Under One Tent is a community project that aims to bring together people of all faiths and the community as a whole. For Open Iftar they are inviting the homeless and public in general to break fast together at sunset during the holy month of Ramadan. We had a word with its founder Faith Elsayed.
I wasn’t born here, however I see myself as Irish more than any other nationality. I’ve been here seventeen years since first class. I lived for four years in Bantry, a year in Waterford and the last 12 in Drogheda. I went to university in DIT doing spatial planning and started a job in Facebook this week.
Last year it started as the Ramadan Tent Project. This year we decided to expand on this and extend it beyond Ramadan. We want to concentrate on the homeless and the community at large, we wanted to expand it into an outreach project.
The purpose of the project is to open the door for different groups to come and join together. Anyone can walk in, sit down and have a chat. What better way to have it than at a dinner?
Iftar is breaking fast. During Ramadan we fast from sunrise to sunset. Open Iftar means it is open to everyone. Having more of these projects in the city creates a unity of community where different groups understand more about each other and network together. You break the barrier. If the event was in the mosque it may not be as encouraging for people to go.
Compared to other European countries, the Muslin community is well integrated here. I really believe that more of these projects can make a difference though.
Under One Tent (Open Iftar) is on from Friday June 9th to Sunday June 11th in St Patrick’s Cathedral Park from sunset each evening.
