The annual Eidrageous celebration put on by the Muslim Students Association and Al-Madinah Cultural Center may be absent from the University of Minnesota campus next year.
This year, the Muslim holiday of Eid, which marks the end of an annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, took place in late August. To make the event available to students, MSA and AMCC hosted the celebration the first weekend of the semester.
Because the holiday follows the lunar calender, it happens earlier every year and will take place in early August in 2019. Given the time complication, MSA and AMCC are unsure if they will be able to put on the annual campus event.
“There’s not really any controversy … I think it’s just organizationally we don’t need to focus our efforts on an event that was a month ago. It’s like if someone were to celebrate Christmas in February,” said Aasim Ali, president of AMCC.
“It depends on each year’s board,” said Ruwayda Mohamed, a junior and the president of MSA, about the yearly decision to hold the Eidrageous celebration. “I’d be happy to go next year.”
The annual celebration is a tradition for MSA and AMCC.
“I think it’s going to kind of be difficult. Personally, this year we were discussing whether or not to [have the event],” Ali said.
During the Eidrageous celebration, students and community members can partake in events such as a carnival in front of Coffman and a traditional dinner.
Ali said the celebration also offers the campus community an opportunity to learn more about the Muslim community and culture. The dinner is an especially good chance to learn about Eid, and reflect the many different cultures of Islam, he added.
Students, family members, PSEO students and community members attend the events, said Faizan Dewan, a junior studying finance and management information systems.
During the carnival on Friday, students reflected on the event and the possibility of its ending after this year.
“I’m really happy that AMCC and MSA are acknowledging [Eid] and teaching people who are not familiar with the Muslim holiday. I think Eidrageous is important … because it educates the campus community,” said Zahra Mohamed, a sophomore who attended the carnival. “I’m really happy that AMCC and MSA are acknowledging [Eid] and teaching people who are not familiar with the Muslim holiday.”
Some attendants had a positive outlook on the future of the celebration.
“To me, Eid is more about that day, it’s about spending time with people you consider your family. We might have different events with the same purpose,” Dewan said.
That sentiment was echoed by other members of MSA and AMCC.
“We can do other things, to keep the spirit fun. Muslims have fun too. Muslims have celebrations, celebrations are fun. That’s why it’s not just lectures on Hajj,” Ali said, laughing.
Members of MSA and AMCC said that there are other annual MSA and AMCC events that will continue to take place if Eidrageous takes a break on campus.
