The Lab was commissioned by Creativity Culture and Education (formerly Creative Partnerships) using funding secured from the Office for Security and Counter Terrorism at the Home Office. It brought together artists, community activists and local authority youth workers from a mix of faiths and backgrounds, the majority of whom are Muslims.
Afterwards, Lab Director Luqman Ali reflected:
“The experience compounded my long held conviction that we need to get beyond the largely superficial, sterile, fleeting and atomised exchanges and meetings that generally characterise the way in which we ‘do business’ and address issues in favour of deeper, longer and more inclusive engagements and contemplations. We need to find all ways possible to simulate community and encourage gatheredness that transcends difference in order that a re-appreciation of the intrinsic value of shared human experience can be facilitated on the part of those seeking accord and peace. However, it was also evident to me that to begin with one has to be selective as to components of the microcosm with which one intends to transform the macrocosm. PAL deserves a great deal of credit for promoting and championing this type of holistic and profound human connectivity through their Lab models.
I also think that the Lab clearly demonstrated how much power and ability Muslim cultural practitioners and artists have to make a difference. Their contributions to the lab and their accounts of their experiences suggest that this potential is still not being recognised and supported in a way commensurate with the magnitude of the issues and concerns as cited and framed by both the government and the media despite significantly positive moves in this area on the part of the Home Office and DCLG. The critical deficiency of socio-cultural space, infrastructure and human resources available to Muslim artists and cultural entrepreneurs and the fact that Muslim communities are some of the most neglected and hard to reach audiences in the country need to be addressed if we are to offer a compelling, integrative and aspirational narrative to especially but not solely young Muslims.”
We were delighted that continued support from CCE enabled participants from this Lab to join the Couscous Global Lab and to nominate young Muslim artists to participate.
