East Coast Conference
November 18 - 19, 2023
New Brunswick, NJ
Rutgers University, Cook Student Center, 59 Biel Road, New Brunswick, NJ 08901
Pre-Conference Event on Saturday evening
Post-Conference Summary
What an unforgettable weekend! On November 18 and 19, 2023, the Sisterhood of Salaam Shalom hosted its 10th annual conference at Rutgers University in New Jersey. Conference weekend began with a thought-provoking documentary screening of "Stranger at the Gate" followed by an engaging panel discussion with the director and audience. The conference brought together participants both in-person and online, with attendees joining from near and far, creating a vibrant and inclusive gathering. The weekend featured a diverse program, insightful keynote presentations by Wendy Goldberg and Dr. Amra Sabic El-Rayess, workshops led by experts in interfaith and spiritual leadership, and more. The highlight was the opportunity to learn, connect, and celebrate sisterhood, fostering meaningful connections among attendees from various locations. The smiles captured in the photos truly reflect the joy of coming together once again!
Keynote Speakers
Wendy Goldberg
Wendy Goldberg is a founding board member and the Executive Director of Tri-Faith Initiative, which brings a synagogue, church, mosque, and interfaith center together on one 38-acre campus in Omaha, Nebraska. From this intentionally diverse space, they bridge divides among three faith communities, neighbors throughout their larger local community, and, increasingly, people across the U.S. and around the world.
For more than 15 years she has worked with clergy, lay leaders, social sector and nonprofit organizations, community leaders, and local educators to make interfaith cooperation a social norm. Wendy leads from her value of courageous living. She is deeply passionate about how we can understand ourselves and our neighbors better, adapting to meet the needs of our community.
Dr. Amra Sabic El-Rayess
Amra Sabic-El-Rayess is an associate professor of practice in Teachers College, Columbia University. Dr. Sabic-El-Rayess has taught, researched, and published on a range of issues in education, including Educational Displacement, targeted violence, hate prevention, interfaith collaboration, anti-Muslim racism, storytelling, radicalization, othering, transitional justice, corruption, social cohesion, social mobility, and social transformation. Dr. Sabic-El-Rayess’ work on building resilience to ethnicity-, race-, and religion-based violence has led to her ongoing international engagement.
CONNECT
LEARN
Act
Join us for a day dedicated to gathering with fellow sisters, developing new skills, learning from renowned experts, and doing your part in creating a just, peaceful, and inclusive world.
What you can expect
Workshops - building and expanding on our work and looking at how each of us brings a unique perspective to build our collective strength. Topics will include how to cope with and prevent Anti-Jewish/Anti Muslim bigotry, reproductive rights in our faith traditions, imagining Andalusia, a hands-on service project and Israel/Palestine personal narratives.
Vendor Fair with various tables of products and services related to the Sisterhood
Networking and Building Relationships from across the Sisterhood in small group discussions on the day of the conference plus an additional opportunity at a Welcome Event on Saturday evening!
Workshop Information
Israel/Palestine: Personal Narratives and Sharing
Speakers from Combatants for Peace - Souli Khatib and Ayala Shaler
For over seventy decades, war and violence have gripped Israel and Palestine. Polarized and deeply held opinions in the US make conversations to support an end to this violence charged and difficult. Combatants for Peace is an organization built from parallel structures on each side of this conflict, of people who have laid down their arms to seek a peaceful together. Join Ayala Shaler and Suliman Khatib, Palestinian and former member for the armed resistance, for a discussion on how their work for peace, justice, and joint-community has created a new model for opening hearts and minds and creating a path for a shared future of peace.
*This workshop is sponsored by Marcia's Light Foundation*
Charity and Justice in Islamic and Jewish Traditions: A Hands on Service Workshop
Beth Turetsky and Sabiha Sultana
Join Sisterhood co-leaders Beth Turetsky and Sabiha Sultana for a workshop that explores the rich histories of Jewish and Islamic service work combined with a hands-on service project. This workshop will use Islamic and Jewish texts to examine what our sages say about charity, justice, and community and prompt participants to reflect on what these values mean in their own lives. Then, attendees will participate in an "in-workshop" service project designed to benefit a local community.
Reproductive Rights in Islam and Judaism
Asifa Quraishi-Landes and Magda Shaler-Haynes
How Culture Wars In Schools Are Affecting Religious Minorities And What You Can Do About It
*Online and In Person*
Sofia Ali-Khan (online) and Linda K. Wertheimer (in-person)
Imagining Al-Andalus: Social, Cultural and Religious Transformations
*Available Online Only*
Munir Shaikh
The Iberian peninsula witnessed a unique coexistence among Christians, Jews and Muslims, featuring inspiring cross-cultural efforts as well as lamentable conflict, over the course of Middle Ages, particular during the era of Muslim rule. This presentation provides an overview of shifting relations from the 8th through the 16th centuries, focusing primarily on the experience of Andalusi Muslims and Jews, reflecting a shared regional identity as inhabitants of "Al-Andalus," the name Muslims used for this region. The growth of religious ideologies of intolerance and domination brought about the end of this unique society, and undergirded ensuing centuries of conquest that refashioned the world. The memory of Al-Andalus has come to provide inspiration for imagining what peaceful coexistence might look like in our time.
“Choosing my favorite part of the conference is so difficult! Keynote speakers were great and the choice of breakout programs was wonderful!” ~2021 Conference Participant
Saturday Evening Welcome Event
Join your fellow conference attendees for a special welcome event on Saturday evening.
We are thrilled to be screening the documentary Stranger At The Gate on Saturday evening at Rutgers! An Afghan refugee named Bibi Bahrami - and the members of her little Indiana mosque - encounter a U.S. Marine, Richard A. McKinney, who has a secret plot to bomb the mosque, but when they come face to face, the Marine's plan takes an unexpected turn. A story of grace, transformation and hope!
The event will start at 7 p.m. with a screening of Stranger at the Gate, followed by a panel discussion. We are honored to have Bibi Bahrami, Richard A. McKinney, and director Joshua Seftel join us for this special evening!
Sunday Schedule
9:00am Registration/Coffee
10:00 Conference Welcome
10:30 Keynote Speaker
11:15 Structured networking/recognition of members and participants
11:30 Keynote speaker
12:15pm Lunch/Prayer/Vendor Fair
1:30 Welcome Back/Call to Action
2:00 Workshops
3:30 Prayer and Closing Circle
4:00 Conference Closing
Please note all times are Eastern Standard Time. Times are subject to change.
“There is something in the air – the sense of power and possibility – I always leave the conference feeling energized, inspired, and ready to take on the world.” ~Lisa
Show Us Your Sisterhood Spirit!
Our "From Dialogue to Action" Conference scarf is available for pre-order! This beautiful poly-chiffon scarf with grey-thread finished edges is 16" wide by 72" long. All pre-orders will be available for pick-up at the conference. Make sure to order yours today for special pre-conference pricing!
Sponsoring this year's conference enables this important event to be accessible to the greatest number of people possible, allowing supporters to join us from around the globe as we spend the day learning from experts and engaging in this critical work.
Since 2014, our annual conference has been the largest, North American-based gathering for Muslim and Jewish women and allies seeking to build community, develop skills, and advocate for an end to discrimination, prejudice, and hate. Your support helps ensure that conference attendees will take home new tools to further prepare themselves to advocate, educate, and become leaders on the front lines against ignorance and bigotry.
Through joining us as a sponsor for From Dialogue to Action, you’re signaling your commitment to interfaith engagement, to building just and inclusive communities, and to seeking peace, not only to hundreds of conference attendees but to all who participate in our work.
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Travel Information
Rutgers University Inn and Conference Center
178 Ryders Lane
New Brunswick, NJ 08901-8556
The Sisterhood has secured a rate of $86/night for double non-smoking rooms. Use the link below to reserve your room today! This rate is for November 18th only. Additional nights will have to be booked separately. Booking instructions:
- Click Link Below
- Click on the BOOK A ROOM button
- Select November 18th arrival and November 19th as departure
- Enter PROMOTIONAL/GROUP CODE: SOSS 28470
- Click the SEARCH AVAILABILITY button
- Click the VIEW RATES button
- Click the ADD button
- Follow instructions for a credit card payment
- Should you need to arrive or depart later than above specified dates, additional reservations will need to be made. Do not re-enter the promotional/group code for additional nights. Make a note alerting the staff that you are part of the Sisterhood of Salaam Shalom so your stay can be continuous in one room. Failure to provide this information could result in having to change rooms during your stay.
- Rate and cancellation policy: Reservation is non-refundable. 100% deposit is required at the time of booking. Reservation cannot be cancelled, amended or adjusted after booking. Should a guest not arrive on the reservation date, the reservation will be cancelled without refund or credit.
Any problems or questions, please contact Donna Binstein at the hotel directly at (732) 932-9144, x2239 or [email protected]
Discounted rate is available until November 2, 2023.
