> Skip to content
FEATURED:
  • Philanthropy 50
  • Nonprofits and the Trump Agenda
  • Impact Stories Hub
Sign In
  • Latest
  • Commons
  • Advice
  • Opinion
  • Webinars
  • Online Events
  • Data
  • Grants
  • Magazine
  • Store
    • Featured Products
    • Data
    • Reports
    • Collections
    • Back Issues
    • Webinars
    • Featured Products
    • Data
    • Reports
    • Collections
    • Back Issues
    • Webinars
  • Jobs
    • Find a Job
    • Post a Job
    • Career Advice
    • Find a Job
    • Post a Job
    • Career Advice
Sign In
  • Latest
  • Commons
  • Advice
  • Opinion
  • Webinars
  • Online Events
  • Data
  • Grants
  • Magazine
  • Store
    • Featured Products
    • Data
    • Reports
    • Collections
    • Back Issues
    • Webinars
    • Featured Products
    • Data
    • Reports
    • Collections
    • Back Issues
    • Webinars
  • Jobs
    • Find a Job
    • Post a Job
    • Career Advice
    • Find a Job
    • Post a Job
    • Career Advice
  • Latest
  • Commons
  • Advice
  • Opinion
  • Webinars
  • Online Events
  • Data
  • Grants
  • Magazine
  • Store
    • Featured Products
    • Data
    • Reports
    • Collections
    • Back Issues
    • Webinars
    • Featured Products
    • Data
    • Reports
    • Collections
    • Back Issues
    • Webinars
  • Jobs
    • Find a Job
    • Post a Job
    • Career Advice
    • Find a Job
    • Post a Job
    • Career Advice
Sign In
ADVERTISEMENT
Advice
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Show more sharing options
Share
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Copy Link URLCopied!
  • Print

Chicago Activist Shares Tips for Running a Faith-Based Advocacy Organization

By  Michael Anft
March 5, 2019
Rami Nashashibi in a meeting with IMAN committee members in the group’s backyard garden.
Julius Allen/IMAN
Rami Nashashibi in a meeting with IMAN committee members in the group’s backyard garden.

During his 25 years at the helm of the Inner-City Muslim Action Network, Rami Nashashibi has built the group into a force for activism on Chicago’s troubled South Side. Here are a few of his ideas on how to run a multifaceted faith-based advocacy organization:

Learn from more experienced activists. Upon founding the network, known by its acronym IMAN, Nashashibi began working intimately with others, including a rabbi and a female African-American Pentecostal preacher, Patricia Van Pelt Watkins, who helped him understand the possibilities of organizing neighborhoods. “These were people who were already doing amazing work in our area,” he says. The preacher, Patricia Watkins, “taught me how to create broad-based coalitions,” Nashashibi says.

We're sorry. Something went wrong.

We are unable to fully display the content of this page.

The most likely cause of this is a content blocker on your computer or network.

Please allow access to our site, and then refresh this page. You may then be asked to log in, create an account if you don't already have one, or subscribe.

If you continue to experience issues, please contact us at 571-540-8070 or cophelp@philanthropy.com

During his 25 years at the helm of the Inner-City Muslim Action Network, Rami Nashashibi has built the group into a force for activism on Chicago’s troubled South Side. Here are a few of his ideas on how to run a multifaceted faith-based advocacy organization:

Learn from more experienced activists. Upon founding the network, known by its acronym IMAN, Nashashibi began working intimately with others, including a rabbi and a female African-American Pentecostal preacher, Patricia Van Pelt Watkins, who helped him understand the possibilities of organizing neighborhoods. “These were people who were already doing amazing work in our area,” he says. The preacher, Patricia Watkins, “taught me how to create broad-based coalitions,” Nashashibi says.

Reach out to other groups. No organization operates within a vacuum. “Groups will never be able to create substantial change without banding together,” Nashashibi says. Coalitions that include IMAN have succeeded in campaigns to change several local and state laws.

Make people feel respected. IMAN works to welcome people from all religions and walks of life — despite its self-identification as an American Muslim group. “It’s important to offer people alternative space where they can feel safe, and not to have any kind of litmus test,” Nashashibi says. “Barriers have never been a thing for us. It seems natural for us to bring in blacks, Arabs, and South Asians together to work here.”

Embrace who you are. Not long after IMAN was formed, “several well-intentioned people said we should remove ‘Muslim’ from our name,” Nashashibi says. “For us, that would defeat the purpose, which was to focus on the American Muslin experience.”

ADVERTISEMENT

Celebrate. IMAN holds major arts-and-music events throughout the year, drawing diverse audiences. “It’s important to bring people together to share what they do — and see what we have in common,” he says. “You have to be open to the artistic and cultural things people are doing to sustain these communities.”

Correction: A previous version of this article said the organization holds an arts-and-music event once a year, instead of holding such events throughout the year.

A version of this article appeared in the March 5, 2019, issue.
We welcome your thoughts and questions about this article. Please email the editors or submit a letter for publication.
Advocacy
Michael Anft
Michael Anft is a journalist, author, teacher, and regular contributor to the Chronicle of Philanthropy.
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
SPONSORED, GEORGE MASON UNIVERSITY
  • Explore
    • Latest Articles
    • Get Newsletters
    • Advice
    • Webinars
    • Data & Research
    • Podcasts
    • Magazine
    • Chronicle Store
    • Find a Job
    • Impact Stories
    Explore
    • Latest Articles
    • Get Newsletters
    • Advice
    • Webinars
    • Data & Research
    • Podcasts
    • Magazine
    • Chronicle Store
    • Find a Job
    • Impact Stories
  • The Chronicle
    • About Us
    • Our Mission and Values
    • Work at the Chronicle
    • User Agreement
    • Privacy Policy
    • California Privacy Policy
    • Gift-Acceptance Policy
    • Gifts and Grants Received
    • Site Map
    • DEI Commitment Statement
    • Chronicle Fellowships
    • Pressroom
    The Chronicle
    • About Us
    • Our Mission and Values
    • Work at the Chronicle
    • User Agreement
    • Privacy Policy
    • California Privacy Policy
    • Gift-Acceptance Policy
    • Gifts and Grants Received
    • Site Map
    • DEI Commitment Statement
    • Chronicle Fellowships
    • Pressroom
  • Customer Assistance
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise With Us
    • Post a Job
    • Reprints & Permissions
    • Do Not Sell My Personal Information
    • Advertising Terms and Conditions
    Customer Assistance
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise With Us
    • Post a Job
    • Reprints & Permissions
    • Do Not Sell My Personal Information
    • Advertising Terms and Conditions
  • Subscribe
    • Individual Subscriptions
    • Site License Subscriptions
    • Subscription & Account FAQ
    • Manage Newsletters
    • Manage Your Account
    Subscribe
    • Individual Subscriptions
    • Site License Subscriptions
    • Subscription & Account FAQ
    • Manage Newsletters
    • Manage Your Account
1255 23rd Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20037
© 2025 The Chronicle of Philanthropy
  • twitter
  • instagram
  • youtube
  • facebook
  • linkedin