10 Accomplished Muslims Over 60, by Fareeda Ahmed

As Nobel-Prize Peace-Prize Winning economist, philanthropist, and inventor of microfinance, Muhammad Yunus, turned 70 yesterday, elan celebrates 10 Muslim seniors (over-60) who are still making waves. Though there is no guarantee any of these individuals will be asked to host Saturday Night Live anytime soon, a la Betty White, still, their life-long achievements have proved them worthy of our life-long attention and praise, time and time again.

Here are 10 Muslim Seniors whose are still making waves. (Who would you vote to guest host Saturday Night Live? My vote is for Muhammad Ali; and I want to see the Empress Farah Pahlavi in a Diane Sawyer interview…)

1. Muhammad Yunus – (Jun 28, 1940: Age 70) – Happy Birthday to Muhammad Yunus! Yunus, founder of the Grameen Bank in Bangladesh,the first large-scale microfinance institution, has led the wave of microfinance success, helping millions of poor around the world get access to mini-loans, and get on their own two feet. Yunus’ economic innovation has completely re-cast the possibilities of development and social progress, which continue to benefit from his work.

2. Shirin Ebadi – (Jun 21, 1947: Age 63) – Another Nobel Laureate (Nobel Peace Prize, 2003), the Iranian lawyer, activist, and current regime-critic has lived in exile in Canada for the last year, due to her outspoken advocacy for human rights – most notably women’s and refugees’ rights – in Iran.

3. M.F. Husain – (Sep 17, 1915: Age 94) – The high-paid contemporary painter in South Asia, Maqbool Fida Husain has been hailed “The Picasso of India” by Forbes Magazine. Husain was a pioneer of the avant-garde in Indian art, garnering attention in solo exhibitions, and recently in record-setting sales at the auction house Christie’s. Even in his 90s, the painter has managed to stir major controversy, depicting both Hinduism and Islam in unfamiliar (and for some, uncomfortable) new lights.

4. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar – (April 16, 1947: Age 63) – The 7-foot-2-inch New Yorker has one of the most celebrated professional NBA careers of all time, playing professionally for the Milwaukee Bucks and LA Lakers for 20 years, entering as Rookie of the Year and leaving as a six-time NBA Champion and six-time MVP. His career since has been marked by several coaching gigs, serving since 2005 as special assistant coach to the current NBA Champions, the LA Lakers.

5. Farah Pahlavi – (Oct 14, 1938: Age 71) – the former Empress of Iran is responsible for much of the preservation of Persian artifacts as well as patronage of art museums in Iran. Before her exile from Iran following the 1979 revolution, the Empress received numerous honors and accolades from global powers for her diplomatic efforts. Since settling in the US (and occassionally, Paris), the Empress wrote and published the bestselling heartfelt memoir, An Enduring Love: My Life with the Shah (2003) which chronicled her marriage to the late Shah, and humanized the exile’s experience and feeling for her country.

6. King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia – (Aug 1, 1925: Age 84) – Marking 5 years as ruler of Saudi Arabia this August, King Abdullah has made strides to engage Saudi Arabia in global interfaith diplomacy, calling for “a brotherly and sincere dialogue between believers of all religions,” culminating in the 2008 UN “Peace of Culture” event. Saudi’s important role in Western-Islamic relations made President Obama’s recent visit with King Abdullah all the more poignant.

7. Muhammad Ali – (Jan 17, 1942: Age 68) – besides being the greatest boxer to ever live, Muhammad Ali has augmented his legacy as one of the most beloved and celebrated public figures of all time. In the last five years alone, in his 60s, he has been awarded the
Presidential Citizens Medal, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, and UN honors for his work in civil rights. He has also opening a nonprofit Muhammad Ali Center dedicated sharing to the man’s personal integrity and social responsibility. His hunger relief efforts have fed an estimated 22 million people, and he still travels two-thirds of the year for humanitarian causes. All his activism, depsite suffering from Parkinson’s disease for the past 25 years, shows: Ali is still in the fight.

8. Yusuf Islam (Cat Stevens) – (Jul 21, 1948: Age 61) – The British singer-songwriter is as famous for his music (with two triple-platinum albums in the 1970s) as he is for his high-profile conversion to Islam in 1977. His folk rock sound has found new life in his recent 2009 album, Roadsinger.

9. Agha Khan IV – (Dec 13, 1936: Age 73) – leader of the Ismaili sect of Shia Islam, the 4th Agha Khan – Shah Karim Al-Hussayni- has held the post since 1957. A direct decendent of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), The Agha Khan has dedicated himself to the promotion of Islamic architecture (backing awards and partnerships with the likes of MIT) and the elimination of global poverty, founding one of the largest private development networks in the world.

10. Sheikh Hasina – (Sept 28, 1947: Age 62). The current Prime Minister of Bangladesh is the second female leader of Bangladesh, daughter of the the first president of Bangladesh, has led the Awami League political party for the last 28 years.