Guide to the Markaz Oral History Project SC1531
Emma Frothingham
Department of Special Collections and University Archives
August 2020
Green Library
557 Escondido Mall
Stanford 94305-6064
specialcollections@stanford.edu
Collection contains one series of oral history interviews
Language of Material:
English
Contributing Institution:
Department of Special Collections and University Archives
Title: Markaz Oral History Project
Identifier/Call Number: SC1531
Physical Description:
600 megabyte(s)
Date: 2019
Physical Location: Special Collections
and University Archives materials are stored offsite and must be paged 48 hours in advance.
For more information on paging collections, see the department's website:
http://library.stanford.edu/spc.
Conditions Governing Use
All requests to reproduce, publish, quote from, or otherwise use collection materials must
be submitted in writing to the Head of Special Collections and University Archives, Stanford
University Libraries, Stanford, California 94304-6064. Consent is given on behalf of Special
Collections as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply
permission from the copyright owner. Such permission must be obtained from the copyright
owner, heir(s) or assigns. Restrictions also apply to digital representations of the
original materials. Use of digital files is restricted to research and educational
purposes.
Preferred Citation
[identification of item], Markaz Oral History Project (SC1531). Department of Special
Collections and University Archives, Stanford University Libraries, Stanford, Calif.
Conditions Governing Access
Some materials are restricted to users with a Stanford University ID.
Scope and Contents
This collection contains oral history interviews with some of the students involved in the
creation of the Markaz Resource Center at Stanford during the late 2000s and early 2010s.
Students recount their experiences as Muslim at Stanford, the need they saw for a resource
center, and some of what went into planning the center. The early years of the Markaz are
also covered in some of the interviews.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Interviews were conducted as part of the Community History Toolkit, an effort by University
Archives and the Stanford Historical Society Oral History Program sponsored by a grant from
the Stanford Associates.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Stanford University -- Students -- 2000s
Stanford University -- Students -- 2010s
Muslim college students
Stanford University. The Markaz
Oral Histories
2019
Physical Description: 6
Files
Scope and Contents
This series contains six interviews conducted in 2019 with alumni and current students
about the founding and early years of the Markaz Resource Center, as well as the
experience of being Muslim at Stanford.
Subhan Ali
2019-03-01
Subhan Ali - Recordings
Subhan Ali - Transcript
Creator: Ali,
Subhan
Creator: Nowruzi, Parsa
Abstract: Subhan Ali
(2009 MA Civil Engineering; 2015 PhD Civil Engineering), a member of the Markaz
advisory board, shares reflections from his time at Stanford and his involvement in
the creation of the Markaz Resource Center. Ali describes growing up in Los Angeles
and how coming to Stanford widened his perspectives on the Muslim world beyond the
Pakistani Muslim community he'd been raised in. He recalls the Muslim student groups
and programming at Stanford on his arrival in 2008 and provides insight into the
advocacy that went into creating the Markaz.
Mahta Baghoolizadeh
2019-05-20
Mahta Baghoolizadeh - Recordings
Mahta Baghoolizadeh - Transcript
Creator: Baghoolizadeh, Mahta
Creator: Mohamdy, Abdu
Abstract: Mahta
Baghoolizadeh (2013 BS Biology), currently a medical school resident at University of
California, Los Angeles, shares memories of her involvement in the Muslim community at
Stanford and the creation of the Markaz Resource Center. She describes the experience
of being a Muslim at Stanford and the sense of community she found through her
involvement in the Muslim Student Awareness Network and the Islamic Society of
Stanford University, two active student groups that predated the Markaz. She also
details the efforts that went into the establishment of the Markaz: drafting a formal
proposal, inviting faculty and student support and input, and a pivotal meeting with
President John Hennessy and Provost John Etchemendy to discuss their proposal. She
recalls other Stanford students who played important roles in the process, including
Subhan Ali and Omar Shakir.
Osama El-Gabalawy
2019-04-12
Osama El-Gabalawy - Recordings
Osama El-Gabalawy - Transcript
Creator: El-Gabalawy, Osama
Creator: Nowruzi, Parsa
Abstract: Osama
El-Gabalawy (2015 BS Biology; 2016 MS Computer Science; 2021 MD Medicine) reflects on
his experiences as a Muslim student at Stanford over the last decade. He begins by
sharing his parents' stories of immigrating to the United States from Egypt, then goes
on to describe growing up in Los Angeles and the impact 9/11 had on his life and his
family. He recalls being bullied during his school years and coming into his identity
as Muslim while at Stanford. He describes his involvement with the Muslim student
groups at Stanford and his experience with Avicenna: The Stanford Journal on Muslim
Affairs. He relates the importance of having a space like the Markaz on campus and how
the Muslim Board led the efforts towards its creation. He mentions some of his
observations from watching the Markaz grow throughout his time at Stanford, as well as
friction within the community in response to the representation of different
narratives in Islam. He concludes by describing the impact of the community organizing
experience and how he applies that experience to the creation of the Diversity Center
of Representation and Empowerment (DCORE) at the Stanford Medical School.
Omar Shakir
2019-03-17
Omar Shakir - Recordings
Omar Shakir - Transcript
Creator: Shakir, Omar
Creator: Kassam, Arman
Abstract: Omar Shakir
(2007 BA International Relations; 2013 JD), currently the Israel and Palestine
Director at Human Rights Watch, reflects on his decade's worth of experience with the
Muslim community at Stanford. He begins by describing the Muslim student groups that
existed on campus during the early 2000s, particularly post-9/11. Shakir goes on to
recall early unsuccessful efforts to request a physical space for Muslim students at
Stanford that contributed to the eventual creation of the Markaz, and some of the
different visions Muslim students had for such a space. He describes the support they
received from faculty members, including Larry Diamond, and reflects on what makes the
Markaz distinct from the community centers at Stanford. Finally, he draws parallels
between his experience in advocating for and creating the Markaz and his current work
at Human Rights Watch, and how the former informs the latter.
Zainab Taymuree
2019-04-25
Zainab Taymuree - Recordings
Zainab Taymuree - Transcript
Creator: Taymuree, Zainab
Creator: Nowruzi, Parsa
Abstract: Zainab
Taymuree (2016 BA African and African American Studies) shares memories of the
creation and early years of the Markaz Resource Center. Taymuree recalls first
becoming aware of the project through the Muslim Board and later becoming heavily
involved in designing the physical space. She provides insight into the decisions that
were made about the interior design and the décor of the space, in consideration of
the potential uses of the center, the representation of the community, and
inclusiveness. Taymuree also reflects on giving the commencement baccalaureate speech
and graduating from Stanford, as well as the changes in the African and African
American Studies Department with the onset of the Black Lives Matter
movement.
Lydia Zemmali
2019-05-08
Lydia Zemmali - Recordings
Lydia Zemmali - Transcript
Creator: Zemmali, Lydia
Creator: Nowruzi, Parsa
Abstract: Lydia Zemmali
(2020 BA Human Biology, Human Rights minor) describes her father's French-Algerian
background and her experience of growing up in Atlanta, Georgia, and spending summers
with her relatives in France. She reflects on her own spirituality and how she has
found support in the Markaz Resource Center, especially following the election of
Donald Trump in 2016. She describes the Muslim community's response, as well as the
wider campus response, to a visit from anti-Muslim author Robert Spencer. She also
talks about her identity as an Arab in relation to her experience with the Arab
Student Association at Stanford.