#Community
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6 Tips on Raising Humanitarian Children
From stories about wars and refugees to government corruption and crime rates, we are surrounded by what seems like a barrage of negative news stories these days. It can be scary being a parent in today’s world and as parents, we sometimes wonder what kind of world we’ve brought our children into. We don’t have to passively worry for our children, instead, we can try to raise them to be the good that may be lacking in the world. A humanitarian is a person who promotes human welfare and social reform, a person who is devoted to the health and happiness of other people. Explain to your children what a…
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Saying “I Don’t Know” in an Opinion-Saturated World
A few weeks ago, I felt an ultimate low. Just imagine your heart dragging across the floor with the weight of helplessness and the stain of despair trailing behind it. I remember standing in prayer, at work, completely out of focus and shocked at the tears seeping out of my eyes. What is this broken-ness? A few days before that I was angry. I felt voiceless- a rare and almost disappointing feeling for this once rather politically vocal human. The political madness ensuing, paired with the absolute inundation of the inspiring but also intimidating activist culture saturating social media, left me feeling rather suffocated and in silence. Read: I have…
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Ibtihaj Muhammad: We’re Rooting for You!
Christy Bectel reflects on Ibtihaj Muhammad’s visit to Islamic Relief USA. Christy was a Public Affairs Intern this summer at Islamic Relief USA. She is originally from Michigan and is a senior at Grand Valley State University majoring in International Relations and minoring in Middle East Studies and German. The morning of July 21 was a bit more exciting than usual at IRUSA as news got around that Ibtihaj Muhammad would be stopping by for a quick visit. Most of the staff was already familiar with the 30-year-old athlete who will be the first U.S. woman to wear a hijab when she competes at the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro this…
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In Solidarity: A Lesson from IRUSA’s Capitol Hill Iftar
Christy Bectel recently attended the Capitol Hill Iftar and shares her refections. Christy is a Public Affairs Intern at Islamic Relief USA. She is originally from Michigan and is a senior at Grand Valley State University majoring in International Relations and minoring in Middle East Studies and German. The mention of certain cities in the U.S. often evokes images of decline, decay, even pity. Particularly in my home state of Michigan, Flint and Detroit are the cities people name and quickly dismiss in their discussions of poverty in the U.S. Though I’m a resident of neither, I feel an inclination to defend these cities, the stories of which are often framed through…
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World Environment Day and the Muslim’s Duty
Salam Aznan, Marketing Specialist at IRUSA, reflects on our duty to the environment. Our Duty Out of the many obligations bestowed upon us by Allah (subhana wa ta’ala) and our beloved Prophet (peace be upon him), one of the most neglected aspects of our religion is our duty to the environment. Islam teaches us to be kind to our neighbors, to be generous with o Our Islam There are a wide variety of hadiths and Qur’anic ayahs directing us to protect and to not neglect the sanctity of the environment. In Surah Al-A’raf, Allah (SWT) commands us to not consume extravagantly, “O children of Adam, take your adornment at every…
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What Will Happen to the Children?
by Christina Tobias-Nahi, Director of Public Affairs at IRUSA I have just come back from Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey with an inter-agency interfaith team tasked with looking at child protection and welfare issues of emerging concern in the region. Even though I have a background in early childhood education and vulnerable children’s issues – truly I was not prepared for what we saw. Our main takeaway was this: If there is no cessation of hostilities in Syria, the children around the region will continue to suffer like we have never seen before and the effects will be multi-generational. Not just for those fleeing Syria but for the children in the…
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Dear Aleppo…
IRUSA’s Mayssoun Olabi is from Aleppo, Syria. In the aftermath of the recent attacks, she shares a reflection. Today I woke up with a heavy heart. My usual, happy disposition was muted by images that played over in my head, and sounds that echoed off the walls of my heart. My whole body ached. And though I was deeply upset, I needed to show the world that everything was okay. I needed to show my children. I needed to show myself. Forcing a smile on my face, I went about the morning as usual: Wake up, kids! Brush-your-teeth-comb-your-hair-get-ready-for-school. Eat your breakfast. I smiled as my 7-year-old daughter, Mariam, asked me…
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70% of the World Is Water — But So Often, There’s Not a Drop to Drink
When you think of places where girls have to walk for hours to carry back water, you might tend to think of hot, dry regions of Africa. But water shortages can happen anywhere in the world—from remote villages in Albania to cities right here in the United States. Schoolchildren learn that water covers 70% of the planet—it sounds so plentiful. But the fresh water we drink and use in our homes and on our farms only makes up 3% of the world’s water. And most of that is unavailable—locked up in frozen glaciers or otherwise inaccessible. So providing clean water is more difficult than it might sound at first glance.…
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Just a Day at the Masjid With Obama
This is the story of how Naeem Muhammad, IRUSA Community Outreach Manager, didn’t quite get to emcee for President Obama, but had an amazing day at an historic event in his home city of Baltimore. Story as told to IRUSA writer Lina Hashem. I got the call on Tuesday, early morning. A good friend from Baltimore called me and asked, “Where are you?” My friends know I travel a lot for Native Deen or for relief work. I said, “I’m home, I just got back from Flint, and I’m going to the office.” He said, “They’re looking for you — they want you to emcee the event tomorrow. The White…
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How Electrocuting Cold Can Make You Selfish
Drop the whimsical holiday songs and chunky sweater ads – The force of frozen air on my face this December morning was electrocuting. I think I saw a fox huddling over a manhole cover like it was a radiator (Public Service Announcement: From now until March, please check under your tires for curled up kittens).
