Muslims in the Contemporary Era The last few centuries have seen many shifts occur in Islamic thought. Building on early thinkers like Al-Ghazali [d. 1111], more recent thinkers have tried to revive thoughtful discourse and respond to the challenges of modernity, colonization, migration and minority status that Muslims around the world have been confronted with. New movements emerged to unite the disparate Muslim societies in the face of the new realties. This is also the period when Muslim communities become firmly established as minorities in North America and Europe. While this brings forth new challenges, it also gives rise to a refreshing new discourse, which in turn influences thought throughout the Muslim World. Scholars like Amina Wadud and Khalid Abou el Fadl break new ground by looking at the classical texts with fresh eyes and new insights. People like Malik al Shabazz, also known as Malcolm X, inspired new generations to rediscover the Islamic ideals of social justice and equality. Islam is now represented by people like Mohammad Ali, the famous world-champion boxer, and Yusuf Islam, the former Cat Stevens, as accurately as it is by Muslims from societies which have been within the Muslim world for centuries. Scholars like Tariq Ramadan, the Swiss author of "To Be a European Muslim", begin to chart the journey that Muslims in the West take as their personal identities transform to include the new cultures of Islam. Muslims around the world also begin to use various modern media to express and explore the new realities of this era. From filmmakers in Iran, whose films achieve critical acclaim at international film festivals, to the innumerable websites that invite the world to access information with unprecedented immediacy and abundance, Muslims attempt to control the representation of Islam and Muslim cultures. by Itrath Syed, April 2002