Wendy Díaz

Every country has some variation of a rice and chicken dish. Indians and Pakistanis have biryani, Brazilians have galinhada, Nigerians have jollof, Chinese have chicken fried rice, Saudis have al kabsa, and so on.

Dates are all the craze in the health food world these days. It only takes a quick Google search to discover that the sugary fruit of the date palm tree native to the Middle East is rich in dietary fiber and antioxidants.

There is nothing quite like the hustle and bustle of Ramadan preparations in the Islamic community. Inside our places of worship is the dizzying commotion of planning the logistics of communal meals, nightly prayers, and special guest Quran reciters.

Here is a trivia question: How many times does Allah mention “Ramadan” in the Quran? If you said once, then you guessed correctly. While fasting is cited on a few occasions, the name of the oft-awaited month of fasting, Ramadan, only appears in the following verse:

March is National Reading Month, and this year it just so happens that Ramadan is also set to begin during this time. National Reading Month was established in 2011 by the U.S. Department of Education to encourage everyone, young and old, to read daily.

Islamophobia has played a major role in shaping the sociopolitical landscape of Western countries since the turn of the century. Unfortunately, women seem to bear the brunt of Islamophobic attacks because they are often the most vulnerable and visible targets.

When addressing the topic of Islamophobia in the Muslim community, the tendency is to focus on current events. Some of the manifestations of Islamophobia today are anti-Muslim legislation in Western countries, rising hate crimes, and smear campaigns on mainstream and social media.