Zaid Shakir

Zaid Shakir is an American Muslim scholar who was born Ricky Daryl Mitchell and grew up in Connecticut. He studied international relations at American University and went on to a master’s degree at Rutgers University, then pursued Islamic studies abroad, including Arabic and Islamic law in Syria, and in 2001 became the first American man to graduate from Abu Nour University in Damascus with a degree in Islamic sciences.

From 2003 he taught Arabic, law and spirituality as scholar-in-residence at the Zaytuna Institute in California. Together with Hamza Yusuf and Hatem Bazian he helped turn the institute into Zaytuna College in Berkeley, a four-year Muslim liberal arts college that gained regional accreditation in 2016. He has also led the Muslim Alliance in North America and works on interfaith and climate initiatives.

His books are collections of essays and commentaries on the life of American Muslims, faith, social justice and public affairs.