A Visit to A Mosque In America Essay - 1206 Words

A Visit to A Mosque In America Driving along the highway, all eyes are drawn as a magnet to the unique building with its golden dome and unusual architecture. The Islamic Center is located at the base of a residential street in a small neighborhood. The center houses an Islamic school, a community center, an international school and the Mosque, which is the place of worship for Muslims. There are many misconceptions regarding Islam and Muslims. In reality most Muslims are non-Arabs and most live outside the Middle East. There are five million Muslims in the United States. There are an estimated 10,000-15,000 Muslims in the area. Passing through the wrought iron gate, my eyes rivet to the cluster of flags to the right, one to†¦show more content†¦The International School offers grades K-8 and has a teacher/student ratio of 1:15 along with a Montessori pre-school and is available to Muslims and non-Muslims. The most beautiful building among these is the Mosque. The Mosque was built in early 1990s and is American built, almost entirely by local architects and local artists. There is a fountain in front of the Mosque and a second fountain inside the vestibule. These fountains have come from as far away as Egypt, Syria and Saudi Arabia and are merely for decoration though in older times fountains were used for washing before prayer. Upon entering the Mosque, I enter into a vestibule with a decorative fountain in the middle and a hallway to each side lined with a shelf for shoes. Shoes are not worn in a Mosque because it is a place of worship to Allah, the Arabic word for God, where cleanliness is all-important. Shoes will have dirt on them. One cannot go before God in such a state. After my shoes are removed I proceed through the vestibule. On each side of the fountain are restrooms, one for men, one for women. Inside the restrooms is where differences begin. Each houses a wash basin which reminds me of when I was a young girl in elementary school and the old round sinks we used to wash our hands. This is the same. It is here that Muslims perform wudu. Wudu is the cleansing done beforeShow MoreRelatedan analysis of my cultural experience1698 Words   |  7 Pagesart and Mexican murals, commonly noticed when tourists visit cities located mostly in the southern part of Mexico. Architecture, greatly treasured by most Mexicans is full of variety, pyramids, cathedrals and governments buildings are commonly seen in some parts of Mexico. Many pyramids located in the southern part of the country were amazingly built by the indigenous many centuries ago. These structures are admired by millions of people who visit them every year. Mexican cuisine, a very importan t partRead MoreEid ul Adha (Holiday)1024 Words   |  5 Pageshaving sex are strictly forbidden. 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Among them are belief in angels, prophetsRead MoreHass Muslims Against Hunger1334 Words   |  6 PagesZamir Hassan: Muslims Against Hunger A software engineer combats America s hunger crisis â€Å"My goal is to engage Muslims in their communities. I want to change their mindset. They have to live their religion not only practicing it,† confirmed Zamir Hassan, the founder of Muslims Against Hunger in a hotel room in Washington D.C. via Skype video. Hassan is a retired software engineer who grew up in Pakistan and moved to the United States in 1973. He studied at Cornell University, lived in New York,Read MoreMy Sen 180 Intercultural Communication Class Essay1029 Words   |  5 PagesIntercultural communication class conducted a field trip to the Jamaica Islamic Center, Queens, on November 22, 2016. I did some research about the Jamaica Islamic Center and, according to JIC â€Å"Jamaica Islamic Center, INC is an initiative of Muslims in America dedicated to promoting Islamic awareness and facilitating socio-economic welfare of the common people in Jamaica, Queens, New York†. (http://jamaicamuslimcenter.org/) I met my HUN 180 class in the E-building lobby in LaGuardia community College whereRead MoreTurkey s Culture And History1253 Words   |  6 Pagesto prepare (Sansal, n.d.). Throughout the years, these dishes have become very popular in many countries with North America being one of them. With other countries inheriting some of these delicious gourmet dishes, it has transformed into many variations in style that the dishes are cooked and served. Architecture Turkey has much different architecture aside from mosques, palaces, and clock towers. Although these are common buildings, these are just a few of many types of styles in TurkeyRead MoreCulture Shock By Peter L. 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The Problem of Enviromental Refugees Free Essays

Introduction: The status of the refugees as individuals who seek international protection, as a result of the lack of possibility to be protected from their national state, has always been a subject to legal researches and legal dilemmas. Having in mind the bloody history of the mankind, the whole world after the World War II, wanted to end the tragedies of the people who were forced to leave their homes. Therefore, the states signed numerous international documents regarding the status of the refugees and the methods of their protection. We will write a custom essay sample on The Problem of Enviromental Refugees or any similar topic only for you Order Now But considering all of the recent events, the question of whether already established law mechanisms for refugee protection are satisfying, or the law is failing to provide an answer for the new challenges, begins to rise again. Some major factors may combine to produce hundreds of millions of environmental refugees in the 21st century which are refugees that are forced to migrate, for reasons, different than the ones for refugees in the past. According to the Norwegian Refugee Council, 51.2 million people had been displaced from their homes, which is the highest number recorded since the refugee crisis following World War II. 22 million of them were displaced by disasters. There are some indications that the refugee crisis in Syria has its background in the climate change phenomena since many of the people which are part of the conflict had no reliable access to food, water or jobs. But regardless of all of the above, there is no existing international policy for environmental refugees and their protection depends from case to case, which leave space for a polarized interpretation from one state to another, undermining the principles of legal certainty and legal predictability. Purpose: The purpose of the research will be to argue that currently there is not any existing legal framework that protects nor applies to environmental refugees. The existing framework is focused on the refugees, defined as such in the Refugee Convention from 1951. This Convention does not recognize the term â€Å"environmental refugees† and these individuals are deprived of any material or juridical support of institutions like the UNHCR or government agencies. Furthermore, the regional legal agreements expand the definition of refugee only accordingly with the Refugee Convention’s narrative, and these agreements are not creative nor progressive in a context-specific manner of environmental refugees. The treaties of Copenhagen, Kyoto, and Paris regarding the climate change do not deal with the problem of already existing environmental refugees, but only offer a solution how countries need to act in order to cope with climate change and prevent future migration. There is a significant lack of social awareness in these treaties when it comes to the corpus of rights which exist to protect individuals, especially those in vulnerable circumstances like the environmental refugees. The rights of this group of people are not the priority of these agreements and they enjoy zero protection from these legal acts. This research will provide two recommendations, as possible solutions to this problem which so far is not properly acknowledged in the international law. The first recommendation is to make a change in the definition of a refugee in the Refugee Convention in favour of environmental refugees. Such a change will provide a complete and comprehensive legal framework, and the states will be legaly bind to provide a core of rights that applies on environmental refugees. Furthermore, the states will have certain responsibilities when it comes to this group of refugees. The enviormental refugees will be able to enjoy protection by the articles 31- 33 as well, meaning that the states will be obligated not to impose penalties, expel or return (refoulement) them into the country where they have migrated from. The second recommendation is more creative and requires a higher level of political will and awareness for the process of empowering the human rights. I propose creating a new Convention which will be applicable to both, enviornmental refugees and people that are internaly displaced because of natural disasters. Such approach will equal the rights of the invididuals of both groups, which is necessity having in mind the reasons of their migration. Also creating a new Convention will significatelly improve the status of these people because they will have a concrete documents which will guarantee their rights and will provide adequate methods of their needs and protection. Methods of research: The main used method is analysis of selected research works, documents, books, articles and information from specialized websites. I also want to conduct a survey between the law students in University of Skopje and University of Cardiff which field of interest is in the area of human rights. This survey should provide answers about whether there are any differences in the perception of the treatment of the environmental refugees and the need for their protection, between the scholars in developing and developed countries. In my opinion this is important because in order to change the international framework in the context of enviormental refugee a consesnsus between a developing and developed contrues is more than a necessety. Even more, environmental migration must be integrated into national development frameworks, poverty reduction strategies, and other areas of policy. The processes of migration have different influence, especially from economic aspect when it comes to developing and developed states. Therefore, their political and legal will of creating a framework for enviormental refugees will be different. I strongly believe that the young individuals will be the future leaders of these processes and that is why their opinion matters. How to cite The Problem of Enviromental Refugees, Papers

The Father She Needed free essay sample

Over time, her relationship with her stepfather strengthens, which in turn gives her the encouragement that she wanted, and the true father figure that she desperately needed. When Stephanie sees a shot-put match take place that her newest stepfather takes her too, she immediately falls in love. She begins to strengthen herself so much that it begins to bother her mother Helen. She is completely against Stephanie’s sport and constantly puts her down. There are many instances in which Helen opposes Stephanie’s steadfastness toward shot-put. As a former Avon consultant, her mother’s view of beauty greatly differs from Stephanie’s. Helen sees beauty as more of an outer aspect rather than inner and this the first step toward extreme conflict with Stephanie. Secondly, Helen simply speaks her opinion on the matter by telling her husband, â€Å"I have to sit alone and watch my daughter, by beautiful Stephanie, do dynamic tension to her neck and arms. Every morning while she chews her toast I look to see if facial hair has started to grow† (Apple, 132). Throughout Max Apple’s â€Å"Stepdaughters,† her mother Helen is antagonizing Stephanie for pursuing a career in shot-put and it’s because of this that her relationship with her new stepfather blossoms. Stephanie has never really developed a relationship with any of her previous fathers. She begins to develop a relationship with her new stepfather when he takes an interest in her life and introduces her to shot-put. There are many instances in the story where her father openly supports her shot-putting. First of all, he ants to develop a real lasting relationship with Stephanie and Helen, and because he openly supports Stephanie, she begins to trust him and consider him a true father figure. One instance of this is that at the beginning of â€Å"Stepdaughters,† he gives her a poster of the band Genesis in hopes that â€Å"it would signify a beginning for the three of us† (Apple, 129). Secondly, he is so steadfast in supporting her dream that at the end of the story he explains â€Å"[Stephanie] has a lot to throw away, this stepdaughter of mine; in eight-pound chunks she might be able to manage it, maybe all the way to the Olympics† (Apple, 135). In the end he supports her and he always will. Despite the confrontation between Stephanie and her mother, he is always there to back her up as she pursues her dream. This was the perfect time when Stephanie needed a father figure; not just to provide for her, but to love, care, and support her in whatever she does. If Stephanie were to start up shot-put, when her mother was single, her dream might have been abruptly ended by her mother opposition to it. Stephanie’s new stepfather was the person to introduce to her a sport that she loves and become the father that she never had. In the sum of it all Stephanie is at a povital point in her life, and her mother may oppose her dream for a long time. But because her new father that she is just getting to know supports her, she may have it a little easier through her new few years than they would be without him. Stephanie tells her father near the end of the story, â€Å"You can pack up whatever you want. You don’t have to put up with us. You must know by now that this not is going to stop. I’m going to give it everything I’ve got for the next three years and you can bet that Mom’s going to fight me every inch. Life around this house is not going to be a picnic† (Apple, 134). Stephanie has seen so many stepfathers come and go that she’s basically saying that she wouldn’t be surprised if he left her too. As he has proved throughout the story, he not going anywhere. He is there to stay because he cares for her and he cares for her mom. She is working steadfastly toward a goal and her father will stand by her side every step of the way. Works Cited Apple, Max. â€Å"Stepdaughters. † The Norton Introduction to Literature. Alsion Booth and Kelly J. Mays. 10th ed. NY: WW Norton, 2010. 129-135. Print. Outline Thesis: In Max Apple’s â€Å"Stepdaughters,† Stephanie, despite constant criticism from her mother Helen, pushes herself to perfect her trade to the best of her ability with her stepfather. Over time, her relationship with her stepfather strengthens, which in turn gives her the encouragement that she wanted, and the true father figure that she desperately needed. Body Paragraph I. Stephanie’s begins to clash with her mother because Helen’s view of beauty greatly differs from Stephanie’s. When Stephanie, starting shot-put, her mother Helen became very critical and annoyed. Her relationship with her father helps her deal with this. A. Helen used to work as an Avon consultant and her view of beauty greatly differs from the narrator’s and Stephanie’s. (Page 132, Paragraph 60) B. Helen disapproves of Stephanie’s love of shot-put. (Page 132, Paragraph 59) C. Helen is also very critical about Stephanie’s choice. (Page 132, Paragraphs 76, 77) Body Paragraph II. Stephanie has never really developed a relationship with any of her previous fathers. She begins to develop a relationship with her new stepfather when he takes an interest in her life and introduces her to shot-put. A. Stephanie’s new father has a desire to make lasting relationships with her and her mother. (Page 129, Paragraphs 11-15) B. Stephanie is introduced to shot-put by her stepdad. (Page 130, Paragraph 15 C. Stephanie’s relationship with her stepdad begins to blossom when he takes a real interest in her life and her activities. The conflict with her mother helps to strengthen the bond between her and her stepdad, because he supports her, when her mother does not. (Page 134, Paragraph 89; Page 135, Paragraph 92) Conclusion

Outline and evaluate definitions of abnormality. free essay sample

Outline and evaluate definitions of abnormality. Abnormality has three definitions. The first definition Is deviation from social norms. Social norms are the approved and expected ways of behaving In a particular society. In terms of social norms, abnormal behavior can be seen as behavior that deviates from or violates social norms. The key weakness of the deviation of social norms is cultural relativity. Social norms by their very definition are specific to a particular culture or society so a behavior seen as a deviation in one society may appear acceptable but may not be accepted in other society.Social norms vary as time changes and vary from culture to culture. Secondly, abnormality can be defined as the failure to function adequately. It means that person is unable to love a normal life, they have experiences outside the normal range of emotions or do not engage in the normal range of behavior. We will write a custom essay sample on Outline and evaluate definitions of abnormality. or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page This can be seen as the person not being able to cope with life on a day-to-day basis. Functioning can be measured on the Global Assessment of Functioning scale (GAFF). The first strength of failure to function Is It Is practical and focuses on treating the abnormal behavior.Failure to unction means those outside the individual do not have to label a person as mentally abnormal which still carries stigma in many societies. Unlike the deviation of social norms focusing on public view, it recognizes a persons subjective experience as a means of helping to define who is abnormal. We can focusing on treating the behavior that is hindering the person from leading an adequately normal life and offer treatment to encourage more adaptive behavior. However, it is not without its problems. The first limitation is that apparently abnormal behavior may actually be helpful, functional and adaptive for the individual.For example, those with obsessive-compulsive disorders find that their obsessions (some maybe socially acceptable behavior such as hand-washing) make them feel happy. The second Limitation Is some of Its criteria depend on subjective Judgments of other people. It may be that someone Is deemed abnormal simply because the observer experiences discomfort In watching their behavior and in their own mind believes them unable to function adequately. Thirdly, abnormality can be defined as the deviation from ideal mental health. There are a number of desirable or ideal characteristics that we need in order to enjoy ideal mental health.These include the ability to cope with stress, feeling in control of our environment and awareness of reality. The lack of any of these may be a sign of mental abnormality. One strength of the ideal mental health definition is it emphasizes positive achievements rather than failure and distress. It gives individuals targets to alma for, which will increase their mental health. However, It Is practically Impossible for any Individual to achieve all of what Moscow deems Ideal characteristics (e. G. Self-actualization) at one time. As a result, most people are considered abnormal when referring to his concept.