Manhattan College’s Holocaust, Genocide and Interfaith Education (HGI) Center in partnership with the Mary Alice and Tom O’Malley Library, was recently selected by the National Endowment for the Humanities to receive the Muslim Journeys Bookshelf collection. The College is among 842 libraries and state humanities councils in the United States, and one of only eight in New York City, to receive the award.
The collection of 25 books, three films and other resources was created to help familiarize the American public with the history and culture of Muslims. The diverse subject materials include Islamic art, history, literature, poetry, cartoons, women’s rights, American Muslims, fundamentalism and secularism.
“Congratulations to Manhattan College on receiving the National Endowment for the Humanities Muslim Journeys Bookshelf collection. Receiving this collection provides the school with an opportunity to promote community discussion and build bridges among diverse cultures and faiths,” said New York State assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz.
The HGI Center along with the library will soon apply for the second stage of the award, which is a grant that would bring authors from the Muslim Journeys Bookshelf collection to campus.
“It’s an honor and demonstrates the commitment that the College and Center have made towards excellence in teaching, diversity and scholarship,” said Mehnaz Afridi, Ph.D., director of the HGI Center and assistant professor of religious studies at Manhattan College.
“We hope to use these valuable resources to educate for interfaith cooperation within the Manhattan College community and for our neighborhood outreach events,” added Maire Duchon, director of the O’Malley Library.
The collection, which is housed in the HGI Center, room 315 of the library, is available for all to use.