the panel
Soumaya Khalifa, founder and executive director, Islamic Speakers Bureau of Atlanta
the breakdown
Born in Alexandria, Egypt, Soumaya Khalifa moved to the United States as a child. He graduated from the University of Houston with a degree in chemistry and moved to Atlanta in 1988. After receiving an MBA in Human Resources from Georgia State University, he founded the Islamic Speakers Bureau of Atlanta in August of 2001, which would work to promote understanding. and fighting bigotry after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.
LISTEN: Soumaya Khalifa on feeling like she belonged.
Khalifa said she was devastated by the 9/11 news. His organization received calls from Georgians curious about what the Muslims in their community were really like. He spoke out against extremism, saying Islamic terrorists did not act out of a religious interest, but from another place. Instead, he spoke of experiences of Islamophobia, which he claimed were around election season, such as during former President Donald Trump’s “Muslim ban.”
LISTEN: Soumaya Khalifa on her 9/11 experience.
The Islamic Speakers Bureau sends requests to speak to organizations such as churches, synagogues, businesses, political bodies and more. Among other topics, they answer questions about what it’s like to be a Muslim in America, or to be a Muslim woman. Khalifa says the latter question comes up often, as Americans have a perception that all Muslim women are oppressed.
LISTEN: Soumaya Khalifa on the values Islam emphasizes.
