To get this session started at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival, Omar Nassimi got some stereotypes out of the way: that Islam is rigid. That it is thousand-year-old structures. That it is the opposite of freedom, the opposite of creativity.

At the 2023 Festival program Creative Encounters: Living Religions in the U.S., a panel of young Muslims from the D.C. region challenged these stereotypes, sharing their varied interactions with Islam and experiences of belonging. Co-presented with the ADAMS Center, the panel included baker and content creator Hamza Gulzar, storyteller Mariam Qureshi, writer and Folklife Magazine intern Neha Malik, and Festival video production intern Ali Ali.

Far from feeling confined by scripture, these artists interpret the stories of the Qur’an to apply them to modern life, meet differences in beliefs with compassion, and work to create safe and welcoming spaces for their communities.

“I know what my faith teaches me, and I know that it means that no matter where you come from or who you are, there is a level of respect that our religion demands that you give to everybody,” Gulzar says, “despite where you may come from.”

In 2025, the Festival again focuses on the perspectives and creativity of young people in the program Youth and the Future of Culture.