Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Muslims in New York, joined by allies, observe the holy month of Ramadan
By
Arun Venugopal
Published Mar 21, 2023
Modified Mar 24, 2023
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
Selcuk Acar/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images
By
Arun Venugopal
Published Mar 21, 2023
Modified Mar 24, 2023
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Muslims in New York and across the world are marking the holy month of Ramadan by breaking their daily fast each evening, but occasionally they’ll be joined by Jewish friends.
These include Rabbi Joshua Stanton, who will join Jews and Muslims on Friday at his synagogue, East End Temple in Gramercy, for a “vegetarian, halal, kosher-style” Turkish meal followed by “deep dialogue.”
“I think that the time of year is of such significance to Muslim colleagues and friends that it lends itself to something more soulful,” Stanton said. “This is about moving beyond platitudes into conversations about our families and our day-to-day lives where we find meaning and where we sometimes are at a loss for meaning.”
The dinner is organized by the New Jersey-based Peace Islands Institute and is part of what some Muslim leaders say has been a welcome trend in recent years: efforts by members of various faiths to find common cause with Islamic communities. Ramadan is expected to begin Wednesday, after the sighting of the crescent moon over Mecca.
It's such a fun time. It makes you kind of think and get out of your normal routine. So I'm looking forward to that.
New Jersey Assemblymember Sadaf Jaffer
Sadaf Jaffer, a member of the New Jersey Assembly and a former mayor of Montgomery Township – and the first Muslim woman to serve as a mayor in the U.S. — said the so-called Muslim travel ban instituted under the Trump administration brought the community’s difficulties “to the fore and brought it to the attention of a lot of neighbors and friends. ‘Hey, we need to kind of support the Muslim community, learn about them, and as a way to combat hate.’”
At times, the services go in both directions.
Associate Rabbi Andy Kahn at Congregation Emanu-El of the City of New York said his congregation will participate in an interfaith iftar on March 30 at the Islamic Center of North America in Queens, and would also host its own iftar with Peace Islands Institute on April 7.
The iftar, Kahn said, followed Shabbat services, which would include remarks by Emre Celik, the executive director of the Institute, who was previously the project coordinator for a Holocaust Education Project designed for Muslim students.
“By standing together, building bridges and bonds of friendship and mutual respect, and taking the time to show up for each other during important moments, we are strengthening both of our communities, which is important to do during times of celebration (such as Ramadan) as well as times of difficulty,” Kahn wrote in an email.
He added that by “times of difficulty” he was referring both to antisemitism and “ongoing Islamophobia facing Muslim communities nationwide.”
For some Muslims, the iftar, an evening meal where the fast is broken after prayers, serves as an opportunity to draw attention to domestic politics.
In 2017, MPower Change, a progressive Muslim organization, held an iftar outside of Trump Tower in Manhattan, a deliberately confrontational gesture, according to Ishraq Ali, the group’s organizing director.
This year, said Ali, the group intends to hold an iftar with refugees in mind.
“Muslims that are asylum-seekers coming into the country are looking to be grounded in community,” Ali said.
Other Muslim groups are using the month to address political issues abroad.
Hena Zuberi, the director of advocacy at Chicago-based organization Justice for All, said the group’s Save Uyghur campaign asks Muslims to “fast” from Chinese-made products this Ramadan. This is due to the ongoing repression of Muslims in China and reports from Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International that religious fasting is treated as a sign of extremism.
“We will also be using this time to call for more food aid for Rohingya as well as resettlement of 10,000 Rohingya and 10,000 Uyghur in the United States,” Zuberi said in an email, adding that the group will also use Ramadan to share its report “The Nazification of India” with interfaith partners.
Jaffer said she intends to speak in support of making January “Muslim Heritage Month” at an interfaith iftar on March 30, at Montgomery Township’s Blawenburg Reformed Church. Ultimately, however, she sees Ramadan as an opportunity for people to gather and enjoy each other’s company over a meal.
“It's such a fun time,” Jaffer said. “It makes you kind of think and get out of your normal routine. So I'm looking forward to that.”
This story has been updated to correct the spelling of Ishraq Ali and Hena Zuberi.
Tagged
muslim americans
new york city
Race And Justice Unit
Ramadan
Arun Venugopal
Arun Venugopal is a senior reporter for the WNYC and Gothamist Race & Justice Unit who focuses on issues of race and bias in our region. His reporting also tackles the topics of immigration, faith, and inequality. Arun serves as the regular fill-in host of the station's "U.S. of Anxiety" program. Arun was the creator and host of Micropolis, a series about race and identity. He is a contributor to NPR's Morning Edition and All Things Considered. He has appeared on PBS Newshour, On the Media and Studio 360, and has been published in The Guardian, The Wall Street Journal and Salon. He also frequently serves as an emcee and moderator of panel discussions on race, religion, and identity issues and has been a guest host of NPR's "Fresh Air." He lives with his family in Queens.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Deer are all over New Jersey roads looking for sex, state officials warn
Mid-October through mid-December is deer mating season, which can be a danger to drivers as the sex-seeking creatures cross roadways throughout the Garden State.
By
Rosemary Misdary
Published Oct 16, 2026 at 4:22 p.m. ET
Man messaged 'I got straight poison' before giving NYC college students fentanyl, feds say
A transcript from an April court hearing sheds new light on what transpired at Fashion Institute of Technology.
By
Samantha Max
News
Man messaged 'I got straight poison' before giving NYC college students fentanyl, feds say
A transcript from an April court hearing sheds new light on what transpired at Fashion Institute of Technology.
By
Samantha Max
Inside the plan to fix the nearly collapsed Pfizer Building, 1/64th of an inch at a time
By
David Brand
School bus carrying autistic students got lost in Brooklyn for 4 hours last year
By
Jessica Gould
NYC’s bridges can last 'forever,' if we take care of them
By
Clayton Guse
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .