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United Muslims of America (UMA)
United Muslims of America was established in 1982 as the first non-partisan and mainstream Muslim public affairs organization in America. UMA’s mission is to educate and encourage American Muslims to actively participate in mainstream social, economic, civic, political, and interfaith activities in America.
UMA is the first Muslim organization to enter into the American politics. UMA organized Muslim communities to participate in the Republican and Democratic party conventions, set up Hospitality Suites and engaged in dialogues with the politicians and other participants. Later on other Muslim organizations emerged in politics and UMA expanded its efforts on building alliances with people of other faiths through interfaith activities resulting in the formation of a new non profit sister organization under the name of United Muslims of America Interfaith Alliance (UMAIA).
Some of the community activists who served or are serving on UMA’s board are:
Dr. Islam Siddiqui, founder and past president of UMA, is currently serving as Vice President, Science and Regulatory Affairs, for Crop Life America. Earlier, he served as Under Secretary of Agriculture under President Clinton, and spent 28 years in various positions with the California Department of Food and Agriculture including the Directorship of the of the Division of Plant Industry.
Syed R. Mahmood, past president of UMA was a nominee for U.S. Congress as a Republican candidate in 2002. He was also a Republican nominee for California State Assembly in 2000. He served in the Executive Committee of the Republican Party for two years. Mr. Mahmood is the founder of the American Institute of International Studies, a non profit think tank organization.
Dr. Agha Saeed, former UMA board member, is the founder and the National Chairman of American Muslim Alliance, a nationwide Muslim political organization. He is also the Chairman of Pakistan American Democratic Forum and Chairman of American Muslim Taskforce for Elections and Civil Rights (AMT). He is currently teaching at California State University at Hayward.
Nisar Hai, past president of UMA ran for U.S. Congress as a Republican Candidate in the primary election in 1992 from District 31.
Ziad Ziadeh, past president of UMA, served in the Central Committee of the California Democratic Party during 1999-2000
Iftekhar Hai, current UMA board member, is on the Executive Board of many International, national, and local Interfaith organizations. Mr. Hai is involved full time in interfaith activities and has established cordial relations with many leaders of other faiths. He is also the president of the United Muslims of America Interfaith Alliance.
Shafi Refai, current president of UMA is a Civil Engineer working for the City of Oakland. He is also the Vice President of the Northern California Inter-religious Conference, an interfaith organization founded in 1913. He served on the board of Indian Muslims Relief & Charities and Islamic Society of East Bay.
Dr. Waheed Siddiqee, past president of UMA, worked as a Research Scientist at SRI International and Lockheed for more than 25 years. He is one of the founding members of United Religions Initiative (URI), a world-wide interfaith organization. He has also served as the president of S.F. Islamic Center and Pakistan Association of San Francisco.
Dr. Joseph DiCaprio, former UMA board member, worked as a medical doctor in the Health Department of the County of Santa Clara. He was one of the founding members of the Islamic Center of San Francisco and its first president. He has established an organization Hilf-ul-Fuzool, whose aim is to facilitate conflict resolution among organizations and individuals.
Javed Ellahie, an attorney with the office in San Jose, has been an advisor to UMA and provided valuable guidance to UMA executives in political and legal matters. He is a long time supporter of UMA.
Maboob Akhter has several years of management experience and is one of the founders of UMA. He has been very active in the Republican Party. He was the Editor of UMA’s Newsletter for many years and also served as a secretary in the early years of UMA.
Javed Khan, President of JESKELL, Inc., a Business Organization, is currently on UMA’s board. He is an ardent supporter of UMA and provides guidance and valuable financial support to UMA.
HammadUllah Husaini, Director of Designs, California Micro Devices, is currently serving as the treasurer of UMA. He has keen interest in political, economic, and social issues both on a local and national level and plays a key role in UMA’s policy making.
Dr. Kaleem Kawaja: An engineering manager in NASA’s Space Science program is the UMA representative in Washington D.C. He is the founder and president of Association of Indian Muslims of America (AIM), and The Organization for Universal Communal Harmony (TOUCH). He is a trustee and the president of the Muslim Community Center, Silver Spring, MD.
Shahed Amanullah: an engineer by profession, has served as the board secretary and now is the UMA representative in Texas. He is a regular commentator on Muslim affairs in media outlets including CNN, New York Times, Washington Post, Voice of America, and the BBC. He is the founder of the zabihah.com halal restaurant guide and is the editor-in-chief of the Muslim newsmagazine altmuslim.com.
Other community members who were involved with UMA over the years include Qasim Moon, G.M. Shazada, Esam Haleem, Dr. Sarfraz Siddiqui, Najme Minhaj, Zafar Maqsood, Aziza Sleithholm, Yousef Salem, Syed Ali, Khushroo Banu Sheikh, Fathy El Khamshoshi, Namir Al-Nagem, Badruddin Hyatt, Sabri Kawash, Abdul K Khatri, Omar Rizvi, Dr. Zulfiqar Ali, Patricia Khan, Mir M Hussain, Late Marghoob Quraishi, Late Ghafoor Serang, Late Syed Saifullah, Late Inam Siddiqui, and Late S.A. Husaini
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