Connecticut Muslim Parents Start Petition Drive for Recognition of School Holiday for Eid
But for Mehreen Seyal, who started the online petition that has so far drawn just under 600 signatures, it's about more than just getting their kids out of school for the day.
"Trumbull Public Schools Equity Position Statement promotes diversity and inclusion and I’m hoping to see more curriculum that teaches cultural differences and practices too," Seyal said. "The first step in doing so will be get the Eid holidays on the calendar."
A group called the Trumbull Muslim Holidays Committee recently launched the petition asking the school district to recognize two Islamic holidays, Eid al-Fitr, and Eid al-Adha.
This petition comes after several parents spoke about the need for the two holidays in a recent Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Taskforce meeting. Yet the petition is also about ensuring the schools are as inclusive as they say they are, Seyal said.
According to Khaled Elleithy, the president of the Bridgeport Islamic Cultural Center and a Trumbull resident, it's about sending a message.
"People of Trumbull decided to start a petition and to bring this to the attention of the Board of Education, so that action is taken," Elleithy said.
This push also comes as the Trumbull Muslim student population has grown over the last few years according to informal surveys. Seyal estimated there are 400 Muslim students in town. Muslim students notice the schools celebrate non-Islamic religious holidays in ways that make Muslim students feel left out, according to the Bridgeport Islamic Cultural Center Head Imam Mohamed Abdelatti.
"The kids today are complaining because the other kids in the schools, they are taking their own holidays off. And our kids they cannot do it. So they are complaining all the time. Especially if our holiday comes during the weekdays," Abdelatti said.
This year, Trumbull schools closed on the Jewish holidays of Yom Kippur and Rosh Hashanah, in addition to Good Friday and the winter and April vacation weeks around Christmas and Easter.
Elleithy said students notice school halls are decorated for certain holidays and yet Islamic ones are not. The exclusion is felt beyond just holiday decorations, according to Seyal. This year's SAT exams will held from March 22 to 29, 2023 as shown on the state's Department of Education site. Ramadan starts on March 22 and ends April 21. Muslim students fast from sunrise to sunset. Because fasting can impact cognitive function, doing so can impact exam results.
Students she said, will have to make a difficult decision between adhering to their faith and performing well in school. However, the SAT can be made up after Ramadan, with makeup dates from April 25 to 27, 2023. Trumbull Public Schools, though, do not schedule SAT makeup dates.
Superintendent Martin Semmel has previously said all holiday requests must go through the district calendar committee. In response to the petition, Semmel said the committee would meet again soon to go over holiday requests.
"The Trumbull Public Schools will begin development of the 2024-25 and 2025-26 school year calendars in the coming months," he said. "These calendars are developed ... with input from the school community. To capture input across stakeholders, the committee is composed of representatives from across the district."
Eid al-Fitr is the day Muslims end their month-long Ramadan fast. Eid al-Adha is a commemoration of the Biblical Genesis story of Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his son Isaac, and is a holy day where an animal is ritually sacrificed, and the meat is given to family, friends and the poor.
But while billions of Muslims celebrate those holidays around the world and in the United States, many people in Trumbull aren't aware of the significance of those days, and Muslim students said they've felt like the odd ones out in school according to Seyal.
"Muslim students find that most classmates are not aware of their holidays and traditions. Our children are consistently burdened to explain themselves to their peers, only to be met with resistance and sometimes even rejection," Seyal said.
While religious affiliation is not tallied in census results, Trumbull has gotten more diverse since 2010. The 2020 census showed the white share of the town's population dropped by 10 percent. And while Muslims can be of any race, many trace their roots to the Middle East and North Africa, and the U.S. Census classifies them as white.
Locally, recognition of the two holidays is increasing, as Bridgeport and Fairfield in addition to Stamford, New Haven and Waterbury have added them to the school calendar. According to Abdelatti, change only happens when people advocate for themselves as what happened in Fairfield.
"We have to raise our voice, we have to let the others recognize us and recognize the reality of us, and (that) no one will voluntarily come and tell us, 'We're gonna give you the day off," Abdelatti said.
Source: ctpost.com
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