Impact

A Message From the Executive Director

Dear Change-makers and community members,

As a stakeholder in the NewGround community, we wanted to share with you some of the amazing successes NewGround has accomplished over the past few years to champion change. The upcoming U.S. presidential election has generated a drastic rise in social division. As NewGround  launches our fall programming and prepares for this December’s first ever virtualized Trailblazer Talks, we are also working diligently to confront the tide of phobia and promote pluralism.

On September 24, 2015, I was appointed to the White House Advisory Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships. I joined community leaders from across the nation in making recommendations for improved relationships between faith-based organizations and the government. It is an exciting new endeavor for myself and for NewGround.

Over 18 million people have viewed the new Buzzfeed video, “I’m Muslim, But I’m Not…,” featuring Change-makers such as Saaliha Khan and Tom Earl, our own former NewGround staff members, and Marwa Abdelghani, our former Muslims and Jews Inspiring Change (MAJIC) advisory board member. The video is a vehicle for change — celebrating the many faces of Muslim Americans across Los Angeles.

Harvard University’s Pluralism Project Director Diana Eck praised NewGround in the 17th issue of the Journal on Inter-Religious Studies.  A piece on the transformative power of relationships written by NewGround is also published in the issue, while the Jewish Journal and Alt Muslimah ran our thought piece on resolving differences, co-authored by Andrea Hodos, an alumna of our Professional Fellowship program, and myself.

Our Change-maker initiatives, such as the Sardari & Morady StoryTwo Faiths One Prayer, and 72 Virgin Mocktails, among many others, have reached over 150,000 people locally and globally amplifying our message of pluralism.

We invite you to explore more about our change-makers in action right here on our website, www.mjnewground.org, and continue the conversation on social media @MJNewGround to see how we #BreakNewGround together.

With gratitude,

Aziza Hasan

Executive Director

April 15, 2023

Public Forum on Antisemitism – May 2nd 2023!

NewGround hosted a public forum on antisemitism with experts Stephen Smith (ED Emeritus of USC Shoah Foundation), Ken Stern (Director at Bard Center for the Study […]
April 14, 2023

’22-’23 MAJIC Graduation Iftar!

 The MAJIC cohort of 2022-2023 will complete their year of hard work and graduate this Sunday, April 16th. They have gained skills working through interfaith conflict, recognizing […]
March 7, 2023

“Repairing the World” Screening: May 1st at 6:30pm!

Join RCP and Not in Our Town for a screening of Repairing the World on March 14th at 7:00 pm.  RSVP HERE A documentary film on […]
March 7, 2023

Community Ifar 2023: March 29th, 6:45 pm!

Join us for NewGround’s community iftar! After three years of separation, NewGround will be holding our Interfaith Community Iftar on March 29, 2023 at 6:45 PM, hosted by Temple Israel […]
May 25, 2022

Save the Date! Trailblazer Awards: December 11, 11:30 AM

We're celebrating 15 years of NewGround and the intersection of Passover and Ramadan!​
April 20, 2022

Keep up with our Book Club!

Featuring authors Yousef Bashir and Rachael Cerotti
April 11, 2022

Missed part of our Iftar? Want to rewatch?

We're celebrating 15 years of NewGround and the intersection of Passover and Ramadan!​
March 30, 2022

Virtual Community Iftar: April 7, 7:30 PM PST

We're celebrating 15 years of NewGround and the intersection of Passover and Ramadan!​
July 23, 2021

Spotlight Storytelling is back!

A warm welcome back to our Spotlight Storytelling fall event. NewGround hosted an annual Spotlight Storytelling evening for more than a decade, bringing together community members, […]
July 2, 2021

Meet our new board chairs!

Pictured: Board co-chair Rabbi Sarah Bassin with one of NewGround's earliest MAJIC cohorts.
June 10, 2021

Summer 2021 events

Public Panel on Israel and Palestine We have received many requests from alumni, donors, and other members of the NewGround community to hold a public program […]
May 18, 2021

What have we been up to?

We’ve all had a rough year, and some of us have had to face challenges that we’ve never faced before. Some of us were faced with […]
February 18, 2021

2021: Courage Accelerator

December 28, 2020

That’s a Wrap: Trailblazer 2020!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x9y2PL5e3yU
July 20, 2020

Our alumni tackle race and state violence

Our alumni have been active in continuing important conversations around race in the United States, through online thought leadership as well as through facilitation. NewGround alum […]
June 3, 2020

Our first ever virtual Iftar has wrapped!

On April 30, 2020, NewGround hosted its first ever virtual Iftar. Many of you know that the annual NewGround Community Iftar is a tradition very near […]
April 14, 2020

COVID-19: Changes in the Community

NewGround exists to convene and build community. So what do we do when community safety requires that we physically distance ourselves from each other? Right now, the […]
March 12, 2020

L.A.’s ‘Transcedients’ at the Japanese American National Museum

This year, Taiji Terasaki has brought his unique artistic style to Los Angeles! His exhibit, Transcendients: Heroes at Borders, is a chance to learn about, reflect on, and celebrate […]
December 27, 2019

Announcing ‘Mission in Action’

As many of you know, Spotlight Storytelling was once a staple of the NewGround community. It was an annual event held specifically to provide a space […]
November 11, 2019

Annual Report 2019

The NewGround team always strives to ensure that our mission continues to hold presence in everything we do. In keeping with this goal, we have recently […]