Beyond Scarfs and Beards

«Beyond Scarfs and Beards» is a multimedia documentary about the lives of 4 Muslim students at UMass.

According to these students, their religion is the most important part of their lives.  Islam, more than just a religion, is a way of life and it plays a vital role in everything they do.

But unlike what most people may think about them and their practices, these students aren’t so different from the rest of the population at UMass. It is true that religion is present in every aspect of their lives, for example, the way they dress, what they eat, their daily schedule adjusted to their praying times, the way they talk- always making reference to God and the Prophet; but it is also true that they enjoy doing other things like going to the park, to the movies, to the mall, they like to make jokes, play basketball, eat a lot of candies, play videogames, spend time with the family and, most of all, they study hard!

So, for this project, I interviewed:

1. Huda-Zaynab Abdul Rahim, who is a senior and an English major. Her parents are African American, but they converted to Islam when they were young so they raised all their kids in the Islamic religion.  Huda will graduate this summer and she plans to move to Qatar to become an English teacher.

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2- Hamza Dawud Flanagan is 21 years old, History major. He converted to Islam a little over 2 years ago and he is the only Muslim member of his family.

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3-Batlah Abdul Rahim is Huda’s oldest sister.  She is 25 and she is an English and Psychology major.

4- AbdAllah Mohsen is 19 years old and he is an Egyptian exchange student, Electrical Engineering major. He got a 4-year scholarship when he graduated from highschool and he is attending the American University in Cairo.

 

Profile of a muslim student at UMass

Huda-Zaynab Abdul Rahim is a 21 year old black-american muslim, who is majoring in English at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. She was born, raised, and actually lives in Springfield, MA. Huda-Zaynab has 7 sisters and 3 brothers. Her parents converted to Islam when they were young and, therefore, Huda was raised in the muslim religion. According to Huda: «Islam is a religion of peace and peace is actually what the word Islam means. It is based off of the belief in the oneness of God and the following of His last and final Messenger Muhammad (peace be upon him) and God’s book; His words: the Qur’an.» This story portrays Huda’s religious life as a college student.

The Holy Qur’an (sacred book that contains the Word of God); the sajjāda which is the rug that muslims use to pray; and the hijab, which is the scarf that women use to cover their hair, are some of the particular elements that distinguish the Islamic religion.

Hijab is an Arabic word that means covering. There are various forms of hijab and, according to Huda, it is for modesty and a woman’s protection against unwanted attention from men outside of her family. It also distinguishes Muslim women from all other women and is therefore a mark of her faith in God and observance of her religion. «I have worn hijab since I was 9 and always by my own choice. I love hijab and feel safe, comfortable and complete when I’m wearing it», affirmed Huda

And when My servants ask you, O Muhammad , concerning Me – indeed I am near. I respond to the invocation of the supplicant when he calls upon Me. So let them respond to Me by obedience and believe in Me that they may be rightly guided.” Qur’an 2:186 This is Huda’s favorite quote from the Qur’an because it reminds her that God is always near and it also makes her feel confident when she prays because she has the certainty that He is listening.

On campus, Huda-Zaynab is an active member of the Muslim Student Association (MSA). They have weekly meetings such as the Halaqah, which is an Islamic class where muslim students get together to discuss relevant issues such as the role of youth in the student community and how they can get more involved. Among the muslim girls that assist to these meetings, Huda is one of the most vocal.

When the Halaqah is over, then it is time to do the last prayer of the day and some of them stay to pray together.

MSA members also meet every Friday during the afternoon at the reading room in the Campus Center to have what they call Jumah (Friday prayer). Besides these weekly meetings, they also meet every day at 6:30pm in the Oak Room to have Halal food, which is prepared by a Muslim chef. MSA also has committees dedicated to organize social and service activities for non-muslims students as well.

Muslims must pray 5 times a day and they must do so over a clean surface. That’s why they use a rug or a clean blanket and they also have to take their shoes off before praying. The prayers are in arabic and they have a person who leads the prayer while the others follow. If they want to, they can do additional/optional prayers called sunnah. When they raise their hands to supplicate (Du’a), they tend to pray in their native languages.

«Islam is a way of life and not just a religion. It deals with faith, action, law, society and the afterlife. Islam is everything to me. My life is built around it and I love my religion more than anything else. I thank God everyday for guiding me to His religion and the worship of Him», said Huda-Zaynab.