The Muslim Community Center (MCC) in Silver Spring, Maryland and the All Dulles Area Muslim Society Center (ADAMS) in Sterling, Virigina are profiled in this rather positive article from the State Department for their year-round charitable and outreach efforts to the larger community.

USInfo: For U.S. Muslims, Ramadan is a Reminder to Help Local Communities

FAITH Social Services in Virginia launched their annual Herndon without Hunger program to hand out food items to people of all faiths and ethnicities that need them last weekend and the program continues each Saturday afternoon in Ramadan. A group of sisters and I carpooled over there today to volunteer and alhamdulillah there was a good turnout.

FAITH also has an iftar program which allows you to sponsor iftars for an individual or a family throughout the month of Ramadan.

Take this moment to donate to FAITH’s Iftaar Program
Your donation will provide iftaar meals for the needy

Donating $40 provides 1 adult his/her iftaar meals during Ramadhan.
$120 provides iftaar for a family of 4 (2 adults and 2 kids under 10).

Make your check payable to “FAITH” with “Iftaar Program” written in the memo line.

Mail to:
FAITH
500 Grove Street
Suite 210
Herndon, VA 20170

May Allah Ta’ala grant us mercy, forgiveness, and freedom from the fire. Ameen.

Islamic Relief USA is having their 6th annual Humanitarian Day event on September 29-30th in 19 cities across the United States. In sha Allah, a group of us are going together from the Dar us Salaam community in College Park, Maryland by metro to Washington DC to volunteer, feel free to join in the effort this Ramadan. For more information click on the link below:

Humanitarian Day 2007

From the Storehouse: Join Islamic Relief for Humanitarian Day

Debbie Almontaser, a veteran Arab American educator was selected to lead the Khalil Gibran International Academy in New York City slated to open this fall. The school is unique in that there is an emphasis on Arab culture in addition to core subjects. She was forced to resign earlier this month because of anti-Islam, anti-Arab hysteria from largely conservative bigots in the media. In a move to surely designed to placate critics, her replacement is Jewish and and does not speak Arabic.

Almontaser was asked a question about a t-shirt she had nothing to do with that said “Intifada in New York” and she responded truthfully and eloquently about the origin and meaning of the word intifada in the Arabic language. Her critics seized upon her explanation because she did not include the now required caveat for all Muslims and Arabs and other people that look brown that she did not support terrorism. Since then, her character has been maligned and she was maliciously attacked and accused of supporting terrorism even though she has a considerable body of interfaith work.

During the Islam in the West conference this past June in Somerset, New Jersey, Hamza Yusuf commented that we have failed as a community to convey our religion and have allowed others to convey what Islam is not.

Hamza Yusuf then raised some interesting questions: Who are the chairs of African American Studies departments in the universities? African Americans. Jewish Studies? Jews. Seminaries? Christians. Continue reading →