Each November 11, we honor the US veterans for their patriotism and willingness to serve their country. The date reflects Armistice Day, when the cessation of hostilities between the Allied nations and Germany during World War I went into effect on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month in 1918. While the “Great War” officially ended when the Treaty of Versailles was signed on June 28, 1919, in the Palace of Versailles, the date of November 11, 1918, has traditionally been observed as the end of “the war to end all wars.” American military records indicate that Muslims have served in every major US conflict including the Revolutionary War, Civil War, World War I and II, Korean, and Vietnam War. More recently, they have served with distinction in the Gulf War, Iraq War, and the War in Afghanistan. Daniel Habeel is a US Army veteran and follower of Islam who established a local post of the Muslim American Veterans Association (MAVA) in the south suburbs of Chicago. Founded in 1997, MAVA is a national veterans’ benefit organization grounded in Imam W. D. Mohammed’s New World Patriotism movement, which asks Muslims to embrace the best of what America has to offer, stand up as American Muslims, and lay claim to the “Shared Freedom Space” as US citizens. For our exhibition American Medina: Stories of Muslim Chicago, Habeel loaned the Museum a MAVA uniform, which is currently on display. The Arabic on the uniform patch is the Muslim testimony of faith or shahādah: “There is no God but God, and Muhammad is his messenger.” Listen to a clip of Habeel’s oral history interview, which is featured in American Medina: Stories of Muslim Chicago. Listen Now

Portrait of Daniel Habeel by Sadaf Syed Photography, 2019. Uniform courtesy of Daniel Habeel. Gallery images by CHM staff. 

American Medina: Stories of Muslim Chicago

Our exhibition American Medina: Stories of Muslim Chicago draws from more than 100 interviews conducted with Muslim Chicagoans sharing their stories of faith, identity, and personal journeys. Dozens of objects from local individuals and organizations, such as garments, artwork, and photographs, as well as videos and interactive experiences expand on how and why Chicago is known as the American Medina. Learn More

Virtual Tours

Explore Chicago history from wherever you are. Led by Museum staff and local experts, our new virtual tours investigate a wide range of topics such as the hidden stories of Union Station, the larger meaning behind the murals in Pilsen, the business and activist history of Bronzeville, and more! See All Events