By Sophia Whittemore
AsAmNews Intern
I’m happy to say that I’ll be attending an Idul Fitri/Lebaran celebration in Chicago with my mother at a party hosted by our Indonesian community. For Indonesian Muslims, Idul Fitri is the term in Bahasa for Eid al-Fitr, or the end of the holy month of Ramadan where my mother’s Indo Muslim friends break their fast with delicious (in Indonesian cuisine’s case) halal cendol (coconut milk punch) and sate (meat skewer) treats. But our community isn’t the only one celebrating this wonderful occasion.
From radio WBUR 90.9’s report, it seems that Latinx and Muslim communities in sunny, Southern California will be uniting with a unique twist: Halal Tacos. Now, for those who don’t know, “halal” is the Arabic term for dietary items that are “permissible” for Muslim persons to eat, for example, containing no pork products along with other rules. After a turbulent political election, where Latinx and Muslim communities are facing mounting hostility from all sides, Rida Hamida and Ben Vasquez sat together, and from their meeting, came a wonderful idea.
The best way to beat hatred? Unite. And what better union than for Latinx and Muslims to sit down and share a meal together?
Other minority groups came to join the solidarity movement. There weren’t only Muslims and Latinx. Other groups included: Jews, Christians, Catholics, and even LGBT community members. Halal tacos for everyone!
Further information from The Week suggests that this union didn’t JUST come from Trump. No, this came from something beyond just fear or rhetoric. This came from multiple minority communities who just wanted to have a little fun and remember the beautiful tradition of Latinx culturas meeting Muslim festivals. This came from a better place.
Love.
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