Harun Nasrullah
A crowd-funding campaign aiming to protect the livelihoods of mosque staff in the US has raised $200,00.
To pay their staff, mosques rely on donations collected during Friday prayers as well as nightly fundraisers during Ramadan but with mosques closed due to the Covid-19 lockdown, many mosques are left financially struggling.
Funds raised by the Caring for Our Own campaign will be distributed to mosques that apply one-time grants ranging between $5,000 and $10,000.
The initiative is spearheaded by Muslim crowd-funding platform LaunchGood, the American Muslim Community Foundation philanthropic organisation.
The campaign states the lockdown has had a ‘severe financial strain for masjids across America’ and the ‘employment of thousands of Imams & staff’ is at risk.
Muhi Khwaja, co-founder of the American Muslim Community Foundation told The Muslim News, “We are so excited to and honored to be distributing over $200,000 to masajid across the United States in this time of the Coronavirus.
More than 45 masajid have applied and our grant review committee will make decisions by May 10, allowing AMCF & our partner NAIT to distribute funds on Ramadan. Muslims must not neglect their clergy and spiritual institutions, particularly mosques in underprivileged communities, during times of crisis,” said Yasir Qadhi, a member of the Fiqh Council of North America.
He continued “The consequences of this impact have varied but some masjids and Islamic centres have had to make the difficult decisions to either reduce the salary of their Imams and other staff members to half or worse, to terminate their contracts.”
“Most mosques in America are already struggling financially, and many people who work for mosques – clergy and staff – are underpaid and overworked as it is. Many have chosen these professions and careers not for the sake of financial rewards but for the benefits of giving back to their communities,” added Qadhi.