NASHVILLE, Tenn. — A collection of essays addressing the “profound
misunderstandings” between Islamic cultures and the Western world will
be signed and discussed Wednesday, Feb. 16, from 4 to 6 p.m. at
Vanderbilt. The book is edited by Steven Heyneman, professor of
international education policy in the Vanderbilt University Department
of Leadership, Policy and Organizations.
The five essays that comprise Islam and Social Policy, published in
July 2004 by Vanderbilt University Press, address waqf, the Islamic
method of ensuring charity; Islamic law and the position of women;
Islamic law and contraception and family planning; the Pakistani
federal waqf ministry; and Iranian health policy.
“These five essays help us better understand some of the many very
positive contributions of Islamic law to child welfare and the position
of women and help us better understand the complexities of another
culture and its moral foundations,” Heyneman said.
Heyneman came to Vanderbilt in 2000 after spending more than 20
years working with the World Bank on education policy reform around the
world.
Samar Ali, a second-year Vanderbilt law student and former
Vanderbilt student government president who has traveled extensively
through the Middle East, will comment on the book.
The discussion will be moderated by Richard McGregor, assistant
professor of religious studies and an expert on Islamic intellectual
traditions.
The free, public event is sponsored by the Vanderbilt Institute for
Public Policy Studies and will take place in Wilson Hall, Room 126. For
more information, call Mary Kay Matthys at 615-343-9937.
Media contact: Melanie Catania, (615) 322-NEWS
Melanie.catania@vanderbilt.edu