New York City has launched a new initiative to support and facilitate the broadcast of the call to prayer, or azan, from mosques across the city on Fridays as well as during evening prayers during the month of Ramadan. A decision that fosters a spirit of inclusion, according to Mayor Eric Adams.
“We want our Muslim brothers and sisters to know that they are free to live their faith in New York because now under the law we will all be treated the same. Our administration is proud to have finally achieved this result,” said the city’s mayor in a statement relayed on the New York City website. Police Commissioner Edward Caban hailed a fundamental step “for religious freedom, understanding, lasting peace and prosperity for all.”
The new guidelines will allow mosques to broadcast the call to prayer between 12:30 p.m. and 1:30 a.m. every Friday, without having to apply for a special permit in the face of noise restrictions in force in different parts of the city. They will also allow the broadcast of the azan – between 3 and 5 minutes – during the Maghreb prayers each day of the holy month of Ramadan, calling for the breaking of the fast at sunset.
Read also
Mecca swept away by a violent storm
The mayor assured that the police will work together with Muslim religious leaders to communicate the new guidelines and ensure that devices for playing azan are set to appropriate decibel levels. Places of worship will be allowed to broadcast up to 10 decibels above the ambient sound level. A similar decision had already authorized the broadcast of the call to prayer in the city of Minneapolis, in March 2022.
Bad timing?
New York City’s Muslim community welcomed the announcement. “It is very important for our children. Many of us elders grew up hearing the azan in our homes. We missed him,” said Mohammad Bahe, Muslim community liaison officer in the mayor’s office, quoted by Middle East Eyes media. “I see my students struggling to retain their Muslim identity. Many are afraid to talk about it,” said Somaia Ferozi, principal of the Islamic School of New York, from the Associated Press. “Hearing the call to prayer in public during our holy days will confirm to them that this is their city and that they have the right to worship like everyone else. »
But some denounce the timing of this announcement. The mayor of New York had visited Israel last week where he met with Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister and his far-right government. His visit comes at a tense time as the Israeli government attempts to ram through its controversial justice reform and continues to escalate violence against Palestinians. Since the beginning of 2023, the number of young Palestinians killed by Israeli forces is still on the rise, nearly surpassing the record figure of 35 minors killed in 2022.
Read also
Normalization with Israel: Saudi Arabia plays the Palestinian card
“Allowing mosques to broadcast the azan is an important step in the inclusion of New York’s Muslim communities. However, this decision is tarnished by the fact that it comes immediately after Mayor Adams’ shameful trip to meet the Israeli leaders who are trampling on the freedom, rights and dignity of Palestinian Muslims and Christians”, denounces Nerdeen Kiswani, Palestinian activist and founder of Within Our Lifetime Palestine, quoted by Middle East Eyes. This visit “in the deadliest year for Palestinians in the West Bank since 2005 is a slap in the face for Muslim communities around the world”, she adds.
New York City has launched a new initiative to support and facilitate the broadcast of the call to prayer, or azan, from mosques across the city on Fridays as well as during evening prayers during the month of Ramadan. A decision that fosters a spirit of inclusion, according to Mayor Eric Adams. “We want our Muslim brothers and sisters to know that they…
2023-08-30 18:07:22
#York #City #mosques #broadcast #call #prayer
