Category: Life & Society Topics: American Muslims Views: 5843
5843
An American Muslim Pioneer
| Marghoob Ahmad Quraishi (1931-2005)
Muslims all over the United States mourned the passing of Marghoob Quraishi on Wednesday, January 26, 2005. Marghoob Quraishi was born in India and moved to Pakistan soon after the partition of the subcontinent. After obtaining his undergraduate degree from Pakistan, he came to California in 1960, via London and Montreal, for his graduate studies in business and finance at Stanford University. After completion of his master's degree, he started his own firm in the area of business and financial consulting. Mr. Quraishi's social activism dated back to his college days. His prime concern was social issues facing the Muslim world in general and the American Muslim community in particular. Over the past 45 years, he was involved in founding and organizing a host of American Muslim institutions throughout the US, especially in California. He was one of the founders of the Muslim Students Association, the United Muslims of America organization and the Muslim Student Network internship program in Washington, DC. In addition, he founded the summer Muslim Youth Camp and the Islamic School at Stanford, both of which have been in operation for the last 40 years. He established and was the Executive Director of the Strategic Research Foundation, a major Muslim think tank. He edited Muslim journals, Al-Manar and Geopolitic Reviews. Throughout his lifetime, Mr. Quraishi was an exemplary and self-effacing pioneer of the American Muslim community. He is survived by his wife, Renae Iffat Quraishi, who has been an active equal partner, three daughters, one son, and three grandchildren. |
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It was the summer of 1985 and inside the cubic Kaaba, there was this middle aged man next to me crying with floods of tears running on his cheeks. I had just finished my prayer inside the Kaaba. We looked at each other. He said, "I am Marghoob Quraishi from Palo Alto, California." "I am Aslam Abdullah from London," I replied. This was our first meeting, inside the Kaaba. Marghoob Quraishi was in Makkah attending an international conference on Islam and social change. I told him that I was there also to present a paper on media ethics. We spend the next three days together talking about almost everything that we could think of, as far as the Muslim state of affairs was concerned. He told me about a youth camp that he had initiated in California since 1958. I told him of the "Arabia" news magazine that I was associated with.
A few months later, we met again at the residence of Hashir Farooqi, a fellow journalist in London. Mr. Farooqi called me one evening and urged me to come to his home as quickly as possible, as he wanted me to meet someone from America who wanted to set up a think tank for Muslims. Without knowing that it was Marghoob Quraishi, I rushed to his residence and stayed there for almost six hours talking, once again, about the status of the Muslim community and the need to inject into it fresh thinking about the strategies of change.
The third time we met was in Malaysia, where Marghoob was attending another international conference. I was there giving a series of lectures to the university of Malay students on media ethics. It was at this meeting that he invited me to his summer youth camp. I said God willing.
I didn't realize that the opportunity to visit him would come soon. "Arabia" magazine was closed down and I moved to Chicago to work at the American Islamic College. I contacted Marghoob upon my arrival to Chicago and this was the beginning of a long friendship and work.
For almost 10 years, I didn't miss a year of the camp he had pioneered in California. I was also with him when he organized the Muslim Student Network, an annual policy training program in Washington. We exchanged hundreds of phone calls and thousands of emails during these 18 years.
He was a tireless mujahid, always concerned about the future of the Muslim community, always worried about the dangers that lay ahead. His concerns were crystallized sharply when he founded the Strategic Research Foundation and invited me to be part of the foundation.
He was a visionary, an activist, a doer, a thinker and above all a very sincere and compassionate man. Not many people know the fact that he was the first elected president of the first ever Islamic organization started in the US by immigrant Muslims. He put his resources at the service of the Muslim community. He never sought any office or any reward for his work.
His most precious contribution to the Muslim community is the annual Muslim Youth Camp - now in its 43rd year - that he founded and carried on until he met his Creator. He was a mentor to the young people who attended his camps. Many of these young people are now working in important positions in different companies and Islamic organizations.
His second most precious contribution to the Muslim community is the Muslim Student Network that he co founded with his wife Iffat Quraishi. The MSN is the only organized effort to link young Muslim America with political America. So far, more than 150 students have completed an intense summer training program that has been offered every year since 1993. I have had the privilege to work with him almost every year. He never complained about the apathy of those who knew the importance of this work. He never criticized those who opposed him silently on this project.
In particular, Marghoob Quraishi wanted the MSN program to succeed, in order to insure the future of Muslims in America. He knew that there were many in the Muslim community who did not support this project simply because their names were not on the list of invited guest speakers. Yet he never said a word of disrespect against anyone. On the contrary, he always tried to include such people in this project. The project that he was working at, till he departed from this world, was about a conference of scholars and activists that he wanted to organize first in London and subsequently in the US. He wanted Muslim scholars and activists to present a "State of the Umma" report to find the ways to overcome our collective difficulties. We exchanged several drafts on the proposal. I had offered him the venue of the Las Vegas Islamic Society to host such a conference, and he was keen that such a conference takes place either in March or in April. A few days before he met his Lord, he said, "I want to put together the team to finish the job, as I know I would not be here long." How right he was in foreseeing his last journey.
His legacy will live in the youth camps, MSN, and the scholars conference that, Inshallah, will take place. But more so in his daughters and son. May God bless him and elevate his status in paradise and give patience to his family. He was a silent soldier, a real hero, a real gem whose likes are rare to be found in the US, the land of glamour and razzmatazz where Islamic work is often carried on to win a few second's spots in the media. He created wave after wave of change, yet he never proclaimed any status - for his ultimate reward would be with Allah.
Dr. Aslam Abdullah is Director of the Muslim Electorates' Council of America. He is also the director of the Islamic Society of Nevada.
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Older Comments:
RAFATH WAHEED FROM U.S.A. said:
May Allah grant him Jannah and rest his soul in peace. Brother Marqoub Qureshi's vision and struggles will always be a beacon of light and hope for generations to come. My condolences to his family. May Allah give them courage and patience to bear the loss of a very special father and husband. He has laid the foundation for great work ahead for all of us to continue InshaAllah.
2005-02-03
MUXIYADIIN FROM ALLAH`S EARTH(USA) said:
THE ALMIGHTY ALLAH DO WE ALL BELONG AND TO HIM SHALL WE ALL RETURN. May ALLAH be pleased with our brother and may ALLAH shower HIS Mercy on him. May ALLAH endow our brother`s families with patience and EEMAAN.Most certainly, we all shall die and shall be questioned about what we did in this world, while ALLAH knows what we did and we do.So My respected brothers and sisters in Islam, we must work for ALLAH`s Deen during our sojourn stay on ALLAH`s earth.Please, sisters and brothers, let us not forget to pray for our brothers and sisters worldwide,especially for those who are in troubling conditions, be they OPPRESSIONS or SUBJUGATIONS, OCCUPATIONS, POOR ECONOMIC CONDITIONS, etc. We all know and are convinced ALLAH`s Mercy is limitless and If we return to ALLAH, ALLAH THE ALMIGHTY will take us out of these problems. We are being subjugated worldwide because we didnot put our trust in ALLAH, but in men who are truly perverted transgressors!. These subjugations will Insha`ALLAH come to an end with ALLAH`s help, the Most Powerful,the Creator of the Heavens and Earth. Let us pray for our brothers and sisters who are daily being victimized and for others who are in poor economic conditions.Thatis our duty.May ALLAH unite the Ummah and take them out of these problems.AAMIIN.
2005-02-03
JOHN FROM US said:
In addition to the last persons comments, we are also reminded of what we must do to insha'Allah help this ummah!
Allah rest his soul in Paradise, ameen.
Asalamu alyakum wa rahmattallah
Allah rest his soul in Paradise, ameen.
Asalamu alyakum wa rahmattallah
2005-02-02
DR. ASLAM ABDULAH FROM USA said:
Brother Muhammad wrote that euologizing is not part of Islamic traditions. My reading of the life of the Prophet indicate otherwise. in the Battle of Badr, at the time of the burial of Musab ibn Umair, the Prophet spoke for almost 10 minutes on the qualities of the martyr. He praised his commitment to Islam and acknowledged his contribution to the ummah.
Earlier, at the time of the burial of his wife Khadeeja, the Prophet spoke of her qualities and throughout his life, he kept talking about her on different occasions.
When we acknowledge the contribution of people serving Islam, we are simply reminding ourselves of the task that lies ahead of us and the responsibilities that we all have to undertake.
Earlier, at the time of the burial of his wife Khadeeja, the Prophet spoke of her qualities and throughout his life, he kept talking about her on different occasions.
When we acknowledge the contribution of people serving Islam, we are simply reminding ourselves of the task that lies ahead of us and the responsibilities that we all have to undertake.
2005-01-31
IBRAHIM-KHALIL FROM GUSAU,NIGERIA said:
May his gentle soul rest in peace.Ameen.
2005-01-31
ABDUL FROM SOMALI said:
Allah rest his soul in peace and grantee him JANNAH,indeed he was a good figure for muslims in general.And my sorrys going to his family
Allah rest his soul in peace and grantee him JANNAH,indeed he was a good figure for muslims in general.And my sorrys going to his family
2005-01-31
MUHAMMAD37 FROM US said:
Let us all make Dua for this brother and his family, but let us also remember that eulogizing is not part of our tradition.
2005-01-30
MUKARAM FROM USA said:
We are all from Allah and to Him we shall return.
May Allah subhanahu wa tala be pleased with Marghoob Ahmad Quraishi, Ameen
May Allah subhanahu wa tala be pleased with Marghoob Ahmad Quraishi, Ameen
2005-01-29
