As of April 13, 2021, millions of Muslims across the world will be fasting from sun-up to sundown — starting their second Ramadan in the pandemic. For university students in particular, this may be the first Ramadan they will have to spend away from their immediate families. They are in the last stretch of the semester and — depending on their university’s in-person class policies — they may be unable to go home for fasting season. 

The 21st spoke to two students from the University of Illinois' Underrepresented Muslim Minority Advocacy student organization to hear more about what fasting during a pandemic was like, being a young Muslim and tips to mitigate the struggles of being away from family during Ramadan. 

Guests:
Marihah Muhsinah, Vice President of University of Illinois' Underrepresented Muslims and Minority Advocates
Eman Zwawi, Member of University of Illinois' Underrepresented Muslims and Minority Advocates

Prepared for web by Zainab Qureshi

Episode 5: Young Muslims Observe Ramadan

Hello everyone! In this week's episode we are discussing racism within the muslim community. This is a constant discussion and depending on who you talk to, you will get a plethora of answers. Our purpose is to acknowledge 1. the history of Islam in America which is rooted in the practice by Black American Muslims. 2. Address the effects of a post-9/11 era which creates a mythological ‘monolith’ and the erasure of racially marginalized communities within the Muslim community. This also branches out to the fact that racism such as any other oppressive system cannot be a single-focused issue. We acknowledge that oppressive systems work in multiple ways and evolve. That being said you cannot separate islamophobia from racism/anti-blackness as well as homophobia/transphobia. 3. Finally, We will discuss our own lived experiences as well as how do we eradicate this culture? 

Book of the week:
Muslim Cool: Race, Religion and Hip hop in the United States - Dr. Su’ad Abdul Khabeer

Article links:
http://www.muslimarc.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/MuslimARC-InterEthnic-Study-2015.pdf

https://humanitiesfutures.org/papers/black-history-islam-future-humanities-beyond-white-supremacy/

https://cis.org/Muslim-Immigrants-United-States

https://jewishvoiceforpeace.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/Race-Racialization-Handouts.pdf

https://jewishvoiceforpeace.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/HANDOUTS-FINALJAN2017NetworkAgainstIslamophobiaTwo-SessionWorkshopSeriesChallengingIslamophobiaandRacism.pdf
https://policy.m4bl.org/glossary/

http://www.muslimarc.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/MuslimARC-InterEthnic-Study-2015.pdf

https://medium.com/@BaconTribe/the-anti-black-ass-roots-of-americas-islamophobia-374fa6d0947b

https://humanitiesfutures.org/papers/black-history-islam-future-humanities-beyond-white-supremacy/

https://sapelosquare.com/2017/01/30/muslim-ban-anti-blackness-and-african-american-muslims/

Episode 2: Racism within the Muslim Community

In this episode we discuss and its prevalence in society. In doing so we recognize the victims of the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting. We also discuss the discourse around antisemitism and white supremacy. As well as the Muslim community's role in forming alliances.

Qoute:
“At first glance it seems strange that the attitude of the anti-Semite can be equated with that of the negrophobe. It was my philosophy teacher from the Antilles who reminded me one day: “When you hear someone insulting the Jews pay attention; he is talking about you.” And I believed at the time he was universally right, meaning that I was responsible in my body and my soul for the fate reserved for my brother. Since then, I have understood that what he meant quite simply was the anti-Semite is inevitably a negrophobe.” -Franz Fanon (Black Skin, White Masks)

https://www.jacobinmag.com/2018/11/antisemitism-squirrel-hill-pittsburgh-shooting-racism

Episode 3: Conversation on Antisemitism

A conversation on the history of political and social exclusion of the Ahmadiyya community in Pakistan.

Episode 4: Persecution of Ahmadis in Pakistan

We are the Underrepresented Muslims and Minority Advocates. Our political stance is based in intersectional feminism and approached through a radical lens, meaning we address societal issues from its core. We do this by firstly acknowledging that our oppressions are uniformly tied to white supremacy, capitalism, colonialism, and the hetero-patriarchy. Join us in each episode as we discuss multitude of issues.

The Muslim Agenda

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