An outdooor festival this summer in South Chicago organized by members of the South Asian community plans to use hip hop as a way to bring the city together.
The Takin’ It to the Streets festival has attracted such musicians as Mos Def in 2010 and is organized by the Inner-City Muslim Action Network, or IMAN, reported KSMU.
Organizers hope the festival will bring residents of all backgrounds together.
“We still live in a country where, unfortunately, many Americans still associate Islam with violence, said Rami Nashashibi of IMAN. “The recent Pew study found that almost 50 percent of Americans are more likely to think about Islam as a religion that promotes violence than other religions. So to be in a place that is associated with a different type of violence on the South Side of Chicago and to see Muslims alongside Jews, Christians and others promoting a message of real peace with real solutions to problems that we all face, with an artist like Mos, was really profound.”
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Nashashibi spoke to KSMU about Islam’s role in promoting social activism and you can read about it here.
