Needham Muslim Neighbors.

06/16/2024

Eid ul Adha Mubarak! As the Hajj pilgrimage in Mecca gets to its final stages, we wish Muslims in Needham and beyond a spiritually renewing Eid filled with joy, family and yummy feasts!

06/14/2024

Statement of Needham Select Board and the Needham Human Rights Committee
Adopted by the Select Board on June 11, 2024
Adopted by the Human Rights Committee on June 12, 2024

The Select Board is aware of multiple incidents of antisemitism, Islamophobia, intolerance and hate in Needham, and we feel compelled to specifically address these matters.

These recent incidents, reported to Town staff, the Human Rights Committee, and the Needham Police Department include statements posted on private property, removal of lawn signs, silencing of opinions, and disruption of religious events, among others.

The Select Board abhors this behavior. Acts that threaten or violate another person’s safety or property cannot be tolerated.

The Select Board is here to support Needham residents, and to promote a safe and welcoming community. We are one Needham, one community.

05/14/2024

Yesterday, the Needham Muslim Neighbors held our Mother's Day bake sale for Humanity Auxilium at Islamic Center of Boston (ICB Wayland). Our goal was to raise $1000.

By the grace of God, we far exceeded that goal and raised *$4,556*!

This funds treatments for nearly 60 anemic pregnant women who are at risk of dying from blood loss during childbirth. If you count the impact on the newborn, as well as other children/family members, we have funded the ability to affect hundreds of lives. Alhumdulillah! What a meaningful way to honor Mother's Day.

Thank you to our incredibly generous ICB Wayland Sunday School community, and to each and every person who contributed via their energy, time, support and prayers - with a special shout out for all the baking support from Indian Community of Needham, to the Rotary Club of Needham for their generous donation to this cause (plus their own fundraising page) and to ICB Wayland for their in-kind and financial donation to Humanity Auxilium.

THANK YOU to all, and may Allah reward you and put barakah/blessings in your efforts!

05/11/2024

Don’t forget to join us for the Bake Sale tomorrow to save lives in Gaza!

You can also donate online directly: https://humanityauxilium.org/donation/country/usa/funding/mothers-day-gaza

05/09/2024

We were honored by the invitation extended to Dr. Huma Farid who proudly represented our community and gave the opening address at yesterday's Needham Town Meeting. She spoke about the importance of justice and community, values that form the bedrock of the Muslim faith, and we hope they resonated with the hard-working Needham citizens who attended!

05/05/2024

🧁Sweet Support!🧁

Join us for a Mother’s Day bake sale to support providing urgent prenatal care for pregnant women in Gaza! 🇵🇸

Mark your calendars for next week! 🌸 Sunday May 12th, from 10am-4pm at ICB Wayland. 🌸

You can also support this cause directly at bit.ly/HAbakesale - it will redirect to Humanity Auxilium's Mother's Day campaign.

04/11/2024

An Eid-ul-Fitr hate crime in NJ. Life on college campuses nation-wide is becoming unbearable, with little to no physical or psychological safety for Muslim students or their allies.

>>An Islamic student center at Rutgers was broken into and vandalized early Wednesday morning, and the intruder or intruders smashed religious items and TVs and ripped down a Palestinian flag, according to a chaplain at the school.

A video of the damage, shared with HuffPost, showed broken glass covering the floor of the Center for Islamic Life at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, or “CILRU.” The break-in occurred on Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan and began Tuesday night.

The chair of the student center’s board said the vandalism was “undoubtedly fueled by Islamophobia.”

04/11/2024

An Eid-ul-Fitr shooting in PA. Even when enacting the simplest acts of religious freedom, there is always an undercurrent of fear. May God grant a swift recovery to those injured and give them justice.

>>According to police, at around 2:26 p.m. three people were shot during an end of Ramadan event near the 4700 block of Wyalusing Avenue. One of the wounded was shot by a police officer.

Approximately 30 gunshots were fired during the shooting, officials say.

An officer assigned to the area engaged a 15-year-old who Philadelphia Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel says was armed with a gun. Sources say the 15-year-old was armed with an assault rifle.

Multiple people were injured during a shooting at an Eid event in West Philadelphia Wednesday afternoon where around 1,000 attendees gathered to celebrate the end of Ramadan.

04/11/2024

Another fantastic NMN Eid party in the books! Food, presents and piñatas - oh my!

04/10/2024

The crescent moon was spotted in Needham last night! So today we celebrate Eid ul Fitr, the festival that marks the end of Ramadan. We celebrate this day through congregational prayer at mosques, wearing beautiful clothes and scents, sharing food and meeting with friends and family.

May God accept all of our worship and good deeds during the month of Ramadan. 🤲🏼

May God bless our Needham Muslim community, strengthen our bonds, and May we never take for granted the joys and blessings we have to celebrate Eid. May God help us to be helpful to others who are not as lucky. 🤲🏼

May God grant relief and victory to all of the oppressed in Palestine, Sudan, Congo, Myanmar, Syria, Kashmir, Afghanistan, China and anywhere else that there is human suffering. 🤲🏼

🌙 Eid Mubarak 🌙

04/09/2024

Needham native Zeenat Rasheed weighs in on marking Eid ul Fitr at the end of Ramadan:

>> For many, Ramadan this year has been filled with somber reflections over the ongoing war in Gaza. Locals have noted that grief over the loss of Palestinian lives has muted the expressions of gratitude and joy typically felt at this time.

“It’s very hard to watch any of it without feeling a strong sense of pain and helplessness,” said Zeenat Rasheed, a member of the outreach committee at the Islamic Center of Boston in Wayland. “But while we may feel helpless, we refuse to despair. The best thing we can do is be grateful for what we have, and maintain a sense of resilience for ourselves."

The Islamic holy month of Ramadan comes to a close Wednesday with Eid al-Fitr, or “the Festival of the Breaking of the Fast.” It's been a somber time for many due to the ongoing war in Gaza. Some local Muslims share how they're balancing grief and joy heading into the holiday.

03/30/2024

At the Needham Community Iftar last weekend, we welcomed numerous civic leaders of Needham to share a little bit about our group and our faith. Check out the opening welcome address by lead organizer and representative for the Needham Resilience Network, Zeenat Rasheed.

More videos to come over the next few days, stay tuned 👀