Page 3 The Islamic Bulletin Issue 18 By Monique El-Faizy andMichele Comandini A decision by Paterson (CA) school district officials to recognize the two major Islamic holidays is the first of its kind in the country, community leaders say, and reflects the growing influence of Muslims in America. Paterson’s schools will close next year for the two most important Muslim holidays -- Eid al-Fitr on Jan. 7, which marks the end of Ramadan, and Eid al-Adha on March 17, which commemorates the Prophet Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his son Ismael at God’s command. “We have a growing Muslim presence in Paterson, and this was a way to recognize that,” said school board President William McKoy. “It’s important in celebrating our diversity that we also have an understanding of holidays.” “On the district level, that is the first time in the United States,” said Shabbir Mansuri, founding director of the Council on Islamic Education, based in Fountain Valley, Calif. “This is welcome news to the 6 [million] to 8 million Muslims in the United States. It also sends a signal to the rest of the United States.” Paterson’s Muslim groups also praised the decision, saying it was “long overdue.” “We have a large number of Muslims in the school system and we should be entitled to our holidays as well as others’ holidays,” said Riad Mustafa, president of the Islamic Center of Passaic County (California). “It shows how great we are in this country that we can accommodate everyone’s religious beliefs.” McKoy said the Paterson district also will begin to incorporate the meaning of holidays in its curriculum so that “students can celebrate with more purpose rather than just having a day off.” The district recognizes Jewish and Christian religious holidays as well as Thanksgiving, Memorial Day, and Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday. District officials said Eid al-Fitr was included as a holiday this school year, but the holiday fell on Jan. 18, which was also the observance of Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday. The second Muslim holiday was added last week after the board was approached by parents, students, and members of the Arab and Muslim communities. New Jersey law allows students to be excused from school during religious holidays recognized by the state. Eid al-Fitr is one of those holidays, so students are allowed to take the day off in other districts. IbrahimHooper, spokesman for the Washington, D.C.-based Council on American-Islamic Relations, said that has been a struggle in other states. “Our main goal in this area has been to have Muslim students allowed to go to Eid without being marked absent,” he said. Paterson’s decision is the latest in a series of steps toward recognizing the rights of Muslims in schools and workplaces, something the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) has worked hard for. “I think that Muslims are finally coming on people’s radar screens, both the general public and officials, and these kinds of things are beginning to be addressed,” Hooper said. Hooper said the council has received thousands of requests for its educators’ guide to Islamic practices, which was released in late 1997, and has sent out 20,000 copies of a similar guide for employers. Opportunity Commission is handling many more complaints from Muslims, and an increasing number of disputes are being resolved in their favor. Most recently, seven Dulles International Airport workers won the right to wear head scarves to work in conformance with Muslim tradition, and in March a federal appeals court ruled that two Newark police officers had the right to wear beards for religious reasons. Latinos Embrace Islam By Margaret Rameriz, Times Religion Writer Slipped inside a strip mall across from Exposition Park where the smell of incense mingles with Arabic swirls on the wall, Muhammad Gomez absorbs the message of Allah. Sitting beside him in this storefront Islamic center, Domy Garcia raises her hand and asks why she and other Muslim women are obliged to cover their heads with the hijab. Mariam Montalvo takes diligent notes at the Sunday afternoon Islamic lesson with the holy Qur’an by her side. Here at the ILM Foundation, a new Islamic movement is being born. Yet it lies far from Mecca, where the faith was founded more than 1,400 years ago. And the language of choice for this group of Islamic followers is not Arabic. These Muslims worship Allah in Spanish. Montalvo, who immigrated to Los Angeles from Mexico in 1996, left the Catholic faith three months ago, frustrated by what she called contradictions within church teachings and preoccupation with the saints. After research and contemplation, she took the Shahada, the simple declaration of faith by which one becomes a Muslim. “I had a lot of problems with the church. One Bible says one thing, and another Bible says something different. Then there are people who call themselves Catholics and drink and smoke,” said Montalvo, 21. “With Islam, it was so pure. I found there were no intermediaries. Everything goes straight to God.” Last month, 30 Southern California converts founded the Latino-MuslimMovement with the intent of educating Spanish-speaking Muslims and spreading Islam to other Latinos. After meeting for the past seven years, the group appointed officers and elected to meet at the ILM Foundation once a week. Scores of Latinos throughout the country--specifically in New York, New Jersey, Chicago, and Miami--have fled the church of their birth and embraced Islam as their newfound faith. In New York, a group of Puerto Rican Muslims opened an Islamic center in the heart of East Harlem called Alianza Islamica, where hundreds of Latinos have converted since 1992. The center, the first of its kind, includes a small mosque where the Friday sermon is heard in Arabic, English, and Spanish. Islam has adherents throughout Latin America and the Caribbean as well, with especially strong followings in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, and Panama. Reymundo Nur, a Panamanian who became Muslim at the age of 12 and studied Islam in Saudi Arabia, helped organize the Los Angeles group. Two years ago, Nur co-founded a national nonprofit organization called Asociacion Latina de Musulmanes en las Americas, which focuses on translating Islamic books and literature into Spanish. He said one of his group’s main projects is translating the Qur’an into contemporary, conversational Spanish. At least two Spanish translations of the Qur’an exist, but Nur said they use a more formal, Castilian Spanish. “There have always been Latino Muslims. It’s only now that they’re coming to the forefront,” said Nur, vice president of the Latino-MuslimMovement in Los Angeles. “We have a strong Islamic legacy, and people are rediscovering that part of their heritage. Many learn about it and say, ‘Hey, I have more of this in me than I ever realized.’ “Islamic ties to Hispanic culture date back to 711, when the Muslim general Tariq ibn Zayid conquered Spain, and the Christian Visigothic domination of Roderick came to an end. Under Moorish rule, Christians, Jews, and Muslims coexisted in Spain. Conversion was encouraged but never forced. Because the Arabs did not bring women with them, they took Spanish wives, and within a few generations the Muslim population was more Spanish than Arab. For the next 700 years, Al-Andalus, as the Muslims refer to Spain, enjoyed an era of political and cultural splendor, becoming one of the most intellectually advanced countries in medieval Europe. Islamic influence penetrated almost every facet of Spanish life, especially music, architecture, and literature. Eid School Closings -- A Milestone for Muslims
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