The Asian American Studies department is celebrating its faculty member, Dr. Maryam Kashani, on her new book release. Prof. Kashani is a filmmaker and Assistant Professor of Gender and Women’s Studies and Asian American Studies here at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.  Well-known for her thought-provoking documentaries and visual publications, Medina by the Bay: Scenes of Muslim Study and Survival is Dr. Kashani’s first independent book release. Medina by the Bay studies the journeys of multiracial Muslim communities in the San Francisco Bay Area. From the Black Power movement and state surveillance to Silicon Valley and gentrification, Dr. Kashani examines how multiracial Muslim communities survive and flourish within and against racial capitalist, carceral, and imperial logics. Her examination of contemporary Islam has already received extensive critical acclaim. Reviewers have praised it for its ambition, intimacy, and brilliance. More information about the book can be found at Duke University Press.