Peace Exchange Gives Ferrum College Students New Perspective of Muslim Beliefs

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    Several Ferrum College students and their instructors are back home with new perspectives after traveling to Bradford, England for a week-long Peace Exchange. The exchange was organized in conjunction with Bradford Churches for Dialogue and Diversity (BCDD). It focused on interaction between the Ferrum youth and Bradford Muslim youth with whom they were paired, with a final goal of the youth producing a video of their experience.

    Tiffany Coleman, one of the Ferrum students, recalled how quickly the participants bonded: “What I remember the most was how open and comfortable everyone was. The families of the Muslim pairs that we met were very welcoming and open to discussions with us.” Saima Nazir of Bradford also valued having a “safe space where we could really be honest with each other.”

    In mostly informal settings, the youth discussed many topics, media misrepresentations and Muslim women and marriage being among the favorites. “A lot of misinterpretations were thrown to the wind and friends were made,” according to Virginian Robbie Wright. Mohammed Kamran of Bradford said he was tired of his Muslim identity being put on parade by the media and added, “you know, I think the Americans may feel the same way.” Huw Procter, also of Bradford, explained how “education is the key to intercultural understanding.”

    Steven Keesler of Ferrum commented that his concept of Muslim women as soft-spoken and retiring was, “completely blown away.” Ferrum student Andrea Henderson recalled one of the Muslim women explaining the advantages of an arranged marriage. “It was hard for me to imagine a smart, self-dependent woman wanting someone to tell her who to spend the rest of her life with.”

    During the exchange, Irfan Raja invited two of the Ferrum students, Devin Blauvelt and Michael Mills, to a Muslim wedding. Kamran took Steven and Robbie to a cricket match. Sameera Mahmood invited all the women—Tiffany, Saima, Andrea, Sofia Ashraf, Uzma Mahmood, Anne Curry, and Courtney Wilson—to her home for a traditional meal.

    Ferrum students received credit for a course entitled “Intercultural Conflict Mediation” co-taught by Peter and Beth Crow, two weeks of which took place in Virginia. In Bradford, BCDD’s Helen Reid and Sharon Bavington were overall coordinators, Wahida Shaffi organized pairings and pairing activities, Phil Lewis gave two lectures on Islam, and Chris Wright coached the Bradford students on video work as well as filling other important roles. All the organizers seemed well pleased with the exchange, vowing to do it again.
   
    One of the Virginia students, Anne Curry, summarized the experience this way: “The Peace Exchange has made me realize that we may have different faiths but we both share a common set of morals and standards. It has been interesting to watch as my classmates and I have changed into more open and understanding individuals. We will share our experiences from the Peace Exchange and have a ripple effect on those around us.”
   
    For more information on the peace-exchange, or for interviews with students, contact the Ferrum College Public Relations office at (540) 365-4300.

    Ferrum College is a four-year, private, co-educational, liberal arts college affiliated with the United Methodist Church. Ferrum offers a choice of nationally recognized bachelor’s degree programs at a cost well below the national average for private colleges. For more information on Ferrum, visit www.ferrum.edu.