Kids having fun at the Eid Festival
By Isseu Diouf Campbell
Translated in French by Aisha Dabo
The Council of African Imams hosted the first ever African Children Eid Ramadan Festival in New York City on August 31, 2013 at Masjid Salam in the Bronx.
In many West Africans countries where these children are from, Eid is a very special holiday. The holiday marking the end of a month of fasting usually starts with a morning prayer followed by a feast shared with the whole family and often times with neighbors.
But the most important and most exciting moment for the African Muslim kids is certainly that time in the afternoon where along with a few friends they knock at every door in their neighborhood to ask for treats generally given in the form of money.
Once these kids move to Western countries like the US, a change in the way of living makes that second part of the celebration challenging so the children end up staying home after the prayer.
Ramatu Ahmed, deputy secretary of the Council of African Imams, and very involved with children’s activities, wanted to come to their rescue.
“It was voiced out in one of our meetings that the children were concerned about how they go to the Mosque on Eid then go home where there is nothing to be done,” she said. “That is how we came up with the Eid Festival to have something entertaining for the kids alongside the Islamic teachings.”
For Zeinab turning 11 years in December, the festival was very instructive. “What I like about the program is it teaches us a lot of stuff about our heritage and things that can make you sick,” she said
“I thought the party was great. I liked the clown, and the food,” said 9 years old Mohamed of Togolese descent, who came to the Mosque for the first time to attend the children festival.
Solemou, 14 years old from Burkina Faso, was annoyed by the numerous speakers preceding the buffet. ‘The party was nice but there was a lot of talking before food. I was outside and I only came in when they started serving food.”
Ramatoulaye, 9 years old who wants to become a doctor or an artist was thrilled. “What I like about the program is that the clown came and gave us balloons, they also spoke about people who had diseases and they were also talking about religion,“ she said.
However the celebration with food, clown and balloons was also a way of getting the kids’ attention.
“When we have these kinds of programs, we are getting the children at an early age,” Ramatu Ahmed said. “We let them understand how important education is. We let them know about the issues affecting the community and also how they can run away from these problems. You occupy the children, introduce them to activities that will occupy their time and help them stay away from trouble,” Ramatu Ahmed added.
Photos of the event
