The University of Minnesota’s Al Madinah Cultural Center (AMCC) and Muslim Student Association (MSA) raised nearly $7,000 this semester to provide meals for students observing Ramadan.

Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic lunar calendar and began on Feb. 28 this year. Muslims who observe Ramadan abstain from eating and drinking from sunrise to sunset for 30 days and increase praying and community worship.

MSA members, along with AMCC members, come together yearly to form the Ramadan Crew, a team primarily led by MSA. During Ramadan, MSA utilizes AMCC’s space to host daily Iftars and community gatherings.

Ramadan Crew provides free meals for 150 to 180 people every weekday night for the entire duration of Ramadan for daily Iftars, the fast-breaking meal eaten after sunset.

MSA External Vice President Aminah Alamin said the Ramadan Crew would not be able to adequately prepare without the Muslim community on and off campus. She said a lot of credit is due to food sponsors who provide money and meals for the community.

Sponsors include local restaurants Creative Catering, Afro Deli, Zait & Za’atar, Mim’s Cafe, Hummus House and Nashville Coop, according to Alamin. The Undergraduate Student Government (USG), the School of Nursing and the Arabic Language Department also provide funds for food and catering.

Each night costs around $2,000, totaling nearly $33,000 for 20 nights, according to AMCC Secretary Heba Kaissi.

Alamin said the restaurants involved are very generous, often delivering food for free.

“One thing that I love is that the Muslim community is always willing to help,” Alamin said. “It’s a big cost for restaurants as well and a lot of them deliver free of charge, and they throw in extra stuff as well.”

Ramadan preparation officially started back in December, with many people filling a variety of roles. From event coordination to managing finances, being ready is a group effort, Kaissi said. Outreach makes up an important part of the preparation process.

“The best part of it is looking forward to it happening, and it makes all the hard work getting put into it worth all the hardship that it might have caused us,” Kaissi said.

For the weekday Iftars, the Ramadan Crew provides dates and water with which people break their fasts, according to Kaissi. Following prayer, food is set up and people either eat in Coffman Union or take their food to go.

Many Muslims break their fasts with dates as a way to emulate the Muslim prophet Muhammad, who broke his fast by eating three dates.

Ramadan Crew was unable to use the shared common space outside of the AMCC room on the second floor of Coffman Union, which they had used for the past two years to serve meals during Ramadan. The notice came a week and a half before the start of Ramadan, according to email correspondence between AMCC, MSA and Student Union and Activities staff.

University Building Services Director Beth Galatis said in an email sent to an AMCC executive on Feb. 24 that the space could not be used as a result of fire code issues.

The space outside AMCC is designated as shared or public space and can not be reserved, according to the SUA Event Services Policy last updated in 2022.

In an email to the Minnesota Daily, University spokesperson Andria Waclawski noted that shared spaces like corridors and lobbies must be accessible and unobstructed to comply with building safety regulations and ensure emergency access according to Minnesota Administrative Rules.

When asked why the policy had not been previously enforced in the years prior, Waclawski said SUA responded adequately when they were made aware of this year’s Ramadan planning.

“While I can’t speak to past events, SUA staff responded appropriately once they were made aware of this year’s event plan and took proactive steps to meet the needs of AMCC while maintaining the University’s responsibilities related to policy and safety requirements,” Waclawski said in the email.

Director of SUA Jason Hancock said SUA supports all registered student organizations in finding spaces for their events.

“We want all our student groups to have successful events and work closely with them to share event guidelines and regular communication regarding space expectations, safety best practices and University policy,” Hancock said. “We will be following up with all registered student groups to make sure these expectations and other event planning resources are clearly communicated.”

AMCC and MSA coordinated with SUA Events Services Manager Ana Sontag and other student groups on the second floor and utilized their designated spaces and conference rooms for daily Iftars.

SUA staff reserved rooms on the third floor for days when AMCC and MSA could not use other student groups’ spaces on the second floor, according to booking confirmations received by AMCC executives.

Alamin said the Black Student Union, Asian American Student Union and USG have been helpful in the process.

“They open up the room for us, and they keep it open later than they usually would and those student groups let us use their rooms free of charge,” Alamin said. “With those being non-Muslim student groups and them being so willing to help, it’s just amazing to see how much other people support us.”

Despite the obstacles in finding space to host Iftars, Kaissi said helping support Ramadan observance for the University community has been rewarding.

Kaissi said turnout for Iftar has been strong, exceeding expectations with nearly 200 people attending each night and quickly going through the food provided by sponsors.

“It means we’re feeding more people, and it means that we’re helping more people in the community,” Kaissi said.

The Ramadan Crew also provided meals during spring break, though to a smaller group of roughly 50 people, according to Alamin.

Kaissi said Ramadan Crew is eager to work with the University and SUA to find a consistent space for Iftars for next year and in the years to come.

“This is a very big community event that happens at the University of Minnesota, students are relying on us, and we’re relying on the University to help us figure this out,” Kaissi said.

Alamin said Ramadan is the time of year when she feels her happiest and at peace with the Muslim community on campus. She added the community that comes from it makes all the preparation and planning worth it.

“I love serving other people food and just sitting down afterward after a long day of fasting, and talking to people, meeting new people on campus,” Alamin said. “I just feel like the community is so worth it, and it’s so worth all the effort that we put in.” 

Kaissi said anyone is welcome to join whether they are Muslim or not. 

“We love to invite all kinds of people from any community,” Kaissi said. “At the end of the day, AMCC is a community space, so we definitely love to have more people of different communities join us.”

This year, Ramadan is expected to end on the evening of March 29 or 30. Eid al-Fitr, the Islamic celebration that marks the end of Ramadan, is expected to take place on Sunday, March 30 or Monday, March 31.