The Muslim Refugees Chapter

Founder: Issa Afifi

I have been involved with Teens At The Door since we were visiting the Afghani refugees in Santa Clarita.  I am a Muslim and giving back to those less fortunate is a huge part of my faith; one of the five pillars.  We call it Zakat which means alms giving. Technically that is money and a Muslim is taxed 2.5% for charity. Since I am still a student and don’t have an income my form of giving back was helping the less fortunate.

To me, this was a no brainer.  I was helping people my age who were in need and who shared the same faith as me.  I started the Muslim Student Association at my school and I go to a very diverse school that practices inclusion in a very serious way.  So I have not experienced prejudice towards me because of my religion.  But I see the news and many Muslims in this country are not as fortunate as me and I see that Muslim students experience prejudice at their schools so I was happy to be part of the Afghani teens first experiences in America so that they could feel comfortable knowing that there are American teenagers like them.

I was happy to show them that I understand their struggle in this country.  It doesn’t have to always be from prejudice.  In my case, even though I go to a school where I have not encountered prejudice, it is still a struggle to live a Muslim lifestyle.  I have certain dietary restrictions and I Muslims pray five times a day and it was hard to find a place to pray even at my school.  So I could relate to the Afghani teens by acknowledging that I stand in solidarity with them and I understand their struggle.

But what was very special to me is that my mother and I prayed with these teens and members of their families several times.  So before I connected to them by talking or on any sort of personal level I was able to pray with them and to connect with them first on a spiritual level.  Which I think is beautiful because I didn’t have to know their names or stories.

If I were a refugee arriving in a foreign country and I was able to pray with another Muslim, especially one my age, I would think I was at home.

And what was soothing to me, even though I live here, is that the Afghani man who led the prayer knows the entire Quran by heart.  And afterwards he came up to me and was very chatty.  And spoke with a different voice.  It was a wonderful experience for me too.

But while this was a beautiful experience and unique because I am a Muslim helping other Muslim teens in this country, I also am hoping to connect with teenagers that are not Muslim.  Who speak Spanish maybe.  Or from different parts of the world and different religions.  Because my responsibility as a Muslim is to help everyone who is less fortunate.

Finally, a whole other dimension to my being involved with Teens At The Door is that my father was also a refugee. From Ethiopia.