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Thursday, March 28
The Indiana Daily Student

IU's Muslim Student Association welcomes new members

Campus Filler

This past weekend, sophomore Luma Khabbaz joined millions of others across the nation in the Women’s March in Chicago. Khabbaz, like many others, she said, embraced her many identities — she is a woman, a student, a daughter, an aspiring journalist and a Muslim — while at the march.

“More than ever it’s important for us to unite with these groups,” Khabbaz said.

After being involved in IU’s Muslim Student Association her freshman year, Khabbaz is now a board member and the public relations chair for the organization.

IU’s MSA started roughly six or seven years ago, junior and Vice President Aatif 
Basher said.

“It was just like a small group of friends,” Basher said.

Now, the MSA is host to a variety of different events, ranging from weekly prayer services to social events. One of the main goals of MSA is to incorporate and market to more than just those of the Muslim faith.

The association allows anyone interested in the organization the opportunity to participate and gain membership, according to its online constitution. Due to the political climate members stress the importance of inclusion and unity.

“When the election was done, we sent out a Facebook post and an email saying we’re here for you guys, you know, if anybody has any issues or concerns or just want to talk about anything that’s going on, please feel free to contact any one of us,” 
Basher said.

The MSA also wants to increase diversity within the group. Sophomore and 
social justice and philanthropy chair Laamia Hussain said the group received some criticism from black members, who started using #BlackInMSA on Twitter to the point it started trending.

“It was basically just black students talking about the way they were treated in the MSA and how they didn’t really feel like they fit in, so one of our focuses this previous semester was increasing the diversity in MSA,” Hussain said.

One way Hussain has tried to increase diversity and spread the word about the organization through her position is through the collaboration with different student groups at the MSA’s functions.

Hussain said for her first event she reached out to various organizations like the African Student Organization, Arab Student Association 
and more.

“We came together and basically just talked about how we celebrated holidays within Islam based off of our own cultures and stuff,” 
Hussain said.

The MSA has taken advantage of campus events and common areas on campus to gain exposure. Islam Awareness Week takes place every year at the end of March. Last year Basher said the group received genuine attention from students.

“We did a lot of tabling at popular spots around campus, like Woodburn, around Kelley, at Wells,” Basher said. “People came up to our booth and were able to talk to us about our faith compared to their own and even try on a hijab and see what it’s like.”

Khabbaz said the group is hoping to transform this year and this semester in light of recent political and social activity. Part of this transformation comes especially in collaboration with one different groups and people.

“Alone we can’t solve Islamophobia or homophobia,” Khabbaz said. “The more identities you attach to someone the harder it is for them to thrive in a society like this.”

Also taking place in March is the MSA’s first interfaith project with Bloomington’s local Habitat for Humanity chapter. Senior Adviser Fariha Hossain said the inspiration for this project goes back two years ago, after three Muslim students at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill were shot and killed.

Hossain said the deaths were still being investigated and authorities were unsure if it was a hate crime, but since the group was involved with habitat for Humanity, he said his chapter wanted to honor them by helping 
as well.

The MSA will work with other religious student groups to be host to a fundraising dinner in Alumni Hall in relation to the project. The dinner is set to take place March 5.

“We’re trying to grow and expand our horizons and do a lot more this year and last year than we did in the past,” Basher said.

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