For Immediate Release:
September 14, 2009

Contact: Rushda Majeed, (212) 870-2552 x 2, rushda@asmasociety.org

NYC Pluralism: Over 150 Muslims Hold Iftaar in Church
on the Eve of the Jewish New Year

NEW YORK – Over 150 New York Muslims will join together with interfaith supporters for Iftaar, breaking of the fast, during this holy month of Ramadan.

At this year’s Iftaar, Ms. Fatima Shama, Commissioner of Immigrant Affairs, will be honored for her distinguished leadership and public service to New York.

A living example of the hope for a future of peace and pluralism, the Iftaar will take place this Friday in the same Upper West Side venue that will host Jewish New Year’s services on Saturday and Christian services on Sunday.

The Iftaar will be held from 7:00-10:00 PM on September 18th at St. Paul and St. Andrew Church, 263 West 86th Street (West End Avenue), New York, NY 10024.

Cordoba Initiative (CI), an independent, multi-national, and multi-faith organization, responds to tensions between the Muslim World and the West by offering innovative solutions with concrete outcomes that strategically engage four key areas of Muslim-West friction: religious interpretation, policy, public perception/media, and Muslim-West identity (youth leadership and gender equality).

The American Society for Muslim Advancement (ASMA), is a New York-based nonprofit organization created to elevate the discourse on Islam and foster environments in which Muslims thrive. We are dedicated to strengthening an authentic expression of Islam based on cultural and religious harmony through interfaith collaboration, youth and women’s empowerment, and arts and cultural exchange.

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