Fears as Muslim holiday could fall on September 11

A JOYOUS Muslim holiday that marks the end of Ramadan has the potential for misunderstandings or worse in the United States.

Eid al-Fitr falls around September 11 this year. Muslim leaders fear that their festive gatherings could be misinterpreted as a celebration of the 2001 terrorist strikes.

The exact date of the holiday is not yet known. Muslims follow a lunar calendar, so the holiday could fall anywhere from Thursday, September 9, to Saturday, September 11.

Traditionally, Muslims exchange gifts, hold parties and fill mosques to overflowing.

American Muslim groups are contacting law enforcement, civil rights officials and interfaith leaders to alert them to the overlap and the possible trouble it could cause.

The Muslim Public Affairs Council, an advocacy group based in Los Angeles, is contacting law enforcement and the Justice Department civil rights division to alert them to the overlap.

The Islamic Circle of North America, which organises Muslim Family Days at the Six Flags amusement park in several cities around Eid al-Fitr, this year planned nothing for Saturday, September 11, because of the anniversary. A founder of Muslim Family Day, Tariq Amanullah, worked at the World Trade Centre and was killed in the attacks.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations, a Washington-based civil rights group, is urging mosques to review the group’s security guidelines, including clearing brush where people could hide and installing surveillance cameras.

“The issue I can sense brewing on hate sites on the internet is, ‘These Muslims are celebrating on September 11,’” said Ibrahim Hooper, national spokesman for CAIR. “It’s getting really scary out there.”

Eid al-Fitr is one of the two biggest Muslim holidays of the year, often compared to Christmas in its significance and revelry. The other major holiday is Eid al-Adha, at the end of the hajj, the annual pilgrimage to Mecca.

Haroon Moghul, a New York Muslim leader, said mosque leaders have been discussing Eid al-Fitr for months.

Moghul said most New York Muslims likely won’t celebrate the way they normally do, and noted that a significant number lost relatives when the World Trade Center was destroyed.