Hurricane Harvey has devastated Houston, Texas and the surrounding areas, creating dangerous flooding and leaving many people displaced. But, in the wake of the storm, a group of young Houston Muslims has stepped to help their neighbors during this time of crisis by handing out food, clean water, and other important supplies and checking that people are safe. According to one volunteer, “Whenever your fellow Americans are in need, you need to be the first ones on the ground to help them.”
Muslims in Tulsa Give Back to their Community
A group of Muslims in Tulsa, Oklahoma has started a new charity called Muslims4Mercy. Their mission is to provide food to local homeless people, but they also hope that their initiative might help bring people together. As one Muslims4Mercy organizer said, ”With all the negativity often seen on the news, we are really excited about Tulsans seeing Muslims giving back.”
“Ask a Muslim Anything” Events Break Down Misconceptions
At this time of heightened bigotry, there has been a rise in events hosted by Muslims that are designed to help dispel misconceptions and bring Muslims and non-Muslims together. One New Hampshire man, Robert Azzi, has begun a series of “Ask a Muslim Anything” events, which he has been leading at community centers, churches, and town halls across New Hampshire. The events give him the chance to teach people about his faith and reach out to neighbors, but the positive response he’s received from these events also give him a sense of hope. He says: “It reinforces in me that these are really good people… You know, the haters aren’t here. The haters don’t come out. This is a Muslim town hall. I’ve never used that line before, but that’s what it is.”
Between Swimming and S’mores, Muslim Campers Build Bonds and Learn
For 55 years, Muslim children have been coming to Muslim Youth Camp in Northern California, the country’s oldest Muslim summer camp. In addition to the normal American summer camp activities—swimming, sing-alongs, roasting s’mores, and playing sports—campers attend classes designed to help them grow in their faith, build a sense of community, and, at a time of heightened anti-Muslim sentiment, learn how to deal with and respond to bigotry. According to Amira Quraishi, daughter of the camp’s late founder, Marghoob Quraishi, “My father, he saw Islam as a force for good, equality, social justice and pursuing knowledge… He saw that these were new Muslims in a new country and they needed to try to figure out how they were going to be Muslim in America… The way my dad described it is that he just started walking and then after 20 years looked back and noticed people were coming with him.”
Interfaith Show of Support for Attacked Minnesota Islamic Center
After a bomb was thrown through the window of Dar Al Farooq Islamic Center in Bloomfield, Minnesota, hundreds of people of all faiths turned out in a show of support for the Muslim community, denouncing the attack with a poignant and important message: We are all one Minnesota. We will not let hate win. People also took action online, raising over $100,000 to help the Islamic Center rebuild. Dar Al Farooq community members have expressed thanks to their supporters, saying that the outpouring of support and friendship shows that there are far more good people out there than bad.
