UVI Voice

You see them every Wednesday at the bottom of the stairs in the Evans Center. Sometimes there are three of them and later on there would be five, sometimes more. You see their colorful fliers around campus on bulletin boards advertising their sales, sometimes dollar ($1) sales. They sell cakes, cupcakes, cookies, and at least one baked good from their home country.

They are a group of Muslim girls who are part of a recently established Muslim Student Association (MSA). They have already begun fundraising for their biggest event, bringing a speaker from the states down to the St. Croix campus to speak.

 Leena Yusuf, sophomore Early Childhood Education major and president of MSA said the Association’s goal is to “introduce the community and familiarize it with accurate Islamic culture and thought by sharing the spirit of Islam with Muslims and non-Muslims.”

Yusuf said she first thought of this when she was on her way home from UVI after class. She mentioned it to her friends and family and they started planning.

The Association plans on educating UVI and the community about Islam through activities and a big event towards the end of the semester, Amani Abdelghani, sophomore business administration major and MSA’s vice president said.

The Association plans to hold seminars, charity work, social and Islamic events, movie nights and an Islamic week. The Islamic week is on April 7-11, 2009. MSA has been fundraising to bring Baba Ali, a well-known inspirational speaker and comedian from the states to speak to UVI and UVI’s community. Details will be released later.

They have hosted several bake sales in order to raise the money that would fund the Islamic awareness week, and pay for Baba Ali to come speak at the St. Croix campus. The Association will continue to have bake sales every Wednesday until April, Abdelghani said.

Through their events, the Association hopes to dispel any misconceptions anyone might have of Islam and Muslims.

There are currently 11 members and membership is open to all students, faculty and staff regardless of sex, religion, or race, Abdelghani said.

The advisor is Professor Gerard Emanuel and the co-advisor is Ms. Eva Maddox.

 For more information, contact Yusuf; Abdelghani; Naela Hamad, secretary; Maysa Yusuf treasurer; Amneh Abdelghani, public relations, and Sana Hamed, media advisor. Alternatively, email uvi-msa@hotmail.com.

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