What would you get if you combined Sheikh Yusuf Estes, Yusha Evans, Sheikh Mutahhir Sabree, Dr. Bilal Philips, Dr. Mohamed Saleh and many more of the top Islamic media into one Cable\Internet channel? You guessed it! You get Guide US TV! The newest light bulb from the brain of Sheikh Yusuf Estes!
We all get kind of sick of seeing such a bad portrayal of Muslims in the media. I know it's a hot topic and I have given many a lecture on the importance of public relations for Muslims in America. Let's face it, we as Muslims are Googled, YouTubed, and Binged (whats Bing?) more than any other faith in history. Muslims are popular right now, but not for the reasons we would have hoped for. Not because of the peace we believe in, or the high morals and standards we live by. No, little of this is ever brought up. You mainly just see angry people being caught doing destructive, vile crimes against others while claiming they are with us. Sorry, but I'm not with stupid.
Guide US TV is the first project that can take the message of what Muslims actually believe and live for, and spread that message across television screens world wide. No longer being contained inside internet TV, Sheikh Yusuf Estes and his intelliteam of Muslim techies, are taking Islam's teachings, putting them into plain English, and then shooting them across satellites and into our living rooms. Finally, Muslims will be represented in the media by actual Muslims! Instead of hearing about violence, people can hear about the passion Muslims have for God, and how we put God in the center of our lives! Most people don't even think Muslims worship God! Wow, we have a lot of work to do, but with such a dynamic team and most massive support imaginable (God's), we can really show the world the beauty behind the message with follow.
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| Sheikh Yusuf Estes interviews Sharif El-Gamal, developer of Park51, NY. |
This is why I have decided to join Guide US TV!
Hassan and I were invited to take part in the 48 hour telethon, hosted by Guide US TV, at the MAS ISNA conference in Chicago. We saw it as the next step in our Dawah (sharing God's message) campaign. So after shooting a wedding Dec 24th, I packed my bags and flew to Chicago to see what this was all about. What an amazing weekend! Not only was it awesome to meet so many great Muslims in Chicago, but to meet the Guide US team was bliss! During my own transition into living for God, I used to stay up all night watching Sheikh Yusuf's videos. Tears would come into my eyes as my heart began to realize that I had found something to relate to, an answer to why I was here. Sheikh Yusuf's videos helped Islam's warmth, relate to my lost heart. On top of that, he's totally hilarious!
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| Nicole Queen, Hassan, and Sheikh Yusuf Estes |
Inshallah (God willing), I will work with Sheikh Yusuf and his team on Sister's programming for Guide US TV, which will be a first for the channel. While in Chicago I was able to get a taste of filming LIVE with the team. Since we didn't really have a plan for Sister's content, we decided a good idea would be to go with a "talk show" style. We found some really brave Muslim girls attending the conference and I sat with the girls and LIVE on camera we talked about current events, peer pressure, and how they think Guide US TV can benefit the image of Women in Islam, for Americans. Currently most Americans feel that Women in Islam are oppressed, uneducated, unsocial and probably miserable with their lives. I can't speak for all Women but I am certainly none of those things and I am certainly Muslim and not miserable. Having programs that are available for an American audience allows Muslim Women to properly represent who we really are. Muslim Women are all types, some are home makers, educators, business Women, doctors, and some like me are in the arts\media industry. It would be so awesome to share stories of Muslim women from all over the world, and we could do that on Guide US TV!
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| Nicole Queen interviews a Muslimah on GuideUS.TV |
One of the discussions I had with the young ladies was about their experiences attending public schools. While I was in high school I attended public school and I will tell you it's scary. The things that kids are capable of, the things they experiment with. Even if I wasn't a Muslim, I would want my child attending a religious school. So knowing this, I can't imagine what it's like for a Muslim teen, who wears Hijab (the Muslim modest dress code), to attend a public high school. One of the young ladies was the first girl in her school to wear Hijab, and what she said was shocking. She stated that people actually were showing her more respect because of the Hijab, and they respected her bravery. The school even made arrangements for a place for her to pray. This is fantastic and it's so awesome that in our country you can be who you are and follow your faith and it's respected, sometimes (I'm sure some of you have different stories). Another young student is a senior at her school and I asked her what it's like to face peer pressure as a Muslim in public school. I remembered how challenging peer pressure could be. You want to fit in, you want to keep up with other teens and if you don't you end up feeling lost and alone, unless you find another group of left out teens to fit in with, but then you can face their pressure as well. The amazing answer she gave me...She said that she doesn't really get challenged with any peer pressure! Huh?...Then it clicked to me. Guys are pressuring girls to do things because the girls are running around showing off their teen bodies. Girls are pressuring each other, because of their need to compete with each other. A Muslim girl doesn't get invited to parties because she doesn't drink and hang out with "party" girls. A guy isn't going to bother her because she is completely covered up, she is not provoking his raging hormones. A Muslim girl is not a bully, a gossip queen, a tattle tale, or a wanna be prom queen. Keeping her priorities in order, and her body protected, her faith shields her from the horror of teen pressure. WOW...umm for me that would be enough to show my teen daughter Islam. LOL...
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| Nicole Queen discussing life with other Muslimahs |
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| Sheikh Yusuf Estes helping his team while Nicole Queen films LIVE |
On top of being amazed by working with Sheikh Yusuf Estes, I was privileged to meet Brother Yusha Evans, and Sheikh Mutahhir Sabree. Both of these gentlemen are esteemed and very popular speakers for Islam here in America. Go ahead, Google either one and be amazed at some of their videos on life and Islam. It's such an awakening, spiritually, to be around people like this. When ever you feel like you are doing perfectly fine in life...go spend some time with these Brothers and you will always realize you still have much higher to aim! LOL...Ma'shallah (it was God's will) I went home with a hunger to read and read more about Islam. You can never learn enough! Especially with Br. Yusha Evans, he definitely has a way with words and can really simplify the meaning behind Islam, but at the same time it becomes the most important lesson you could learn.
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| Nicole Queen, Hassan, Br. Yusha Evans |
As we all know the media is very BIG and very EXPENSIVE. Of course having cable and satellite channels for Guide US TV is going to take some serious moolah. But don't worry, you can help! And you should. I should, we all should. By all means donate, since it is our duty to do what we can to pursue a better image and reputation for the faith that the Prophet Muhammad SAS (peace be upon him) spent his entire life to spread. It wasn't easy for him at first. If you have read anything about Islam and how Prophet Muhammad SAS was able to share the word of God with the Middle East, you will see that he was met with hate and hostility by the idol worshipers. He was surrounded by them, and people wanted nothing more than to ruin the name of God and destroy the Prophet, SAS. He never gave up, and neither did the Muslims who followed him.
Well we have a problem now in America. People have been given the wrong message by hostile radicals and the Prophet, SAS, is not here to defend the good name of Islam (life surrounded around God). It is up to us, the Muslims of America, to teach Islam to others the way the Prophet, SAS, did, which was through his peaceful, compassionate, and completely understanding character. Think of how many people we can reach through television? How bout this, think of how quickly and how many people were reached through the media when someone claiming to be a Muslim did something wrong? Well now reverse that with good people who really are Muslim, doing good things in the name of God. Now you get it! Help us! You don't have to go out in front of the camera, and yes it's really hard to do! All you have to do is support the people who are willing to work hard to share the peace of our faith. Support them with spare cash, with your prayers, with your Facebook pages, Twitters, heck gossip about us on the phone with your gal pals! Do anything! Just please don't do nothing...I think we have had enough of doing nothing, don't you?
Check it out here!
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| Link to GuideUS TV |
Donate to GuideUS Here!
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| Link to GuideUS TV |
