Annual Eid Dinner
This weekend I attended the Annual Eid Dinner. Al-Imaan, the Muslim students’ association at Smith, really went all out, transforming Helen Hills Hills Chapel into a beautiful dining room and stage.
My friend Dardalie and I were especially impressed by the quality of the wooden chairs and the complimentary dates on each table. The event started with introductions from a few members of Al-Imaan, followed by a speech by Dean of Religious Life, Dean Walters, who has a way with words.
The SJE reps came on stage to discuss their collaboration with Al-Imaan to tackle the Islamophobia that sadly does exist on campus.
I was impressed by their humility and understanding when it came to expressing their interest in ending Islamophobia, despite not being Muslim themselves. Smith College is where good social justice talk happens. The intersectional dialogue between students of color, of faith and those who stand for social justice really impressed the speaker of the night, Linda Sarsour. Why don’t I have a picture of Linda Sarsour? Because her talk was so amazing I didn’t stop listening to even take pictures. Linda Sarsour is an Palestinian-American woman who runs the non-profit organization Arab American Association of New York. With her hard work and dedication, she has been instrumental in making the New York City public school system the largest in the country to close school on two Muslim holidays -- Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha. She is also a passionate supporter of the Black Lives Movement, for which she helped organize a walk from New York City to Washington DC. I loved her ideology and beliefs. She talked about not just preaching her religion and teaching them about it, but living the principles of religion to show others how loving it was. Islam, she said, teaches compassion and service to humanity. If she, as a proud, practicing Muslim, was out in the streets protesting for Black Lives, she was also furthering the message that Islam is a religion that preaches tolerance, equality and love. She was doing so without explicitly talking about it. The Muslims that run mosques and are hospitable to all people and her have that in common. They spread good vibes about their religion by following it. I also loved what she said about doing something. There are so many issues that move us emotionally. We read about them on facebook, and we just like or comment before we move on to the next thing. Next time, Linda urged us, we should act. Our effort has meaning and will make a difference. I am glad that I was able to listen to a phenomenal woman speak about her experiences and do it while eating delicious Mediterranean food. Thank you, Al-Imaan, for a beautiful Eid dinner!