Mutual Eid: 7 Ways to Make Eid Inclusive

Mutual Eid 2021

Rebirth | Renew l | Revive

Anti-Racism is ongoing life affirming work. As we celebrate Eid, we are excited to highlight the work of emerging leaders who are changing the world. Join us to honor and uplift the work of our AMAL fellows and others across the community who are blazing new trails.

Our world is in a rebirth, gaining a new social consciousness and re-evaluating what the world will look like after the Pandemic and beyond. As an organization driving this change through Anti-racism education we’re trying to raise this money, so we can build these future leaders who will take up the mantle with their activism and community engagement. Here are the leaders who we have chosen. Next up! Hope, organizing and our leaders are going to accomplish. We would like to express our gratitude to faith-inspired organizations and leaders, who represent a renaissance of thought, activism, and organizing.

SIX TIPS TO MAKE YOUR MUTUAL EID MORE INCLUSIVE

Spread the Eid joy. When you reach out to individuals and families to wish them an Eid Mubarak, think about who is left out. Expand outside your close circle and connect with someone from a different social background, taking into account class, race, ethnicity, and/or age. Schedule a zoom meeting to virtually celebrate eid or have an online meal together.
Send a note. Send print or digital cards with personalized messages. Print out some Eid cards and mail them to friends, family, and essential workers in your community so they know you're thinking about them despite the hard times! The @Shia RJC is still doing their Eid Card campaign. Donate today!
Give a Gift. Donate to an Eid toy drive, support People of Color-led businesses, artists, and authors, and order eco-friendly gifts to mail them to your loved ones, friends, and even strangers through mutual aid. Buy charitable gifts or support small businesses and creators like Vela Scarves’ Solidarity scarves campaign that support worthy causes. Buy the gift of knowledge by becoming a member of Muslim ARC, and get access to anti-racism curriculum, monthly members events, and a vibrant online community committed to Allah and anti-racism!
Support your Favorite Muslim-owned Restaurants - Many of our halal small businesses and ethnic restaurants have suffered all of 2020 under the harsh restrictions of the Pandemic. “27% of minority-led small and medium-size businesses reported closures, compared with 18% of others,” according to a report from Facebook and the Small Business Roundtable. It is up to us to support these pillars of our community and culture until we can all be back to normal! To find your favorite halal restaurants, check out the Yelp of Halal food, Zabihah.com! https://www.zabihah.com/
Get Vaccinated. Help your family and friends get vaccinated. DON’T WAIT! According to the CDC only 32.8% of the total population in the US is vaccinated up to today. To ensure a speedy public health recovery for the country, it is imperative that we do our God-given duty to keep the community safe and get vaccinated ourselves. CVS, Walmart, Walgreens Offer Same-Day Appointments or Walk-In COVID-19 Vaccines. In addition, your county health department should offer a directory of COVID-19 vaccination sites with no cost for service. Here’s a handy state-by-state guide on how to get the Vaccine!. Make your appointment or walk into a pharmacy today!
Get Outside. Experience nature or the natural world and breathe some fresh air if you can. Go on a hike with your family and take family pictures. Spring is the best time to celebrate your accomplishments over the month before by admiring Allah’s beauty while spending time with family!
Show Solidarity. Continue to support good causes. We will share profiles of leaders and organizations making a difference. Practice mutual aid. Give zakat, continue sadaqah. Continue to do good deeds and donate as your continue your Fasting during Shawwal. Muslims observe six days of fasting during Shawwal beginning the day after Eid ul-Fitr since fasting is prohibited on this day. These six days of fasting together with the Ramadan fasts are equivalent to fasting all year round.

Mutual Eid 2020 30:22

"And of His signs is the creation of the heavens and the Earth and the diversity of your languages and your colors. Indeed, in that are signs for those of knowledge. 30:22

Let us continue the spirit of mutual aid and support for one another with #MutualEid. The National Muslim COVID-19 Task Force, local shurah councils, and community centers are issuing Eid guidelines so that we can safely celebrate the blessed holiday. We can prepare for Eid by decorating and celebrating at home and come together as a community while practicing social distancing. The 22nd verse of Surah Ar-Rum, which points to Allah's signs, inspires our vision for Eid while social distancing. In this spirit, we encourage the MuslimARC community to utilize this occasion to 1.) reflect on Allah's signs in Nature and consider our role as stewards of the Earth and 2.) appreciate our diverse ummah by connecting across difference during Eid.

As a member of the National Muslim COVID-19 Task Force and the National Black Muslim COVID Coalition (BMCC), we are committed to public health and safety this Eid. We pray for healing and safety, so that we can one day soon reopen our communal spaces, masajid, and institutions.

Read: Joint Statement from the National Muslim Task Force on COVID-19 Regarding a Phased Reopening of Mosques across the United States

After you pray your eid at home, if you are able, we encourage you to get outside and enjoy nature. Take time to meditate on the beauty of Allah’s creation. We recognize many are challenged with mobility or cannot leave their homes due to self-isolation. We encourage all to connect with Allah’s creation in mindful practice and contemplation of Allah's signs by visualizing images of the natural world, watching nature documentaries, practicing conservation, and learning more about what we can do as viceregents of the Earth such as reading Green Deen (2010), learn how the Green New Deal approach to COVID-19 recovery, and support Muslim eco-activists.

We also encourage our community to reach out to our neighbors, thank essential workers through gifts, cards, and signs, distribute care packages, and take part in communal celebrations such as car parades and drive through toy drives. As we consider the many blessings we have, remember those who are affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, whether directly from the disease or from the economic fall-out. There are many who don’t have families or close friends, so be sure to reach out to them so that they feel included. Let's think of ways we can spread joy while social distancing.

SIX TIPS TO MAKE YOUR MUTUAL EID MORE INCLUSIVE

Increase your reach. When you reach out to individuals and families to wish them a happy Quarant-Eid, think about who is left out. Expand outside your close circle and connect with someone from a different social background, taking into account class, race, ethnicity, and/or age. Schedule a zoom meeting to virtually celebrate eid or have an online meal together.
Send a note. Send print or digital cards with personalized messages. Print out some Eid cards and mail them to friends, family, and essential workers in your community so they know you're thinking about them despite quarantine!
Be a nice neighbor. Distribute packaged Eid sweets or gifts and leave them at your neighbor's door with an Eid card. Follow CDC guidelines as you prepare gift packages, sanitize packages, wear gloves and masks. Find ways to support vulnerable neighbors near you either personally or organizationally.
Give a Gift. Donate to an Eid toy drive, support People of Color led businesses, artists, and authors, and order eco-friendly gifts to mail them to your loved ones, friends, and even strangers through mutual aid.
Go cruising. If your state or city has loosened restrictions, get in your car and visit a community celebration outside your own. Set up or participate in a local car parade or drive-through celebration at your masjid while adhering to CDC rules of social distancing to wear masks and gloves. Instruct people to adorn their vehicles, dress up, come by the masjid, and remain in their cars.
Share your Eid. Share your family traditions, stories, recipes, prayers, and hopes on social media. Let’s encourage each other to dress our best, practice acts of kindness and compassion to ourselves, our loved ones, and strangers by using the hashtags #MutualEid, #Quaranteid and #Eid2020.

These are just a few suggestions. What are some ways we can be more conscientious during Eid? What are some special things you're doing with your friends and family? Share what you're are doing for Eid 2020 in the comments below. Tag us on social media using the hashtag #MutualEid. Let us inspire each other and continue the many things we did for #RamadanAntiRacism.

Ramadan Anti-Racism 2020 Text Guide



On the Days of Mercy, Increase Compassion In the World There are immediate needs to meet and broken systems that are harming people. 1. Attend to neighborly needs Sign up for a Mutual Aid Group. Join coordinated care efforts for more at risk demographics including the elderly, disabled and people with other pre-existing health issues. Donate to orgs serving most impacted. Increase your giving and support communities impacted by COVID-19, as well as racism, xenophobia, and Islamophobia Pay It Forward. Help your neighbors or strangers. Whether a small gift of toilet paper, cleaning products, or a gift card, your kind act can set a world of good in motion. 2. Increase your good deeds Signal boost good efforts. Share stories that inspire you with your social network. Follow, Like, Comment, and Share COVID-19 campaigns on social Answer calls to action. Get involved for social good. Sign petitions, email and call elected officials demanding an equitable COVID response Become a virtual volunteer. 5-10 hours a week can make a huge difference in helping short staffed and under-resourced organizations 3. Build Solidarity Understand racial disparities. Learn about COVID-19’s impact on Black, Latino, Native American/ Indigenous, and Asian American communities. Build authentic relationships. Check-in with those you seek solidarity with and show up for one another. Support broad based coalitions. Join organizations committed to collaborating to serve most impacted through self-help, direct services and relief, advocacy, and organizing.

On the Days of Forgiveness, Repair that Which is Broken Systems are made out of individuals making choices. Let’s make a choice to break down barriers and build bridges through cultural humility and accountability. 4. Connect over traditions and storytelling Get to know one another. Reach out to friends of a different cultural background and discuss alternative ways you have been connecting with your faith at home instead of the masjid or iftars. Have a family conversation. Have a conversation with your family about racism and COVID-19 during iftar. Discuss with them how to prevent injustices including price gouging and promote good, such as sharing resources. Connect with recipes. Have a conversation about food with someone of a different culture. Research and discuss where the recipe is from, the ingredients, and customs surrounding dining. 5. Intervene when you see racism Enjoin the Good. Attend anti-racism online seminars and take notes to share. Encourage your loved to get out of their comfort zones and to learn more about our diverse ummah and racial justice. Identify racist tropes in the media. Stop consuming media that pedals in racial tropes. Understand the interplay between dominant narratives, racist ideas, behaviors, and laws. Discuss with others how to provide counter-narrative. Forbid the Wrong. Interrupt racist jokes and stereotyping with “AstaghfirUllah! I’m fasting!” Remind others about the Islamic injunctions against racism. 6. Repair harm Learn about microaggressions. Examine the ways dominant groups communicate hostile, derogatory, or negative prejudicial slights and insults towards marginalized group Check internalized superiority. Think about how race, power, or privilege may have influenced how you treated someone. Learn about Islamic traditions, about arrogance, insults, and asking forgiveness. Practice Racial Healing. Learn compassionate communication for grievances and apologizing. Commit to healing relationships and generational trauma through tough conversations.

During the Days of Refuge, Work on the Oppression we have internalized and replicate Let’s turn our sights internal and seek refuge in Allah from the evil within our own selves and from other people. 7. Look in the mirror Explore your racial identity. Learn about racial socialization and theories about anti-racism identity development. Reflect on how you may have benefited from and/or been harmed by systemic racism. Assess your own biases and anti-racism behaviors. Take the Implicit Association Test, MuslimARC's Anti-Racism Behavior self Assessment survey, or another self inventory. Examine your own gaps. Consider the questions raised in your examination of your identity, biases, and behaviors responding to racism and consider areas of growth and healing. 8. Increase your learning Understand the Pandemic. Gain accurate information about coronavirus and safety measures to counter misinformation. Understand the scope and disproportionate impact on communities of color. Decolonize your knowledge. Listen to podcasts, watch documentaries, read articles and books highlighting the history and contributions of Black Indigenous/Native, and People of color all over the world. Commit to lifelong anti-racism learning. Take anti-racism courses and workshops, read racial justice books and articles, complete racism healing workbooks, and participate in dialogue circles. 9. Make a commitment Set your intentions. Set your intentions for doing anti-racism to be closer to you [write up] Manage your time. Be realistic with your capacity. This may mean shifting your priorities to dedicate a few hours each month to address the racial disparities that COVID-19 is exacerbating. Be consistent. Abu Huraira reported: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “Take up good deeds only as much as you are able, for the best deeds are those done regularly even if they are few.”