29.06.2008
a Muslim introduction
I met my new friend Habiba at Landmark Education. She grew up in the Muslim Community of Cape Town. A new day, a new experience here in Cape Town. Understanding the history of this country is not easy! whites/blacks/coloreds…and each of those groups are divided into several groups. The Muslim community used to be sent to ‘colored areas’ during the Apartheid. Not all colored people are Muslim. And to make it even more interesting: not all Muslims are one….there are those with an Indian background and those with an Arabic background. Habiba speaks Arabic. Her first language is English. Most ‘colored people’ speak Afrikaans. For Habiba, this was the language of the oppressor…she still refuses to speak it!
Yesterday i was part of a Muslim fundraiser for a feeding scheme for 4000 orphans in the black townships. 300 Muslim women (no man allowed! otherwise the women would not be able to dance) gathered in a hall next to the mosque. Their head scarfs in all happy colors made me feel as if I stepped into a beautiful field of flowers. I was the only not-Muslim in the audience. It was a great experience. The community was very welcoming. I was really happily surprised by this community. Most of them are not living in a lot of wealth either, but they care for the people in their country. White South Africans can learn something from their Muslim neighbours!
