Student leaders of the Muslim Affinity Group hosted Beaver’s second annual Iftar Night on Thursday, April 4. The event was open to students, faculty and staff, and families of Muslim students. The gathering was a massive success with delicious food, a henna station, music, and community bonding that reflected the hard work Muslim Affinity Group leaders had contributed to make the event a success.
Planning the Iftar night event was an opportunity for our Affinity space to bond throughout planning all aspects of the night. Although we put on this event to show our community how we spend Ramadan as Muslim students, I ended up learning so much about my peers in the Muslim Affinity and how they experience Ramadan.. . It was beautiful to see how different yet similar we all spend the month, each one of us having themes of undeniable community that come with Ramadan.
-Muslim Affinity Group leaders
Sebah Beshir ’24, Gibran Ashai ’26, and Zak Faris ’25, leaders of the Muslim Affinity Group, mention that bringing guest speaker Fatema Sumar to the event was a major highlight. Sumar, who serves as Executive Director at the Harvard Center for International Development, shared her experiences as a diplomat and first generation Muslim American. The idea to have Sumar speak at the event came from Gibran Ashai, who had previously seen Sumar speak at a Model U.N. conference. “I reached out to her and was able to get her to speak,” Gibran states. “Aside from finally breaking my fast, I would say that my favorite part [of the event] was hearing our guest speaker.”
The Muslim Affinity Group aimed to not only host a joyous celebration, but also bring people together. “We wanted visibility for Muslims students and the surprisingly large (relatively speaking) Muslim community at Beaver,” Sebah, Gibran, and Zak share. After launching Beaver’s first Iftar Night celebration last year, this year’s event allowed students to expand upon their work and create an even more inclusive environment.
We took the event as an opportunity to show what Ramdan is like for other Beaver students. This year in particular, we wanted to build community, especially following the still-unfolding events in the Middle East. We tried to alleviate any tensions through breaking bread with members from our community who came from all different backgrounds and walks of life.
-Muslim Affinity Group leaders
Affinity Groups meet each Thursday at Beaver. To learn more and see what Affinity Groups are available, click here.