IIP Speaker David Hirsch Informs Key Malian Audiences on Islamic Collections in the U.S.

October 1 – 5, 2008

IIP Speaker David Hirsch

From October 1 – 5, 2008, IIP Speaker David Hirsch, the Librarian for Middle Eastern Studies at the University of California, Los Angeles, engaged and informed key Malian audiences on the subject of Islamic collections and resources in the United States.  On October 2, over 25 members of the High Council of Islam were surprised to hear of the historic nature of Islamic scholarship in the United States and the growth of extensive Islamic collections in universities across America and at the Library of Congress.  Members of this audience were enthusiastic in thanking Mr. Hirsch for highlighting the importance of making Islamic manuscripts and scholarship available to students of Islam around the world.  Similar themes were raised in Mr. Hirsch’s discussions with the Malian Association of Librarians and again with the Club of Arab Language and Literature in Bamako.  Mr. Hirsch was welcomed with open arms in Timbuktu, where he also encouraged Malian scholars in this renowned city to find ways to digitize their collections for access to a wider international public.

This program was a perfect complement to Embassy support for a greater international awareness of the depth and breadth of Malian Islamic scholarship and the tolerant form of Islam practiced in Mali.  Key Malian audiences were apprised of the important efforts in the United States to preserve and disseminate Islamic scholarship and thereby witnessed first- hand American religious tolerance and respect.  They were further encouraged to do their part to capitalize on Mali’s immeasurable cultural and historic resources as a basis for international attention to Mali’s history of Islamis scholarship in areas as diverse as jurisprudence, human rights, and science.