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  On Saturday, April 23, 2022, The World Muslim Communities Council organized a virtual Ramadan Symposium entitled "A New Chapter of USA-Muslim Communities Relations and Role of NGOs".

  The symposium witnessed the participation of His Excellency Dr. Ali Rashid Al Nuaimi, Chairman of The World Muslim Communities Council; Ms. Zainab Al-Suwaij, co-founder & Executive Director, the American Islamic Congress (AIC), USA; and Dr. Hassan Abbas, Distinguished Professor of International Relations, Near East South Asia Centre for Strategic Studies, National Defense University, Washington DC, USA.

  Dr. Qamar Al-Huda,  Adjunct Professor, Georgetown University, USA also participated in the symposium; with Ms. Virginia Henry Gray, founder & Director, Fons Vitae, U.S.A.

  His Excellency Dr. Ali Rashid Al Nuaimi, Chairman of The World Muslim Communities Council, said that the Muslims of the United States of America should win the minds and hearts of Americans by applying the principles of Islam, noting that he had visited the United States of America and America’s section at the Expo, and demanded that they present their contributions, so that they are available to all of humanity. 

  Al-Nuaimi added that Muslims in the United States of America are divided, as every community owns a mosque, stressing the need to put aside our political differences, and to convey the true image of Islam, explaining that Muslims in America did not do like their counterparts in Southeast Asia, who carried the values ​​of Islam.

  The Chairman of the Council stressed that American Muslims must reconsider their accounts and integrate into American society, especially since many around the world want to break up our unity, even though we all live on one planet.

  Ms. Zainab Al-Suwaij, co-founder & Executive Director, the American Islamic Congress (AIC), USA, said that relations between Muslims and America are witnessing a new chapter, where the NGOs play an important role.

  Al-Suwaij added that many surveys clarified the influence of the United States of America on the world, indicating that the Muslim community felt that they were living a new era of the relationship with the United States of America during the rule of President Obama, especially after his famous sermon at Cairo University.

  She explained that she had launched a program to reduce violence, in which more than 24,000 young people from around the world participated, which was very successful, and succeeded in reducing the level of violence to 42%, noting that the responsibility placed on NGOs is great to support the stability of societies.

  Dr. Hassan Abbas, Distinguished Professor of International Relations, Near East South Asia Centre for Strategic Studies, National Defense University, Washington DC, USA, said that Islam is part of American society, stressing the need to strengthen cooperation between the Muslim community and the American society.

  He added that the number of mosques in the United States of America reached 2,200, which indicates the significant increase in the number of Muslims in recent years.

  Abbas stressed that the world has an innate response to unity and cooperation during major crises such as the Corona pandemic, noting that contacting anyone has become easier due to the Internet.

  Dr. Qamar Al-Huda,  Adjunct Professor, Georgetown University, USA, said that Ramadan is the month of meditation and forgiveness, and that Muslims in America should reflect on the events that are going on around them, stressing that the American Muslim community is a distinguished, and plays an important role, so they must face the challenges and help humanity.

  He added that the world is suffering from a crisis of discrimination based on religion, race, and gender, noting that the situation requires establishing a dialogue within the Muslim community to unify efforts, understand diversity, and devote coexistence with other cultures and religions.

  At the conclusion of the symposium, Ms. Virginia Henry Gray, founder & Director, Fons Vitae, U.S.A, said that we must help each other, respect others, and believe that there is no deity except Allah.

  Gray added that she began reading the biography of Imam Al-Ghazali at the age of 21, and then traveled to study at Al-Azhar University in Cairo, when she began thinking about solving the problem of translating Islamic books for readers in Western countries, to correct the image of Islam.

  The founder and director of Fons Vitae explained that she has started translating Islamic books and Imam Al-Ghazali's books for children into about 27 languages, to teach them the fundamentals of the Islam, and how to pray and perform Hajj since childhood, in order to grow up on the principles of Islam.