The Muslim Link, February 19, 2016 by The Muslim Link

muslim martial arts expo fuses 'chi', islam

RUNNINg FOR THE HILLS Dispatches from muslim homesteaDers

>> PG 8

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Baltimore City’s First Masjid Built from the Ground Up to Serve Existing Muslim Neighborhood By Hena Zuberi

He shovels the fresh snow, and sprinkles salt on the driveway. It is the first snow of the season and Mustafa Sharif is getting ready for the Gwynn Oak Islamic Community (GIC) Masjid’s Open house.

past friendly neighbors helping each other park stalled cars on the icy roads, the cream and teal building is a magnificent sight in the snowfall.

Driving past suburban roads, past Liberty Heights Avenue, past the under construction Shoprite and serene Gwynn Oaks Park,

A welcoming community in Baltimore City; a model community with a model masjid which resonates with the call to prayer. Cen-

Muslim Link Staff Reporter

Profile of the Moroccan American Community Organization | pg 5 MD Local Interviews Philanthropist Abdul Sattar Edhi | pg 7

VA Muslims Might Have Helped McAuliffe Win Gov Race | pg 12 Even ADAMS Expansion Sites Need Expanding | pg 14

trally located near the beltway, there is optimistic talk of growth in the brand new masjid, of the school district making the high school into a magnet school,

of quiet streets, historic homes, open green spaces, and convenient commute to

Germantown Leaders Hope To Pray In Masjid This Year | pg 15

On Monday afternoons, the halls of Dar al Taqwa are filled with voices of excited children, playing tag with siblings and friends, showing off snow globe art projects. A cluster of 20 mothers meet in the multipurpose room, tending toddlers and babies, chatting, and readying lunch. They form the Al-Ansar Homeschooling Cooperative, based on a consensus model where every member

participates by volunteering to teach or clean up, essentially ‘pulling their weight.’ They settle down to listen to Elizabeth, a founding member give a talk on classroom management. In one room, Asmaa ElHaggan, mother of a ten year old son, teaches Model U.N Debate class. Seven weeks of classes are taught by mothers divided by age on topics of interest to the group or based on her expertise. By pooling money together, they recently had

a nutritionist teach a class on healthy food choices. They hold an annual Art Fair and a Science Fair, and even hand out certificates. There are no charges except minor material fees for supplies.

Tips are shared: ‘get an educator’s card at the library and you can get six weeks to check out books’, ‘present your portfolio for review in a binder and show

>> schools Pg 10

Should College Applicants Discuss Their Muslim Identity? | pg 28

By Muslim Link Staff

Egypt Closes Vital Gateways Into and Out of Gaza | pg 29

february 15th 2012 - March 14th 2013

DC Muslim Is Deputy Campaign Manager for Gray | pg 4

South East DC Experiencing Surge In Teens, Youth Entering Into Islam

MakeSpace Fundraiser Attracts Support, New Ideas | pg 12

ARTS: Local Author Filling Gap in Children's Books | pg 26

Muslim Link Staff Reporter

Across the street from the post office in Chantilly, VA, right off Route 28 is the ADAMS-Sully Center. It can be spotted by the army of The Cleaning Authority company cars parked in the shared parking lot. Next to

the masjid is the new health clinic for the ADAMS Compassionate Health Network (ACHN). ACHN is a volunteer-based operation dedicated to providing quality healthcare to community members in need,

ISLAM: The “Sunnah” of Divorce and Reconcilliation | pg 31

The Muslim Link

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Come out and support your voice! The Muslim Link

Or, just call it "yaqeen".

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>> yaqeen Pg 18

PResentIng YouR 2013 Ramadan suPeRheRoes! $ Pg 26

local leadeR focus:

IsB ResIdent scholaR Yaseen sheIkh Pg 10

>> comPassion Pg 14

Running foR the hills Dispatches from muslim homesteaDers

w w w . M u s l i m L i n k P a p e r. c o m

md, Va, and dc metropolitan area monthly newspaper | fRee

september 13 - october 10 2013 th

The Muslim Link

The Muslim Marriage Crisis

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE

Finding What's Missing At An The Muslim Link Asks: How Hard Is It to Find a Life Partner In the DMV Area? Orphanage In Mexico | pg 5 By Hena Zuberi Muslim Link Staff Reporter A major part of creating a beloved community is the creation of a family. However, the Muslim marriage crisis is at our doorstep. Many Muslim men and women face hardships in meeting a spouse. The Muslim Link took a closer look at the issue of finding a suitable partner in our community and the resources we have to respond to this crisis.

Meeting venues and forums are few and this seems to be one major deterrent to suitable marriages.

Men and women who really want to get married often face a myriad of issues in finding a good match. The

Adherence to cultural norms and expectations, generational disparity and the neglect of the Islamic standard for the choice of partners are also hurdles single American Muslims face

issues are as diverse as the American Muslim community in the DC Metro area. American-Muslims are scattered all over the country. >> marriage Pg 16

Five Decades On, American Muslims Still In Search of the ‘Beloved Community’

3Di Athletics Holds First Weekend Basketball Camp | pg 6 Sh.Yusuf Islahi: Be Optimistic About Our Ummah | pg 7 Locals Who Witnessed Egypt Massacres Speak | pg 17 Muslims Organize for VA Attorney General Hopeful | pg 18 ISLAM: Top 8 Excuses Not to Go for Hajj | pg 34

Muhammad, Vice President for the 7th District Citizen’s Advisory Council for the Metropolitan Police Department told the Muslim Link.

“There are five Masjids in Southeast

>> surge Pg 22

With Doors Open for All, MCC Clinic Celebrates Expansion By Hena Zuberi

CIVILRIGHTS: Did President Obama Kill Al-Awlaki? | pg 26

The theme – Faith. Submission. Service. –

w w w. M u S L i M L i n k Pa P e r . c o M

By Hena Zuberi

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE

More Special Eids, Special Days Needed for Special Kids | pg 6

They raised Immigrants, Elders Warned of their children here, got them married, cooked Ramadan meals, Scammers Posing asand IRSfor| pg 6 hosted donation drives decades

Shopping and Shipping for Syria Winter Relief | pg 8

in their garages and halaqas in their

They are a part of an active community, a portion of the almost 100,000 Muslims in Montgomery County, which just needed a place—a masjid to call their second home— to pray, mourn, celebrate and grow. On November 8, 2014 with much fanfare this dream was realized.

More than 120 international scholars, intellectuals, and community activists,

Gay Congress Hopeful Is “Great Friend” of Muslims | pg 14

>> icna Pg 24

CIVIL RIGHTS: Hate Ad Sparks US Free Speech Debate | pg 30

After a detailed study and assessment of Dar-us-Salaam's application to develop an education and community campus in Western Howard County, Maryland, the How-

ard County Department of Planning and Zoning issued a twelve page report recommending Dar-us-Salaam's application -- called a "request for a conditional use" -- be granted for "a child day care center, a religious facil-

CIVILRIGHTS: Inside the NYPD's Muslim Spying Program | pg 32

February 19 - March 17 2016

By Hena Zuberi

Muslim Link Staff Reporter

Dynamic sessions, packed halls and up and coming speakers marked the 50th Annual Islamic Society of North America (ISNA)

and Muslim Student Association (MSA) Nationals during the long Labor Day weekend, held at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, DC. The conference came on the shoulders of the 50th

anniversary of the March to Washington and Rev. Martin Luther King’s “I Have Dream” speech.

The theme of the three day convention was based on the beloved community

- Envisioning a More Perfect Union and featured over 100 speakers including Congressman Andre Carson, Dr. Altaf Husain,

Women's Shelter In VA To Be Managed by ICNA | pg 8 The Islamic Society of Germantown opened its doors to politicians, imams, and hundreds of visitors and most importantly to those who had been waiting for the past 13 years when the

society bought the parcel of land — nearly an acre—at 19825 Blunt Road >> masjid Pg 14

New Masjid, Islamic Academy Planned for Chantilly | pg 9

>> iSNa Pg 12

The Muslim Link

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Howard County Approves Dar-us-Salaam Campus Plan ISLAM: Fasting BeforeFirst RamadanMuslim to Raise the Qur'an and Call Athan from Dar-us-Salaam to establish a In Sha'ban | pg 34 Everest to Tell Story of Perseverance at DUS Banquet By Muslim Link Staff campus on the 66-acre former On Tuesday, May 13, 2014, after over a year of engineering studies and public hearings, Howard County approved the Dar-us-Salaam Education and Community Campus plan. The approval by Howard County Hearing Examier Michele LeFaivre allows

Woodmont Academy site with 275,300 square feet of building space including a 56,000 square foot masjid, elementary, middle, and high schools, a daycare, two gymnasiums, and two indoor pools.

The decision comes after the >> dar-us-salaam Pg 39

By Muslim Link Staff

historic deed like that and be recognized by Allah for that deed on the day of judgement.

of the companion Bilal Ibn Rabah (Allah be pleased with him) who was the first

An avid outdoorsman, Alzouman thought that maybe -- if Allah accepts it -- he could be the first Muslim ever to call the athan from the highest point on planet Earth -- Mount Everest -and be raised with Bilal on the Day of Judgement.

FULL COLOR RAMADAN POSTER Like most Muslim youth around the WALL CALENDAR INSIDE | pg 39Alzouman knew the story world, Farouq to ever call the Athan. The MuslimMuslim Link

residents before deciding on Dar-us-Salaam's application. Her decision is subject to appeal to the five member Howard County Board of Appeals.

Greening Our Sacred Grounds Seminar Held In MD | pg 6 TML Interviews Al-Rahmah School Principal | pg 7 DUS Wins 10th DC MIST Tournament, Full Results | pg 8 Modest Fashion, Fashionistas Take the Runway in DC | pg 10 OPED: Disabled Muslims and Masjid Accommodation | pg 27 Somalis Say NGOs Killing Their Incentive to Farm | pg 31 ISLAM: Revive Your Heart by Worshipping In Secret | pg 32 The Muslim Link

HAMZA TZORTZIS Coupons PG 38

fBi Pays Wife to inform on husBand >> PG 22

running for the hills

THIRSTY?

IMAAM Center Realizes 20 Year Old Dream By Muslim Link Staff For hundreds of Indonesian-American families and Maryland Muslims, "grand opening" couldn't have more meaning than it did on Friday, September 26, 2014. After two decades, the dream of establishing a masjid and community center in Maryland finally became a reality, and the presidential benefactor who facilitated a three million dollar donation to purchase a church and convert it to a masjid came with a delegation to witness the opening of the Indonesian Muslim Association in America (IMAAM) in Silver Spring, Maryland.

>> imaam center Pg 1

Coupons Alzouman, a young man from Saudi who studied in the United States, PG 38 Arabia wondered how he could perform a

BETTER LATE THAN NEVER

From the time he entered Nepal, it took Alzouman two months, and a mountain of perseverance and willpower, to make the climb. Here his amazing story at Dar-us-Salaam's Annual Banquet on December 14, 2014 at the Bethesda North Marriott. For more information, see the ad on page 2 of this issue.

Muslim Family Day At Six Flag Caps Summer for 6,000 | pg 5

Do Homeless Have Right to Occupy Public Property? | pg 6 Muslim Youth Learn How to Get a Grip with Golf | pg 8 Founding IMAAM member Firdaus Kadir welcomes Indonesian president Dr. H. Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (far right) at the grand opening of the IMAAM Center

You may have seen him selling outside your masjid after Jummah, selling artisan goat cheese, yogurt, goats milk and fresh, free range organic eggs.

phone doesn't ring— it bleats and brays. He drives a truck with an exquisite deer skull strapped to the hood. He shows me the natural engraving on the skull, finding beauty in the bizarre. Down the dirt road with neat wooden signs showcasing the art of manliness

Matt Jose is an urban farmer; his

>> farm Pg 18

Muslim Link Staff Reporter

LIke & FoLLow uS THe MuSLIM LInk

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE

MoCo Muslims Distribute Udhiya Meat to Area Needy | pg 5

Urban Farm Raises Goats, Sheep, and Young Men By Hena Zuberi

>> PG 23

MD, Va, and Dc Metropolitan area Monthly newspaper | FRee

10 JUMADA AL-AWWAL - 8 JUMADA AL-AKHIR1437 A.H. | WWW.MUSLIMLINKPAPER.COM

A Look at ISNA’s 50th Year Anniversary Convention

NATION: Inside America's First Muslim Frat House | pg 30

ity, and private school." The report issued on February 27, 2014 was submitted to the Howard County Hearing Examiner for her consideration. This month she will hear testimony from Dar-usSalaam, neighbors, and area

october 24th - november 20th 2014

Big Step for the Safety the Dar AlHijrah Congregation | pg 5

Muslim Link Staff Reporter MCC Aims to Be Model for Senior Supportive Masajid |Yasmin pg 6 Loya, Shahana Khan and Azra Malik are friends living in the

living rooms. They remember starting to Local Leader Writes On Faithdream of a masjid in their city in 1996. Based Wealth Building | pg 8 God and service to mankind. In addition to those attending several thousands more watched the live broadcast of the sessions.

>> stolen Pg 12

African American Muslims Featured at Newseum | pg 4

30 THuL-HIjjaH 1435 a.H. - 27 MuHaRRaM 1436 a.H. | www.MuSLIMLInkPaPeR.coM

Like & foLLow uS THe MuSLiM Link

MD, Va, and Dc Metropolitan area Monthly newspaper | free

Germantown area for nearly 30 years.

sought to generate reflection upon the multiple facets of faith and the path on which it directs humanity. It focused the theology of Islam and its manifestation as service to

By Muslim Link Staff

The Muslim Link

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Internationally renowned Fundraising Dinner da’ee & debater

2 8 M u H a r r a M - 2 S a fa r 1 4 3 6 a . H . st

the Jordan Valley holds 28.3 percent of the West Bank’s land, and is ‘the largest single Palestinian territory under

Dept Staff Report a Positive Step Towards Final Approval in Coming Months

ISLAM: The Sunnah of Love, Tenderness, Romance | pg 28

>> PG 21

ALLAHU AKBAR: Finally, Athan Sounds Janaza for Richmond Imam Fills from Masjid In Germantown Neighborhood Streets | pg 5

By Zainab Arain Baltimore, MD (May 27, 2013) – The energy in the air was palpable on Saturday morning, as people lined up to register before the event officially began. Thousands from across the country gathered at the Baltimore Convention Center over Memorial Day weekend to attend the 39th annual ICNAMAS convention.

The Muslim Link

from Palestinian farmers and allocated to settlements and military camps. According to the Inter Press Agency report,

HoCo Dept of Planning and Zoning Recommends Approval of DUS Campus Plan

WhY AAfiA?

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE

ICNA.org

After the 1967 Six-Day War when Israel captured the Jordan Valley from Jordan, tracts of land were taken

WPRESS: Project to Name Civilian Victims of US Drones | pg 25

Coupons PG 35

november 21 - December 18 2014 MD, VA, and DC Metropolitan Area Monthly Newspaper | FREE

June 6th 2014 - July 10th 2014

ICNA-Mas Convention 2014: A New Venue, A New Record

As halal grocery stores in the region start their planning their Ramadan purchasing, a concern on many Muslims’ minds are the origins of the dates that are carried in the stores. Some come from California or Saudia, but others marketed under the name Jordan Valley are from Israel.

RECIPES: Sister Heather Returns with a Winter Warmer | pg 34

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8 S h a b a n - R a m a d a n 1 4 3 5 A . H . | w w w . M u s l i m L i n k P a p e r. c o m

Muslim Link Staff Reporter

>> PG 18

>> PG 26

By Hena Zuberi

Support Group Forming for HIV Positive Muslims | pg 10

Homestead Halal

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“People are looking for a change. They’ve seen the results of what their parents and grandparents have tried. They know about 40-60 years of trying everything else. They don’t want the same things their parents have tried with little success,” Anthony

Our Masajid Are Unprepared to Assist In Case of Disaster | pg 4

Second Muslim Store Owner Murdered In Richmond | pg 5

running for the hills

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MD, VA, and DC Metropolitan Area Monthly Newspaper | FREE

As Ramadan Approaches, Date Buyers Seek to Avoid Israeli Fruits Grown On Stolen Land

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE

TICKETS: 25/person | 5 Childcare www.muslimlinkpaper.com | 301-982-1020

7 Thul Qedah - 5 Thul-Hijjah, 1434 A.H.

In the poorest areas of the nation’s capital, Wards Seven and Eight, where unemployment is in double digits nearing 20%, schools are struggling and there’s a church on nearly every corner Islam is growing at a rapid pace, especially among young males.

Dar Al-Hijrah Expands Social Services w/ Thrift Shop | pg 7

13 Jumada Al-Awwal - Jumada Al-Akhir 3 1435 A.H. | www.MuslimLinkPaper.com

March 14th - April 3rd 2014

Fairfax Talk Opposing Hijab Called Bigoted, Intolerant | pg 5

Muslim Link Contributing Writer

WPRESS: Guantanamo -- Tell the World the Truth | pg 30

By Hena Zuberi

AT MONTGOMERY BLAIR HIGHSCHOOL 51 UNIVERSITY BLVD SILVER SPRING, MD FEATURING

Md, Va, and dc Metropolitan area Monthly newspaper | free

Nisa Muhammad

Muslim Brutally Murdered in Gaithersburg 7-Eleven | pg 7

An Al Ansar Homeschooler showing off her snow globe made in Sr. Andini's art classes held at Dar Al-Taqwa in Maryland. Photo by Muslim Link.

>> PG 45

>> PG 24

The Muslim Link

5 Rabi Al-Thani - 2 Jumada Al-Awwal, 1434 A.H. | www.MuslimLinkPaper.com

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE

Head of Moroccan Party Discusses Arab Spring | pg 6

VA Muslim Cemetery Might Be Largest In America | pg 20

>> Gwynn Oak Pg 6

Around 1,800 Supports Help Raise $1.95M at Dec 15 Dinner Call this event the "December 15 miracle". Or call it the "the winter 2013 miracle".

By Hena Zuberi

Muslim Link Staff Reporter

THE GOOD NEWS

MD, VA, and DC Metropolitan Area Monthly Newspaper | FREE

February 7th - March 6th 2014

MD, VA, and DC Metropolitan Area Monthly Newspaper | FREE

Running foR the hills Dispatches from muslim homesteaDers

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The Muslim Link

How much is the Muslim Link worthSchools: to you? Each Outgrowing Build It, Because They’ve Already Come Journeys In Islamic Homeschooling year for the past 17 years, the Muslim Link has been reporting on the activism and growth of our communities to both the region's Muslims as well as the broader community. How much is reinforcing our connections, our common goals, and our lines ADAMS Medical Clinic Offers CompasHome of the Heart Beats Faster with Yaqeen Boost sion at No Cost of communication throughout the year worth? 2 Rabi Al-Awwal - 6 Rabi Al-Thani, 1435 A.H. | www.MuslimLinkPaper.com

January, 3rd - February 6th, 2014

but first, SATURDAY 5:00 PM

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MARCH 26

tracIng roots: afrIcan MuslIM slaVe settled In dc Pg 9

IntroducIng the MuslIM lInk halal Menus sectIon Pg 38

>> PG 36

>> PG 24

NelsoN maNdela aNd south africaN muslims: brothers-iN-arms >> PG 5

MATH CONFERENCE FEATURES MUSLIM CONTRIBUTIONS

Young Researchers Present Findings at MYFIKR | pg 10 Islamic Relief, FAITH Join Hands for Eid Al-Adha Charity | pg 11 Masjid Al-Rahmah Gets $74K Federal Security Grant | pg 12

LIKE & FOLLOW US Rise in Abused Children Prompts New FAITH Program | pg 14 THE MUSLIM LINK As Egypt Rolls Back On Democracy, US Bolsters Sisi | pg 25

MD, VA, and DC Metropolitan Area Monthly Newspaper | toFREE Author Reverts Islam | pg 26

Full Coverage of the Before, During, and After of the President's Visit to the Islamic Society of Baltimore | PAGE 12

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE

After 7 Yrs, ICM Plans for Summer Groundbreaking | pg 5 Syrian Refugee Family Welcomed in College Park MD | pg 5 Plows, Prayer, and Patience: Dealing with Snowzilla | pg 8 USCMO: Coord Council Needed for West's Muslims | pg 10 Fox Watchers Hold Negative Views Of Muslims | pg 26 ISLAM: Being Considerate of Others’ Feelings| pg 28

February 19th - March 17th 2016

Mercy-USA is Delivering 260,000 Bottles of Drinking Water to the Elderly in Flint, MI

Many elderly folks in Flint, Michigan live alone with limited resources—their local senior center is a place they rely on for companionship, meals and other vital resources. That’s why Mercy-USA for Aid and Development is making weekly water deliveries to

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Visit our website for more about our clean water project for Flint:

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Donate Online: www.mercyusa.org Call Toll-Free: 800-55-MERCY (800-556-3729) 44450 Pinetree Dr., Ste. 201 • Plymouth, MI 48170-3869

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February 19th - March 17th 2016

INDEX

Mujtaba Yahya, DDS

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

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February 19th - March 17th 2016

Community News

COMMUNITY NEWS

After Seven Years, ICM Plans for Summer Groundbreaking By Hena Zuberi

Muslim Link Staff Reporter Paving the way to an enlightened future, the Gaithersburg-based Islamic Center of Maryland (ICM) is re-launching with the groundbreaking of the Youth and Community Center set for summer 2016. ICM was incorporated on January 20, 1991, but came into existence in 1989 when congregational prayers were organized at the Bechtel Corporation building. The current location was purchased in 1995. Starting in June 2013, ICM completed the county required Land Development and Storm Water Management Permit process in February of 2015 at the cost of $1.9 million. The management was awaiting building permits from the Department of Permitting Services. “We initiated this whole project [with a master plan] in 2007- along with other brothers. It took us a long time— planning, designing and engaging with community. So it has been 7 years,” shares Nadeem Ahmad, the Board of Trustee in charge of construction.

A rendering of the original concept for the multipurpose building ICM hopes to start building this summer. The new plan calls for up to three buildings – a school and youth center with gymnasium, a masjid, and a high school building. Photo courtesy of ICM.

Wael Elkoshairi, Chairman of the Board of Trustees, eminds the community that ICM is more than just the building. “We have had an increase in our programming with a vibrant Friday Family night program, and the Inspire Me camp held at one of the premium camping sites in the country with over a hundred campers. The building is an extension of who we are.” The community center is an extension of all the activities and all the successful programs conducted

at ICM, as Elkoshairi believes that empty buildings are not progress. “Our original master plan was a large integrated building with a school and gym and a masjid and social hall,” says Ahmad. But when the trustees looked at that plan, they determined that it was costly and would take a [much] longer time to accomplish, says Ahmad. The master plan was divided into three phases— leading

to a campus of multiple buildings in the works. Currently Stage 1 of Phase 1: a shell of the Islamic School and Youth and Community building will be constructed with a gym, a large social hall, classrooms and instructional areas. The building is designed with a fulltime elementary school in mind. ICM plans on building

>> GROUND BREAKING Pg 33

Syrian Refugee Family Welcomed in College Park By Hena Zuberi

Kabir, a first year at Prince George’s County Community College and a 2015 graduate of Al Huda school, met his friends at Fajr and spent two and half hours loading the U-Haul. Twenty people joined him including the children from Al Huda middle and high school. At 11:20 they arrived in College Park to a welcoming party with signs that read ‘Ahlan wasah lan & Welcome to College Park,’ flowers and lots of pizza from the local eatery, Pizza Roma. Hifdh schools girls and aunties from the neighborhood bustled in and out, trying to communicate in broken Arabic and sign language with

Muslim Link Staff Reporter A U-Haul pulled into the apartment complex early after Fajr found the Farook family was ready to move to their new home in College Park, MD. Volunteers from Virginia, Baltimore and the Dar Us Salaam (DUS) community brought out boxes from the midsize ‘dingy’ apartment that was clearly too small for a family of nine. “They have been in Maryland for around a year and the environment was not welcoming. It didn't seem like a proper place for such a large family,” says Samir Kabir.

One of the newest members of the College Park community, this young Syrian boy helps his elders with the move from Baltimore to College Park. Photo courtesy of Dar-us-Salaam.

>> WELCOMED Pg 33

....

COMMUNITY NEWS

February 19th - March 17th 2016

Muslims, Interfaith Groups Protest Hate Speaker Event in Baltimore By Muslim Link Staff She is called a ‘pundit behind the industry of fear’ that fuels anti-Muslim bigotry. Ayaan Hirsi Ali calls herself a feminist and activist, and she will be speaking at a Stevenson University sponsored Speakers Series in Baltimore, MD. Several concerned citizens called the local CAIR office and have reached out to presidents of their local masajid. Muslim leaders mobilized behind an interfaith letter sent to the President of Stevenson Univeristy, Dr Kevin J. Manning. A Maryland-based coalition of 18 masajid and interfaith partners endorsed the letter calling on Stevenson University to ‘drop anti- Muslim Hirsi Ali as a speaker at an upcoming Baltimore Speakers Series event or to at least offer a balancing perspective to her Islamophobic rhetoric.’ A letter of acknowledgment was sent by Dr Manning to the coalition but no further action is in the horizon. Hirsi Ali is an athiest who was raised in

....

a Somali Muslim household in Kenya. After fleeing a forced marriage to a cousin , she sought asylum in the Netherlands. She went from a maid to running for member of lower Dutch parliament, until the government found that she had misrepresented facts on her asylum papers. She came to the United States after the director of her short file ‘Submission’, Theo Van Gogh, was killed and a death threat for her was left on his body. In the United States she has aligned herself with hatemongers like Robert Spencer, to neo athiest such as Sam Harris, and has been supported by grassroots anti-Muslim organizations such as ACT for America and liberals such as Harvard Professor Steven Pinker and Michael Shermer, editor of the Scientific American. She has called for the closing of Muslim schools in the West and called for war against Muslims worldwide and has urged our country to strip American Muslims of their civil rights, wrote Homayra Ziad and Alison Jysia of the newly renamed

Institute for Islamic, Christian, and Jewish Studies in an oped in the Baltimore Sun. In 2014, her appearance at Yale University was protested by 30 campus groups. Many don’t consider Hirsi Ali's comments about Islam to be protected under free speech, calling it hate speech. Hirsi Ali, a former Muslim who was a victim of genital mutilation as a child, has called Islam a "nihilistic cult of death," and has said that it must be "defeated." She is a Israeli sympathizer and staunching antiboycott divestment and sanctions. The audience at the Speaker Series will hear gems like”“There's no BDS movement against them on campus. Why? Last year in Nigeria, 200 girls were kidnapped. They were sold into slavery. There was no BDS movement against Boko Haram.”” The lecture orginally scheduled for the end of Jan was postposned due to the extreme snowfall over the weekend. Meyerhoff

Symphony Hall has rescheduled the event for Monday, February 29, 2016. Tickets for the popular Speaker Series are sold by subscription to the entire series and are not for indiviadual sale. Tickets to individual lectures are not for sale, with the highest ticket sold for $415. Leon Panetta, former head of the CIA, and Sanjay Gupta, CNN’s medical correspondent, are other speakers in the series. The interfaith coalition’s letter states in part: “Ms. Ali is by all means free to believe as she chooses. We uphold First Amendment rights for all - including those with inflammatory, misguided views. However, our concern is that granting her this unchallenged platform to peddle misinformation would legitimize such falsehoods, perpetuate intolerance toward and hatred of Muslims, and risk jeopardizing the safety of local Muslims - including students on your campus."

>> PROTEST Pg 31

February 19th - March 17th 2016

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COMMUNITY NEWS

February 19th - March 17th 2016

Plows, Prayer, and Patience: Area Masajid Deal with Snowzilla

Right, an idea for the next big blizzard – make a snow masjid. Left, Dar-us-Salaam's building staff took care of all the snow without resorting to outside contractors. Photo courtesy of Dar-us-Salaam. By Hena Zuberi

Muslim Link Staff Reporter It seemed like the entire winter had come in one weekend with a perfect mix of low pressure, high winds and extreme moisture. In 36 hours more snow fell than in an entire season during

....

historic Snowzilla 2016. Mohamed Omar, 16 years with Dar-us-Salaam as the Building Manager say, “This was the worst blizzard,” in all those years. Muslim social media erupted with photos of Winter Wonderland: children sledding, teens shoveling elderly neighbors’

driveways and lots of Blizzard delicacies as people cooked up a whirlwind and spent time with their families. Federal offices were closed on Monday, as were state offices in Maryland and Virginia, but masajid and Islamic Centers were ready to spring back into action to

accommodate worshippers. “Alhamdulillah, I tried to plan ahead a week before the blizzard,” said Omar. In planning he had the blower for

>> SNOWZILLA Pg 33

February 19th - March 17th 2016

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10 | COMMUNITY NEWS

February 19th - March 17th 2016

Leaders Say Coordinating Council Needed for Muslims of the Western World By Hena Zuberi

Muslim Link Staff Reporter A new coordinating body of Muslim leaders in Western nations is in the works. To bring it to fruition, an international steering committee was formed in Washington D.C., where 200 Muslim leaders from local and national organizations met on February 1-3 in Arlington, VA for the 1st International Conference of Muslim Councils in the West. The summit was organized by the US Council of Muslim Organizations (USCMO). Delegates from the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Belgium, Sweden, Norway, Italy, Australia, Canada, the Carribean, Latin America, and South Africa made presentations on the state of Muslims in their respective countries.

There was a time where there were standing fatwas against citizenship in non Muslim lands, shared the French delegate Abdullah bin Mansour, from the Federation of Islamic Organizations in Europe, with the delegates, marvelling on how far Muslims have come as citizens of the West. “21 Ulema met in [France] in the early 90s to address jurisprudence specific to Non Muslim lands,” he said. “Most Muslims in Europe now are indigneous, from Turkey, the Balkans and Russia.” From Dr. Abed Ayoub, the CEO and President of the United Muslim Relief, to Arsalan Suleman, the United States’ Special Envoy to the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, from Noera Ayaz of Women in Islam, to Chaplain Asma Hanif, many American Muslim leaders attended the conference.

USCMO Secretary General Oussama Jammal addresses the gathering of around 200 local, national, and international Muslim leaders. Photo courtesy of USCMO. The aim was to note trends and find solutions to shared issues of concern. For three days the international consortium of leaders discussed anti-Muslim bigotry, integration and Countering Violent

Extremism and search faith based solutions to common challenges.

>> COUNCIL Pg 24

Jobs at al-Huda scHool in College Park, MD & Harrisburg, PA

AdministrAtors: Minimum qualifications: Master’s in Education K-12 Certified teAChers*: Minimum qualifications: Bachelor’s Degree, preferably in education ArAbiC, Qur’An & islAmiC studies teAChers: Minimum qualifications: Bachelor’s Degree, preferably in Arabic Language Counselors: With experience in Islamic counseling Computer teAChers: 1-2 years teaching experience in the field

highsChool teAChers: Minimum qualifications: Bachelor’s Degree, preferably in education with a specialization in Advanced Placement (AP) level Math, English, Biology, or History pe teAChers: 1-2 years teaching experience in the field presChool direCtor, AssistAnt direCtor & pre-K teAChers: Candidates with appropriate course work and experience

sChool informAtion: • Full-time Islamic school established in 1995 • Accredited by the Middle States Commissions on Elementary and Secondary Schools • Grades: PreK - 12th grade • Student body: 600+ • Facility: 26 classrooms, 54,000 sqft building on 9.7 acre land • A project of Dar-us-Salaam** benefits: • Competitive salaries • Excellent health benefits (medical and dental insurance) • Excellent Islamic working environment • Paid sick/personal leave • Paid holidays that match the Islamic calendar (i.e. both Eids) • Professional development programs

Send reSume along with a cover letter and references to the following address: Dar-us-Salaam c/o, Employment, P.O Box 596, College Park, MD 20741-0596 Email: jobs@duscommunity.org | Website: www.duscommunity.org | Fax: 301-982-2325 | For more information please call: 301-982-2402 ** Dar-us-Salaam: Striving to build a vibrant Islamic community that can serve as an effective vehicle to call people to Islam. Dar-us-Salaam encompasses a variety of services, including a preschool, a private full-time elementary, middle and high school, full time hifzh school, various businesses ventures, a newspaper, and other education and community services. Visit us on the web at www.duscommunity.org to learn more about our mission and for a more complete listing of available positions.

....

February 19th - March 17th 2016

COMMUNITY NEWS | 11

This Muslim American Aafia Foundation Announces ‘sees the world through the Nationwide Mobilizations eyes of Scouting’ By Muslim Link Staff

Allah says in the Quran “Stand firmly for justice as witnesses to The Creator of all, even if it be against yourselves, your parents, or your kin; or whether it be against rich or poor, for The Creator can best protect both. Do not follow the lusts of your hearts, lest you swerve. If you distort justice, or decline to do justice, know that The Creator is ever aware of what you do.”

By M. Scott Bortot

Share.America.gov, February 16, 2016 Virginia’s Abdul Rashid Abdullah takes Boy Scouts seriously. If you don’t believe it, just ask the youth coordinator at his local mosque. “He’s the poster person for Scouting as far as I’m concerned,” says Joshua Salaam. “Abdul Rashid sees the world through the eyes of Scouting.” Being a Boy Scout provides boys under 18 years old with activities — such as hiking, camping and community-service — that build character and spark an interest in civic duty. You’ll find Scouts in over 200 countries, including nearly 2.5 million in the U.S. Nearly a million adults support them with time and leadership skills. Abdullah, a California native, began his Scouting adventure at age 14. In 1990, he earned his Eagle Scout badge, the highest rank in Boy Scouts. He converted to Islam around the same time. Today, the IT systems architect and father of four empowers youth at local mosques — and beyond — as a volunteer Scout leader. Abdullah helped found the National Association of Muslim Americans on Scouting, which holds an annual summer Boy Scout camp that provides halal meals. Abdullah observes that volunteering helps young people build character. He’s glad it’s an important part of Scouting. “That’s really important when we raise youth in our community, to teach them service to others,” he said. “Volunteering, giving back, this is the ultimate path.” Parents noticed Abdullah’s Boy Scout credentials when he introduced his oldest son to the All Dulles Area Muslim Society Cub Scout Pack in 2006.

“They wound up saying to me, ‘You know what? You need to be the Cub Master of this pack. You are an Eagle Scout and you know more than us,'” Abdullah said. That started him on the leadership path for the mosque’s Cub Pack (for younger boys) and Boy Scout troop. His Scouts volunteer in local efforts and every year work with Scouting for Food, a national annual food drive. Boy Scouts can be from any faith and troops are sometimes associated with houses of worship, including about 80 sponsored by mosques and Muslim organizations. Muslims can join Scout troops affiliated with churches and Abdullah says non-Muslim Scouts have been members of his troop. According to the Scout Law, Boy Scouts should be reverent and respect “the beliefs of others.” Abdullah says Scouting promotes interfaith dialogue. This inspired him to start the National Capital Area Messengers of Peace, part of the broader Boy Scouts’ Messengers of Peace initiative.

With this principle in mind, an American Muslim human rights organization, The Aafia Foundation, Inc. (TAF) will launch in February to implement an educational and advocacy program based on the universal truth that true peace (for the individual and society) can only come through justice. Twenty years ago The Peace And Justice

Foundation (TPAJF) was formed as a small grassroots human rights movement, and ended up being on the frontlines of some of the major justice-related challenges in America today – from police brutality and police reform issues to political imprisonment cases involving “secret evidence.” Last month The Peace Thru Justice Foundation ended operations to make room for a new Muslim-led human rights organization also based in Maryland. The Aafia Foundation, Inc. (TAF) is now a registered non-profit organization in the state of Maryland, and has applied for 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status. “We are very fortunate to have a capable and culturally diverse Board of Directors, and an equally impressive, culturally

>> AAFIA Pg 21

Wanted: Development Coordinator Mercy-USA for Aid and Development, a Michigan-based international humanitarian relief and development organization founded in 1988 is seeking a dynamic Development Coordinator. We’re looking for a creative and innovative professional to generate new and unique ways for fundraising, enhance community relationships and develop new business opportunities that will build on the momentum our team has begun. Successful candidates will have the following qualifications: • Bachelor’s Degree • Minimum 1-3 years experience in fundraising • Knowledge of fundraising management and special event planning. • Proficiency in fundraising, word processing, database and spreadsheet software programs. • Certificate in Fundraising Management, and/or a CFRE designation are assets. • Interest in international development and/or previous experience in similar organizations to Mercy-USA are a plus. Competitive salary, health and other insurance, 401K plan and generous leave policy are more reasons qualified candidates will want to work with our dedicated and professional team. For a full description of the position and required qualifications please view our online posting at www.mercyusa.org. Please submit resume and cover letter to careers@mercyusa.org Only applicants asked to interview will be contacted. No phone calls please.

“Scouting is, in my opinion, the premier opportunity for interfaith work by its very nature,” he said. 44450 Pinetree Dr., Ste. 201 • Plymouth, MI 48170-3869 • mercyusa.org

....

12 | COMMUNITY NEWS

February 19th - March 17th 2016

Better Late Than Never By Muslim Link Staff The group of young professionals who took up a challenge of presidential proportions to host the historic, first ever visit to an American masjid by the President of the United States Barack Obama seemed to all agree on how to describe the experience. “It was like having to prepare for the Olympics with only four days notice, and you get to keep the stadium,” said Edmund Tori, one of the core volunteers at the Islamic Society of Baltimore (ISB) who headed the public relations team. The Muslim Link interviewed several of the 15-20 key volunteers who helped make it possible for the presidential motorcade to drive through the ISB gates on the drizzly, gray morning of Wednesday, February 3, 2016, a day which one volunteer described as “one of the greatest days in the history of the ISB.” According to ISB member and volunteer Faizan Mahmoodi who was the project lead for the presidential visit, the White House had been considering a speech at an American masjid for sometime. Several Muslim leaders and organizations in touch with the White House had been stressing the importance of such a visit to help combat rising Islamophobia. About a week before the event, the White House Office of Public Engagement contacted ISB Resident Scholar Sheikh Yaseen Shaikh and told him that ISB was being considered for the visit. The White House emphasized the event was vaery much in the planning stages, and that if word got to the media before plans were finalized, the event would be canceled. A flurry of text and WhatsApp messages dominated the attention of some of ISB’s most active, reliable volunteers over the

....

next 48 hours. On Friday morning, January 29, 2016, dozens of White House staff, Secret Service, and FBI staff arrived for a site visit lasting several hours. Later that day, the White House informed ISB that President Obama’s first visit to a masjid in America would be at ISB. “[The White House told us] you guys are a good contender because of all the services you have and the demographic you service,” said Mahmoodi, who served as the White House’s primary point of contact at ISB. The White House also mentioned that Baltimore was a good city to focus on given the Freddie Gray riots and on-going trials. President Obama said “the good people of this mosque helped this city move forward after the turmoil of last year” during his main address at ISB. “Never did we think in our wildest dreams that [the visit] would happen here,” Mahmoodi told the Muslim Link. Some area Muslims who spoke to the Muslim Link said they were surprised the White House chose ISB, thinking that the most likely area masjid for a presidential visit would be the All Dulles Area Muslim Soceity (ADAMS) in Northern Virginia since high ranking government officials spoke there before, including Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson last year and Deputy National Security Advisor Denis McDonough in 2011. Mahmoodi said the White House did mention that ADAMS center was on the short list of possible host masajid. By Saturday the news was public. President Obama would speak at ISB to all of America and to viewers around the globe “to celebrate the

>> BETTER Pg 22

roads, past Liberty Heights Avenue, past the under construction Shoprite and serene Gwynn Oaks Park,

in Baltimore City; a model community with a model masjid which resonates with the call to prayer. Cen-

of growth in the brand new masjid, of the school district making the high school into a magnet school,

and convenient commute to >> Gwynn Oak Pg 6

Home of the Heart Beats Faster with Yaqeen Boost

Should College Applicants Discuss Their Muslim Identity? | pg 28

Around 1,800 Supports Help Raise $1.95M at Dec 15 Dinner th th By Muslim Link Staff

February 19 - March 17 2016

Egypt Closes Vital Gateways Into and Out of Gaza | pg 29

Call this event the "December 15 miracle". Or call it the "the winter 2013 miracle".

The Muslim Link

Or, just call it "yaqeen".

Coupons PG 38

>> yaqeen Pg 18

group or based on her expertise. By pooling money together, they recently had

Homeschooling Cooperative, based on a consensus model where every member

Pray In Masjid This Year | pg 15 VA Muslim Cemetery Might Be Largest In America | pg 20

>> schools Pg 10

made in Sr. Andini's art classes held at Dar Al-Taqwa in Maryland. Photo by Muslim Link.

ADAMS Medical Clinic Offers Compassion at No Cost By Hena Zuberi

the masjid is the new health clinic for the ADAMS Compassionate Health Network (ACHN). ACHN is a volunteer-based operation dedicated to providing quality healthcare to community members in need,

Muslim Link Staff Reporter

Support, New Ideas | pg 12 ARTS: Local Author Filling Gap in Children's Books | pg 26 WPRESS: Guantanamo -- Tell the World the Truth | pg 30 ISLAM: The “Sunnah” of Divorce and Reconcilliation | pg 31

The Muslim Link

Coupons PG 38

>> comPassion Pg 14

MARCH 26

They’ve seen the results of what their parents and grandparents have tried. They know about 40-60 years of trying everything else. They don’t want the same things their parents have tried with little success,” Anthony

Muhammad, Vice President for the 7th District Citizen’s Advisory Council for the Metropolitan Police Department told the Muslim Link.

“There are five Masjids in Southeast

>> surge Pg 22

WPRESS: Project to Name Civilian Victims of US Drones | pg 25 CIVILRIGHTS: Did President Obama Kill Al-Awlaki? | pg 26

With Doors Open for All, MCC Clinic ISLAM:|The13 Sunnah of Love, Celebrates Expansion ADVERTISEMENTTenderness, Romance | pg 28 By Hena Zuberi

Muslim Link Staff Reporter Shabana Izhar, a new immigrant who lives in Bowie adjusts her shalwar kameez and settles down in the chairs in the wait-

ing pavilion at the Muslim Community Center Clinic. A regular United Nations of patients surrounds her; a Hispanic woman coming from a nearby church,

RECIPES: Sister Heather Returns with a Winter Warmer | pg 34 The Muslim Link

Coupons PG 35

>> latina Pg 15

Pays Wifepm SaturDay fBi 5:00 running for the hills to inform on THIRSTY? AT MONTGOMERY husBand BLAIR HIGHSCHOOL 51 uNIVErSIty BLVD SILVEr SPrING, MD As Ramadan Approaches, Date Buyers Seek IMAAM Center Realizes 20 Year Old Dream

Running foR the hills Dispatches from muslim homesteaDers

>> PG 22

>> PG 45

>> PG 24

PResentIng YouR 2013 Ramadan suPeRheRoes! Pg 26

local leadeR focus:

IsB ResIdent scholaR Yaseen sheIkh Pg 10

>> PG 23

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African American Muslims Featured at Newseum | pg 4

to Avoid Israeli Fruits Grown On Stolen Land By Hena Zuberi As halal grocery stores in the region start their planning their Ramadan purchasing, a concern on many Muslims’ minds are the origins of the dates that are carried in the stores. Some come from California or Saudia, but others marketed under the name Jordan Valley are from Israel. After the 1967 Six-Day War when Israel captured the Jordan Valley from Jordan, tracts of land were taken

the Jordan Valley holds 28.3 percent of the West Bank’s land, and is ‘the largest single Palestinian territory under

Modest Fashion, Fashionistas Take the Runway in DC | pg 10 >> stolen Pg 12

OPED: Disabled Muslims and Masjid Accommodation | pg 27 Somalis Say NGOs Killing Their Incentive to Farm | pg 31

>> imaam center Pg 1

Urban Farm Raises Goats, Sheep, and Young Men

residents before deciding on Dar-us-Salaam's application. Her decision is subject to appeal to the five member Howard County Board of Appeals.

By Hena Zuberi

ISLAM: Revive Your Heart by Worshipping In Secret | pg 32

You may have seen him selling outside your masjid after Jummah, selling artisan goat cheese, yogurt, goats milk and fresh, free range organic eggs.

Matt Jose is an urban farmer; his

>> farm Pg 18

Muslim Link Staff Reporter

Coupons PG 38

Young Researchers Present Findings at MYFIKR | pg 10 Islamic Relief, FAITH Join Hands for Eid Al-Adha Charity | pg 11

Author Reverts to Islam | pg 26

WhY AAfiA?

TICKETS: 25/person | 5 Childcare

>> PG 26

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2 8 M u H a rr a M - 2 S a fa r 1 4 3 6 a . H .

MCC Aims to Be Model for Senior Supportive Masajid | pg 6

By Zainab Arain ICNA.org

Baltimore, MD (May 27, 2013) – The energy in the air was palpable on Saturday morning, as people lined up to register before the event officially began. Thousands from across the country gathered at the Baltimore Convention Center over Memorial Day weekend to attend the 39th annual ICNAMAS convention. The theme – Faith. Submission. Service. –

Immigrants, Elders Warned of Scammers Posing as IRS | pg 6 Local Leader Writes On FaithBased Wealth Building | pg 8 sought to generate reflection upon the multiple facets of faith and the path on which it directs humanity. It focused the theology of Islam and its manifestation as service to

God and service to mankind. In addition to those attending several thousands more watched the live broadcast of the sessions.

More than 120 international scholars, intellectuals, and community activists,

Gay Congress Hopeful Is “Great Friend” of Muslims | pg 14

>> icna Pg 24

CIVIL RIGHTS: Hate Ad Sparks US Free Speech Debate | pg 30

Howard County Approves Dar-us-Salaam Campus Plan ISLAM: Fasting Before Ramadan Dar-us-Salaam to establish a By Muslim Link Staff

On Tuesday, May 13, 2014, after over a year of engineering studies and public hearings, Howard County approved the Dar-us-Salaam Education and Community Campus plan. The approval by Howard County Hearing Examier Michele LeFaivre allows

In Sha'ban | pg 34

campus on the 66-acre former Woodmont Academy site with 275,300 square feet of building space including a 56,000 square foot masjid, elementary, middle, and high schools, a daycare, two gymnasiums, and two indoor pools.

FULL COLOR RAMADAN POSTER WALL CALENDAR INSIDE | pg 39 The Muslim Link

Coupons PG 38

The decision comes after the >> dar-us-salaam Pg 39

The STory Which BindS: The Seerah and Your KIdS PG 20

By Hena Zuberi

Muslim Link Staff Reporter

Yasmin Loya, Shahana Khan and Azra Malik are friends living in the Germantown area for nearly 30 years. They raised their children here, got them married, cooked Ramadan meals, and for decades hosted donation drives in their garages and halaqas in their living rooms. They remember starting to dream of a masjid in their city in 1996. They are a part of an active community, a portion of the almost 100,000 Muslims in Montgomery County, which just needed a place—a masjid to call their second home— to pray, mourn, celebrate and grow. On November 8, 2014 with much fanfare this dream was realized.

The Islamic Society of Germantown opened its doors to politicians, imams, and hundreds of visitors and most importantly to those who had been waiting for the past 13 years when the

The Muslim Community: Just a Click Away? By Wafa Unus Muslim Link Staff Reporter

Chances are you’re reading this article on the Internet and not in its “antiquated” paper form. Chances are even greater that you didn’t type in a URL to get to the digital version but rather clicked on a link from a Twitter feed or a Facebook post. If you want to share this with someone, and you know you do, chances are that even if you are reading

this on hard copy, you’re going to send the digital version via a social media platform or e-mail.

Quickly fading are the days of newspaper clippings and passing the paper across the breakfast table.

As social media becomes more common, businesses, organizations and even religious congregations have begun adopting the virtual tools not only to further their causes but to create a new type of boundless virtual community that risks no fire code violations and requires no million dollar blueprint plans. Islamic Relief USA (IR) is >> CLiCK Pg 12

Area Syrians Watch Events With Worry, Anger By Wafa Unus Muslim Link Staff Reporter

With death tolls in Syria reported between six and seven thousand in the past 11 months, some American Syrians are faced with continued concern for the safety of their loved ones back home. The region, riddled with political upheaval and protest against Syrian President Basher Al-Assad’s dynastic rule has seen an unprec-

Big Step for the Safety the Dar AlHijrah Congregation | pg 5

OP-Ed: Europe Setting Up Clash of Civilizations? | pg 21 LETTERS: Your Reactions To Last Issue’s Stories | pg 25 The Muslim Link

Dynamic sessions, packed halls and up and coming speakers marked the 50th Annual Islamic Society of North America (ISNA)

anniversary of the March to Washington and Rev. Martin Luther King’s “I Have Dream” speech.

The theme of the three day convention was based on the beloved community

- Envisioning a More Perfect Union and featured over 100 speakers including Congressman Andre Carson, Dr. Altaf Husain,

NATION: Inside America's First Muslim Frat House | pg 30 CIVILRIGHTS: Inside the NYPD's Muslim Spying Program | pg 32 The Muslim Link

Coupons PG 43

>> iSNa Pg 12

all aboard for hoMe of the heart lunch cruise Pg 9 Like & Follow us

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Md, Va, and dc Metropolitan area Monthly newspaper | free

May 17th 2013 - June 13th 2013

Shopping and Shipping for Syria Winter Relief | pg 8

turkish prime minister breAks ground for $100m mAsjid complex in mArylAnd, pg 22

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CAIR-MD Relaunches with Inaugural Banquet | pg 21 New Women's Group Forms After Anti-Hijab Event | pg 5 Palestinian Journalists In the Line of Fire | pg 5

New Masjid, Islamic Academy Planned for Chantilly | pg 9

Running Muslim: The Other Boston Story | pg 4

Wives of Incarcerated Terrorism Suspects March In DC | pg 6

Like most Muslim youth around the world, Farouq Alzouman knew the story of the companion Bilal Ibn Rabah (Allah be pleased with him) who was the first Muslim to ever call the Athan. Alzouman, a young man from Saudi Arabia who studied in the United States, wondered how he could perform a

historic deed like that and be recognized by Allah for that deed on the day of judgement. An avid outdoorsman, Alzouman thought that maybe -- if Allah accepts it -- he could be the first Muslim ever to call the athan from the highest point on planet Earth -- Mount Everest -and be raised with Bilal on the Day of Judgement.

THE STORY OF AN AMAZING NECKLACE

HOW MUCH DOES WAR COST YOU?

MuslIM Fundraising dcInterscholastIc Dinner

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Digging

in For The

FuTure

Photo Essay of ICM’S Ground Breaking -- PG 22

Muslim FunFest 2012 Beats the Heat

The largest annual social gathering of Muslims in the region, the carnival offers large mechanical rides similar to

tournaMent results Pg 9

MD, VA, and DC Metropolitan Area Bi-Weekly Newspaper | FREE

June 1st 2012 - June 14th 2012

Despite almost 90 degree heat, several thousand Muslims from the greater Washington and Baltimore metropolitan region as well as hundreds from surrounding states like New Jersey and Pennsylvania took a day for fun and socializing at the 5th annual Muslim FunFest family carnival.

VA Burial of Boston Bombing Suspect Causes Anger | pg 9

Al-rAhmAh school mArks 25 yeArs

Interfaith Coalition Opposes VA Foreign Law Bill | pg 4

ISLAM: Winter - The Best Season for Worshipers | pg 18

Muslim Link Staff Reporter

'A symbol of friendship'

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WPRESS: Report Shows Drones Target Civilians | pg 16

By Hena Zuberi

More Special Eids, Special Days Needed for Special Kids | pg 6

Bullied Youth Finds Little Help From School System | pg 4

CIVIL: NYPD Targeting Masajid For Intel Gathering | pg 14

A Look at ISNA’s 50th Year Anniversary Convention

ISLAM: Top 8 Excuses Not to Go for Hajj | pg 34

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Dar Al-Hijrah Food Bank Helps Falls Church Needy | pg 5

Five Decades On, American Muslims Still In Search of the ‘Beloved Community’

By Muslim Link Staff

PG 30

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Muslims Organize for VA Attorney General Hopeful | pg 18

Cabbie Records Hateful Speech, Attack from Passenger | pg 6

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February 10th 2012 - February 23rd 2012

Locals Who Witnessed Egypt Massacres Speak | pg 17

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society bought the parcel of land — nearly an acre—at 19825 Blunt Road >> masjid Pg 14

Sh.Yusuf Islahi: Be Optimistic About Our Ummah | pg 7

First Muslim to Raise the Qur'an and Call Athan from Everest to Tell Story of Perseverance at DUS Banquet

PG 13

The Muslim Link

issues are as diverse as the American Muslim community in the DC Metro area. American-Muslims are scattered all over the country. >> marriage Pg 16

Women's Shelter In VA To Be Managed by ICNA | pg 8

MuSLIMS FeeL BeTraYed BY FBI

18 Rabi Al-Awaal - 1 Rabi Al-Thani, 1433 A.H. | www.MuslimLinkPaper.com

Men and women who really want to get married often face a myriad of issues in finding a good match. The

Adherence to cultural norms and expectations, generational disparity and the neglect of the Islamic standard for the choice of partners are also hurdles single American Muslims face

MD, Va, and Dc Metropolitan area Monthly newspaper | free

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Janaza for Richmond Imam Fills Neighborhood Streets | pg 5

3Di Athletics Holds First Weekend Basketball Camp | pg 6

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Finding What's Missing At An Orphanage In Mexico | pg 5

but first,

Many Muslim men and women face hardships in meeting a spouse. The Muslim Link took a closer look at the issue of finding a suitable partner in our community and the resources we have to respond to this crisis.

dining out? order now with our halal Menus section Pg 38

www.muslimlinkpaper.com ALLAHU AKBAR: Finally, Athan Sounds ICNA-Mas Convention 2014: from Masjid In Germantown 301-982-1020 A New Venue, A New Record The Muslim Link

8 S h a b a n - R a m a d a n 1 4 3 5 A . H . | w w w . M u s l i m L i n k P a p e r. c o m

June 6th 2014 - July 10th 2014

Meeting venues and forums are few and this seems to be one major deterrent to suitable marriages.

A major part of creating a beloved community is the creation of a family. However, the Muslim marriage crisis is at our doorstep.

>> PG 21

>> PG 18

Running foR the hills Dispatches from muslim homesteaDers

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The Muslim Link Asks: How Hard Is It to Find a Life Partner In the DMV Area?

THE GOOD NEWS As Egypt Rolls Back On Democracy, US Bolsters Sisi | pg 25

The Muslim Link

md, Va, and dc metropolitan area monthly newspaper | fRee

By Hena Zuberi Muslim Link Staff Reporter

Rise in Abused Children Prompts New FAITH Program | pg 14

Internationally renowned running for the hills da’eeHomestead & debater Halal

w w w . M u s l i m L i n k P a p e r. c o m

MoCo Muslims Distribute Udhiya Meat to Area Needy | pg 5

Masjid Al-Rahmah Gets $74K Federal Security Grant | pg 12

TZORTZIS

The Muslim Link

The Muslim Marriage Crisis

Muslim Youth Learn How to Get a Grip with Golf | pg 8 Founding IMAAM member Firdaus Kadir welcomes Indonesian president Dr. H. Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (far right) at the grand opening of the IMAAM Center

7 Thul Qedah - 5 Thul-Hijjah, 1434 A.H. september 13th - october 10th 2013

Muslim Family Day At Six Flag Caps Summer for 6,000 | pg 5

Do Homeless Have Right to Occupy Public Property? | pg 6

FEaturING HAMZA

Dept Staff Report a Positive Step Towards Final Approval in Coming Months

After a detailed study and assessment of Dar-us-Salaam's application to develop an education and community campus in Western Howard County, Maryland, the How-

After two decades, the dream of establishing a masjid and community center in Maryland finally became a reality, and the presidential benefactor who facilitated a three million dollar donation to purchase a church and convert it to a masjid came with a delegation to witness the opening of the Indonesian Muslim Association in America (IMAAM) in Silver Spring, Maryland.

DUS Wins 10th DC MIST Tournament, Full Results | pg 8

HoCo Dept of Planning and Zoning Recommends Approval of DUS Campus Plan By Muslim Link Staff

For hundreds of Indonesian-American families and Maryland Muslims, "grand opening" couldn't have more meaning than it did on Friday, September 26, 2014.

TML Interviews Al-Rahmah School Principal | pg 7

from Palestinian farmers and allocated to settlements and military camps. According to the Inter Press Agency report,

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By Muslim Link Staff

Greening Our Sacred Grounds Seminar Held In MD | pg 6

Muslim Link Staff Reporter

Like & Follow us

LIke & FoLLow uS THe MuSLIM LInk

those found in large theme parks and a huge collection of vendors offering products and services for sale, all in an Islamic environment. The carnival shuts down at each salah time and the congregational prayer is held in the center of the carnival area. Muslim FunFest is a project of the Dar-usSalaam community. We capture it in photos on

>>PG 24

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2 Jumada Al-Akhir - 6 Rajab, 1434 A.H. | www.MuslimLinkPaper.com

Study Links Masjid Involvement, Voting | pg 5 Diabetes High Among Immigrant Groups | pg 5

Annapolis Muslims Hope For New Masjid| pg 6 MD Dept of Health Does Faith Specific Outreach | pg 6 Essay and Debate Competition Marks 10 Years | pg 8 ISLAM: The Questioning In the Grave | pg 30 The Muslim Link

Coupons PG 37

Lack of Muslim Foster Families Resulting In Children Losing Islam By Hena Zuberi

Muslim Link Staff Reporter

The phone rings at 8:30pm, after Anna and Muhammad Ismail have tucked their twins in bed. The Northern Virginia couple fostered the 6-year old twin girls for a year before they legally adopted them. The twin girls birth parents were abusive, and their parental rights were terminated by the court. The Ismails tried to keep some connection with the birth parents but

The Muslim Link

Md, Va, and dc Metropolitan area Monthly newspaper | Free

april 12th 2013 - May 16th 2013

they were unsuccessful.

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PG, Anne Arundel Muslims Meet With Rep. Donna Edwards | pg 4 Practice of Hijamah Making Slow Comback In Community| pg 5

The phone call this evening is coming from the Fairfax County Foster and Adoption Program Coordinator. The coordinator needs to place a 16year old Pakistani female removed from her parent's home. Her religious background is similar to the Ismails; they are prepared for this call as registered foster parents with Fairfax County.

Porn Addiction Afflicting Youth, Adults Say Experts | pg 5 ISWA Imam Offers Brief History of Muslims in Guyana | pg 15 FAMILY: Spiritual Reflections on Special Needs Parenting | pg 16

>> foster Pg 26

Muslim Community Center Breaks New Ground The ground was ready for spring and a crowd of over 200 well-wish-

The original founders, Dr. Hashim and his wife

WORLD: 10 Years On, Rally for Justice for Aafia Siddiqui | pg 20 ISLAM: Taking Care of Things at Home Is Part of Piety | pg 29

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14 | COMMUNITY NEWS

February 19th - March 17th 2016

Remarks by the President of the United States at the Islamic Society of Baltimore [This text provided by the White House Office of the Press Secretary represents President Obama's address at the Islamic Society of Baltimore at around 1pm on Wednesday, February 3, 2016. He addressed several hundred invited guests comprising of Muslim activists and leaders from across the nation, members of the local Muslim community, and a few elected officials. University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC) student Sabah Mukhtar introduced the President. Immediately before his address, the President met with twelve selected Muslims for an hour long, closed door round table discussion. – TML]

With interfaith dialogue, you build bridges of understanding with other faith communities -- Christians and Jews. There’s a health clinic that serves the needy, regardless of their faith. And members of this community are out in the broader community, working for social justice and urban development. As voters, you come here to meet candidates. As one of your members said, “just look at the way we live...we are true Americans.” So the first thing I want to say is two words that Muslim Americans don’t hear often enough -- and that is, thank you. Thank you for serving your community. Thank you for lifting up the lives of your neighbors, and for helping keep us strong and united as one American family. We are grateful for that. (Applause.)

THE PRESIDENT: Well, good afternoon. And, Sabah, thank you for the wonderful introduction and for your example -- your devotion to your faith and your education, and your service to others. You’re an inspiration. You’re going to be a fantastic doctor. And I suspect, Sabah, your parents are here because they wanted to see you so -- where are Sabah’s parents? There you go. (Applause.) Good job, Mom. She did great, didn’t she? She was terrific. To everyone here at the Islamic Society of Baltimore, thank you for welcoming me here today. I want to thank Muslim Americans leaders from across this city and this state, and some who traveled even from out of state to be here. I want to recognize Congressman John Sarbanes, who is here. (Applause.) As well as two other great leaders in Congress -- and proud Muslim Americans -- Congressman Keith Ellison from the great state of Minnesota -- (applause) -- and Congressman Andre Carson from the great state of Indiana. (Applause.) This mosque, like so many in our country, is an all-American story. You’ve been part of this city for nearly half a century. You serve thousands of families -- some who’ve lived here for decades as well as immigrants from many countries who’ve worked to become proud American citizens. Now, a lot of Americans have never visited a mosque. To the folks watching this today who haven’t -- think of your own church, or synagogue, or temple,

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Now, this brings me to the other reason I wanted to come here today. I know that in Muslim communities across our country, this is a time of concern and, frankly, a time of some fear. Like all Americans, you’re worried about the threat of terrorism. But on top of that, as Muslim Americans, you also have another concern -- and that is your entire community so often is targeted or blamed for the violent acts of the very few.

So the first thing I want to say is two words that Muslim Americans don’t hear often enough -- and that is, thank you. Thank you for serving your community.

and a mosque like this will be very familiar. This is where families come to worship and express their love for God and each other. There’s a school where teachers open young minds. Kids play

baseball and football and basketball -boys and girls -- I hear they’re pretty good. (Laughter.) Cub Scouts, Girl Scouts meet, recite the Pledge of Allegiance here.

The Muslim American community remains relatively small --several million people in this country. And as a result, most Americans don’t necessarily know -- or at least don't know that they know -- a Muslim personally. And as a result, many only hear about Muslims and Islam from the news after an act of terrorism, or in distorted media portrayals in TV or film, all of which gives this hugely distorted impression. And since 9/11, but more recently, since the attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, you’ve seen too often people conflating the horrific acts of terrorism with the beliefs of an entire faith. And of course, recently, we’ve heard inexcusable political rhetoric against Muslim Americans that has no place in our country.

>> PRESIDENT Pg 16

February 19th - March 17th 2016

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February 19th - March 17th 2016

16 | CONTINUED PRESIDENT

>> continued from pg 14

No surprise, then, that threats and harassment of Muslim Americans have surged. Here at this mosque, twice last year, threats were made against your children. Around the country, women wearing the hijab -- just like Sabah -have been targeted. We’ve seen children bullied. We’ve seen mosques vandalized. Sikh Americans and others who are perceived to be Muslims have been targeted, as well. I just had a chance to meet with some extraordinary Muslim Americans from across the country who are doing all sorts of work. Some of them are doctors; some of them are community leaders; religious leaders. All of them were doing extraordinary work not just in the Muslim community but in the American community. And they’re proud of their work in business and education, and on behalf of social justice and the environment and education. I should point out they were all much younger than me -- (laughter) -- which is happening more frequently these days. And you couldn’t help but be inspired, hearing about the extraordinary work that they’re doing. But you also could not help but

cries every night,” thinking about how her daughter might be treated at school. A girl from Ohio, 13 years old, told me, “I’m scared.” A girl from Texas signed her letter “a confused 14-year-old trying to find her place in the world.” These are children just like mine. And the notion that they would be filled with doubt and questioning their places in this great country of ours at a time when they’ve got enough to worry about -- it’s hard being a teenager already -- that’s not who we are. We’re one American family. And when any part of our family starts to feel separate or second-class or targeted, it tears at the very fabric of our nation. (Applause.) It’s a challenge to our values -- and that means we have much work to do. We’ve got to tackle this head on. We have to be honest and clear about it. And we have to speak out. This is a moment when, as Americans, we have to truly listen to each other and learn from each other. And I believe it has to begin with a common understanding of some basic facts. And I express these facts, although they’d be obvious to many of the people in this place, because, unfortunately, it’s not facts that are communicated on a regular basis

And of course, recently, we’ve heard inexcusable political rhetoric against Muslim Americans that has no place in our country.

be heartbroken to hear their worries and their anxieties. Some of them are parents, and they talked about how their children were asking, are we going to be forced out of the country, or, are we going to be rounded up? Why do people treat us like that? Conversations that you shouldn’t have to have with children -- not in this country. Not at this moment. And that’s an anxiety echoed in letters I get from Muslim Americans around the country. I’ve had people write to me and say, I feel like I’m a second-class citizen. I’ve had mothers write and say, “my heart

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Who Attended the Private Discussion with the President?

[President Obama met for a little over an hour with twelve selected American Muslims representing leadership in community, business, health care, and other areas. The round table discussion was closed to the media and the White House requested participants not disclose the details of the discussions. The President made general references to the round table discussion during his main address afterwards, saying he had just met “with some extraordinary Muslim Americans from across the country” who are “doing extraordinary work not just in the Muslim community but in the American community.” He added that “you couldn’t help but be inspired, hearing about the extraordinary work that they’re doing. But you also could not help but be heartbroken to hear their worries and their anxieties.” The rapid rise in Islamophobia and discrimination against Muslims was among the major topics discussed at the round table. – TML] List of Roundtable Participants Ms. Kameelah Mu'Min Rashad, Founder, Muslim Wellness Foundation & Chaplain at University of Pennsylvania Kameelah Mu'Min Rashad is the founder of Muslim Wellness Foundation, an organization dedicated to reducing stigma associated with mental illness in the Muslim American community, and also serves as the Interfaith Fellow & Muslim Chaplain at the University of Pennsylvania. Imam Khalid Latif, Executive Director and Chaplain, Islamic Center at New York University

through our media. So let’s start with this fact: For more than a thousand years, people have been drawn to Islam’s message of peace. And the very word itself, Islam, comes from salam -- peace. The standard greeting is as-salamu alaykum -- peace be upon you. And like so many faiths, Islam is rooted in a commitment to compassion and mercy and justice and charity. Whoever wants to enter paradise, the Prophet Muhammad taught, “let him treat people the way he would love to be treated.” (Applause.) For Christians like myself, I’m assuming >> PRESIDENT II Pg 18

Imam Khalid Latif is Executive Director and Chaplain for the Islamic Center at New York University where he was appointed the first Muslim chaplain in 2005. In 2007, he was nominated to become the youngest chaplain in history of the New York City Police Department, and last year he presided over an interfaith service with Pope Francis at Ground Zero. Dr. Suzanne Barakat, Chair, Our Three Winners Endowment Fund Suzanne is a resident in Family Medicine at San Francisco General Hospital

(UCSF). Outside of her role at UCSF, she has worked with Syrian refugees, and conducted research on mental health in Arabic-speaking populations. She is passionate about women's health, mental health, global health, and social justice. In February 2015, her brother, his wife, and her sister were murdered in their Chapel Hill home. Mr. Rami Nashashibi, Executive Director, Inner-City Muslim Action Network Rami Nashashibi, a White House Champion of Change, is the Executive Director of Inner-City Muslim Action Network, a community organization dedicated to creating safer and healthier neighborhoods through organizing for social change, cultivating the arts and operating a holistic health center in Chicago's southwest side. Ms. Khadija Gurnah, Founder, Project Ejaba Khadija Gurnah, a White House Champion of Change, is a public health professional and an advocate for youth who has channeled her passions into Project Ejaba - a platform for Muslim

>> DISCUSSION Pg 18

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>> continued from pg 16

that sounds familiar. (Laughter.) The world’s 1.6 billion Muslims are as diverse as humanity itself. They are Arabs and Africans. They're from Latin America to Southeast Asia; Brazilians, Nigerians, Bangladeshis, Indonesians. They are white and brown and black. There’s a large African American Muslim community. That diversity is represented here today. A 14-year-old boy in Texas who’s Muslim spoke for many when he wrote to me and said, “We just want to live in peace.” Here’s another fact: Islam has always been part of America. Starting in colonial times, many of the slaves brought here from Africa were Muslim. And even in their bondage, some kept their faith alive. A few even won their freedom and became known to many Americans. And when enshrining the freedom of religion in our Constitution and our Bill of Rights, our Founders meant what they said when they said it applied to all religions. Back then, Muslims were often called Mahometans. And Thomas Jefferson explained that the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom he wrote was designed to protect all faiths -- and I’m quoting Thomas Jefferson now -- “the Jew and the Gentile, the Christian and the Mahometan.” (Applause.) Jefferson and John Adams had their own copies of the Koran. Benjamin Franklin wrote that “even if the Mufti of Constantinople were to send a missionary to preach to us, he would find a pulpit at his service.” (Applause.) So this is not a new thing. Generations of Muslim Americans helped to build our nation. They were part of the flow of immigrants who became farmers and merchants. They built America’s first mosque, surprisingly enough, in North Dakota. (Laughter.) America’s oldest surviving mosque is in Iowa. The first Islamic center in New York City was built in the 1890s. Muslim Americans worked on Henry Ford’s assembly line, cranking out cars. A Muslim American designed the skyscrapers of Chicago. In 1957, when dedicating the Islamic center in Washington, D.C., President

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Eisenhower said, “I should like to assure you, my Islamic friends, that under the American Constitution … and in American hearts…this place of worship, is just as welcome…as any other religion.” (Applause.) And perhaps the most pertinent fact, Muslim Americans enrich our lives today in every way. They’re our neighbors, the teachers who inspire our children, the doctors who trust us with our health -- future doctors like Sabah. They’re scientists who win Nobel Prizes, young entrepreneurs who are creating new technologies that we use all the time. They’re the sports heroes we cheer for -— like Muhammad Ali and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Hakeem Olajuwon. And by the way, when Team USA marches

these facts is because, in the discussions that I was having with these incredibly accomplished young people, they were pointing that so often they felt invisible. And part of what we have to do is to lift up the contributions of the Muslim American community not when there’s a problem, but all the time. Our television shows should have some Muslim characters that are unrelated to national security -- (applause) -- because -- it’s not that hard to do. There was a time when there were no black people on television. And you can tell good stories while still representing the reality of our communities. Now, we do have another fact that we have to acknowledge. Even as the

So let’s start with this fact: For more than a thousand years, people have been drawn to Islam’s message of peace. And the very word itself, Islam, comes from salam -- peace.

into the next Olympics, one of the Americans waving the red, white and blue -- (applause) -- will a fencing champion, wearing her hijab, Ibtihaj Muhammad, who is here today. Stand up. (Applause.) I told her to bring home the gold. (Laughter.) Not to put any pressure on you. (Laughter.) Muslim Americans keep us safe. They’re our police and our firefighters. They're in homeland security, in our intelligence community. They serve honorably in our armed forces -- meaning they fight and bleed and die for our freedom. Some rest in Arlington National Cemetery. (Applause.) So Muslim Americans are some of the most resilient and patriotic Americans you’ll ever meet. We’re honored to have some of our proud Muslim American servicemembers here today. Please stand if you're here, so we can thank you for your service. (Applause.) So part of the reason I want to lay out

overwhelming majority -- and I repeat, the overwhelming majority -- of the world’s Muslims embrace Islam as a source of peace, it is undeniable that a small fraction of Muslims propagate a perverted interpretation of Islam. This is the truth. Groups like al Qaeda and ISIL, they’re not the first extremists in history to misuse God’s name. We’ve seen it before, across faiths. But right now, there is a organized extremist element that draws selectively from Islamic texts, twists them in an attempt to justify their killing and their terror. They combine it with false claims that America and the West are at war with Islam. And this warped thinking that has found adherents around the world -including, as we saw, tragically, in Boston and Chattanooga and San Bernardino -- is real. It’s there. And it creates tensions and pressure that disproportionately burden the overwhelming majority of law-abiding Muslim citizens. And the question then is, how do we move forward together? How do we keep our

country strong and united? How do we defend ourselves against organizations that are bent on killing innocents? And it can’t be the work of any one faith alone. It can’t be just a burden on the Muslim community -- although the Muslim community has to play a role. We all have responsibilities. So with the time I have left, I just want to suggest a few principles that I believe can guide us. First, at a time when others are trying to divide us along lines of religion or sect, we have to reaffirm that most fundamental of truths: We are all God’s children. We’re all born equal, with inherent dignity. And so often, we focus on our outward differences and we forget how much we share. Christians, Jews, Muslims -we’re all, under our faiths, descendants of Abraham. So mere tolerance of different religions is not enough. Our faiths summon us to embrace our common humanity. “O mankind,” the Koran teaches, we have “made you peoples and tribes that you may know one another.” (Applause.) So all of us have the task of expressing our religious faith in a way that seeks to build bridges rather than to divide. Second, as Americans, we have to stay true to our core values, and that includes freedom of religion for all faiths. I already mentioned our Founders, like Jefferson, knew that religious liberty is essential not only to protect religion but because religion helps strengthen our nation -- if it is free, if it is not an extension of the state. Part of what’s happened in the Middle East and North Africa and other places where we see sectarian violence is religion being a tool for another agenda -- for power, for control. Freedom of religion helps prevent that, both ways -protects religious faiths, protects the state from -- or those who want to take over the state from using religious animosity as a tool for their own ends. That doesn’t mean that those of us with religious faith should not be involved. We have to be active citizenry. But we have to respect the fact that we have freedom of religion. Remember, many preachers and pastors fought to abolish the evil of slavery. People of faith advocated to improve conditions for workers and ban child >> PRESIDENT III Pg 19

February 19th - March 17th 2016 PRESIDENT III

>> continued from pg 18

labor. Dr. King was joined by people of many faiths, challenging us to live up to our ideals. And that civil activism, that civic participation that’s the essence of our democracy, it is enhanced by freedom of religion. Now, we have to acknowledge that there have been times where we have fallen short of our ideals. By the way, Thomas Jefferson’s opponents tried to stir things up by suggesting he was a Muslim -- so I was not the first -- (applause.) No, it’s true, it’s true. Look it up. (Laughter.) I’m in good company. (Laughter.) But it hasn’t just been attacks of that sort that have been used. Mormon communities have been attacked throughout our history. Catholics, including, most prominently, JFK -- John F. Kennedy -- when he ran for President, was accused of being disloyal. There was a suggestion that he would be taking orders from the Pope as opposed to upholding his constitutional duties. Anti-Semitism in this country has a sad and long history, and Jews were exclude routinely from colleges and professions and from public office. And so if we’re serious about freedom of religion -- and I’m speaking now to my fellow Christians who remain the majority in this country -- we have to understand an attack on one faith is an attack on all our faiths. (Applause.) And when any religious group is targeted, we all have a responsibility to speak up. And we have to reject a politics that seeks to manipulate prejudice or bias, and targets people because of religion. We’ve got to make sure that hate crimes are punished, and that the civil rights of all Americans are upheld. (Applause.) And just as faith leaders, including Muslims, must speak out when Christians are persecuted around the world -- (applause) -- or when anti-Semitism is on the rise -- because the fact is, is that there are Christians who are targeted now in the Middle East, despite having been there for centuries, and there are Jews who’ve lived in places like France for centuries who now feel obliged to leave because they feel themselves under assault --sometimes by Muslims. We have to be consistent in condemning hateful rhetoric and violence against everyone. (Applause.) And that

CONTINUED| 19 includes against Muslims here in the United States of America. (Applause.) So none of us can be silent. We can’t be bystanders to bigotry. And together, we’ve got to show that America truly protects all faiths. Which brings me to my next point: As we protect our country from terrorism, we should not reinforce the ideas and the rhetoric of the terrorists themselves. I often hear it said that we need moral clarity in this fight. And the suggestion is somehow that if I would simply say, these are all Islamic terrorists, then we would actually have solved the problem by now, apparently. (Laughter.) Well, I agree, we actually do need moral clarity. Let’s have some moral clarity. (Applause.)

the problem. That betrays our values. It alienates Muslim Americans. It’s hurtful to those kids who are trying to go to school and are members of the Boy Scouts, and are thinking about joining our military. That kind of mindset helps our enemies. It helps our enemies recruit. It makes us all less safe. So let’s be clear about that. Now, finally, just as all Americans have a responsibility to reject discrimination -- I’ve said this before -- Muslims around the world have a responsibility to reject extremist ideologies that are trying to penetrate within Muslim communities. Here at this mosque, and across our country and around the world, Muslim leaders are roundly and repeatedly and

Benjamin Franklin wrote that “even if the Mufti of Constantinople were to send a missionary to preach to us, he would find a pulpit at his service.” Groups like ISIL are desperate for legitimacy. They try to portray themselves as religious leaders and holy warriors who speak for Islam. I refuse to give them legitimacy. We must never give them that legitimacy. (Applause.) They’re not defending Islam. They’re not defending Muslims. The vast majority of the people they kill are innocent Muslim men, women and children. (Applause.) And, by the way, the notion that America is at war with Islam ignores the fact that the world’s religions are a part of who we are. We can’t be at war with any other religion because the world’s religions are a part of the very fabric of the United States, our national character. (Applause.) So the best way for us to fight terrorism is to deny these organizations legitimacy and to show that here in the United States of America, we do not suppress Islam; we celebrate and lift up the success of Muslim Americans. That’s how we show the lie that they’re trying to propagate. (Applause.) We shouldn’t play into terrorist propaganda. And we can’t suggest that Islam itself is at the root of

consistently condemning terrorism. And around the globe, Muslims who’ve dared to speak out have often been targeted and even killed. So those voices are there; we just have to amplify them more. (Applause.) And it was interesting, in the discussion I had before I came out, some people said, why is there always a burden on us? When a young man in Charleston shoots African Americans in a church, there’s not an expectation that every white person in America suddenly is explaining that they’re not racist. They can Everybody is assumed to be horrified by that act. And I recognize that sometimes that doesn't feel fair. But part of the answer is to make sure that the Muslim community in all of its variety, in all the good works that it’s doing, in all the talent that's on display, that it’s out there visible on a consistent basis -- not just at a certain moment. (Applause.) But what is also true is, is that there is a battle of hearts and minds that takes place -- that is taking place right now, and

American Muslims are better positioned than anybody to show that it is possible to be faithful to Islam and to be part of a pluralistic society, and to be on the cutting-edge of science, and to believe in democracy. (Applause.) And so I would urge all of you not to see this as a burden, but as a great opportunity and a great privilege to show who you are. To use a little Christian expression -- let your light shine. Because when you do you’ll make clear that this is not a clash of civilizations between the West and Islam. This is a struggle between the peace-loving, overwhelming majority of Muslims around the world and a radical, tiny minority. And ultimately, I’m confident that the overwhelming majority will win that battle. (Applause.) Muslims will decide the future of your faith. And I’m confident in the direction that it will go. But across the Islamic world, influential voices should consistently speak out with an affirmative vision of their faith. And it’s happening. These are the voices of Muslim clerics who teach that Islam prohibits terrorism, for the Koran says whoever kills an innocent, it is as if he has killed all mankind. (Applause.) These are the voices of Muslim scholars, some of whom join us today, who know Islam has a tradition of respect for other faiths; and Muslim teachers who point out that the first word revealed in the Koran -- igra -- means “read” -- to seek knowledge, to question assumptions. (Applause.) Muslim political leaders have to push back on the lie that the West oppresses Muslims, and against conspiracy theories that says America is the cause of every ill in the Middle East. Now, that doesn't mean that Muslim Americans aren’t free to criticize American -- U.S. foreign policy. That's part of being an American. I promise you, as the President of the United States, I’m mindful that that is a healthy tradition that is alive and well in America. (Laughter.) But like leaders everywhere, these leaders have been offering, and need to continue to offer, a positive vision for progress, and that includes political and economic progress. And we have to acknowledge that much of the violence in places like the Middle East is now turning into fights between sects -- Shia, Sunni and others -- where >> PRESIDENT IV Pg 20

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February 19th - March 17th 2016

20 | CONTINUED PRESIDENT IV

>> continued from pg 19

differences are often exploited to serve political agendas, as I said earlier. And this bloodshed is destroying Muslim families and communities, and there has to be global pressure to have the vision and the courage to end this kind of thinking and this approach to organizing political power. It’s not historically unique. It’s happened in every part of the world -- from Northern Ireland to Africa, to Asia, to right here in the United States -- in the past. But it is something that we have to fight against. And we know it’s possible. Across the history of Islam, different sects traditionally have lived and thrived together peacefully. And in many parts of the world they do today, including here in the United States. Like people of all religions, Muslims living their faith in a modern, pluralistic world are called upon to uphold human rights, to make sure that everyone has opportunity. That includes the aspirations of women and youth and all people. If we expect our own dignity to be respected, so must we respect the dignity of others. (Applause.) So let me conclude by saying that as Muslim communities stand up for the future that you believe in, that you exhibit in your daily lives, as you teach your children, America will be your partner. We will -- I will -- do everything I can to lift up the multiplicity of Muslim voices that promote pluralism and peace. (Applause.) We will continue to reach out to young Muslims around the world, empowering them with science and

technology and entrepreneurship, so they can pursue their God-given potential, and help build up their communities and provide opportunity. It’s why we will continue to partner with Muslim American communities -- not just to help you protect against extremist threats, but to expand health care and education and opportunity -- (applause) -- because that’s the best way to build strong, resilient communities. Our values must guide us in this work. Engagement with Muslim American communities must never be a cover for surveillance. (Applause.) We can’t give in to profiling entire groups of people. There’s no one single profile of terrorists. We can’t securitize our entire relationship with Muslim Americans. We can’t deal with you solely through the prism of law enforcement. We’ve got to build trust and mutual respect. That’s how we’ll keep our communities strong and our communities united. As I was in discussion with the young people before I came in here, I said this will be a process. Law enforcement has a tough job. Some of these groups are specifically trying to target Muslim youth. We’re going to have to be partners in this process. There will be times where the relationship is clumsy or mishandled. But I want you to know that from the President to the FBI Director, to everybody in law enforcement, my directive and their understanding is, is that this is something we have to do together. And if we don’t do it well, then we’re actually not making ourselves safer; we’re making ourselves less safe. And here, I want to speak directly to the young people who may be listening. In our lives, we all have many identities. We are sons and daughters, and brothers

and sisters. We’re classmates; Cub Scout troop members. We’re followers of our faith. We’re citizens of our country. And today, there are voices in this world, particularly over the Internet, who are constantly claiming that you have to choose between your identities -- as a Muslim, for example, or an American. Do not believe them. If you’re ever wondering whether you fit in here, let me say it as clearly as I can, as President of the United States: You fit in here -- right here. (Applause.) You’re right where you belong. You’re part of America, too. (Applause.) You’re not Muslim or American. You’re Muslim and American. (Applause.) Don’t grow cynical. Don’t respond to ignorance by embracing a world view that suggests you must choose between your faith and your patriotism. Don’t believe that you have to choose between your best impulses and somehow embrace a world view that pits us against each other -- or, even worse, glorifies violence. Understand your power to bring about change. Stay engaged in your community. Help move our country forward -- your country forward. (Applause.) We are blessed to live in a nation where even if we sometimes stumble, even if we sometimes fall short, we never stop striving for our ideals. We keep moving closer to that more perfect union. We’re a country where, if you work hard and if you play by the rules, you can ultimately make it, no matter who you are or how you pray. It may not always start off even in the race, but here, more than any place else, there’s the opportunity to run that race. And as we go forward, I want every Muslim American to remember you are not alone. Your fellow Americans stand with you -- just as Sabah described her friends after she decided that she was going to start wearing a hijab. That’s not unusual. Because just as so often we only hear about Muslims after a terrorist attack, so often we only hear about Americans’ response to Muslims after a hate crime has happened, we don’t always hear about the extraordinary respect and love and community that so many Americans feel. I’m thinking about the seven-year-old boy in Texas who emptied his piggy bank to help a mosque that had been vandalized. (Applause.) Or all the faith communities that rallied around Muslim

....

Americans after the tragedy in Chapel Hill. The churches and the synagogues standing shoulder-to-shoulder with their local mosques, including the woman carrying a sign saying “We love our Muslim neighbors.” Think of our men and women in uniform who, when they heard that a little girl was afraid because she’s a Muslim, sent her a message -- “I Will Protect You.” (Applause.) I want every American to remember how Muslim communities are standing up for others, as well. Because right now, as we speak, there are Muslims in Kenya who saved Christians from terrorists, and Muslims who just met in Morocco to protect religious minorities, including Christians and Jews. (Applause.) The good people of this mosque helped this city move forward after the turmoil of last year. Muslim Americans across the country helped African American churches rebuild after arson. Remember the Muslim Americans in Boston who reached out to victims of the Marathon bombing; the Muslim Americans across the country who raised money for the families of San Bernardino; the Muslim Americans in Chattanooga who honored our fallen servicemembers, one of them saying, “in the name of God, the God of Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and Muhammad, God bless our fallen heroes.” (Applause.) We are one American family. We will rise and fall together. It won’t always be easy. There will be times where our worst impulses are given voice. But I believe that ultimately, our best voices will win out. And that gives me confidence and faith in the future. (Applause.) After more than 200 years, our blended heritage, the patchwork quilt which is America, that is not a weakness, that is one of our greatest strengths. It’s what makes us a beacon to the world. It’s what led that mother who wrote to me -- the one who worries about her young daughter -- it led her to end her letter with hope, despite her fears. She said, “I still believe in one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.” (Applause.) May God's peace be upon you. May God bless the United States of America. Thank you very much, everybody. (Applause.)

February 19th - March 17th 2016

CONTINUED| 21

AAFIA

>> continued from pg 11

diverse Board of Advisors,” states Mauri’ Saalakhan, President of TAF. TAF’s Board of Directors, comprised of respected elders and emerging grassroots leaders, is chaired by Baron Jamaal Bell; Hena Zuberi serves as secretary of the organization and M. Masood Rabb serves as Treasurer. The board also includes Dr. Imad ad-Dean Ahmad, Nisa Muhammad, and Sharmin Saddequee; while dayto-day operations are run by Mauri’ Saalakhan and staff. TAF’s Board of Advisors include Karima Al-Amin, Mansour Ansari, {Former US Attorney General} Ramsey Clark, Sheikh Zafar Khan, Dr. Sulayman S. Nyang, Imam Siraj Wahhaj, and Khalid M. Zaman. The Aafia Foundation, Inc. (TAF) envisions a world in which universally recognized human rights are both the law and common practice of every land; its mission is to undertake human rights education and advocacy toward the realization of this goal. “As the more comprehensive meaning of ‘Aafia’ is the health that is inclusive of a person's physical, mental, and spiritual being, TAF will strive to facilitate Aafia for the social order in which we live, through a principled struggle for peace thru justice,” notes Saalakhan. TAF's methodology will consist of education and advocacy, with an emphasis on empowering individuals so that they can become agents of human rights defense and positive, transformative change wherever they may be. Its message will be aimed at citizens and civic organizations, religious institutions, relevant government agencies and nongovernmental organizations. Programming will include educational forums organized within the various sectors of civil society; non-partisan studies, research and analysis; social media outreach; publishing educational materials on issues of public policy; Broadcasting by Internet, radio and television; and First Amendment activities such as protests in the public square. As the organization grows and has the resource on hand to expand its focus, we expect to have experts and personnel capable of weighing into specific cases of

human rights abuse at home and abroad. Toward this end, supporters of Dr. Aafia Siddiqui are being asked to mark their calendars for four major mobilizations in four different cities next month. Rallies will be held to mark the 13th year of Dr. Siddiqui’s wrongful imprisonment (she has become known in Pakistan as “the daughter of the nation). The cities are: Boston, Massachusetts – March 8th at 4

p.m. MIT, 77 Massachusetts Ave, Boston MA

at FMC CARSWELL

New York City – March 11th at 4.pm Federal Building @ 290 Broadway (Dept. of Justice, FBI and Homeland Security offices in lower Manhattan)

The well-known and highly respected American Muslim scholar, Imam Zaid Shakir of The Lighthouse Mosque in Oakland, CA., has endorsed the March 2016 Mobilization for Dr. Aafia Siddiqui.

Washington, DC – March 19th @ 12 Noon, U.S. Department of Justice (Penn Ave NW)

For more information on the March Mobilizations, E-mail: peacethrujustice@ aol.com

Fort Worth, Texas – March 30th at 4 p.m.

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22 | COMMUNITY NEWS

February 19th - March 17th 2016

Youth Coding Classes to Begin at PGMA By Muslim Link Staff Bill Gates of Microsoft says that: “Learning to write programs stretches your mind and helps you think better, creates a way of thinking about things that I think is helpful in all domains.” Six Maryland middle school students, including Muslim student Raiyan Rizwan, developed the concept of an app to help autistic children. The mobile app, called AutBuddy, allows parents and teachers to

BETTER

>> continued from pg 12

contributions Muslim Americans make to our nation and reaffirm the importance of religious freedom to our way of life,” according to a press release from the White House. “The visit reiterates the importance of staying true to our core values – welcoming our fellow Americans, speaking out against bigotry, rejecting indifference, and protecting our nation’s tradition of religious freedom,” said the press release. ISB was instructed to pass all media inquiries regarding the event to the White House Press Office. Dr. Edmund “Ahmed” Tori, who teaches a class for new Muslims at ISB called ‘Clean Slates” when he is not working on cutting edge innovation for MedStar Health, was asked to head the ISB public relations team for ISB. While many press inquires about the event could be passed on to the White House, just as many were coming in from reporters wanting to learn about ISB. Negative articles about ISB and former Imam Muhammad Adam El-Sheikh began appearing on conservative websites within hours of the announcement. The public relations team was forced into a position of playing catch-up. Tori formed a volunteer public

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message in real time, and it helps students with autism focus on assignments with audio and visual aids. They won the Verizon Innovative App Challenge and 20,000. Now MIT Labs will help them develop their concept. The creator of Scratch, an MIT developed platform that teaches children to code, Mitch Resnick explains the importance of coding. “The ability to code allows you to ‘write’ new types of things – interactive stories, games, animations,

relations team of around twenty people reflecting a range of experiences and ethnic diversity. “The moment [the visit] was announced, there was nothing to do but work. It became way more work than any one person could bear, and there was not even enough time to strategize, emails started pouring in. It was refreshing to see how quickly people dove in and just got stuff done,” Tori told the Muslim Link. The core group of volunteers handling public relations, building preparation, logistics, and many other areas set-up a mini-command center at ISB. Many of the volunteers took leave from their jobs for two or three days to get the work done. With only four days between the public announcement and the event, the group worked closely with White House staff, many members spending from morning till late evening at ISB. “I did not see my kids for four days,” Tori said. Working with the White House and Secret Service was “an amazing experience” said Rehan Alavi, another one of the key volunteers from ISB. One volunteer who spoke to the Muslim Link said that the White House “wasn’t playing” and when they asked for something to be done, they would expect it to be done within a few hours. The volunteer said the event was far too intense and high-stakes for the ISB Council to handle, since decisions needed to be

and simulations.” He explains, “When people learn to write, they can share their ideas with the rest of the world. So too with coding.”

will learn how to build their own website or make their first mobile app. Internet will be provided, but a student will need a Wi-Fi enabled laptop to take this class.

The Prince George’s County Muslim Association (PGMA) is offering coding classes for youth. Run by youth leader Gibran Ali, the classes will teach an introduction to web development, programming and databases. Languages like HTML, CSS, Javascript, PHP, SQL and MySQL will be taught. Participants

Starting on March 5, 2016, from 4 pm-6 pm. There is a 50 percent discount for members of PGMA. For $300, students will get 30 hours of instruction over the course of three months.

made on the spot without time spent on getting approvals or engaging in long discussions. Edmund Tori said the community needs to understand that the visit was essentially a White House event, and that ISB was only the host. “Sometimes the rules [from the White House] where changing, so it was sometimes hard to figure things out, and sometimes what we thought were rules were [actually only] recommendations … [sometimes] everything seemed to be in flux,” Tori told the Muslim Link.

24 hours before the President’s visit, the daily prayer was moved out of the masjid to a Qur’an Academy classroom. Rehan Alavi said the move was needed to give room to the workers who were preparing the masjid for the next day’s event. There was equipment going in and out, and a lot of activity from the Secret Service which had set-up a command center in ISB’s main building. The event committee consulted Sheikh Yaseen before deciding to temporarily move the daily salah to a classroom.

The volunteers who spoke to the Muslim Link said the energy and sacrifice exhibited during the 3-4 days of preparation was humbling and inspiring. “We would walk through the building and someone would point to something and say it needed to be fixed or painted, and someone else would call out ‘just do it, I got it’ and they would pay for things out of their pocket,” recalled Tori. Faizan Mahmoodi said the White House took care of all event costs “from a to z” including security, audio-visual support, stages and lighting, and other major costs. ISB made some renovations and spent resources on cleaning, painting, and a flag pole. Mahmoodi said the White House speech writer asked if ISB had American flags in the classrooms and on campus. “These are things we wanted to do on our own,” he said.

While the event program was driven by the White House, Alavi and other key volunteers said the White House and Secret Service were “very respectful of the [masjid] space” and were keen on getting input from ISB. Alavi told the Muslim Link that initially the White House planned to have a round table discussion with a dozen or so selected young Muslim leaders, and about 200 vetted, invitation only guests in the masjid for the President’s speech. The last part of the event where President Obama addressed a gymnasium full of students from AlRahmah School, Qur’an Academy, and ISB Sunday School was requested by ISB.

On Tuesday at thuhr time, less than

>> BETTER II Pg 23

With coding young minds can decode problems and code simple solutions.

“We thought it was very important to have the kids meet the President … we really pushed for that heavily,”

February 19th - March 17th 2016 BETTER II

>> continued from pg 22

said Alavi. The White House was incredibly accommodating, he added, greatly expanding their security detail for an extra 400 attendees and paying for the entire set-up in the gymnasium including a big screen projector, stage, and ceiling to ground curtains. “They really worked with us,” said Alavi. The program also included a “presentation of colors” flag ceremony and the recitation of the pledge of allegiance, both conducted by Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts from the ADAMS center. While most of the audience stood for the pledge, a few Muslims remained seated, saying that standing and reciting the pledge in the masjid was not appropriate. Other community members who requested anonymity and who attended the President’s speech told the Muslim Link the flag ceremony and pledge were religiously problematic and the wrong message to send to American Muslims. “I don’t need to stand for a flag or recite the pledge to be a good American, I obey the law, help my neighbors, and work in the community, that’s what makes me a good American. We didn’t need this patriotism test [at the ISB event], especially in the masjid,” said one attendee. Mahmoodi said the flag ceremony and pledge were not requested by the White House, rather those parts of the program were suggested by ADAMS center leadership. “The White House had recommended if we could incorporate ADAMS somehow in our program,” said Mahmmoodi. “We’re not used to hosting [elected officials] but from our understanding and from speaking with ADAMS [the pledge and flag ceremony] are very customary types of things to do, and that’s something ADAMS has always done … they recommended we do it and have flags around the campus and in the building, and we thought

HEALTH & FAMILY | 23 that this would be a great opportunity to incorporate ADAMS into the program and use their expertise and experience,” said Mahmoodi. The White House took input from ISB members for the President’s speech as well, and the speech writer who wrote President’s Obama’s Cairo speech which he delivered at Egypt’s Al-Azhar University in 2009 spoke to Faizan Mahmoodi, Rehan Alavi, and Dr. Edmund Tori. The ISB members explained how the Muslim community serves the larger society, and touched on some of the challenges facing American Muslims. Tori said the speech writer was very receptive to their feedback, and added that the ISB members stressed the President should not put American Muslims in a situation similar to the White House iftar in 2014 where the President emphasized his support for Israel and had the Israeli Ambassador in attendance while Israel was waging war in Gaza with extremely high civilian casualties. Tori said ISB would have pulled out of the event if the White House insisted on adding similar remarks to the speech. ISB did not see the text of the speech beforehand, but Tori said the speech writer was very understanding and the speech was “epic.” Most Muslims who spoke to the Muslim Link were similarly impressed with the address. The speech writer told Faizan Mahmoodi he hopes to bring his family for a visit to ISB. On the morning of the event, three snipers took positions around the ISB masjid dome atop the building. Secret Service agents buzzed in and out of the building, and the several hundred guests waited for the President. No one was allowed to exit the masjid or gymnasium once the President arrived, even to go to the bathroom. This Muslim Link reporter was part of the White House press pool but, despite having a visible White House issued press badge, was stopped by Secret Service and pulled from the pool of reporters for additional

checking. Dr. Edmund Tori and Sheikh Yaseen Sheikh were the two ISB members included in the President’s private discussion with American Muslims prior to his main address. “[The President] is a very soothing personality no matter what people think about him and the politics of his administration, as a human being he is very skilled at keeping everyone comfortable, he also listens and is thoughtful in his replies,” said Tori, who was asked to refrain from speaking about what the President or other round table attendees discussed during the closed door meeting. Each attendee had 3-4 minutes to address the President, and then the President discussed the points with everyone. Tori said he told the President that Muslims are usually viewed as either victims or aggressors, and that the majority of Muslims in the middle are serving society day in and day out. He said he wanted the President to know why these “invisible Muslims missing from the story” do the good work that they do. “I’m going to give you the non-bio bio of everybody in this room … the ‘what’ is on [the printed bios in front of you], the ‘why’ is Islam,” Tori said he told the President, emphasizing how Muslims look to please Allah through the good work they do in society. “My ask to the President was to amplify the story of the contributing Muslims, the Muslims you don’t know that you know,” Tori told the Muslim Link. At a post-address press conference, about twenty local Muslims and a few national Muslim activists commented on the President’s speech. Everyone expressed their gratitude to the President for pushing back against Islamophobia and for stressing that American Muslims are just as American as every other citizen. Tori said the choice of ISB as the venue for the speech was appropriate because “[ISB] is a mirror of how Islamic centers around the country

have grown … this [story] is about people [in America] building up their communities from the ground up.” The final comment at the press conference came from New York Muslim activist Linda Sarsour. “Better late than never, this was very late on the President’s part to wait seven years to visit a mosque, we need to acknowledge this,” she said. She appreciated the President’s messages regarding Islam being a part of the American fabric from its inception, but added she hoped the President talked “more about our role in social justice in America … we are part of movements to end police brutality, for passing comprehensive immigration reform, Muslims are at the forefront in Flint … helping with providing clean water to residents there,” said Sarsour. “We thank President Obama for his words and we hope his words translate into policies that uplift American Muslim communities … and the changing of policies that have stigmatized our community, Islamophobia is not just bias in fellow Americans it’s also institutionalized Islamophobia that comes in the form of surveillance of mosques, employment discrimination and housing discrimination, so we welcome the President and we are looking for follow-up from our government,” said Sarsour. For Rehan Alavi, the experience was really about the future of Muslims in America. He mentioned an AlRahmah School student who for years had been set on being a marine biologist when she grows up. After hearing the President’s speech and meeting him in the gymnasium where he addressed the children, telling them them they could be whatever they wanted if they worked hard, she had a change of mind. “Maybe I want to be President, it’s pretty cool,” she said.

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February 19th - March 17th 2016

24 | CONTINUED COUNCIL

participation from a diverse set of leaders who represented the Muslim community in the West. A commitment to continue such meetings, which bring leaders together for a common purpose and a vision for our community, was agreed on by all,” read a statement issued by USMCO.

>> continued from pg 10

Dividing the delegates into 3 groups roundtable discussions sought solutions on identifying and developing strategic priorities for the Muslim communities in the West, exchanging ideas and developing strategies to address the rise of Some of Some of the topics tackled were Islamophobia and anti-Muslim bigotry in the West, developing ways with which to challenge and counteract the problem of violent extremism in all its forms, enhancing the integration and positive contributions of Muslim communities in the societies in which they live, and developing strategies for the resettlement of the new waves of refugees and exchanging experiences and resources. Nadia Hasan, co founder of the Young Leaders Institute (YLI), a new leadership training organization, discovered that many of the fellow participants that attended the 3-day summit are involved in interfaith work, however, she is of the opinion that, given this particular agenda, intra-faith work is as or more important here and attendees need to focus on strengthening ties between various diverse Muslim communities as a means to overcome the obstacles that are afflicting Muslim communities around the world. “It seemed to me that Muslims in the U.S. are far more well established and ingrained in their society than other countries. I used to think the opposite. Many of the Muslim visitors expressed their surprise at how well the Muslims in the U.S. have established themselves and that they're excited to see if they can apply a similar model in their own countries. I was personally very impressed by the French representative,” commented participant Rameez Abid, Director of Communication & Outreach for the ICNA Council for Social Justice. Dr Maha Hilal brought up the role of state violence in the rise of anti Muslim bigotry, and said that unless that was addressed problems would remain. Others encouraged participants to run for office at city and state levels, and challenge the government on Counter Violent Terrorism policies. Surveys were encouraged to get feedback from Muslim communities and others to see what policies were working and what weren’t in regards

....

For three days the international consortium of leaders discussed anti-Muslim bigotry, and faith based solutions to common challenges. to integration, Islamophobia and antiterrorism initiatives.. “The Conference was a successful and productive event with participants discussing issues and working together to propose solutions,” noted Oussama Jamal, the Chairman of USCMO. "I thought it was an amazing gathering and I was thrilled to be amongst a vast group of influential global Muslim leaders from all corners of the globe, as far away as Australia. For two days, we discussed strategic priorities and we actively participated in recommending resolutions on how to deal with Islamophobia, integration, youth radicalization and countering violent extremism. As lively and intellectually stimulating the conversations and the debates were, I questioned the efficacy to the extent in which these resolutions could be

decision. Many participants discovered that making the masajid more welcoming and friendly was a concern across the board and youth and women focused programming was needed. “My final plea was for us to take a real look at the forces and bonds of 'unity' between local Muslim communities, or lack thereof, and for us to have a real, honest conversation about what divides us so that we may increase the effectiveness of these resolutions as we work to build a full-fledged, inclusive, diverse, intergenerational and women-friendly global Muslim community, the One Ummah that was described by our beloved Prophet. Let's stop talking about unity and let's start acting in unity! Unity is Immunity!” said Hasan of YLI. "We will

As lively and intellectually stimulating the conversations and the debates were, I questioned the efficacy to the extent in which these resolutions could be practically implemented and to what degree would their impact resonate locally and globally?” said Nadia Hasan, co founder of the Young Leaders Institute, a new leadership training organization.

practically implemented and to what degree would their impact resonate locally and globally?” said Nadia Hasan,. The leaders came to a resolution acknowledging the need and agreed to form a Coordinating Body of Muslim Councils in the West and have formed a steering committee to implement this

continue to engage in civic, social, political and educational areas to better integrate the Muslims in their own countries, as well as internationally", Said Oussama Jammal, Secretary General of USCMO. “The historic conference was a vibrant open discussion with enthusiastic

A parallel program was arranged for relief organizations. For some time all major American Muslim relief organizations have been talking about forming an umbrella council to coordinate domestic relief efforts and last December, the loosely formed coalition worked together during a tornado in Texas. The conference provided a venue for these talks to continue and had several sessions with the State department and the Office of Refugee Admissions. Noting the dissonance that is the US government and the amount of work and money that goes into refugee resettlement, into providing mental health services for torture victims, one participant stated, “What if the wonderful government employees who worked in the State department resettling refugees actually met with those who make policies to kill and torture the very same people. It's like the government is suffering from bipolar disorder,” stated a participant. Murat Kose of Zakat Foundation of America (ZF) was a major sponsor of the conference. “They needed sponsorship and from a unity point of view it was a good effort. We always wanted something like this for Muslims and they took the lead on this and we want to support them,” said Kose. “We need to grow up and think nationally. But this is a difficult conversation for Muslims leaders to have, to convince people. This Relief Council would partner with masajid and Islamic Centers in the United States, so masjids can focus on being a masjid,” added Kose. "There is a need for a forum of Muslim organizations in the west" stated Sir Iqbal Sacranie of the Muslim Council of Britain. He asked that the next conference be sponsored by think tanks and publications as sponsorship by relief organizations signaled that Muslims were in crisis mode, whereas he believes that Muslims are thriving in the West. >> COUNCIL II Pg 31

February 19th - March 17th 2016

CONTINUED | 25

GROUND BREAKING

>> continued from pg 5 the complete outer structure with the $2 million dollars they have collected for this project. This approach is technically feasible and pragmatic, adds Ahmad. The board realizes that when the community will see facts on the ground in the shape of a completed shell, they will galvanize to build more sections. Phase 2 envisions a new masjid, and Phase 3 includes an Islamic high school. The design of the Youth and Community Center will include a large commercial kitchen, day care facility, café, bookstore, and various other facilities to serve multipurpose nature of ICM activities. According to the board, ICM went through a two-year cycle of town halls with representatives from the weekend school, sisters, the seniors, social services, etc. planning the features of the new center. Getting the design right was the number one challenge, says Ahmad. The leadership at Dar al Taqwa Islamic Center and at Islamic Society of Baltimore also gave presentations to the current ICM board on the process of building their centers. ICM works with different organizations to bring in relevant programming from Arabic with Fawakih Institute to events with Muslim American Society. After strategizing, Elkoshairi says that ICM has transitioned from a position based organization, to a permission based one but hopes to become a production based one— creating a proliferation of activities and events. Planned for the new community center are educational and social services: ICM Weekend School, Al Noor Islamic School, Ibn Battuta Café, Al Furqan Hifz School, Yazooma Islamic Youth Programs, Cordoba Islamic Social Services, Al Shifa Community Clinic, Al Amal Senior Care, and Al Rizk Professional Training Service. A glossy new brochure, which curates ICM’s history and future vision, is ready for distribution in the community. “We will use all our resources to make these programs a reality— relaunching this whole center,” stressed Elkoshairi. Elkoshairi notes that the youth and the seniors are the most underserved communities in the congregation. “How do we attract and affect the lives [of our underserved community] in a positive way? We want ICM to be the place where the youth can hang out amongst other Muslims and soak in the Islamic environment,” he says. ICM is working

on ways to orient the community to give attention to the needs of Muslims seniors who live in the area but are either immobile or otherwise unable to come to the masjid. “Gradually, we want to build a volunteer system and start with helping [our seniors] do basic chores and then get more involved in health care and housing,” he said. Keeping the goal of investing more in people and programs, ICM is actively seeking a full-time Head Imam and a part time Youth Director. Ideal candidates

would be invested in the community or be willing to invest in building long-term relations. “People who can reach the hearts of the youth with activities; who can understand terminology of today, and know how to build bridges,” says Elkoshairi. To increase membership, the BOT is working on a multifaceted drive with includes a revamping of ICM’s social media. “The amount of work that is being done is phenomenal,” say Elkoshairi, who

spends much of his free time at the center. “The board—I have been in the area for 27 years— is the strongest I have seen.” “As a part of the planning process, we engaged some builders and contractors, to understand requirement what they need from us. We engaged Capital Construction Consultants (CCCI) consulting company to help us in developing a proposal; they

>> GROUDBREAKING II Pg 27

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26 | CIVIL RIGHTS

Civil Rights

February 19th - March 17th 2016

Fox News Watchers Consistently More Likely To Have Negative Views Of Muslims By Alex Seitz-Wald Thinkprogress.org, February 16, 2016

Studies have already shown that regular Fox News watchers are “substantially” more misinformed about current events than consumers of other media, and that “greater exposure to [Fox] increased misinformation on a specific issue.” But a new poll suggests the conservative network may not just be harmful to viewers’ knowledge, but to their tolerance as well. As highlighted by the Washington Post’s Greg Sargent, a new survey from the Public Religion Research Institute reveals “a significant correlation between trust in Fox News and negative attitudes about Muslims. The study’s authors conclude: Americans who most trust Fox News are more likely to believe that Muslims want to establish Shari’a law, have not done enough to oppose extremism, and believe investigating Muslim extremism is a good idea. Indeed, nearly twice as many Republicans who most trust Fox News think Muslims want to establish Sharia law in the U.S. as Republicans who trust other media outlets — 41 percent of Fox viewers compared to just 23 percent of other Republicans. As Sargent notes, “we’ll never know whether Fox watchers harbor these views because they watch Fox, or whether they watch Fox because they harbor these views.” Nonetheless, Fox has propagated an “alternate reality” that consistently portrays Muslims as potentially dangerous, foreign, and suspect. For example, Fox disproportionately uses

....

Fox disproportionately uses terms that reflect a negative view of Muslims more often than its competitors, as this graph of Nexis data from the last three months demonstrates.

terms that reflect a negative view of Muslims more often than its competitors, as this graph of Nexis data from the last three months demonstrates : And when these terms are used, they are often part of a story fear mongering about nefarious activities Muslims may be up to, such as imposing sharia law, creating a global caliphate, or plotting homegrown jihad. Other times, Muslims are subject to broad, negative generalizations: — Host Bill O’Reilly on 1/13/11: “The

American people need to know what is going on in the Muslim communities in — in our country because we really don’t. A lot of them are closed communities. We don’t know.” — Fox legal analyst Peter Johnson Junior 2/7/11: “You have to look at the scholarly research on this issue over the years — is Democracy and Islam, are they compatible? Most scholars on the subject have said they aren’t compatible.” — Fox and Friends’ Brian Kilmeade 10/15/10: “There was a certain group of

people that attacked us on 9/11. It wasn’t just one person, it was one religion. Not all Muslims are terrorists, but all terrorists are Muslims.” Given the daily dose of conspiracy and Islamophobia on its airwaves, perhaps it’s no surprise that more than threequarters of those who trust Fox think Rep. Peter King’s (R-NY) McCarthy-like hearings on Muslim radicalization are a good idea, compared to just 45 percent of those who most trust CNN and 28 percent of those who most trust public television.

February 19th - March 17th 2016

World Press

WORLD PRESS | 27

Victim of Obama's First Drone Strike: 'I Am the Living Example of What Drones Are' By Spencer Ackerman

The Guardian, January 23, 2016 Faheem Qureshi’s uncles sat with their neighbors, chatting, cracking jokes and sipping tea, in their family’s lounge for male guests. Qureshi, almost 14, stood nearby, bored and restless, thinking about when he could go to the nearby playground where he and the other Ziraki village kids played badminton and cricket. It had been a long day – Friday prayers, a food shopping errand at his mother’s behest, hosting – but also a happy occasion, as people stopped by to welcome an uncle home to North Waziristan, in tribal Pakistan, from a work excursion to the United Arab Emirates. Then he heard a sound like a plane taking off. About two seconds later, the missile punched a hole through the lounge. Qureshi remembers feeling like his body was on fire. He ran outside, wanting to throw water on his face, but his priority was escape. The boy could not see. This was the hidden civilian damage from the first drone strike Barack Obama ever ordered, on 23 January 2009, the inauguration of a counter-terrorism tactic

GROUNDBREAKING

>> continued from pg 25

will take us through the process,” shared Ahmad. On January 15, 2016 the ICM community celebrated receiving the Building Construction Permit from Montgomery County. “January 15 was a big moment when the permit was released,” says Ahmad. Large copies of permit were posted around ICM. “We have reached velocity, the clock has started. We have a sense of urgency behind us, [as] the first

likely to define Obama’s presidency in much of the Muslim world. It was the third day of his presidency. Reportedly, the strikes did not hit the Taliban target Obama and the Central Intelligence Agency sought. Instead, they changed Qureshi’s life irrevocably. It took nearly 40 days for Qureshi to emerge from a series of hospitals, all of which he spent in darkness. Shrapnel had punctured his stomach. Lacerations covered much of his upper body. Doctors operated on the entire left side of his body, which had sustained burns, and used laser surgery to repair his right eye. They could not save his left. His family kept the worst from him while he recuperated. Two of Qureshi’s uncles, Mohammed Khalil and Mansoor Rehman, were dead. So was his 21-yearold cousin Aizazur Rehman Qureshi, who was preparing to leave the family’s North Waziristan home for work, also in the UAE. Fourteen of Qureshi’s cousins were left fatherless.

>> DRONE Pg 30

inspection of foundation is in July,” he added.

TOP: Faheem Qureshi, who suffered serious injuries, including the loss of an eye, in the first drone strike ordered by President Obama. Photograph: Madiha Tahir. Bottom: A ceiling damaged in the drone attack in 2009. Photograph: reprieve.org.uk

With Request For Proposals (RFP) issued to construction companies, ICM is hosting a fundraiser with a goal of raising 1.2 million dollars at the Gaithersburg Hilton on March 13, 2016. The short-term goal is to build the shell of the community center. The contract will be awarded by April 2016.Elkhoshairi says he is impressed with his community: ‘they consistently give and come out and they deliver whether it is money or time.’

hire general contractor who will handle all the subcontractors- instead of dealing with multiple stakeholders,” says Ahmad. Funds to hire full services companies with architects, structural engineers, plumbing, electrical, mechanical and green building certification would be ideal for the volunteer board which runs ICM, but is cost prohibitive. “The building will be green building compliant—we are not shooting for Gold or Platinum due to shortage of funds], but [the new community center] will be a [environmentally friendly] building,” shares Ahmad.

The 7-member ICM board has chosen to go with a midsize company. “We will

ICM received a $75,000 Department of Homeland Security grant for parking

lights. DHS gives this grant to nonprofit organization to increase security and safety. The Muslim community in the area is growing and the story of ICM is one that deserves credit. ICM plans to document and share their building journey with other Islamic Centers who may need guidance in planning a project of this size. It is an effort that engaged many community members’ blood and sweat, says Ahmad, making dua for every one who made this day a reality, marking a very emotional time for all that were involved.

....

28 |

February 19th - March 17th 2016

ISLAM

Being Considerate of Others’ Feelings All praise is due to Allaah, and may His peace and blessings be upon His Prophet Muhammad, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, and his family and Companions. Allaah the Almighty has ordained this valuable religion for us and He has perfected it. He has completed His blessings upon us and approved Islaam as a religion for us. It is complete and clear, including the creed, forms of worship, dealings with others, and the Muslim’s relationship with his Lord and his own self and others. The way of life that has been set forth in the Qur’aan and the authentic Prophetic Sunnah (traditions), is not limited to only creed, worship, actions of the limbs and the slave’s relationship with his Lord. It goes further than that, and tells us to be well-mannered with Allaah’s creation, to be kind and charitable to them and to maintain a good relationship with them. And so we find that Islaam calls to being friendly with others, and to treat them well. It tells us to be considerate of their feelings and emotions according to the sublime Islaamic rules and guidelines. It is concerned with manners, morals and the social relations between individuals, explaining the duties and rights. It commands us to be well-mannered, and to choose appropriate words according to different situations. Allaah Says: {... And speak to people good [words].} [Qur'aan : 2: 83]. This is considered a part of wisdom, which when granted to somebody does them a lot of good. On the other hand, Islaam has warned us against coarseness and rudeness, negligence and harming others. We ask Allaah to grant us beneficial knowledge, and good deeds, and to help us achieve what He loves and what pleases Him. May the prayers and blessings of Allaah be upon His Prophet Muhammad, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, and his family and Companions.

....

The Manners of the Prophets (Allaah be please with them) The act of being considerate of the feelings of others, is from the conduct and manners of the Prophets, may Allaah exalt their mention. Allaah Says to His Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam: {So by mercy from Allaah, [O Muhammad sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam], you were lenient with them. And if you had been rude [in speech] and harsh in heart, they would have disbanded from about you. So pardon them and ask forgiveness for them and consult them in the matter. And when you have decided, then rely upon Allaah. Indeed, Allaah loves those who rely [upon Him].} [ Qur'aan : 3: 159]. Al-Qaasimi, may Allaah have mercy on him, said: “{So by mercy from Allaah, [O Muhammad sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam], you were lenient with them.} meaning to the believers in general, as Allaah Says: {...and to the believers is kind and merciful.} [Q UR ’ AAN : 9: 128]. {And if you had been rude [in speech]} means ill-mannered and harsh in speech, and: {and harsh in heart} means harsh and coarse treating them severely and violently. {they would have disbanded} means they would have divided, and: {from about you} means that they wouldn’t have wouldn’t have felt at ease with you and therefore your Da’wah (inviting them to Allaah) would not be complete. Instead, Allaah the Almighty made you easy, forgiving, lenient, kind, and merciful. {So pardon them} for their negligence of your rights as Allaah forgave them. {... and ask forgiveness for them} completing his compassion for them and: {... and consult them in the matter} meaning at war, etc. to get closer to them and to take their opinions. Some scholars of Tafseer said: “The moral of this verse is the obligation of holding onto morals, especially; when one is calling to Allaah the Almighty and enjoining good.””

As-Si’di, may Allaah have mercy on him, said: “So good manners are one of the main aspects of religion and they attract people and make them interested in Islaam. The well-mannered person is also praised and gains special reward. Bad manners repel people from religion and make them hate it. The ill-mannered person is dispraised and will be punished a special punishment. The infallible Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, was addressed by Allaah on this matter, so how about others? One of the most important duties is to follow in the example of the Prophet’s morals and to treat people the way he did, with leniency, good manners, obeying Allaah’s command and to attract people to Allaah’s religion.” These are also the manners of the rest of the Prophets, may Allaah exalt their mention, as we find in the reaction of Yoosuf (Joseph) may Allaah exalt his mention when his brothers admitted their sin. Allaah Says: {He said: “No blame will there be upon you today. Allaah will forgive you; and He is the most merciful of the merciful.} [Q UR ’ AAN : 12: 92]. And after he was reunited with his family when Allaah had granted him power in the land, he welcomed them. Allaah Says: {And he raised his parents upon the throne, and they bowed to him in prostration). And he said: “O my father, this is the explanation of my vision of before. My Lord has made it reality. And He was certainly good to me when He took me out of prison and brought you [here] from Bedouin life after Satan had induced [estrangement] between me and my brothers. Indeed, my Lord is Subtle in what He wills. Indeed, it is He who is the Knowing, the Wise.} [Q UR ’ AAN : 12: 100]. Ibn Al-Qayyim, may Allaah have mercy on him, said: “Yoosuf didn’t say: Allaah took me out of the well, to be mannered with his brothers and due to his kindness.

So as not to make them ashamed of what happened to him in the well. He said: {and brought you [here] from Bedouin life} and not, Allaah has relieved you of the troubles of hunger and need, due to his good manners. He assigned what happened to the cause (Satan) but not the direct cause (his brothers) even though the direct cause is closer than the other cause by saying: {after Satan had induced [estrangement] between me and my brothers.} He acted generously and was well-mannered with his young brothers. This is why the perfection of manners and behavior is only found among the Prophets and messengers may Allaah exalt their mention.” AsSi’di, may Allaah have mercy on him, said: “This is due to the kindness and good speech of Yoosuf, may Allaah exalt his mention, as he mentioned his condition in prison but not his condition in the well, as he had completely forgiven his brothers and because he did not remember that mistake. As a way of easing their embarrassment, he considered the fact that they come from the desert as a sign of Allaah being good to him (He brought them to him as a favor to him). Also, he did not say to them that you came from the state of hunger and hardship in the desert nor did he say that Allaah was good to you by bringing you from the desert to me. Instead he said: {He was certainly good to me}. He assigned the good to himself. So Allaah is merciful to whom He wills from His slaves... {after Satan had induced [estrangement] between me and my brothers.} He didn’t say, Satan induced my brothers (to do what they did) instead he made it seem as if both sides played a role...” This great Prophet’s reaction shows us how deeply rooted sublime manners were among the Prophets, may Allaah exalt their mention and the Messenger of Allaah, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. May Allaah help us follow their example, achieving

>> FEELINGS Pg 32

February 19th - March 17th 2016

CONTINUED | 29

Salaah times for February 19th - March 17th 2016

If a person had a stream outside his door and he bathed in it five times a day, do you think he would have any filth left on him?” The people said, “No filth would remain on him whatsoever.” The Prophet (peace be upon him) then said, “That is like the fi ve daily prayers: Allah wipes away the sins by them.” ---Hadith in Sahih al Bukhari and Muslim

Prayer times generated from www.islamicfinder.com for the WASHINGTON, DC area.

Day

Date

Hijri

Fajr

Sunrise

Dhuhr

Asr

Maghrib

Isha

Fri

10/5

5:41

6:54

12:22

3:24

5:50

7:04

Sat

11/5

5:40

6:53

12:22

3:25

5:51

7:05

Sun

12/5

5:38

6:52

12:22

3:26

5:52

7:06

Mon

13/5

5:37

6:50

12:22

3:26

5:53

7:07

Tue

14/5

5:36

6:49

12:22

3:27

5:54

7:08

Wed

15/5

5:35

6:48

12:22

3:28

5:55

7:09

Thu

16/5

5:33

6:46

12:22

3:29

5:57

7:10

Fri

17/5

5:32

6:45

12:22

3:29

5:58

7:11

Sat

18/5

5:30

6:44

12:21

3:30

5:59

7:12

Sun

19/5

5:29

6:42

12:21

3:31

6:00

7:13

Mon

20/5

5:28

6:41

12:21

3:31

6:01

7:14

Tue

21/5

5:28

6:41

12:21

3:31

6:01

7:14

Wed

22/5

5:26

6:39

12:21

3:32

6:02

7:15

Thu

23/5

5:23

6:36

12:20

3:33

6:04

7:17

Fri

24/5

5:22

6:35

12:20

3:34

6:05

7:18

Sat

25/5

5:20

6:33

12:20

3:35

6:06

7:19

Sun

26/5

5:19

6:32

12:20

3:35

6:07

7:20

Mon

27/5

5:17

6:30

12:19

3:36

6:08

7:21

Tue

28/5

5:16

6:29

12:19

3:37

6:09

7:22

Wed

29/5

5:14

6:27

12:19

3:37

6:10

7:23

Thu

1/6

5:13

6:26

12:19

3:38

6:11

7:25

Fri

2/6

5:11

6:24

12:18

3:38

6:12

7:26

Sat

3/6

5:10

6:23

12:18

3:39

6:13

7:27

Sun

4/6

6:08

7:21

1:18

4:39

7:14

8:28

Mon

5/6

6:07

7:20

1:18

4:40

7:15

8:29

Tue

6/6

6:05

7:18

1:17

4:40

7:16

8:30

Wed

7/6

6:03

7:17

1:17

4:41

7:17

8:31

Thu

8/6

6:02

7:15

1:17

4:41

7:18

8:32

Source: Islamicfinder.org

DISCUSSION

young adults that provides resources and programming, including programming to promote social change, a national campaign to raise awareness on mental health issues and an interfaith program for Muslim artists across the country. Mr. Colin Christopher, Executive Director, Green Muslims Colin Christopher is the Executive Director of Green Muslims, a faith-based environmental advocacy organization that offers educational programming and brings people of faith together to volunteer on environmental projects across their communities. Ms. Ibtihaj Muhammad, United States

Baltimore

Fencing Team

>> continued from pg 16 A three-time All-American at Duke, Ibtihaj Muhammad is a member of the United States fencing team and the first Muslim woman to represent the United States in international fencing competitions. Muhammad qualified for a spot on the United States Olympic Team for the Rio de Janeiro 2016 Olympic Games, where she will make history as the first United States Olympian to compete in a hijab. Ms. Sarah Jawaid, Community Organizer, LA Voice Sarah Jawaid is a community organizer with LA Voice, a non-profit affiliate of the PICO National Network, where she does faith-based social justice organizing and leadership development in Los Angeles. Ms. Emtithal "Emi" Mahmoud, Student, Yale University

Emtithal Mahmoud is a senior at Yale University and the winner of the 2015 Individual World Poetry Slam Championship. Mahmoud is originally from Darfur, Sudan. Mr. Saafir Rabb, Founder, Interculture Saafir Rabb is the founder and CEO of Interculture, a consulting firm that advises businesses on cultural competency, and assists numerous organizations and enterprises to develop strategic approaches and improve relationships. A former consultant to the President's transition team for public diplomacy, Saafir is a member of the Pacific Council on International Policy, and a board member of Educate Girls Globally. Dr. Edmund Tori, Associate Director of MedStar Institute for Innovation (MI2), Advisory Board, Islamic Society of

Edmund A. Tori, D.O., is the Associate Director of MedStar Institute for Innovation (MI2) and Director of the Center for Health Influence & Engagement, where he works with the staff of the MedStar Health to better communicate with patients and colleagues for improved patient care and safety. Imam Yaseen Shaikh, Islamic Society of Baltimore Imam Yaseen Shaikh serves as Resident Scholar at the ISB. Imam Shaikh arrived in the United States in 2006, serving his community in Plano, Texas and raising awareness of Islam by engaging with neighboring communities. Imam Shaikh now serves at ISB's Al-Rahmah School and Qur'an Academy, where he hosts weekly sessions for youth to openly discuss faith and share experiences.

....

February 19th - March 17th 2016

30 | CONTINUED DRONE

>> continued from pg 27

Barely a teenager, Qureshi was suddenly an elder male within his family, tasked with providing for his mother, brothers and sisters. Once a promising student who wanted a career in chemistry, his priority would become scrounging a living. The family never had the money to repair the guest lounge. Obama, now in the twilight of his presidency, wants to be remembered as a peacemaker. In his own telling, as in his final state of the union address earlier this month, he is the man who denuclearized Iran peacefully, who opened Cuba and ended the last vestige of the cold war, who replaced the “dumb wars” he campaigned against with the prudent, precise counterterrorism of drone strikes. All Qureshi knows about Obama, he told the Guardian from Islamabad, “is what he has done to me and the people in Waziristan, and that is an act of tyranny. If there is a list of tyrants in the world, to me, Obama will be put on that list by his drone program.” Seven years to the day after the strike, Qureshi has never received so much as an admission from the US that it happened. The CIA declined comment for this article, deferring to the White House. Although Obama expressed “profound regret” for a 2015 drone strike on the Afghanistan-Pakistan border that killed two western hostages, the White House would not comment on “specific cases”, said a National Security Council spokesman, Ned Price. “The US government takes seriously all credible reports of non-combatant deaths and injuries. In those rare instances in which it appears non-combatants may have been killed or injured, after-action reviews have been conducted to determine why, and to ensure that we are taking the most effective steps to minimize such risk to non-combatants in the future. “Although we will not comment on specific cases, were non-combatants killed or injured in a US strike, condolence or other ex gratia payments, such as solatia, may be available for those injured and

....

the families of those killed,” Price told the Guardian. “Are we not the same human beings as these two westerners who were killed?” Qureshi asked in his first interview with an American journalist, conducted through translation. The interview was facilitated by the human rights group Reprieve. Qureshi is now approximately 21 years old – his official ID card says he’s younger, but where he’s from, birthdates are often listed inaccurately. Over a Skype connection, he appears slender, with his hair falling down on to his forehead and wire-rimmed glasses framing a false eye. He is now a displaced person, having stayed in Ziraki until the Pakistani army invaded North Waziristan 18 months ago. He strokes his beard as he recalls the moment that defines his life. Yes, Qureshi wants acknowledgement, apology and compensation from the US. “It’s not about me. It’s about every civilian who has been killed in Waziristan.” It may never be known how many of them the US has killed in drone strikes. Though Obama and the CIA have gestured in the last two years toward lifting the veil of official secrecy, the main act of transparency has been presidential acknowledgment that the drone strikes occur. Since Obama took office, 371 drone strikes in tribal Pakistan have killed between 256 and 633 civilians, according to a media-derived tally kept by the Bureau of Investigative Journalism. All non-governmental attempts at tracking the strikes acknowledge their limitations. Open-source reporting on each classified strike comes through official leaks, which incentivize presuming those killed are militants until proven otherwise. Active warzones prevent and deter consistent, independent investigations, from the press and non-governmental organizations, into each drone strike. Little, accordingly, exists to decisively refute the official stance that drones kill “single digits” worth of civilians each year. The congressional committees meant to oversee the CIA have helped it block the transparency Obama promised, even as they have fought with the CIA

on other issues. In 2014, the Senate intelligence panel chairwoman stripped a requirement for public disclosure of drone casualties from an intelligence operations bill. Qureshi remembered thinking to himself in his hospital bed during the anxiety of his month-long blindness: “What did I do for which I was punished so badly? What did my family do? Why did it happen to me?” The available evidence suggests the strike was an error. Reporter Daniel Klaidman’s book about Obama’s drone strikes, Kill or Capture, claims that the first January 2009 strike had gone “terribly wrong”, with the targeted Taliban member never having been on the premises. A leaked Pakistani government document records “9 civilians” being killed in a drone strike on 23 January 2009, an apparent reference to the one on Qureshi’s home; an unredacted version seen by the Guardian names his village and his dead uncle. “There are so many people like me in Waziristan that I know of who were targeted and killed who had nothing to do with militancy or the Taliban,” Qureshi said, “so many women who have been killed, children who have been killed, but there is still no answer to this. Forget about the answers, there is not even acknowledgement that we were killed.” According to the Bureau of Investigative Journalism’s tally, Obama’s drone strikes in tribal Pakistan alone have killed between 66 and 78 children. “I do not say drones have only killed civilians. They would have or might have killed some militants. But overall, they have killed mostly civilians who have nothing to do with what America is trying to do in Pakistan or Afghanistan or anywhere else in the world,” Qureshi said. Over the years, Qureshi and his attorney have sought recompense through various official channels, via the Pakistani tribal liaison, the US embassy and the United Nations Human Rights Council. All have been fruitless. Qureshi acknowledges he will never be a chemist. His best hope, he said, is to open a small business once he is allowed to return to Waziristan. All his academic

hopes will transfer to sponsoring his two brothers’ educational ambitions. He hopes he can afford it: “I don’t know how they can study if I can’t provide for them.” He rejects Obama’s framework that the US response to terrorism must choose between drone strikes and ground invasions, urging negotiations with a persistent Taliban that has survived over 14 years of US war. Qureshi warns that America, once known for helping liberate Afghanistan from the Soviet Union, is “hated” in Waziristan like never before. “What we know of the US is this is what they do to people like me. They uproot us, they kill us, they target us, without any reason. They turn our lives upside down. Of course the US is hated in that part of the world, and it’s hated more because of what they’ve done to people like me,” Qureshi said. Last week, the US defense secretary, Ashton Carter, said the US in 2016 will target the Islamic State outside Iraq and Syria in its north African and south Asian strongholds, with drone strikes likely to take the lead. The latest drone strike in Yemen, on 20 January, demonstrated that the strikes can occur despite the chaos of the US-allied Saudi Arabian war on the ruling Houthi faction. Africa is dotted with US launchpads for drones, from Djibouti to Niger to Cameroon. Foreign countries from the UK to Pakistan, following America’s lead, now conduct their own drone strikes. The drone strikes will outlast the president most associated with normalizing them. Qureshi said he does not believe ordinary Americans are “evil or unjust”, and urges them not to believe what their government tells them about drone strikes and Pakistan. “I am the living example of what drones are,” Qureshi said. “They have affected Waziristan as they have affected my personal life. I had all the hopes and potential and now I am doing nothing and don’t know what there is for me in the future.”

February 19th - March 17th 2016 PROTEST

CONTINUED| 31 Islamophobic rhetoric.’

>> continued from pg 6

The coalition - which includes Interfaith Action for Human Rights, Progressive Maryland, Casa De Maryland, and a number of prominent mosques in the state - made its request as a result of community concerns and of an unprecedented rise in anti-Muslim sentiment and hate incidents nationwide in recent months. Suggestions offered to Stevenson University include allowing an actual expert on Islam to attend the event to respond to any of Ali’s Islamophobic remarks or to schedule another speaker recommended by the Maryland Muslim community to speak at a later date to “dispel misunderstandings created by Ms. Ali’s appearance at the university.” Educator Maher Kharma Ph.D, Past President of Islamic Society of Annapolis, says,“Sad news that Stevenson is inviting her at a time when Islamophobia is on the rise,”She is called a ‘pundit behind the industry of fear’ that fuels anti-Muslim bigotry. Ayaan Hirsi Ali calls herself a feminist and activist, and she will be speaking at a Stevenson University sponsored Speakers Series in Baltimore, MD. Several concerned citizens called the local CAIR office and have reached out to presidents of their local masajid. Muslim leaders mobilized behind an interfaith letter to be sent to the President of Stevenson Univeristy, Dr Kevin J Manning. A Maryland-based coalition of 18 masajid and interfaith partners endorsed the letter calling on Stevenson University to ‘drop anti- Muslim Hirsi Ali as a speaker at an upcoming Baltimore Speakers Series event or to at least offer a balancing perspective to her

COUNCIL II

>> continued from pg 24

Zaynab O Lalla, one of the two women from the Swedish delegation and an emerging leader, was happy to meet Muslim women leaders from other countries. One participant from Europe felt that the discussions were Americancentric and did not apply to her country. “While it is clear that Muslim Americans

A letter of acknowledgment was sent by Dr Manning to the coalition but no further action is planned. Ayaan Hirsi Ali is an athiest who was raised in a Muslim household in Somalia. After fleeing a forced marriage to a cousin , she sought asylum in the Netherlands. She went from a maid to running for member of parliment, until the government found that she had misrepresented facts on her asylum papers. She came to the United States after the director of her short file ‘Submission’, Theo Van Gogh, was killed and a death threat for her was left on his body. In the United States she has aligned herself with hatemongers like Robert Spencer, to neo athiest such as Sam Harris, and has been supported by grassroots anti-Muslim organizations such as ACT for America and liberals such as Harvard Professor Steven Pinker and Michael Shermer, editor of the Scientific American. She has called for the closing of Muslim schools in the West, and for war against Muslims worldwide and has urged the United States to strip American Muslims of their civil rights, wrote Homayra Ziad and Alison Jysia of the newly renamed Institute for Islamic, Christian, and Jewish Studies in an oped in the Baltimore Sun. This event has concerned educators, such as Maryland resident Maher Kharma Ph.D, Past President of Islamic Society of Annapolis. “Sad news that Stevenson is inviting her at a time when Islamophobia is on the rise,” commented Yaseen Shaikh, Resident Scholar, Islamic Society of Baltimore and Director of Al-Rahmah Seminary. The following was the response recieved

must become more active in their communities, they are not alone: it is the responsibility of every American, regardless of faith or race, to engage more directly in society,” noted Mariane Leite, who works with the Muslim community in DC as a nation building consultant who was invited to the special luncheon along with several interfaith partners. Congressman Keith Ellison gave a keynote as did Former Ambassador from South Africa Ebrahim Rasool. Rasool,

from the admin at the Speaker Series when concerns were expressed on Hirsi Ali’s inclusion in the series. "I feel that you have the wrong impression of the views we anticipate that Ms. Hirsi Ali will present. Although I understand that there are many who would like to see her ideas squelched, I believe that an objective assessment of her point of view would find that she is not anti-Islam, but does raise a number of interesting observations about how Islam today fits side-by-side a Western society, and makes concrete suggestions to bring the two cultures into a more cohesive, less violent existence." In 2014, her appearance at Yale University was protested by 30 campus groups. Many don’t consider Hirsi Ali's comments about Islam to be protected under free speech, calling it hate speech. Hirsi Ali, a former Muslim who was a victim of genital mutilation as a child, has called Islam a "nihilistic cult of death," and has said that it must be "defeated." She is a Israeli sympathizer and staunching antiboycott divestment and sanctions. The audience at the Speaker Series will hear gems like she dropped in her speech at Yale: “There's no BDS movement against them on campus. Why? Last year in Nigeria, 200 girls were kidnapped. They were sold into slavery. There was no BDS movement against Boko Haram.”” The lecture orginally scheduled for the end of Jan was postposned due to the extreme snowfall over the weekend. Meyerhoff Symphony Hall has rescheduled the event for Monday, February 29, 2016. Tickets for the Speaker Series are sold by subscription to the entire series and are not for indiviadual sale. Tickets to individual lectures are not for sale,

who has lived through apartheid and had to declare his children illegitimate under the apartheid regime made a speech, that really touched hearts. He said Muslims need to give people a healthy way out when we frame our issues. A dead end is terribly hopeless. The option for redemption should remain open. South African Muslims stood with the oppressed and overcame hate and prejudice to lead their country, and so should American Muslims.

with the highest ticket sold for $415. Leon Panetta, former head of the CIA, and Sanjay Gupta, CNN’s medical correspondent, are other speakers in the series. The Speakers Series is also popular because it is a wonderful way to learn more about a variety of subjects: history, international affairs, foreign and domestic politics, current events, etc. The interfaith coalition’s letter states in part: “Ms. Ali is by all means free to believe as she chooses. We uphold First Amendment rights for all - including those with inflammatory, misguided views. However, our concern is that granting her this unchallenged platform to peddle misinformation would legitimize such falsehoods, perpetuate intolerance toward and hatred of Muslims, and risk jeopardizing the safety of local Muslims - including students on your campus." The coalition - which includes Interfaith Action for Human Rights, Progressive Maryland, Casa De Maryland, and a number of prominent mosques in the state - made its request as a result of community concerns and of an unprecedented rise in anti-Muslim sentiment and hate incidents nationwide in recent months. Suggestions offered to Stevenson University include allowing an actual expert on Islam to attend the event to respond to any of Ali’s Islamophobic remarks or to schedule another speaker recommended by the Maryland Muslim community to speak at a later date to “dispel misunderstandings created by Ms. Ali’s appearance at the university.” The Speakers series contact information:comments@ baltimorespeakersseries.org

“I think the conference was beneficial. This is the first time in history that Western based Muslim organizations came together to find solutions to common problems being faced by Muslims in the West. I would even go far as to say that it is a pioneering moment. Hopefully, this will lead to future similar endeavors. My main takeaway was that all these Muslim leaders were willing to put aside their petty differences and actually work together for the betterment of the Muslim community in the West, said Abid.

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February 19th - March 17th 2016

32 | CONTINUED FEELINGS

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what Allaah Says: {Those are the ones whom Allaah has guided, so from their guidance take an example} [Q UR ’ AAN : 6: 90] May Allaah join us with them in Paradise from His generosity and mercy. Here are some examples from the Prophet’s Sunnah, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, that show how Islaam is concerned with protecting the feelings of a Muslim, and their psychological wellbeing. Being considerate of a Muslim’s feelings in gatherings: 1. Being considerate of the feelings of two people privately conversing and sitting next to each other: It is a form of politeness in Islaam, when entering upon a group of people in conversation whether two or more, to ask for permission to sit with them. This is because the people conversing may have secrets, and the intruding person may hear something they do not want him to hear, or he may force them to remain silent or change the topic of conversation, thereby disrupting their previous conversation. The appropriate courtesy when entering upon people is to ask for their permission, making them pleased and happy at his entrance. Sa'eed Al-Maqbari said: "I passed by Ibn 'Umar who had a man with him with whom he was conversing. I went to them, and he struck me on the chest and said: did you not know that the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said: 'When you find two men conversing, do not go up to them nor sit with them until they give you permission.'" Something similar to this is not to sit between two people who were sitting together without their permission. ‘Abdullaah ibn ‘Umar, may Allaah be pleased with him, reported that the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said: “It is not lawful for a man to separate between two people without their permission.” His, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, saying: “between two people” means to sit between them, “without their permission” because there may be love, compassion, secrecy and trustworthiness between them, and the person’s sitting in between them may

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disturb them. 2. Being considerate of the feelings of others when privately conversing Islaam forbids private conversation between two people when a third person is present, even if it is good speech. This is because it can sadden the person who is left out of the conversation and the person might think that they are saying something unpleasant about him. Ibn Mas’ood, may Allaah be pleased with him, said: the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said: “When you are three together, two should not speak together privately apart from the other one until you come together with other people because that might upset him.” An-Nawawi, may Allaah have mercy on him, said: “This indicates that it is forbidden. So it is forbidden for two people to converse privately excluding the other person unless he permits it.” Ibn Hajar, may Allaah have mercy on him, said: “His saying 'until you come together with other people' means that the three people in question gather with other people. The word other is general, meaning it could be one person or more... From this we conclude that if there are four people it is permissible for two to speak privately, as the other two can also speak privately. Ibn ‘Umar, may Allaah be pleased with him, said I asked the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam: 'What about four?' He, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, replied: 'It will not harm you.' When Ibn ‘Umar, may Allaah be pleased with him, wanted to speak privately with somebody when there were three of them, he would call a fourth person and say: sit down for a while, as I have heard...and he would mention the Hadeeth. In his saying, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam: 'because that might upset him' as the person may think that their private speech is because of their bad opinion of him or that they are plotting against him. This guides the person speaking privately to someone to avoid it when he knows that he has upset the other person, unless it is something important that does not oppose the religion. Al-Maazari, may Allaah have mercy on him, and his followers say: 'There is no difference in the meaning between two people privately conversing and a group of people as in both cases it upsets the person left out.' Al-Qurtubi, may Allaah have mercy on him, added:

'In fact the presence of a large group of people is more severe and so one must avoid this. The number of three people was specifically mentioned in the Hadeeth as it is the first number of people that can be imagined in the situation. But whenever it upsets others it has the same ruling.' Ibn Battaal, may Allaah have mercy on him, said: 'Whenever there is a larger group of people two of them are speaking in private, it is less likely to upset the one left out and he is less likely to accuse them of (them talking badly of him.)'” Al-Khattaabi, may Allaah have mercy on him, said: “It upsets the person because he thinks that someone else has been honored other than him and this upsets him.” 1 Ibn ‘Allaan, may Allaah have mercy on him, said: “It is forbidden for two people to speak in private with the exclusion of the third without the person’s permission, unless there is a need to do so, which makes it permissible. This is because the advantage gained is assured but the disadvantage (of upsetting the left out person) is not assured to happen. Another type of private conversation is speaking in a language that the third party does not understand.” 3. Being considerate of a person’s feelings by not making him leave his spot for someone else to sit in: When someone sits in a place then they are more rightful of it than others, and it is not rightful for someone to make him give up in that place. This is an Islaamic etiquette that aims at being considerate of the person and his right of sitting in that spot, as he got there before others. It is affirmed to be more forbidden when someone tells the person to give up their place because they think that they are above the person who was originally in that place. This ruling is applied to all types of gatherings, however it is more affirmed in gatherings of worship as Islaam encourages us to hasten to good and to arrive early to congregational prayers. So if a person arrives before others to a general place then nobody has the right to make him give up that spot, and if someone does come and tell them to leave the spot for them to sit in, then they have combined two shameful acts. Abu Al-Khusayb, may Allaah have mercy on him, reported: "As I was sitting, Ibn ‘Umar, may Allaah be pleased with him, came and a man stood up from

his place for him, but he did not sit in that place. Instead he sat somewhere else, so the man asked: Why didn’t you sit there? He replied: I would not sit in your place or anyone else’s place after something I witnessed from the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam: A man came to the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, so a man stood up from his place and the other man went to sit there. The Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, forbade him from doing so." Ibn ‘Umar, may Allaah be pleased with him, reported that the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said: “Do not ask someone to give up his seat in order to take it, but make accommodation wide and sit at ease.” In another narration: I said: "How about Friday?" He, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said: “On Friday and other days.” It was a habit of Ibn `Umar, may Allaah be pleased with him, that if a person left his seat for him, he would not take it. Abu Hurayrah, may Allaah be pleased with him, reported that the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said: “A man should not give up his place for another man, instead make space and Allaah shall make space for you.” AlAlbaani, may Allaah have mercy on him, said about this Hadeeth: “It is evident that it is not from Islaamic etiquette for someone to leave their place and have someone else sit in it out of respect for them. So standing up from your place in this situation goes against the Prophetic teachings. The least we can say is that it is disliked as concluded from the Prophet’s saying, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam: 'A man should not give up his space for another man.' this implies that it is forbidden and not disliked. Allaah knows best.” 4. Being considerate of the rightful owner of a spot if he returns to it after leaving it: Islaam has identified rights and the protection of rights so that opinions do not differ, and so that people do not claim what is not their right, leading to aversion and hatred. One of these rights is a person’s place, so anyone who precedes others to a certain place makes them entitled to it. If the person leaves the place due to a need and wants

>> FEELINGS II Pg 36

February 19th - March 17th 2016 WELCOMED

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Umm Khalil. As the men carried boxes and furniture, the women helped deep clean the rental house. By 2:00 the truck was empty and a long journey from Syria, to Lebanon, from Baltimore to College Park had come to an end for the Farooks. Nayeem Ali, a student at PGCC, said, “In all honesty, I wasnt aware that they were Syrian refugees until after I first met them. To me, they were a family that needed help and you give help when help is needed. I'm not the most politically minded person but that doesn't mean I didn't know what was going on. Regardless of labels, they are our brothers and sisters in Islam and now that they moved here they are more one of us as we are one of them. But yeah, great experience.” Umm Hamza, a community worker with DUS for 16 years is part of the effort to bring the family to College Park. “Being

SNOWZILLA

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clearing up the sidewalks sent for repair and maintenance, and hooked up the snowplow on to the truck that had recently gone through maintenance. He lives in Virginia, and cleared his car and driveway so he could head out to Maryland to the Dar-us-Salaam campus earl Sunday morning. Snowplows had been out in his neighborhood and his car was covered with snow gain. After digging out his car, he made it to College Park by 7 a.m. The drive was treacherous, as many of the inner streets had not been cleared. In College Park, from 7-11 after the gas station down to Edgewood was a mess. After picking up his crew they made their way to campus. The path was slippery. With snow shovels in hand they were able to make it into the building. Omar checked the pipes and the roof. “All were good,” he says. “Allah made it easy for us on Sunday- I started and got stuck seven times with the truck,” Between the wind and the snow, it

CONTINUED | 33 a mother of two, a 12-year old daughter, [a] 3-year-old son, you follow the news and you are feeding your own kids and see this absolute disparity,” she said. “We have to see the bigger picture, that we share the Earth with them. Depressed, I couldn’t breathe, so I reached out to DUS- looking for anything to.” Brother Safi suggested moving incoming Syrian refugees families near DUS. In coordination with other concerned Muslims in the Baltimore metro, a coalition was formed streamlining processes, delegating tasks so that efforts were not duplicated. Through the help of this committee, one family was moved to the neighborhood near the Islamic Society of Baltimore community. The coalition will continue to look for affordable rental homes to house refugees in areas close to established Muslim communities. “We wanted to give them the mental comfort of living in an established community that can help in case of need. We are in the process of doing a rental application

took 3 1/2 days to clear the entire campus. The sidewalks were ready for worshippers on Sunday by 11 pm. The parking lots were ready to receive people for salah. Originally from Somalia, Omar learned how to deal with storms after experiencing many snowstorms in the DC Metro. Watching his neighbors and city crews. “When you [are] stuck you have to learn something [because] people waiting [to] pass [through so it's an] added responsibility. [This time] we were ready [but] we may need one more blower [for the next storm],” he said. Omar’s crew of three salted the sidewalk and the parking lots the week before the storm, which he says helped his team. After the storm, generosity of community members warmed hearts too. A brother who owns a construction company brought his bobcat to remove all the snow, as the truck could not go on the hills surrounding the school. Omar was concerned about the safety of the school children once the school opened again. “He lifted the snow which gave us space to work and donate 37 bags of salt. “He didn’t even charge us,“ shares Omar.

for another family,” shared Umm Hamza. Processing the Farook family’s rental application took time as they were denied many times due to the large family size and other factors.

counter-balance to the harmful sentiments expressed by Governor Hogan, and would also send an inclusive message to our current and future neighbors: we support you and we welcome you,” she wrote.

Currently, there are six Syrian refugee families in the area. Two are in Hyattsville, two in Baltimore. Umm Hamza says that they will work with International Rescue Committee to bring more families to College Park.

Abu Khalil and his wife Abeer have settled into their new home. 5 of the 7 children will attend Al Huda school, where the community has pledged to take care of their needs because Abu Khalil is blind and will not be able to find work as easily as other refugees.

Jackie Pierce is a resident of College Park and the president of the North College Park Civic Association (NCPCA;, she started a petition urging the city council to adopt a resolution welcoming refugees, including Syrians, in the city of College Park. The resolution will come before the City Council on February 23, 2016. “College Park is a diverse community. Many of our neighbors are immigrants, Muslim, or both. By adopting such a resolution, College Park would offer a

Omar has some advice for administration of Islamic Centers: Give whoever is in charge flexibility and authority to do what they think is right for the building and grounds so they can plan. Giving them access gives peace of mind as any building managers worry if the administration or board will allow them to do critical preparations. Islamic Society of Frederick (ISF) was closed immediately after Jumu’ah prayers through the weekend until Monday. ISF had two Jumu’ah salahs on January 29, as parking was limited due to the piles of snow. They issued warnings that people be careful walking to the building. Additional parking was arranged in the McCain parking lot. Day care at the Islamic Society of Germantown (ISG) was closed ISG combined Maghrib and Isha at January 22, 2016 and the masjid closed after that allowing their snow removal contractors to perform their job. Many masajid such as PGMA combined Asr salah with Jumu'ah salah so worshippers could get home to safety before the storm started. Dar al Noor in Manassas advised the community that

The experience has been “truly rewarding,” says Umm Hamza about the community based service. The committee is looking for volunteers to tutor the children far behind their peers. For those that wish to support Dar-us-Salaam's efforts, Please donate to the Syrian Family Fund by emailing funding@darussalaam.org.

due to the weather, police officers that normally are available for traffic control. The Al Firdaus Cemetery was also closed during inclement weather. But one brother got stuck at dhuhr time on Sunday, Omar had to push his car out. Omar and his crew ask please don’t leave cars on site before a snowstorm as that makes it hard for crews to clean up the parking lot. The centers make great places for families looking for a safe place to enjoy the snow. He cautions families to not bring to the masjid to play in the snow in blizzard conditions until paths have been cleared. “It was kind of scary when I was [clearing up] our neighborhood kids [and a mother] were coming to play. I couldn’t see behind me due to the snow; the whole path was slippery and the truck can lose control. I had to stop and wait from them to go away. “Please for your own safety wait until an email comes from the masjid that the place is safe.”

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February 19th - March 17th 2016

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Request For Duaa |To Allah We Belong, and to Him is Our Return 01-18-2016 Basim and Daoud Hawas Uncle Hussien Sbietan has returned to his lord. The Janazah was on January 19, 2016 in Falls Church, Virginia. (Source: D. Hawa) 01-19-2016 PGMA sends condolences to the family of Brother Hossein Amirhamzeh who passed away. Salaat al-Janazah for Brother Hossein Amirhamzeh was on January 20, 2016 in Lanham, Maryland. May Allah swt forgive his shortcomings and grant him Jannat ul Firdaus. (Source: PGMA) 01-20-2016 It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Br. Yusef Muhammad. The Salatul Janaza was on January 21, 2016 in Baltimore, Maryland. We ask Allah (SWT) to shower him with His mercy, compassion and forgiveness, grant him the highest ranks in paradise and give his family support and patience during this difficult time. (Source: ISB) 01-20-2016 The Dar Al-Hijrah Board of Directors, Imam, Executive Director, the staff of Dar Al-Hijrah and the Muslim community in Northern Virginia extend its deepest condolences to brother Bashir Arif Kassim. His mother, Fadumo Ali Gurey, has passed away. Salat Al-Janazah was on January 21, 2016 in Falls Church, Virginia. (Source: Dar Al-Hijrah) 01-22-2016 It is with great sadness we announce that Br. Aurang Zeb, Sr. Aneela Rehman's (ADAMS HR Director) uncle, has passed away. May Allah forgive all his sins, shower His mercy upon him, widen his grave and grant him the highest place in Jannat ul-Firdaus. May Allah give them sabr (patience) in this difficult time. May Allah protect us all and only call us back when HE is most pleased with us. Aameen. (Source: E. Baig) 01-28-2016 Sr.Tasneem Durrani's mother, Rashida Niazi, has passed away. Salaat ul Janazah was on January 28, 2016 in Frederick, Maryland. May Allah (SWT) accept her good deeds, forgive her shortcomings and enter her into Jannat ul Firdaus, Aameen. (Source: ICM) 01-29-2016 Maryum Islamic Center extends its deepest condolences to the family of Br. Nafie who has passed away. The Janazah prayer was on January 30, 2016 in Ellicott City, Maryland. May Allah forgive him and grant him Jannah al-Firdaus. May Allah grant strength and patience to his family, and their extended family at this very difficult time. (Source: Maryum Center) 01-29-2016 PGMA sends condolences to the family of Brother Abdul Daoud Dura Sesay who passed away. Brother Abdul Daoud Sesay was the son of Brother Duramany Abdulrahman Sesay and Sister Rose Campbell. Salaat al-Janazah for Brother Abdul Daoud Dura Sesay was on January 30, 2016 in Lanham, Maryland. May Allah (SWT) forgive his shortcomings and grant him Jannat ul Firdaus. May Allah (SWT) grant the family patience and ease, Ameen. (Source: PGMA) 01-30-2016 It is with great sadness and a heavy heart that we inform you of the passing of our community member Nafa Mohamed. Janazah was on January 30, 2016 in Ellicott City, Maryland. We ask Allah (SWT) to shower him with His mercy, compassion and forgiveness, and to grant him the highest ranks in paradise, and give his family support and patience during these

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difficult times. (Source: Dar Al Taqwa) 01-30-2016 PGMA extends sincere condolences to the family of Mama Sarah (Abu Laban) who has passed away. Mama Sarah is the mother of Brother Waleed Abu Laban and his brothers and sister, Motherin-Law of Sister Denise Abu Laban and grandmother of their children. She was also the sister-in-law of Brother Ziyyad Sayyad. Salaat al-Janazah for Mama Sarah was on February 2, 2016 in Lanham, Maryland. May Allah (SWT) forgive her shortcomings and grant her Jannat ul Firdaus. May Allah SWT grant her family ease and patience. (Source: PGMA) 02-01-2016 The Dar-us-Salaam community extends its deepest condolences to the family of Sister Amy Nash who has passed away. Sister Amy is survived by her husband Brother Abdulhamid Nash and children Marion, Jannah, and Mustafa. The janazah prayer was on February 1, 2016 in College Park, Maryland. May Allah forgive Sister Amy and grant her Jannah al-Firdaus, and accept her free from any sins. May Allah grant strength and patience to her family, Brother Abdulhamid Nash and her children, at this very difficult time. (Source: Dar-usSalaam) 02-04-2016 It is with great sorrow that we announce the death of our longtime volunteer and very dear friend, Dr. Mohammad Yousuf. Dr. Yousuf served the MCC Clinic as one of the first volunteer physicians and had a long association with our community. The Janazah prayer was on February 5, 2016 in Silver Spring, Maryland. May Allah give his soul peace, ameen. (Source: MCC) 02-04-2016 The Dar-us-Salaam community extends its deepest condolences to the family of Dr. Abulhasan Ansari who has passed away. The janazah prayer was on February 5, 2016 in College Park, Maryland. We ask Allah to forgive him and accept him among the righteous slaves, and we ask Allah to grant a beautiful patience to his wife Sister Umbreen Hingoro, his children Zafar, Nasrin, Ghazala, Farhath, and his extended family. May Allah forgive Dr Ansari and grant him Jannah al-Firdaus, and accept him free from any sins. (Source: Dar-us-Salaam) 02-05-2016 PGMA sends condolences to the family of Brother Mohamed Alhaji Shaw who passed away. Salaat al-Janazah for Brother Mohamed Alhaji Shaw was on February 5, 2016 in Lanham, Maryland. May Allah swt forgive his shorcomings and grant him Jannat ul Firdaus. May Allah swt grant his family patience and ease. Ameen. (Source: PGMA) 02-08-2016 Sister Khaleda Ahmed, wife of Dr. Raisuddin Ahmed (Late), has passed away. She leaves behind three sons and six grandchildren. Salaat ul Janazah was on February 9, 2016 in Gaithersburg, Maryland. May Allah accept her good deeds, forgive her shortcomings and enter her into Jannat ul Firdaus, Aameen. (Source: ICM) 02-09-2016 It is with great sadness we announce that five years old sweet girl Sajida Syed, daughter of Br. Syed Morshed, has passed away. She was also a granddaughter of Br. Sharif Ahmed and Br. Ahmed Amin. Janazah prayer was on February 10, 2016 in Manassas, Virginia. May Allah shower His mercy upon her, widen her grave and grant her the highest place in Jannat ul-Firdaus. May Allah give them sabr and strength to bare the loss and make it easy for them in this difficult time and submit to the will

of Allah because he knows the best. May Allah protect us all and call us back only when HE is most pleased with us - Aameen. (Source: E. Baig) 02-09-2016 It is with great sadness we announced that Sr. Tajwar Nissiri has passed away. Janazah prayer was on February 10, 2016 in Manassas, Virginia. May Allah forgive all her sins, shower HIS mercy upon her, widen her grave and grant her the highest place in Jannat ul-Firdaus. May Allah give them patience in this difficult time, protect us all and only call us back when He is most pleased with us. Aameen. (Source: E. Baig) 02-10-2016 Ayesha Tahir, sister of Aamir Alam, has passed away. Salaat ul Janazah was on February 12, 2016 in Cambridge, Ontario. May Allah accept her good deeds, forgive her shortcomings and enter her into Jannat ul Firdaus, Aameen. (Source: ICM) 02-12-2016 Sister Efrag Shaban, mother of Br. Ahmed Eldak and mother-in-law of Mohamed Younis, has passed away. Salaat ul Janazah was on February 12, 2016 in Sterling, Virginia. May Allah accept her good deeds, forgive her shortcomings and enter her into Jannat ul Firdaus, Aameen. (Source: ICM) 02-12-2016 PGMA sends condolences to the family of Baby Fatima Syeda Hassan, baby of Brother Syed Hassan and his wife. The Salat al Janazah for Baby Fatima was on February 13, 2016 in Lanham, Maryland. May Allah swt grant her family patience and ease, Ameen. (Source: PGMA) 02-13-2016 The janaza for Br. Zulfeqar Ali was on February 13, 2016 in Baltimore, Maryland. Br. Ali was a man who devoted his days and weeks to maintaining the Masjid, a man who greeted every youth with a smile and every elder with a handshake. We ask Allah (SWT) to shower him with His mercy, compassion and forgiveness, grant him the highest ranks in paradise and give his family support and patience during this difficult time. (Source: ISB) 02-14-2016 It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Sr. Qaiser Jahan Firozvi, wife of Dr. Tariq Firozvi. Sr. Qaiser and Dr. Tariq are among the oldest members of the ISB community. The Salatul Janaza was on February 14, 2016 in Baltimore, Maryland. We ask Allah (SWT) to shower her with His mercy, compassion and forgiveness, grant her the highest ranks in paradise and give her family support and patience during this difficult time. (Source: ISB) 02-16-2016 It is with great sadness we extend our condolences to Kazmi family. Br. Syed Aftab Mehdi Kazami, husband of Sr. Afshan Kazmi and a loving father of Ali, Ahsan, Asif and Aleena Kazmi - A tender loving grandfather of Ridha and Rza Kazmi has returned to his creator. Many of our community members knew him for being the owner of AA Driving Academy for last 21 years. Janazah prayer was February 17, 2016 in Sterling, Virginia. May Allah forgive all his sins, shower His mercy upon him, widen his grave and grant him the highest place in Jannat ul-Firdaus. May Allah give them strength and sabr (patience) to bear their great loss and make it easy to pass the critical and difficult time they're going through. May Allah protect us all and only call us back when HE is most pleased with us. Aameen. (Source: E. Baig)

Upcoming Events In Your Area Al-Huda School SGA Ice Skating Friday, February 19, 2016 03:00pm - 04:20pm Al-Huda School SGA Presents Ice Skating. $15 On-site registration, $10 Online at www.alhuda.org Separate rinks for both boys and girls! Location : The Gardens Ice House, 13800 Old Gunpowder Rd, Laurel, MD 20707. Contact : For additional info, please contact the Al-Huda School SGA at alhuda.sga@gmail.com Islamophobia and Anti-Bullying Workshop for Teens Friday, February 26, 2016 07:30pm - 09:00pm CAIR in collaboration with ICM is hosting a workshop for Teens with Dr. Zainab Chaudhry. This will be an interactive workshop designed to define Islamophobia, bullying, and discuss techniques and strategies for youth to present, react, and recover from it. Refreshments will be served. Free event. Registration required: https://www.facebook.com/events/815553171900005. Location : Islamic Center of Maryland, 19411 Woodfield Rd, Gaithersburg, Maryland 20879 Dar Al-Hijrah Annual Banquet Sunday, March 06, 2016 05:00pm - 10:00pm Dar Al-Hijrah Annual Banquet, Fulfilling the Dream. Conference features: Imam Shaker Elsayed, Imam of Dar Al-Hijrah Islamic Center; Altaf Husain, MSW Pd.D. Vice President ISNA. Registration information: Single ticket $65, Table Reservation (10 people per table) $700, Babysitting $10/Child between ages 2-9.. Location : Hilton Alexandria Mark Center. Contact : Questions? Interested in Sponsoring Us? Asra@mirzapr.com Al Fatih Academy Annual Banquet Sunday, March 06, 2016 05:00pm - 09:00pm Al Fatih Academy cordially invites you to our Annual Banquet, Compassionate, Confident and Creative Leaders: Cultivating our INnovative Schools. A conversation with Dalia Mogahed, Director of Research at the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding. Location: Hyatt Regency Dulles. Contact: Purchase tickets now: https:// quick.crowdtorch.com/135742 11th Central Virginia Quran Competition Saturday, March 12, 2016 09:30am - 02:00pm Qur'an Testing, March 12th, 2016 - 9:30 - 2:00 at ICVA. Award Ceremony, March 19th, 2016 - 1:30 - 5:00 at ICVA. Guest Speaker: Br Haroon Baqai. To register or donate, please visit our website, www.cvqc.org. Valueable prizes, gifts and Halal Zabiha Meal will be served.. Contact : 804-552-0131, centralvaqcc@gmail.com Taharah Workshop at ISWA Saturday, March 12, 2016 11:00am - 1:30pm An interactive workshop for sisters and young girls (grade 5 and above) where you will learn about: Taharah -Purification, Ritual and Physical purity, Types of Taharah, Personal hygiene, and how to attain purity. Registration fee: $5 per person. Presenter: Sister Nagamana Abdul Sattar, Graduate Lecturer. Light refreshments will be served. Location: Islamic Society of the Washington Area (ISWA), 2701 Briggs Chaney Road, Silver Spring, MD 20905. Contact: www.ISWAMD.org, 301-829-0930 20th Annual Sisters Only Fashion Show and Luncheon Sunday, March 13, 2016 02:00pm - 06:00pm International Sisters Network presents its 20th Annual Sisters Only Fashion Show and Luncheon. Ticket donations: $60 thru January 31, 2016 - Children under 12, $30; $65 after January 31, 2016 - Children under 12, $35. No onsite Ticket sales. Internationalsisters.synthasite.com. http://isn20th. eventbrite.comLocation : Elegant Newton White Mansion, 2708 Enterprise Road, Mitchellville, MD 20721. Contact : Aisha Abdul-Mateen 240-606-6122 Let's Get Active! Family Social Climbers: 2-5 years old, $25. 6-17 years old, $40. Adults, $55. NonClimbing Adults, $30. Family of Six, $180. Add $20 for each additional person. Price includes food, drinks, goodie bags, and fees for climbing. Register by February 19th and get 15% off!. Location: ClimbZone USA, 13200 Mid Atlantic Blvd, Suite 130, Laurel, MD 20708. Contact: To register, please visit: www.HealthierPicks.com

February 19th - March 17th 2016

| 35

MASJID LISTING

Do you have additions, changes, or corrections to the event listings in the Muslim Link? Email us at events@muslimlinkpaper.com, or call us at 301-982-1020. Listing is organized by name of city. NORTHERN VIRGINIA

--------------------------------------------------------------------------All Muslim Brothers Association 3900 King Street, Alexandria, VA 22302 Tel: 703-647-0515 Jumma Prayer Only - 1:15 P.m --------------------------------------------------------------------------ICNA VA Center: 2913 Woodlawn Trail, Alexandria, VA 22306. Tel: 703-660-1255 --------------------------------------------------------------------------Idara Dawat-o-irshad: 4803 VAlley St, Alexandria, VA 22312 Tel: 703-256-8622 | ww.irshad.org --------------------------------------------------------------------------Mustafa Center: 6844 Braddock Rd., Annandale, VA 22003 Tel: 703-658-7134 www.mustafacenter.org --------------------------------------------------------------------------Baitul Mukarram: 2116 S Nelson St., Arlington, VA, 22204, Tel: 703-778-1550 --------------------------------------------------------------------------Zakaria Masjid 26243 Gum Spring Road, Chantilly, VA 20152, USA

Tel: 571-969-2123|www.ziacademy.org

--------------------------------------------------------------------------Badr Community Center Of Dumfries: 17794 Main Street, Dumfries, VA 22026 Tel: 703-554-7983 www.bccd.org --------------------------------------------------------------------------Dar Ul-ghuraba (Masjid Ur Rahmah): 155 Baker St., Emporia, VA 23487 --------------------------------------------------------------------------Dar Al Hijrah: 3159 Rowe St., Falls Church, VA 22044, Tel: 703-536-1030 | www.hijrah.org --------------------------------------------------------------------------Moroccan American community Organization Center 5697 Columbia pike , #200 Falls Church , VA 22041 Info@macous.org | www.macous.org --------------------------------------------------------------------------Islamic Center Of Northern VA Trust (Icnvt): 4420 Shirley Gate Road, Fairfax, VA, 22030 Tel: 703-591-0999 www.icnvt.org | E-mail: Info@icnvt.org --------------------------------------------------------------------------Dar Al-noor (Muslim Assoc. Of VA): 5404 Hoadly Rd., Manassas, VA 20112, Tel: 703-580-0808 Fax: 703-221-8513 www.daralnoor.org --------------------------------------------------------------------------Manassas Mosque: 12950 Center Entrance Ct, Manassas, VA Tel: 703-257-5537 --------------------------------------------------------------------------Islamic Center Of Virginia: 1241 Buford Rd., Richmond, VA 23235 Tel: 804-320-7333 www.icva1.com --------------------------------------------------------------------------Islamic Society Of Greater Richmond 6324 Rigsby Road, Richamond, VA 23226 Tel: 804-673-4177 | www.isgr.org

--------------------------------------------------------------------------Masjid Al Rahman: 1305 Hull St., Richmond, VA 23224 Tel: 804-232-7640 --------------------------------------------------------------------------Masjidullah Of Richmond: 211 North Ave., Richmond, VA 23222 Tel: 804-321-8864/804-647-4297 --------------------------------------------------------------------------Dar-ul Huda: 6666 Commerce St., Springfield, VA 22150, Tel: 703-922-0111 | www.darulhuda.org --------------------------------------------------------------------------Islamic Foundation of America: 6606 Electronic Drive, Springfield, VA 22151 Tel: 703-914-4982 --------------------------------------------------------------------------Masjid Noor: 8608 Pohick Rd, Springfield, VA 22153 Tel: 703-451-7615 --------------------------------------------------------------------------Adams Center: 46903 Sugarland Rd, Sterling,VA 20164,

Tel: 703-433-1325 |www.adamscenter.org

--------------------------------------------------------------------------Islamic Ummah of Fredericksburg Masjid Ar Raja 10127 Piney Branch Road Spotsylvania VA, 22553 sheikh.ummah@gmail.com --------------------------------------------------------------------------Islamic Heritage Center (IHC): 262 A-3 Cedar Ln., Vienna, VA 22180 Tel: 703-206-9056 --------------------------------------------------------------------------Masjid Al-Falah 14918 Jefferson Davis Hwy Woodbridge, VA 22191 Tel: 703-490-2220|masjidal-falah.com ---------------------------------------------------------------------------

WASHINGTON D.C.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------Ivy City Masjid: 2001 Galludet St. NE, Washington, D.C. 20002 Tel: 202-904-9668 E-mail: masjidivycity@yahoo.com --------------------------------------------------------------------------Masjid Muhammad: 1519 4th St. NW, Washington D.C. 20001 Tel: 202-483-8832 www.masjidmuhammad.com --------------------------------------------------------------------------The Islamic Center: 2551 Massachusetts Avenue NW Washington D.C. 20008 Tel: 202-332-8343 www.theislamiccenter.com --------------------------------------------------------------------------First Hijra Muslim Comm. Center: 4324 Georgia Ave, NW Washington, D.C. 20011 www.firsthijrah.org --------------------------------------------------------------------------Masjid Al-islam: 4603 Benning Rd., SE, Washington, D.C. 20019 E-mail: Imammusa@hotmail.com --------------------------------------------------------------------------New Africa Islamic Community Center of Washington. DC. 1628 Good Hope Road, SE Washington, DC. 20020 202.678-1881 | www.naiccdc.org

--------------------------------------------------------------------------Darr ul Tawheed 3765 First St SE Washington DC 20032 202-520-9997 --------------------------------------------------------------------------Muslim Society Of Washington, D.C.: Howard Center, Room 805 (Above Hu Bookstore) Tel: 202-328-3236 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------

MARYLAND

--------------------------------------------------------------------------Islamic Society Of Annapolis (ISA): 2635 Riva Rd. Suite 110, Annapolis, MD 21401 Tel: 410-266-6660 www.isamd.org Email: Info@islamannapolis.org --------------------------------------------------------------------------Bait-Allah Masjid of Baltimore Inc 200 S. Calhoun Street Baltimore, MD 21223 email: baitallahmasjid@yahoo.com --------------------------------------------------------------------------Bilal Dawah Center, Inc: 1910 Frederick Avenue, Baltimore, MD 21223 Tel: 410-945-1515 --------------------------------------------------------------------------Dar ul Uloom: 6334 Dogwoood Rd, Baltimore, MD 21207, Tel: 410-493-0785 Email: Darululoommd@aol.com --------------------------------------------------------------------------Masjid Ul-haq: 514 Islamic Way (Wilson St. ), Baltimore, MD 21217 Tel: 410-728-1363 --------------------------------------------------------------------------Masjid Al-mumineen: 2642 Harford Rd., Baltimore, MD 21218 Tel: 410-467-8798 --------------------------------------------------------------------------Masjid Jamaat Al-Muslimeen: 4624 York Rd., Baltimore, MD 21212 Tel: 443-804-5620 --------------------------------------------------------------------------Masjid Al-rahmah/ISB: 6631 Johnnycake Rd., Baltimore, MD 21244 Tel: 410-747-4869 | www.isb.org --------------------------------------------------------------------------Masjid As Saffat: 1335 W. North Ave., Baltimore, MD 21217 Tel: 410-669-0655 --------------------------------------------------------------------------Masjid Fatima 1928 Powers Lane Catonsville MD, 21228 Phone: 410 800 4880 Email: info@masjidfatima.com Website: www.masjidfatima.com --------------------------------------------------------------------------IRHSCA (Islamic Research And Hum. Services Center Of America): 1 Chambers Ave, Capitol Heights, MD Tel: 301-324-5040 www.irhsca.org --------------------------------------------------------------------------Islamic Society Of Southern Pg County P O Box 99, Clinton, MD 20735 5410 Indian Head Hwy, Oxon Hill, MD 20745 Tel: 240 603 4618 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Dar-us-Salaam: 5301 Edgewood Rd., College Park, MD 20740, Tel: 301-982-9848 www.duscommunity.org --------------------------------------------------------------------------Islamic Society Of Easton 126 Port Street Unit # 1 Easton, MD 21601 Tel: 410-829 7924 islamicsocietyofeastonmd.yolasite.com ---------------------------------------------------------------------------Masjid Zamzam 1510 Lynch Road, Dundalk, MD 21222 Tel: 410-284-2840 www.masjidzamzam.com --------------------------------------------------------------------------Dar al-Taqwa: 10740 Rte. 108, Ellicott City, MD 21042, Tel: 410-997-5711 www.taqwa.net --------------------------------------------------------------------------Maryum Islamic Center (MIC) 3280 Pine Orchard Lane, Suite A Ellicott City, MD 21042 Tel: 443-574-5188 www.maryumcenter.com --------------------------------------------------------------------------Masjid Al-Hikmah: 11064 Livingston Road Unit L (101) Ft. Washington, MD 20744, Tel: 301 292-9009 --------------------------------------------------------------------------Islamic Society Of Frederick (ISF): 1250 Key Parkway, Frederick, MD 21702 Tel: 301-682-6090 www.isfmd.org --------------------------------------------------------------------------Islamic Center Of Maryland (ICM): 19411 Woodfield Rd. Gaithersburg, MD 20879 Tel:301-840-9440 www.icomd.org --------------------------------------------------------------------------Makkah Learning Center (MLC): 814 Brandy Farms Ln., Gambrills, MD 21054 Tel: 410-721-5880 www.isamd.org Email: Info@mlcmd.org--------------------------------------------------------------------------Islamic Society Of Germantown (ISG): 19825 Blunt Rd., Germantown, MD 20874 Tel: 240-277-7758 | www.isgtown.org --------------------------------------------------------------------------Masjid Ibn Taymiyyah: 8000 Mlk Highway, Glenarden MD Tel: 301-322-8105 --------------------------------------------------------------------------Islamic Society of Western Maryland: 2036 Day Rd., Hagerstown, MD 21740 Tel: 301-797-0922 --------------------------------------------------------------------------Southern Maryland Islamic Center (SMIC): 1046 Solomons Island Rd, Huntingtown, MD, 20639 Tel: 410-535-0000 --------------------------------------------------------------------------Avondale Islamic Center: 4637 Eastern Ave., Hyattsville, MD, 20782 Tel: 301-779-9292 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Prince Georges Muslim Assoc.(PGMA): 9150 Lanham Severn Rd., Lanham, MD, 20706, Tel: 301-459-4942 www.pgmamd.org Imamâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Office: 301-459-1441 E-mail: Imam@pgmamd.org. --------------------------------------------------------------------------Turkish American Community Center 9704 Good Luck Rd, Lanham, MD 20706 Tel: 301-459-9589 | www.taccenter.org

--------------------------------------------------------------------------La Plata Masjid: 111 Howard Street, La Plata, MD 20646 Tel: 301-609-8769 --------------------------------------------------------------------------Islamic Com. Center Of Laurel (ICCL): 7306 Contee Rd., Laurel, MD 20707 Tel: 301-317-4584 | www.icclmd.org --------------------------------------------------------------------------Masjid Al-Ghurabaa: 8220 Washington St., South Laurel, MD 20724. Tel: 301-604-3295 --------------------------------------------------------------------------Islamic Center Of Lexington Park 22583 Three Notch Road, Lexington Park, MD 20619 Tel: 240-538-7839 or 561-414-0994 www.iclpmd.org --------------------------------------------------------------------------Islamic Community Center of Potomac 10601River Road, Potomac MD 20854 www.iccpmd.com | 301-983-0383 E-mail: info@iccpmd.com --------------------------------------------------------------------------Randallstown Islamic Center 3117 Rices Lane Windsor Mill, MD 21244 Tel: 443-845-3504 www.ricbaltimore.org E-mail: Info@ricbaltimore.org --------------------------------------------------------------------------Islamic Society Of The Washington Area (ISWA): 2701 Briggs Chaney Rd., Silver Spring, MD 20904 Tel: 301-879-0930 | www.iswamd.org --------------------------------------------------------------------------Islamic Education Society of Maryland 11504 Veirs Mills Rd, Silver Spring, MD 20902 Tel: 301- 933-3838 --------------------------------------------------------------------------Muslim Community Center (MCC): 15200 New Hampshire Ave. Silver Spring, MD 20905 Tel: 301-384-3454 | www.mccmd.org --------------------------------------------------------------------------IMAAM Center (Indonesian Muslim Association of America): 9100 Georgia Ave Silver Spring, MD 20910 Tel: 301-588-0693 | www.imaam.org Email: infoimaam@gmail.com --------------------------------------------------------------------------Masjid An-nur: 5418 Ebenezer Road, White Marsh, MD 21162 Tel: 410-663-9637 Fax: 410-663-9817 --------------------------------------------------------------------------Masjid Al-inshirah: 7832 Fairbrook Road, Windsor Mill, MD 21244 Tel: 410-298-2977

....

February 19th - March 17th 2016

36 | CONTINUED himself away from it and respect for a just man of high office.”

FEELINGS II Editor-in-Chief: Minhaj Hasan Office Manager: Stephanie Benmoha Layout: Fadlullah Firman Staff Writers: Urooj Fatima Yaman Shalabi Fatimah Waseem Hena Zuberi Sharia Advisors: Sheikh Salah as-Sawi Imam Safi Khan The Muslim Link (TML) is published once a month on Fridays and distributed throughout the Washington, Baltimore, and Northern Virginia Metropolitan Areas. TML is a non-profit publication and is based at Dar-us-Salaam in College Park, Maryland, USA. Staff and contributors are not necessarily affiliated with Dar-us-Salaam. The views expressed in The Muslim Link do not necessarily reflect those of Dar-us-Salaam or TML management or their underwriters. Dar-us-Salaam and TML are not responsible for the accuracy of information presented by advertisers, or for the religious compliance of events, products, or services published in TML. This publication contains the names of ALLAH (Subhanahu wa ta’ala). Please keep, recycle, or share it with others The Muslim Link PO Box 596 College Park, MD 20741 Phone : (301) 982-1020 Fax: (240) 209-0702 editor@muslimlinkpaper.com Advertising: 301-982-1020 or email us at office@muslimlinkpaper.com The Muslim Link. All Rights Reserved 2016

>> continued from pg 32

to return to it then he is entitled to do so, and the person who sat in his place must leave it for him. It is better for the person to leave a sign or indication that it is his place to avoid aversion and hatred. Abu Hurayrah, may Allaah be pleased with him, reported that the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said: “If someone leaves his spot, then returns to it, he is better entitled to it.” As there is the possibility that the person left their spot due to a need and left an indication that it was his, then comes back to find somebody else sitting in it. How will he feel in this situation? This issue is something that many people neglect, especially in gatherings held in narrow/ cramped places. 5. Being considerate of the feelings of the elderly, respecting them and letting them speak first: This is one of Islaam’s greatest characteristics. The young person should not speak before the older person and the younger one listening to the elder person speak is considered good manners/ politeness. This sublime Islaamic etiquette is absent among many young Muslims, who are unconcerned with this issue in their lives. Therefore, it is essential for educators/ teachers to emphasize these manners. Abu Moosa Al-Ash’ari, may Allaah be pleased with him, reported that the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said: “Respect for Allaah includes respect for an elderly gray-haired Muslim and respect for one who carries the Qur’aan [in his heart, that is, he who memorized it] who does not exaggerate [while reciting it] and does not keep

‘Ubaadah ibn As-Saamit, may Allaah be pleased with him, reported that the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said: “He is not from my Ummah [Nation], the one who does not esteem our elderly and does not have mercy on our young ones and does not know the right of our scholars.” ‘Abdullaah ibn ‘Umar, may Allaah be pleased with him, reported that the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said: “I saw in a dream that I was using Siwaak and two persons contended to get it from me, the one being older than the other one. I gave the Siwaak to the younger one. It was said to me give that to the older one and I gave it to the older one.” This was the Prophet’s courtesy, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, in the following event that happened at the time of the conquest of Makkah. Asmaa’ bint Abu Bakr, may Allaah be pleased with her, reported: "When the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, entered Makkah and entered the Sacred Mosque, Abu Bakr, may Allaah be pleased with him, came to him with his father to visit him. When the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, saw him he said: 'Why didn't you leave the old man at his house and I would have gone to him there?'Abu Bakr said: 'You are more deserving of him coming to you than he is of you going to him.' The Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, seated him (Abu Quhaafah) in front of him. Then he, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, passed his hand on his chest and asked him to embrace Islaam and he did." Sahl ibn Abi Hathamah, may Allaah be pleased with him, (a man from the

Ansaar) narrated that a number of people from his tribe went to Khaybar and dispersed, and then they found one of them murdered. The bereaved group went to the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, to talk to him about the matter of their murdered companion. ‘Abdur Rahmaan ibn Sahl started to speak first and he was the youngest among them. The Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said: "Let the older among you come forward and speak." They then spoke about the matter of their companion. Ibn Hajar, may Allaah have mercy on him, said: “From this it is evident that the older person should come forward in important matters if he is competent to do so and this is what is understood from the Hadeeth. Either because the relative of the murdered person (‘Abdur-Rahmaan ibn Sahl) was incompetent and so the judge chose another relative to take on the claim or it could be due to other reasons.” An-Nawawi, may Allaah have mercy on him, said: “When two people are equal in virtue, the older comes first/precedes. There are similar cases to this such as Imaamah (leading the prayer) and it is optional with the Wali of a woman in marriage...etc.” The scholars have also followed this etiquette. An example is Imaam Ahmad, may Allaah have mercy on him, with his knowledge and piety and his high status among people. Al- Marroothi, may Allaah have mercy on him, said about him: “Abu ‘Abdullaah was one of the most respectful and full of esteem towards his brothers and ones who were older than him. Abu Hammaam came to him riding a donkey and Abu ‘Abdullaah helped him to descend from it. I have seen him do this with men who were older than him.” [Source: islamqa.com]

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Your Guide to Products and Services for Your Muslim Lifestyle

Mustafa Sharif is getting ready for the Gwynn Oak Islamic Community (GIC) Masjid’s Open house.

teal building is a magnificent sight in the snowfall.

Driving past suburban roads, past Liberty Heights Avenue, past the under construction Shoprite and serene Gwynn Oaks Park,

A welcoming community in Baltimore City; a model community with a model masjid which resonates with the call to prayer. Cen-

trally located near the beltway, there is optimistic talk of growth in the brand new masjid, of the school district making the high school into a magnet school,

Germantown Leaders Hope To Pray In Masjid This Year | pg 15

>> Gwynn Oak Pg 6

VA Muslim Cemetery Might Be Largest In America | pg 20

Home of the Heart Beats Faster with Yaqeen Boost Around 1,800 Supports Help Raise $1.95M at Dec 15 Dinner

Restaurant Section

38 | MP - ADVERTISEMENTS

By Muslim Link Staff

Call this event the "December 15 miracle". Or call it the "the winter 2013 miracle".

Should College Applicants Discuss Their Muslim Identity? | pg 28 Egypt Closes Vital Gateways Into and Out of Gaza | pg 29 The Muslim Link

Or, just call it "yaqeen".

Coupons PG 38

>> yaqeen Pg 18

In one room, Asmaa ElHaggan, mother of a ten year old son, teaches Model U.N Debate class. Seven weeks of classes are taught by mothers divided by age on topics of interest to the group or based on her expertise. By pooling money together, they recently had

showing off snow globe art projects. A cluster of 20 mothers meet in the multipurpose room, tending toddlers and babies, chatting, and readying lunch. They form the Al-Ansar Homeschooling Cooperative, based on a consensus model where every member

Even ADAMS Expansion Sites Need Expanding | pg 14

of quiet streets, historic homes, open green spaces, and convenient commute to

Tips are shared: ‘get an educator’s card at the library and you can get six weeks to check out books’, ‘present your portfolio for review in a binder and show

>> schools Pg 10

ADAMS Medical Clinic Offers Compassion at No Cost By Hena Zuberi

MakeSpace Fundraiser Attracts Support, New Ideas | pg 12 ARTS: Local Author Filling Gap in Children's Books | pg 26 WPRESS: Guantanamo -- Tell the World the Truth | pg 30

Support Group Forming for HIV Positive Muslims | pg 10 Muhammad, Vice President for the 7th District Citizen’s Advisory Council for the Metropolitan Police Department told the Muslim Link.

“There are five Masjids in Southeast

WPRESS: Project to Name Civilian Victims of US Drones | pg 25 CIVILRIGHTS: Did President Obama Kill Al-Awlaki? | pg 26

>> surge Pg 22

With Doors Open for All, MCC Clinic th th Celebrates Expansion

February 19 - March 17 2016

the masjid is the new health clinic for the ADAMS Compassionate Health Network (ACHN). ACHN is a volunteer-based operation dedicated to providing quality healthcare to community members in need,

Muslim Link Staff Reporter

Second Muslim Store Owner Murdered In Richmond | pg 5

nearing 20%, schools are struggling and there’s a church on nearly every corner Islam is growing at a rapid pace, especially among young males.

Dar Al-Hijrah Expands Social Services w/ Thrift Shop | pg 7 An Al Ansar Homeschooler showing off her snow globe made in Sr. Andini's art classes held at Dar Al-Taqwa in Maryland. Photo by Muslim Link.

ISLAM: The “Sunnah” of Divorce and Reconcilliation | pg 31

The Muslim Link

Coupons PG 38

>> comPassion Pg 14

MARCH 26

By Hena Zuberi

Muslim Link Staff Reporter

Shabana Izhar, a new immigrant who lives in Bowie adjusts her shalwar kameez and settles down in the chairs in the wait-

ISLAM: The Sunnah of Love, Tenderness, Romance | pg 28

ing pavilion at the Muslim Community Center Clinic. A regular United Nations of patients surrounds her; a Hispanic woman coming from a nearby church,

RECIPES: Sister Heather Returns with a Winter Warmer | pg 34 The Muslim Link

Coupons PG 35

>> latina Pg 15

Running foR the hills Dispatches from muslim homesteaDers

>> PG 22

>> PG 45

>> PG 24

PResentIng YouR 2013 Ramadan suPeRheRoes! Pg 26

local leadeR focus:

IsB ResIdent scholaR Yaseen sheIkh Pg 10

>> PG 23

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African American Muslims Featured at Newseum | pg 4

Modest Fashion, Fashionistas Take the Runway in DC | pg 10 >> stolen Pg 12

OPED: Disabled Muslims and Masjid Accommodation | pg 27 Somalis Say NGOs Killing Their Incentive to Farm | pg 31

>> imaam center Pg 1

Urban Farm Raises Goats, Sheep, and Young Men

residents before deciding on Dar-us-Salaam's application. Her decision is subject to appeal to the five member Howard County Board of Appeals.

By Hena Zuberi

ISLAM: Revive Your Heart by Worshipping In Secret | pg 32

You may have seen him selling outside your masjid after Jummah, selling artisan goat cheese, yogurt, goats milk and fresh, free range organic eggs.

Matt Jose is an urban farmer; his

>> farm Pg 18

Muslim Link Staff Reporter

Coupons PG 38

Young Researchers Present Findings at MYFIKR | pg 10 Islamic Relief, FAITH Join Hands for Eid Al-Adha Charity | pg 11

Author Reverts to Islam | pg 26

WhY AAfiA?

TICKETS: 25/person | 5 Childcare

>> PG 26

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MCC Aims to Be Model for Senior Supportive Masajid | pg 6

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God and service to mankind. In addition to those attending several thousands more watched the live broadcast of the sessions.

More than 120 international scholars, intellectuals, and community activists,

Gay Congress Hopeful Is “Great Friend” of Muslims | pg 14

>> icna Pg 24

CIVIL RIGHTS: Hate Ad Sparks US Free Speech Debate | pg 30

Howard County Approves Dar-us-Salaam Campus Plan ISLAM: Fasting Before Ramadan Dar-us-Salaam to establish a By Muslim Link Staff

In Sha'ban | pg 34

FULL COLOR RAMADAN POSTER WALL CALENDAR INSIDE | pg 39 The Muslim Link

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The decision comes after the >> dar-us-salaam Pg 39

or Email us at

The STory Which BindS: The Seerah and Your KIdS PG 20

The Islamic Society of Germantown opened its doors to politicians, imams, and hundreds of visitors and most importantly to those who had been waiting for the past 13 years when the

Big Step for the Safety the Dar AlHijrah Congregation | pg 5

Islamic Relief USA (IR) is >> CLiCK Pg 12

Area Syrians Watch Events With Worry, Anger

WPRESS: Report Shows Drones Target Civilians | pg 16

ISLAM: Winter - The Best Season for Worshipers | pg 18

By Wafa Unus Muslim Link Staff Reporter

With death tolls in Syria reported between six and seven thousand in the past 11 months, some American Syrians are faced with continued concern for the safety of their loved ones back home.

OP-Ed: Europe Setting Up Clash of Civilizations? | pg 21 LETTERS: Your Reactions To Last Issue’s Stories | pg 25

The region, riddled with political upheaval and protest against Syrian President Basher Al-Assad’s dynastic rule has seen an unprec-

>> syria Pg 10

CIVIL: NYPD Targeting Masajid For Intel Gathering | pg 14

The Muslim Link Some local Syrian Americans are active in Washington DC protests against the Syrian regime’s brutal crackdown against protesters there, while others are avoiding speaking out for fear their families in Syria will be punished. Photo courtesy of Hussain Abdul-Hussain.

Coupons PG 26

Dynamic sessions, packed halls and up and coming speakers marked the 50th Annual Islamic Society of North America (ISNA)

anniversary of the March to Washington and Rev. Martin Luther King’s “I Have Dream” speech.

The theme of the three day convention was based on the beloved community

- Envisioning a More Perfect Union and featured over 100 speakers including Congressman Andre Carson, Dr. Altaf Husain,

NATION: Inside America's First Muslim Frat House | pg 30 CIVILRIGHTS: Inside the NYPD's Muslim Spying Program | pg 32 The Muslim Link

Coupons PG 43

>> iSNa Pg 12

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CAIR-MD Relaunches with Inaugural Banquet | pg 21 New Women's Group Forms After Anti-Hijab Event | pg 5 Palestinian Journalists In the Line of Fire | pg 5

New Masjid, Islamic Academy Planned for Chantilly | pg 9

Running Muslim: The Other Boston Story | pg 4 Cabbie Records Hateful Speech, Attack from Passenger | pg 6

Alzouman, a young man from Saudi Arabia who studied in the United States, wondered how he could perform a

THE STORY OF AN AMAZING NECKLACE

HOW MUCH DOES WAR COST YOU?

with largest event ever, baltimore school has big plans for next 25 years, pg 34

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Muslim FunFest 2012 Beats the Heat

The largest annual social gathering of Muslims in the region, the carnival offers large mechanical rides similar to

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dc MuslIM InterscholastIc tournaMent results Pg 9

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VA Burial of Boston Bombing Suspect Causes Anger | pg 9

Al-rAhmAh school mArks 25 yeArs

Bullied Youth Finds Little Help From School System | pg 4

Quickly fading are the days of newspaper clippings and passing the paper across the breakfast table.

Muslim Link Staff Reporter

turkish prime minister breAks ground for $100m mAsjid complex in mArylAnd, pg 22

Interfaith Coalition Opposes VA Foreign Law Bill | pg 4

this on hard copy, you’re going to send the digital version via a social media platform or e-mail.

By Hena Zuberi

'A symbol of friendship'

By Wafa Unus

Dar Al-Hijrah Food Bank Helps Falls Church Needy | pg 5

A Look at ISNA’s 50th Year Anniversary Convention

Shopping and Shipping for Syria Winter Relief | pg 8

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE

Five Decades On, American Muslims Still In Search of the ‘Beloved Community’

More Special Eids, Special Days Needed for Special Kids | pg 6

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE

Muslims Organize for VA Attorney General Hopeful | pg 18

ISLAM: Top 8 Excuses Not to Go for Hajj | pg 34

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The Muslim Community: Just a Click Away? Muslim Link Staff Reporter

Locals Who Witnessed Egypt Massacres Speak | pg 17

Wives of Incarcerated Terrorism Suspects March In DC | pg 6

Like most Muslim youth around the world, Farouq Alzouman knew the story of the companion Bilal Ibn Rabah (Allah be pleased with him) who was the first Muslim to ever call the Athan.

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issues are as diverse as the American Muslim community in the DC Metro area. American-Muslims are scattered all over the country. >> marriage Pg 16

By Muslim Link Staff

PG 30

Md, Va, and dC Metropolitan area Bi-Weekly newspaper | Free

Sh.Yusuf Islahi: Be Optimistic About Our Ummah | pg 7

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society bought the parcel of land — nearly an acre—at 19825 Blunt Road >> masjid Pg 14

3Di Athletics Holds First Weekend Basketball Camp | pg 6

First Muslim to Raise the Qur'an and Call Athan from Everest to Tell Story of Perseverance at DUS Banquet

PG 13

18 Rabi Al-Awaal - 1 Rabi Al-Thani, 1433 A.H. | www.MuslimLinkPaper.com

February 10th 2012 - February 23rd 2012

Men and women who really want to get married often face a myriad of issues in finding a good match. The

Adherence to cultural norms and expectations, generational disparity and the neglect of the Islamic standard for the choice of partners are also hurdles single American Muslims face

Women's Shelter In VA To Be Managed by ICNA | pg 8

MuSLIMS FeeL BeTraYed BY FBI

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Finding What's Missing At An Orphanage In Mexico | pg 5

but first,

MD, Va, and Dc Metropolitan area Monthly newspaper | free

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Janaza for Richmond Imam Fills Neighborhood Streets | pg 5

Meeting venues and forums are few and this seems to be one major deterrent to suitable marriages.

w w w. M u S L i M L i n k Pa P e r . c o M

november 21st - December 18th 2014

MD, VA, and DC Metropolitan Area Monthly Newspaper | FREE

By Zainab Arain

A major part of creating a beloved community is the creation of a family. However, the Muslim marriage crisis is at our doorstep.

dining out? order now with our halal Menus section Pg 38

www.muslimlinkpaper.com ALLAHU AKBAR: Finally, Athan Sounds ICNA-Mas Convention 2014: from Masjid In Germantown 301-982-1020 A New Venue, A New Record 8 S h a b a n - R a m a d a n 1 4 3 5 A . H . | w w w . M u s l i m L i n k P a p e r. c o m

June 6th 2014 - July 10th 2014

The Muslim Link Asks: How Hard Is It to Find a Life Partner In the DMV Area?

>> PG 21

>> PG 18

Running foR the hills Dispatches from muslim homesteaDers

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE

THE GOOD NEWS As Egypt Rolls Back On Democracy, US Bolsters Sisi | pg 25

Internationally renowned running for the hills da’eeHomestead & debater Halal

The Muslim Link

md, Va, and dc metropolitan area monthly newspaper | fRee

By Hena Zuberi Muslim Link Staff Reporter

Rise in Abused Children Prompts New FAITH Program | pg 14

w w w . M u s l i m L i n k P a p e r. c o m

MoCo Muslims Distribute Udhiya Meat to Area Needy | pg 5

Masjid Al-Rahmah Gets $74K Federal Security Grant | pg 12

TZORTZIS

The Muslim Link

The Muslim Marriage Crisis

7 Thul Qedah - 5 Thul-Hijjah, 1434 A.H. september 13th - october 10th 2013

Muslim Family Day At Six Flag Caps Summer for 6,000 | pg 5

Do Homeless Have Right to Occupy Public Property? | pg 6

FEaturING HAMZA

Dept Staff Report a Positive Step Towards Final Approval in Coming Months

After a detailed study and assessment of Dar-us-Salaam's application to develop an education and community campus in Western Howard County, Maryland, the How-

DUS Wins 10th DC MIST Tournament, Full Results | pg 8 the Jordan Valley holds 28.3 percent of the West Bank’s land, and is ‘the largest single Palestinian territory under

HoCo Dept of Planning and Zoning Recommends Approval of DUS Campus Plan By Muslim Link Staff

For hundreds of Indonesian-American families and Maryland Muslims, "grand opening" couldn't have more meaning than it did on Friday, September 26, 2014.

TML Interviews Al-Rahmah School Principal | pg 7

from Palestinian farmers and allocated to settlements and military camps. According to the Inter Press Agency report,

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By Muslim Link Staff

Greening Our Sacred Grounds Seminar Held In MD | pg 6

Muslim Link Staff Reporter

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>>PG 24

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Diabetes High Among Immigrant Groups | pg 5

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Lack of Muslim Foster Families Resulting In Children Losing Islam By Hena Zuberi

Muslim Link Staff Reporter

The Muslim Link

Md, Va, and dc Metropolitan area Monthly newspaper | Free

april 12th 2013 - May 16th 2013

Study Links Masjid Involvement, Voting | pg 5

they were unsuccessful. The phone call this evening is coming from the Fairfax County Foster and Adoption Program Coordinator. The coordinator needs to place a 16year old Pakistani female removed from her parent's home. Her religious background is similar to the Ismails; they are prepared for this call as registered foster parents with Fairfax County.

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE

PG, Anne Arundel Muslims Meet With Rep. Donna Edwards | pg 4 Practice of Hijamah Making Slow Comback In Community| pg 5 Porn Addiction Afflicting Youth, Adults Say Experts | pg 5 ISWA Imam Offers Brief History of Muslims in Guyana | pg 15 FAMILY: Spiritual Reflections on Special Needs Parenting | pg 16

>> foster Pg 26

Muslim Community Center Breaks New Ground The ground was ready for spring and a crowd The original founders, of over 200 well-wish- Dr. Hashim and his wife ers had gathered on Suzie, Dr. and Mrs. Aziz March 24th, 2013 for Ali Muhammad, Sajthe groundbreaking of jad Durrani, and Arshad the Muslim Community Quraishi as well as chilCenter expansion proj- dren and youth in conect in Silver Spring, MD. struction hats and cerImam Mohamed Abdul- emonial spades dug the lahi started with recita- ground. "Allah started it tion from the Quran and and if it is dedicated to a special prayer for the successful completion >> MCC Pg 6 of the project.

WORLD: 10 Years On, Rally for Justice for Aafia Siddiqui | pg 20 ISLAM: Taking Care of Things at Home Is Part of Piety | pg 29 OPED: Imams Must Develop Solutions for Foster Kids | pg 32 The Muslim Link

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Mustafa Sharif is getting ready for the Gwynn Oak Islamic Community (GIC) Masjid’s Open house.

teal building is a magnificent sight in the snowfall.

Driving past suburban roads, past Liberty Heights Avenue, past the under construction Shoprite and serene Gwynn Oaks Park,

A welcoming community in Baltimore City; a model community with a model masjid which resonates with the call to prayer. Cen-

trally located near the beltway, there is optimistic talk of growth in the brand new masjid, of the school district making the high school into a magnet school,

of quiet streets, historic homes, open green spaces, and convenient commute to >> Gwynn Oak Pg 6

Should College Applicants Discuss Their Muslim Identity? | pg 28

Around 1,800 Supports Help Raise $1.95M at Dec 15 Dinner

February 19 - March 17 2016 th

Germantown Leaders Hope To Pray In Masjid This Year | pg 15 VA Muslim Cemetery Might Be Largest In America | pg 20

Home of the Heart Beats Faster with Yaqeen Boost By Muslim Link Staff

Egypt Closes Vital Gateways Into and Out of Gaza | pg 29

Call this event the "December 15 miracle". Or call it the "the winter 2013 miracle".

HVAC Innovation

The Muslim Link

Or, just call it "yaqeen".

Coupons PG 38

>> yaqeen Pg 18

Even ADAMS Expansion Sites Need Expanding | pg 14

Tips are shared: ‘get an educator’s card at the library and you can get six weeks to check out books’, ‘present your portfolio for review in a binder and show

>> schools Pg 10

ADAMS Medical Clinic Offers Compassion at No Cost By Hena Zuberi

the masjid is the new health clinic for the ADAMS Compassionate Health Network (ACHN). ACHN is a volunteer-based operation dedicated to providing quality healthcare to community members in need,

Muslim Link Staff Reporter

nearing 20%, schools are struggling and there’s a church on nearly every corner Islam is growing at a rapid pace, especially among young males.

MakeSpace Fundraiser Attracts Support, New Ideas | pg 12 ARTS: Local Author Filling Gap in Children's Books | pg 26 WPRESS: Guantanamo -- Tell the World the Truth | pg 30

Murdered In Richmond | pg 5 Support Group Forming for HIV Positive Muslims | pg 10 Muhammad, Vice President for the 7th District Citizen’s Advisory Council for the Metropolitan Police Department told the Muslim Link.

WPRESS: Project to Name Civilian Victims of US Drones | pg 25

“There are five Masjids in Southeast

CIVILRIGHTS: Did President Obama Kill Al-Awlaki? | pg 26

>> surge Pg 22

With Doors Open for All, MCC Clinic Celebrates Expansion

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ISLAM: The “Sunnah” of Divorce and Reconcilliation | pg 31

The Muslim Link

Coupons PG 38

>> comPassion Pg 14

MARCH 26

By Hena Zuberi

Muslim Link Staff Reporter

Shabana Izhar, a new immigrant who lives in Bowie adjusts her shalwar kameez and settles down in the chairs in the wait-

ISLAM: The Sunnah of Love, Tenderness, Romance | pg 28

ing pavilion at the Muslim Community Center Clinic. A regular United Nations of patients surrounds her; a Hispanic woman coming from a nearby church,

RECIPES: Sister Heather Returns with a Winter Warmer | pg 34 The Muslim Link

Coupons PG 35

>> latina Pg 15

Pays Wifepm SaturDay fBi 5:00 running for the hills to inform on THIRSTY? AT MONTGOMERY husBand BLAIR HIGHSCHOOL 51 uNIVErSIty BLVD CONDITIONING SILVEr SPrING, MD As Ramadan Approaches, Date Buyers Seek IMAAM Center Realizes 20 Year Old Dream

Running foR the hills Dispatches from muslim homesteaDers

HEATING - VENTILATION - AIR

>> PG 22

>> PG 45

>> PG 24

The Muslim Link

30 THuL-HIjjaH 1435 a.H. - 27 MuHaRRaM 1436 a.H. | www.MuSLIMLInkPaPeR.coM

MD, VA, and DC Metropolitan Area Monthly Newspaper | FREE

March 14th - April 3rd 2014

october 24th - november 20th 2014

African American Muslims Featured at Newseum | pg 4

Modest Fashion, Fashionistas Take the Runway in DC | pg 10 >> stolen Pg 12

OPED: Disabled Muslims and Masjid Accommodation | pg 27 Somalis Say NGOs Killing Their Incentive to Farm | pg 31

>> imaam center Pg 1

Urban Farm Raises Goats, Sheep, and Young Men

residents before deciding on Dar-us-Salaam's application. Her decision is subject to appeal to the five member Howard County Board of Appeals.

By Hena Zuberi

ISLAM: Revive Your Heart by Worshipping In Secret | pg 32

You may have seen him selling outside your masjid after Jummah, selling artisan goat cheese, yogurt, goats milk and fresh, free range organic eggs.

Matt Jose is an urban farmer; his

>> farm Pg 18

Muslim Link Staff Reporter

Coupons PG 38

WhY AAfiA?

TICKETS: 25/person | 5 Childcare $

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2 8 M u H a rr a M - 2 S a fa r 1 4 3 6 a . H .

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE

Janaza for Richmond Imam Fills Neighborhood Streets | pg 5

Certified Technicians 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed

MCC Aims to Be Model for Senior Supportive Masajid | pg 6

By Zainab Arain

Heating & Cooling Seasonal Check-up Only

The theme – Faith. Submission. Service. –

God and service to mankind. In addition to those attending several thousands more watched the live broadcast of the sessions.

More than 120 international scholars, intellectuals, and community activists,

Gay Congress Hopeful Is “Great Friend” of Muslims | pg 14

>> icna Pg 24

CIVIL RIGHTS: Hate Ad Sparks US Free Speech Debate | pg 30

By Muslim Link Staff

In Sha'ban | pg 34

FULL COLOR RAMADAN POSTER WALL CALENDAR INSIDE | pg 39 The Muslim Link

Coupons PG 38

The decision comes after the >> dar-us-salaam Pg 39

The STory Which BindS: The Seerah and Your KIdS PG 20

The Islamic Society of Germantown opened its doors to politicians, imams, and hundreds of visitors and most importantly to those who had been waiting for the past 13 years when the

Big Step for the Safety the Dar AlHijrah Congregation | pg 5

>> CLiCK Pg 12

Area Syrians Watch Events With Worry, Anger Muslim Link Staff Reporter

With death tolls in Syria reported between six and seven thousand in the past 11 months, some American Syrians are faced with continued concern for the safety of their loved ones back home.

OP-Ed: Europe Setting Up Clash of Civilizations? | pg 21 LETTERS: Your Reactions To Last Issue’s Stories | pg 25

The region, riddled with political upheaval and protest against Syrian President Basher Al-Assad’s dynastic rule has seen an unprec-

College Park Maryland Days: Saturdays & Sundays Time: 11:20 am to 1:20 pm

WPRESS: Report Shows Drones Target Civilians | pg 16

ISLAM: Winter - The Best Season for Worshipers | pg 18

By Wafa Unus

>> syria Pg 10

CIVIL: NYPD Targeting Masajid For Intel Gathering | pg 14

Dynamic sessions, packed halls and up and coming speakers marked the 50th Annual Islamic Society of North America (ISNA)

anniversary of the March to Washington and Rev. Martin Luther King’s “I Have Dream” speech.

The theme of the three day convention was based on the beloved community

- Envisioning a More Perfect Union and featured over 100 speakers including Congressman Andre Carson, Dr. Altaf Husain,

NATION: Inside America's First Muslim Frat House | pg 30 CIVILRIGHTS: Inside the NYPD's Muslim Spying Program | pg 32 The Muslim Link

Coupons PG 43

>> iSNa Pg 12

all aboard for hoMe of the heart lunch cruise Pg 9 Like & Follow us

7 Rajab - 4 Shaban, 1434 A.H.

The Muslim Link

w w w. M u s l i m L i n k P a p e r. c o m

Md, Va, and dc Metropolitan area Monthly newspaper | free

May 17th 2013 - June 13th 2013

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE

CAIR-MD Relaunches with Inaugural Banquet | pg 21 New Women's Group Forms After Anti-Hijab Event | pg 5 Palestinian Journalists In the Line of Fire | pg 5

New Masjid, Islamic Academy Planned for Chantilly | pg 9

Running Muslim: The Other Boston Story | pg 4 Cabbie Records Hateful Speech, Attack from Passenger | pg 6

THE STORY OF AN AMAZING NECKLACE

HOW MUCH DOES WAR COST YOU?

with largest event ever, baltimore school has big plans for next 25 years, pg 34

IntroducIng the MuslIM lInk halal Menus sectIon Pg 38

Like & Follow us

The Muslim Link

Digging

Diabetes High Among Immigrant Groups | pg 5

FuTure

Photo Essay of ICM’S Ground Breaking -- PG 22

Muslim FunFest 2012 Beats the Heat

The largest annual social gathering of Muslims in the region, the carnival offers large mechanical rides similar to

Rockville Maryland Days: Saturdays & Wednesdays Time: Saturday: 10 am to 12 pm Wednesday: 5:30 pm - 7 pm

>>PG 24

Like & Follow us

Coupons PG 37

Baltimore Maryland

The Muslim Link

2 Jumada Al-Akhir - 6 Rajab, 1434 A.H. | www.MuslimLinkPaper.com

Md, Va, and dc Metropolitan area Monthly newspaper | Free

april 12th 2013 - May 16th 2013

Study Links Masjid Involvement, Voting | pg 5

in For The

Coupons PG 26

Coupons PG 38

Fundraising Dinner

dc MuslIM InterscholastIc tournaMent results Pg 9

MD, VA, and DC Metropolitan Area Bi-Weekly Newspaper | FREE

June 1st 2012 - June 14th 2012

The Muslim Link

PG 28

1 1 R a j a b - 2 4 R a j a b , 1 4 3 3 A . H . | w w w . M u s l i m L i n k P a p e r. c o m

VA Burial of Boston Bombing Suspect Causes Anger | pg 9

Al-rAhmAh school mArks 25 yeArs

Bullied Youth Finds Little Help From School System | pg 4

Islamic Relief USA (IR) is

Muslim Link Staff Reporter

turkish prime minister breAks ground for $100m mAsjid complex in mArylAnd, pg 22

Interfaith Coalition Opposes VA Foreign Law Bill | pg 4

Quickly fading are the days of newspaper clippings and passing the paper across the breakfast table.

By Hena Zuberi

'A symbol of friendship'

By Wafa Unus

this on hard copy, you’re going to send the digital version via a social media platform or e-mail.

A Look at ISNA’s 50th Year Anniversary Convention

Shopping and Shipping for Syria Winter Relief | pg 8

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE

Dar Al-Hijrah Food Bank Helps Falls Church Needy | pg 5

Five Decades On, American Muslims Still In Search of the ‘Beloved Community’

More Special Eids, Special Days Needed for Special Kids | pg 6

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE

Muslims Organize for VA Attorney General Hopeful | pg 18

ISLAM: Top 8 Excuses Not to Go for Hajj | pg 34

Like & foLLow uS THe MuSLiM Link

The Muslim Community: Just a Click Away? As social media becomes more common, businesses, organizations and even religious congregations have begun adopting the virtual tools not only to further their causes but to create a new type of boundless virtual community that risks no fire code violations and requires no million dollar blueprint plans.

Locals Who Witnessed Egypt Massacres Speak | pg 17

Wives of Incarcerated Terrorism Suspects March In DC | pg 6

historic deed like that and be recognized by Allah for that deed on the day of judgement.

Like & Follow us

Muslim Link Staff Reporter

issues are as diverse as the American Muslim community in the DC Metro area. American-Muslims are scattered all over the country. >> marriage Pg 16

By Muslim Link Staff

PG 30

The Muslim Link

Sh.Yusuf Islahi: Be Optimistic About Our Ummah | pg 7

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE

society bought the parcel of land — nearly an acre—at 19825 Blunt Road >> masjid Pg 14

3Di Athletics Holds First Weekend Basketball Camp | pg 6

First Muslim to Raise the Qur'an and Call Athan from Everest to Tell Story of Perseverance at DUS Banquet

PG 13

Md, Va, and dC Metropolitan area Bi-Weekly newspaper | Free

Men and women who really want to get married often face a myriad of issues in finding a good match. The

Adherence to cultural norms and expectations, generational disparity and the neglect of the Islamic standard for the choice of partners are also hurdles single American Muslims face

Women's Shelter In VA To Be Managed by ICNA | pg 8

MuSLIMS FeeL BeTraYed BY FBI

18 Rabi Al-Awaal - 1 Rabi Al-Thani, 1433 A.H. | www.MuslimLinkPaper.com February 10th 2012 - February 23rd 2012

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Howard County Approves Dar-us-Salaam Campus Plan ISLAM: Fasting Before Ramadan Dar-us-Salaam to establish a

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By Hena Zuberi

Muslim Link Staff Reporter

Finding What's Missing At An Orphanage In Mexico | pg 5

but first,

MD, Va, and Dc Metropolitan area Monthly newspaper | free

MD, VA, and DC Metropolitan Area Monthly Newspaper | FREE

ICNA.org

Meeting venues and forums are few and this seems to be one major deterrent to suitable marriages.

w w w. M u S L i M L i n k Pa P e r . c o M

november 21st - December 18th 2014

The Muslim Link

A major part of creating a beloved community is the creation of a family. However, the Muslim marriage crisis is at our doorstep.

dining out? order now with our halal Menus section Pg 38

June 6th 2014 - July 10th 2014

The Muslim Link Asks: How Hard Is It to Find a Life Partner In the DMV Area?

>> PG 21

>> PG 18

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE

THE GOOD NEWS Author Reverts to Islam | pg 26

>> PG 26

Islamic Relief, FAITH Join Hands for Eid Al-Adha Charity | pg 11

As Egypt Rolls Back On Democracy, US Bolsters Sisi | pg 25

Internationally renowned running for the hills da’eeHomestead & debater Halal

Running foR the hills Dispatches from muslim homesteaDers

Licensed, Bonded & Insured

Young Researchers Present Findings at MYFIKR | pg 10

The Muslim Link

md, Va, and dc metropolitan area monthly newspaper | fRee

By Hena Zuberi Muslim Link Staff Reporter

Rise in Abused Children Prompts New FAITH Program | pg 14

w w w . M u s l i m L i n k P a p e r. c o m

MoCo Muslims Distribute Udhiya Meat to Area Needy | pg 5

Masjid Al-Rahmah Gets $74K Federal Security Grant | pg 12

TZORTZIS

The Muslim Link

The Muslim Marriage Crisis

7 Thul Qedah - 5 Thul-Hijjah, 1434 A.H. september 13th - october 10th 2013

Muslim Family Day At Six Flag Caps Summer for 6,000 | pg 5

Do Homeless Have Right to Occupy Public Property? | pg 6

FEaturING HAMZA

Dept Staff Report a Positive Step Towards Final Approval in Coming Months

After a detailed study and assessment of Dar-us-Salaam's application to develop an education and community campus in Western Howard County, Maryland, the How-

DUS Wins 10th DC MIST Tournament, Full Results | pg 8 the Jordan Valley holds 28.3 percent of the West Bank’s land, and is ‘the largest single Palestinian territory under

HoCo Dept of Planning and Zoning Recommends Approval of DUS Campus Plan By Muslim Link Staff

For hundreds of Indonesian-American families and Maryland Muslims, "grand opening" couldn't have more meaning than it did on Friday, September 26, 2014.

TML Interviews Al-Rahmah School Principal | pg 7

from Palestinian farmers and allocated to settlements and military camps. According to the Inter Press Agency report,

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE

By Muslim Link Staff

Greening Our Sacred Grounds Seminar Held In MD | pg 6

Muslim Link Staff Reporter

Like & Follow us

LIke & FoLLow uS THe MuSLIM LInk

MD, Va, and Dc Metropolitan area Monthly newspaper | FRee

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE

After the 1967 Six-Day War when Israel captured the Jordan Valley from Jordan, tracts of land were taken

PResentIng YouR 2013 Ramadan suPeRheRoes! Pg 26

local leadeR focus:

IsB ResIdent scholaR Yaseen sheIkh Pg 10

>> PG 23

Like & Follow us

13 Jumada Al-Awwal - Jumada Al-Akhir 3 1435 A.H. | www.MuslimLinkPaper.com

We Install & Service

Lack of Muslim Foster Families Resulting In Children Losing Islam By Hena Zuberi

Muslim Link Staff Reporter

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE

>> foster Pg 26

Coupons PG 38

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stop genocide of Muslims In Burma Before

After

Out of the 5 million Muslims in Burma only 3 million are left. They cannot hold a job, enter the masjid, go to school, marry, or have children although Rohingyas are indigenous people living in their ancestral lands in Burma. This is the reason 7 Nobel Laureates have declared it a genocide!

Give 10 Minutes a Day To Stop Genocide

The satellite images above by Human Rights Watch show the destruction of homes and property in the Rohingya Muslim area of Kyauk Pyu. There are many towns like that. The Impact of our United Efforts and Phone Calls 1) The US Congress passed H.Res. 418 supporting Rohingyas. 2) At least 3 attacks on Muslims in Burma have been stopped. 3) The US has re-imposed some of the restrictions on aid to Burma this January. 4) Media is no longer dismissing it as a conflict between the two communities. A whole lot of work must be done to stop this genocide. Burmese Muslims have asked us to put pressure on their government to protect them. We are counting on your generosity to do this work professionally.

Justice for All

Muslim MUNA

Muslim Ummah

Peace Coalition USA North America

Atlanta shura

ISNA • CAIR • IONA • MANA • MUNA • Council of Islamic Organizations of Greater Chicago (CIOGC) • Justice For All • Muslim Peace Coalition USA • Majlis Shura of Atlanta • ICNA Canada • DawaNet Majlis Ash-Shura of Metropolitan New York • Michigan Muslim Community Council (MMCC) • Burmese Rohingya Association of North America • Free Rohingya Campaign

www.BurmaTaskForce.org

Muslim Link btf advt Aug 27, 2015.indd 1

.... 8/27/15 4:39 PM