Over 500 mosque leaders and volunteers from across the country from diverse backgrounds, as well as over 25 exhibitors gathered at Leicester City Football Club to discuss how we can make our mosques more relevant and appealing to our youth.
The MCB held its first ever event during Black History Month on 29th October in Parliament. A packed audience heard compelling interventions from a range of expert speakers on the topic of what it means to be Black, Muslim and British in the current context. The event was a continuation of the hugely successful Proudly Black and Muslim conference organised by the MCB earlier in the year. The report findings from that conference and further events on issues concerning Black Muslims will be announced soon, so please do keep a look out. A final and special thanks to Naz Shah MP who not only hosted our event but was present throughout despite a busy day in the House of Commons. You can see the interactions of people present on social media on the day here.
General Election 2019
The UK is holding a General Election on 12th December 2019. The Muslim Council of Britain sees this General Election as an opportunity for British Muslims to make their voices heard by exercising their civil obligation to fully engage and participate in the political process. It is important for Mosques and Islamic Centres to work with their communities to play an active role in the elections, by helping their congregations ensure they are registered to vote, and emphasising the importance of political participation.
Voting is not a luxury – it is the responsibility of all citizens. The Muslim Council of Britain calls on Muslims across the UK to take the first step to exercising this essential right by ensuring they are registered to vote with their local authority. You can read our statement, with information on how to register to vote, here.
Watch out for more information from the MCB about our work over the General Election on our website and social media pages. For more information on the work of the MCB during the General Election, or for any help in registering to vote, please contact [email protected].
Autism Hour
Visiting the mosque is an integral part of a Muslim’s life but for autistic Muslims, it is often a difficult and anxiety-filled experience with too many bright lights, packed and crowded halls, loud announcements and aadhan, but simple measures can make your mosque more accessible. On Sunday 6 October 2019, as part of national Autism Hour Week, many mosques up and down the country opened their doors to autistic children and their families. Click here to find out more.
Kashmir Crisis
The MCB's Legal Affairs Committee this month called on the Bar Council and Law Society to lead the charge against the increasing and persistent human rights violations in Indian occupied Kashmir. You can read our press release and the letters here.
End of Life Care
The report of the MCB Research & Documentation Committee into End of Life Care in Muslim Communities, launched at City Hall, London in August received well by attendees and affiliates alike, as being a necessary conversation that needs to be had in our community.
Many of you have projects and facilities that cater for, and engage, with the elderly. As part of our follow up work in this are, we need you to provide further information on these activities to us so that good-practice examples can be collated and promoted. Email [email protected] now!
Open Tender - Mosque Portal
The Muslim Council of Britain is developing a Community Funding Portal micro-site to assist Muslim community organisations in accessing best practice documents, useful templates and funding opportunities.
If you would like to offer a proposal to carry out the work for this micro-site project, please email [email protected].
Upcoming Events and Campaigns
Living Wage Week 2019
Living Wage Week is almost upon us! The campaign, initiated by Citizens UK and endorsed by the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, runs from November 11-17 2019.
The MCB has just become an accredited Living Wage Employer. We will be taking a full part in promoting this great initiative in the coming weeks, when you can find out how you can join this important campaign.
Please watch our Deputy Secretary General, Hassan Joudi, below talking about why you should get involved.
30 October 2019
Hassan Joudi, Deputy Secretary General, visited the site of an arson attack on the proposed place for the building of a mosque in Skegness. He was joined by local residents and councillors as well as UKIM who all stood united against Islamophobia.
29 October 2019
Harun Khan, Secretary General,met the Turkish Ambassador HE Umit Yalcin at his residency on the 96th anniversary of the Republic of Turkey.
28 October 2019
Hassan Joudi and Tabetha Bhatti, Public Affairs Officermet with Matthew Reed, CEO of Marie Curie to discuss improving End of Life care in Muslim communities.
25 October 2019
Tabetha Bhatti and Lamees Hafeez,represented the MCB at a vigil organised by Stand Up To Racism for the 39 migrants found dead in a lorry in Essex.
25 October 2019
Harun Khan attended the Ethnicity Awards 2019, presenting an award to Sir Simon Woolley.
24 October 2019
Rashidat Hassan, Assistant Secretary General, was live on Islam Channel to discuss the Proudly Black and Muslim initiative she has been leading on.
19 October 2019
Harun Khanspoke at the conference on marriage and family life organised by the affiliates FOMWAUK.
18 October 2019
Hassan Joudi joined COSMOS UK for their hosting of the inauguration of the World Forum for Sri Lankan Muslims.
15 October 2019
Hassan Joudi attended the annual Muslim Council of Wales (MCW) dinner in Cardiff celebrating 20 years of devolution.
13 October 2019
Hassan Joudi with FMO Leicester welcomed visitors from the Islamic Council of Norway to the UK and facilitated a tour of Oadby Central Mosque (Masjid Al-Ameen).
Public Engagement
Select Committee Hearing
Harun Khan gave oral evidence to the Department for Work and Pensions Select Committee on the issue of the two-child policy and how it affects Muslim families.
You can watch the hearing in full here, or read the transcript here.
