By Daiem Mohammad
(Daiem is a journalist with the Focus Media Arts Centre)

4GetAboutIt wishes you Ramadan Mubarak! 4GetAboutIt is a youth collective involved with RPTV. In this episode, our 4GetAboutIt TV hosts discuss the beginning of Ramadan and how it affects their community.

“Ramadan Mubarak”, simply means “Blessed Ramada”. Ramadan is the holiest month in Islam, and during the month, practicing Muslims fast from sunrise to sunset every day, leading up to Eid, the first day after Ramadan, which acts as a celebration of culture and community.

With three out of the four hosts of 4GetAboutIt TV being practicing Muslims, hosts Daiem Mohammad, Saima Islam, and Samir Abdella discuss how Ramadan usually affects them. Samir comments on its effect on his energy, with the limited amount of food and sleep that he generally gets.

The conversation soon transitions into how Ramadan also accentuates the sense of community present in their home of Regent Park. Saima recollects one night where her mother was unsure about going to prayer, (Islam follows a lunar calendar, so there tends to be some disagreement on when the month of Ramadan starts) but as soon as she left her house, she was instantly comfortable. All around her were community members, seemingly calling for her to join them in prayer.

Daiem calls on the power of nostalgia, remembering the chilly peace of going to Tim Hortons after prayer, with the cool breeze from the summer in the nighttime cooling his skin from the warmth of friendship and community that only gets stronger with Ramadan. The group also talks about different mosques they attend, Jamelia’s experience with Ramadan as a non-Muslim, the importance of discussing cultural events that aren’t always in the mainstream discussion, and so much more!