continued to try opening communication with people, as war would only make it impossible for people to settle their differences.

Following this line of thought, I asked him about how he was dealing with the vandals that were caught several weeks ago. He said that he wasn't pursuing criminal charges, instead insisting on community service and teaching the kids about Islam. Because it would be labled as a hate crime, both kids would get severe mandatory sentences, and that would only lead to more horrible possibilities in the future.

"They're only 15, 16 years old. If they get arrested it will destroy their lives and only lead to more hate. I don't want to do that," said Sabat. "I used to work in a prison back in England, I know what would happen."

We talked a little more about the other acts of vandalizim that had stuck Masjid An-Noor since Badat moved to Miami from England, including the time where someone shot up the place during New Years Eve. It wasn't discovered the someone had fired shots until people noticed plaster on the floor of the prayer area and bullet casings on the second floor several days later. What was interesting was that the bullet holes were still there after five years, since it is a pain to do repairs to the dome.

By this time I had to leave to go to work. I was able to get Badat's card, so I can easily get in contact with him for the next time I head out to Masjid An Noor. I'm hoping that since I got to speak with Badat for so long that the people there will let me talk to them a bit more and not give me so many strange looks, or at least give me the strange looks and talk to me as well.

Journal Entry 9/9/2009

I've been dreading this class for a long time. I've made some pretty good friends that have gone through SJMC and many of them tell me that Multi-Ethinc was possibly the biggest pain in the butt for them. The combination of going outside of your comfort zone and having to go far out of your way to do so does not seem like a good time to me.

However, this class isn't about having a good time and I know it. It's supposed to be about breaking down preconceived notions and learning to not be bothered by my own prejudices, subtle or not. Reading the article on the boundaries of "Liberty City" reminds me of my own perceptions of the 'good' and 'bad' neighborhoods.

Due to their high entertainment factor, I find myself in what I think is the outskirts of Little Haiti and Overtown fairly often and I've learned to always keep my guard up when I'm in these areas. That said, I don't find discomfort in being there. I treat it like it's any other area of Miami, just that I have a higher chance of being mugged when walking there at night.

Either way, I don't believe that it would effect my writing since I don't let it affect the way I speak. The Poynter article about the way 'race' makes writing inaccurate really speaks to me, in that I don't like to use euphemisms when I'm talking about people or situations. It's gotten me in a couple of uncomfortable situations over the years, but I feel it's disingenuous to resort to politically correct double speak when you're talking to somebody or writing a story.

So I go into this class with a bit of anxiety and a bit of excitement. I'm anxious because I don't know where I'm going to end up going and excitement because I'll be forced to step out of my little comfortable zone. It's going to be exciting, that's all I know.