the ICA, al-Qazwini established the sub-committee, Young Muslim Association (YMA) in 1998. The organization was aimed at educating Muslim-American youth, fostering leadership, and creating an environment in which they can actively and effectively channel their efforts in promoting Islam. In its first five years, the YMA grew to be one of the largest Muslim youth organizations in North America. Dearborn Heights In 2015, al-Qazwini left the ICA and opened his own mosque, known as the Islamic Institute of America. He also established the Muslim Youth Connection (MYC) as the new youth organization. Public appearances Since the September 11 attacks, al-Qazwini stepped up his efforts to act as an ambassador for Muslim Americans, speaking at numerous churches, colleges and universities, hoping to dispel what he sees as common misconceptions about them. al-Qazwini had been invited to the White House on several occasions to represent the Shia-Muslim community. He has met with Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush, as well as with then senator Barack Obama. He has also received invitations from the U.S. State and Defense Departments. He also made an appearance in the award-winning PBS-broadcast documentary Muhammad: Legacy of a Prophet (2002), produced by Unity Productions Foundation. al-Qazwini met Pope Francis during the Abrahamic Faiths Initiative on January 14, 2020 in Vatican City. The initiative brought leaders from Christianity, Judaism and Islam to work together to promote peaceful expression of faith and the renunciation of violence. al-Qazwini endorsed Bernie Sanders in March, 2020. He addressed a Dearborn rally in Arabic on Saturday, encouraging support for Sanders. Works al-Qazwini authored two books: Meditation on Sahihain: A Critique of Sahih Al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim Prophet Mohammad: The Ethical Prospect American Crescent Al-Qazwini is the author of American Crescent: A Muslim Cleric on the Power of His Faith, the Struggle Against Prejudice, and the Future of Islam and America. Rashid Khalidi of Columbia University wrote in The New York Times: This book is many things. It is, first, a personal chronicle of Imam Hassan Qazwini's own trajectory from Karbala, Iraq, where he was born in 1964, to exile in Kuwait and Iran, to Dearborn, Mich., where he currently heads the Islamic Center of America. Second, it is an argument for Qazwini's variety of Shia Islam, rooted in Iraq and Iran and adapted for America. Finally, it is a political statement — in fact, two of them — a plea for Muslim Americans