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Volunteers Help Fight Hunger in Haiti
Hear firsthand how one of largest food packs went down By Volunteer Zeba Haseeb How many of us begin dreaming at a young age of all the things we want to achieve when we’re older? Some of us dream about careers and others about traveling all around the world and immense in different cultures. But how many of us can visualize a future for ourselves when the next meal we are having is uncertain. IRUSA has made it their top priority to not only help communities in need of meals, but also help the youth achieve their goals for a prosperous future. The school feeding programs specifically encourage children to…
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Catastrophe and Uncertainty Blanket Countries
Earthquakes ripple in Haiti, a humanitarian catastrophe looms in Afghanistan, and displacement blankets Ethiopia Cold Reminder of The Past in Haiti On August 14, Haiti experienced a country-wide earthquake causing over 2,000 deaths so far with many casualties still being counted. The 7.2 magnitude earthquake has also vastly destroyed and disrupted countless communities’ infrastructure. Another 53,000 houses were destroyed and nearly 12,268 people were injured. This crisis comes in the aftermath of the assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moïse in July. According to reports by the New York times, Two cities, Les Cayes and Jeremie, located in Haiti’s southern peninsula, have reported major devastation with people caught under rubble and buildings…
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Hot Meals and Hearts
Chicago and NYC feeding programs blast off Ready, set, go We may never know what a “post-covid” world looks like or how the affects this mass interruption of what the world called normal. In the face of all of these new developments of how we live life some sobering facts remain. Hunger in the U.S. is still one of the most daunting challenges we face as a country. According to feeding America, In 2019, 34 million people lived in poverty in America. For a family of four, that means earning just $25,000 per year and before the coronavirus pandemic, more than 35 million people faced hunger in the United States, including more than…
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Dar al-Hijrah Qurbani brings out Community Strong
One of VA’s largest mosques partners to fulfill Udhiyah rites Busy Bees The cars steadily pulled into the gated parking lot of Dar Al Hijrah mosque in Falls Church-Fairfax County. One by one, they navigated the nearly full lot to get something a little different from the usual Thursday food pantry allocations. On this particular Thursday, Aug. 5, people waiting in line were scheduled to receive a 5-pound piece of lamb, a food that aptly symbolizes the Islamic tradition of Qurbani. Islamic Relief USA’s (IRUSA) Qurbani campaign enables people who normally don’t have access to high-quality meat to have a taste of it. In addition to upholding a religious tradition,…
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Distribution of Qurbani takes Main Stage
2021 IRUSA Qurbani food program sky rockets Islamic Relief USA is proud to say that in the year 2021 our community of donors raised the bar even higher distributing over 150,000 Qurbanis. In one single swoop, with an array of dedicated partners, more than 30 countries saw Qurbani arrive at the doorsteps of the most vulnerable. As more distributions continue even at home here in the U.S we look forward to hearing from those we were able to serve and all of you who gave with an open heart. Recovery for COVID-19 is an effort of mind, body, and soul. We have to continue to think of those who had…
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Venezuela in Crosshairs of Devastation
Public affairs reps attend forum for assessment of current crisis By Allison Brown, Intern in Communications and Public Affairs In conflicts of the past, Venezuela housed thousands of refugees fleeing throughout Latin America, providing a source of stability to neighboring countries during their periods of crisis. Due to recent political instability, Venezuela has experienced an 8,000% increase of Venezuelans seeking formal refugee status with an estimated population of 5.4 million fleeing to the neighboring countries of Columbia, Brazil, and Guyana. Reflecting upon this year’s World Refugee Day, refugees and internally displaced peoples of the Middle East and Northern Africa still remain large in Islamic Relief’s aid and thoughts, but an…
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Fighting Hunger and Inequalities in Food Access
Brown bag education series tackles a top priority By Konah Brownell, Intern in Communications and Public Affairs When it comes to addressing food insecurity, it’s not so much that we don’t have enough to go around. Rather, it has more to do with structural inequalities or inequities. That was the message from Dr. Laté Lawson-Lartego, an interim co-vice president of Global Programs at Oxfam, who was the featured guest in a virtual Islamic Relief USA “Brown Bag” webinar on Wednesday, July 7. “Poverty and food insecurity exist not because of the lack of resources or opportunity but because of inequality,” he said. During the one-hour session, Lawson-Lartego spoke about the…
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World Refugee Day 2021
Addressing the challenge to support refugees By Christina Tobias-Nahi According to the UN High Commission for Refugees 2022 Global Resettlement Needs Report released this month in recognition of World Refugee Day, for the sixth year in a row, Syrian refugees are among those with the highest resettlement needs, followed by refugees from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, South Sudan, Afghanistan, and Eritrea. As a result too of the pandemic, “many of those displaced are now faced with increased poverty, destitution and widespread protection risks, from exploitation, trafficking, sexual and gender-based violence, child labor, early marriage, to arrest, detention, deportation, and refoulement.” Islamic Relief USA has long worked tirelessly to…
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Building Barakah… Out of Legos
12-Year-Old Aims to Raise $100K for Orphans by Building Lego Ka’ba By Rubina Ali Big dreams with big goals Zakaria, or Zak for short, is only 12 years old but he’s found a way to use his passion for building Legos as a way to give back. The young humanitarian from Tampa, Florida, is building the world’s biggest Lego model of the Kaaba, the holy site for Muslims, and using his platform to fundraise for orphans worldwide through Islamic Relief USA (IRUSA). Launched Wednesday, June 23, 2021, Zak’s goal is to raise $100,000 to help 1,000 orphans, and he will release videos regularly on his YouTube channel showing progress as…
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Women Entrepreneurs Graduate in VA
Dar al-Hijra graduates another class By Kara Brunson High achievers Islamic Relief USA sponsors the sewing academy, a program launched by Dar al-Hijrah Social Services, to support socio-economic development goals for the local community. Students become certified seamstresses upon completion of 100 hours of hands-on training in the 4-month program. Stacey Picard, Associate Director of Dar al-Hijrah Social Services and Tahhani Gibaran, Director of Dar al-Hijrah Social Services co-led Tuesday’s event, which was notable for a series of firsts. This spring cohort, the organization’s fifteenth since the academy launched eight years ago, was the first to attend the sewing academy in person since social-distancing restrictions were put in place last…
