Adnan Rumi, a chaplain at the Islamic Dialogue Center in Houston, told students and faculty Thursday that Islam's history of tolerance has been forgotten.

As one of several speakers at a forum on tolerance, Rumi cited historical examples of Muslims living peacefully and accepting people of different religions. "Islamic civilization has a tradition of acting on possibilities of tolerance," Rumi said, noting that the Islamic Ottoman Empire welcomed Jews in the 1400s and 1500s who were expelled from other European countries.

The Islamic Dialogue Student Association will host the last day of the University's first Tolerance Week tonight. The three day event, co-sponsored by the University Co-op includes panel discussions, art exhibits, movie screenings and concerts.

"A lack of knowledge is the root cause of intolerance," said the association's academic adviser. "There is a lack of dialogue globally."

The media has helped perpetuate this negative label on Islam by focusing on Islamic terrorists, said Mert Sahin, the association's president and a history graduate student. Approximately 1.5 billion Muslims exist who do not accept what these terrorists are doing, he said. "The last 50 years, this heritage of tolerance has been hidden," he said.

While the group believes education is the key to dialogue, it also included cultural exhibits. "Art and music talk to the heart, and the panel discussions talk to the mind," Sahin said. He said that while they will only reach about 1,000 students, the association wants people to know Muslims contribute to American culture. "We want students to come together to interact," Sahin said. "This will be a yearly event."

Rumi said isolationism has no place in the 21st century. "We are not enemies but brothers and sisters. ... All people are but a single nation," Rumi said.

Art exhibits Thursday included Turkish handcrafted textiles and traditional Turkish marble art.

Tolerance Week will conclude tonight with a sacred music concert including gospel, world, Sufi, Azari and Persian classical music on the Texas Union Patio from 11:30 p.m. to 1:30 a.m.

"We want to bridge the gap between Muslims and non-Muslims, initiate dialogue and educate people about our culture," Sahin said.