By: Tasnim El Mezain San Diego State University

Envision being a part of planning an event, working months and months with effortful preparation. The day finally comes and after the event you realize everyone is walking out with smiles filled with happiness and joy. Was the effort worth the outcome? This is only one type of volunteerism. Volunteerism is essential in our communities for several reasons.

Let’s start with the literal definition. According to Dictionary.com, volunteerism is “the policy or practice of volunteering  one's time or talents for charitable, educational, or other worthwhile activities, especially in one's community”. This can include simply volunteering at a food bank or being part of an organization.

Either way, volunteering in itself is tremendously worthwhile. The main reason is because it’s actually part of Islam, as the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) encouraged these actions. “The Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) said: ‘What actions are most excellent? To gladden the hearts, to feed the hungry, to help the afflicted, to lighten the sorrow of the sorrowful, and to remove the sufferings of the injured’” (Bukhari).

There are many opportunities in volunteerism to accomplish these goals. For example, volunteering at a homeless shelter or a retirement home can bring smiles to these individuals. It also brings the aspect of feeding the hungry and removing sufferings. There are many Muslim and non-Muslim organizations that support the cause of feeding children, including Islamic Relief,  Muslim Family Services, and the Food Bank.

Another way to volunteer and accomplish these goals is to join youth related organizations such as local youth groups or the Muslim American Society Youth, which has chapters nationwide. Alhamdulilah, we have so many opportunities to fulfill these great actions, and connecting with the youth is a bonus. Becoming, for example, a youth leader, no matter what age range, and being able to positively influence your fellow brothers and sisters in Islam is a blessing.

As an experienced youth worker in various organizations, I realized all these actions can be accomplished by volunteerism. With the help of Allah, I was blessed to volunteer and still volunteer with organizations like the Muslim Students Association, Muslim American Society Youth, Islamic Relief, Council on American-Islamic Relations, Muslim Legal Fund of America, Student Nutrition Organization, Muslimahs In Search of Knowledge, and many more.

From all my involvement and years of experience, I would recommend every individual to give it a chance and stay consistent with volunteering because it is worth the experience. It doesn’t matter what skill you have, volunteerism can utilize a variety of tasks, so anyone and everyone can be qualified.

There are many different chances in society to reach out and give back to the community. So whether showing up at an event or being part of planning, taking time out of the day to help people for the sake of Allah is always worth the effort. In addition, we would all be following that which is considered to be the best of actions. 

There is always community service hours that are offered, but the hours spent are also recorded with Allah SWT, so if asked on the Day of Judgment, “What have you done for your people?” you will have a resume of volunteering on its own. So volunteer and give back to your community, so you can “gladden the hearts, to feed the hungry, to help the afflicted, to lighten the sorrow of the sorrowful, and to remove the sufferings of the injured.”

By: Sara Khan Wayne State University

In Islam, it doesn’t matter if one is Asian, American, African, or Middle Eastern. We were all created as equals and thus should be treated as such. Then why is it that when the talk of marriage comes around interracial marriage is out of question? What is the reason for this opposition? Is it racism or something else? Whatever the reason may be, Muslims should at least have an open mind when considering interracial marriage. Instead, this topic has basically become a taboo in many Muslim communities. 

This issue is typically of interest for people who were raised in America and have parents who were immigrants. Their different upbringings brought upon different ideologies on cultures and identity. An immigrant parent usually puts more emphasis on marrying someone who can help to preserve the ethnic culture. Although I can see the importance of preserving culture, there are also many other factors that need to be taken into consideration for a happy and successful marriage. The children who were raised in the U.S. may feel more comfortable marrying someone who has also been raised in the U.S like themselves and whom they can feel some sort of connection with. That someone could very likely be from a different racial or ethnic background.

Consider this hypothetical situation: A Muslim girl from Pakistan was born and raised in the United States. Her parents want her to marry another Pakistani who was also born and raised in the U.S. Although it’s possible that this marriage can turn out well, the problem actually lies in the fact that many parents refuse to even consider  other races as potential options. Doing so can neglect some very good men with whom the girl may be much more compatible with. Marriage is a lifelong commitment and therefore it is highly important to seek out the right  partner.

There is also the major issue of stereotyping. People are stereotyped not only based on where they are from, but also on what partof the country they are from. We all know it happens in Muslim communities and it is an issue that interferes with simple Islamic beliefs. In his last sermon, Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) said “An Arab has no superiority over a non-Arab nor a non-Arab has any superiority over an Arab; also a white has no superiority over  black nor a black has any superiority over white except by piety and good  action.” Considering these wise words from the Prophet (PBUH), we can conclude that marriage is ultimately not based on where the person is from, but rather the nature of the person; both, morally and religiously. 

If we continue to avoid the topic of interracial marriage, then we allow for racism to continue as well. Maybe some parents deny interracial marriages over concerns of cultural preservation rather than race, but this argument can also serve as a mask for racism.

Many Muslims still have to learn to be accepting of other races and cultures, not only for moral reasons, but more importantly for the sake of Allah (SWT). He has told us over and over again that not one person is superior to another. If we have no right to judge other humans at all, then we certainly have no right to be passing judgment on whole races or cultures. Unfortunately, black people are subject to racism more often than others, even by Muslims. We ought to keep in mind that whenever someone insults a black person, he or she could be inadvertently insulting some extremely notable Black Muslim figures as well, such as Bilal Habshi (RA) who was a Black Muslim, a companion of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), and the first muezzin. 

All of this comes down to the simple matter of putting religion over cultural values and beliefs. Without a doubt, this is something that needs to be improved in many Muslim communities, including our own. If we believe in the teachings of Islam and would like to teach our children about the same values, then we must start embodying them, even the ones that may require us to change ourselves. We cannot continue to give ethnic background half as much importance as we normally do.