First Muslim-operated homeless shelter for women opens in Dorchester
The Amal Women's Center says it is open to all women who need it.
On a Dorchester street lined with triple-deckers, one green house with
a vibrant purple door stands out.
The door opens to the Amal Women’s Center, a transitional home for
women and children operated by the Muslim social services
organization, ICNA Relief.
Opened this week, it marks the first Muslim-operated transitional
housing shelter in Massachusetts, according to Malika MacDonald-
Rushdan, ICNA Relief’s state field office director.
Amal means “hope” in Arabic, MacDonald-Rushdan explained. The
door’s vibrant purple color signifies that feeling.
“We hope to ease the transition, giving these women the support and
tools they need to gain self-sufficiency,” she said. That help includes guiding them to referrals programs that teach English as a second language and others offering classes to earn a high school equivalency
degree.
The center's caseworkers also provide assistance with skills training and job applications.The facility is open to all women seeking shelter.
The small transitional home opened its doors on April 17, and already
six of the 12 beds are occupied. To welcome the center to its Intervale
Street location, Boston Mayor Marty Walsh will take part in a ribbon-
cutting on Saturday.
Amal Women’s Center has been in the works for four years, and marks
ICNA Relief’s 14th facility across the country. It predated Donald Trump's presidential campaign, and has nothing to do with politics, MacDonald-Rushdan said.
She did note, however, that the center won’t accept undocumented women, which could jeopardize the program’s
existence.
Walsh and other city officials have been especially supportive of the
center, she said. The mayor has also been outspoken about ensuring
that Boston is a sanctuary city, which should protect and welcome
people from all countries and faiths.
Organizers aren’t worried about fitting in with their new neighborhood,
either. A mosque stands next door and the three-story home, which
went unoccupied for 20 years, had been a minister’s quarters, which
prominent Muslim leaders visited over the years.
“Our neighbor next door remembered Malcolm X walking up this
street,” MacDonald-Rushdan said. Photographs of Malcolm X and
Minister Louis Farrakhan, controversial leader of the Nation of Islam, hang on the walls inside the center.
The Muslim center’s kitchen follows Halal food preparation methods,
but MacDonald-Rushdan said the facility was welcoming to all, meant
to help any woman who needs it, no matter her belief.
“The environment in some of shelters — not just for a Muslim woman
but for women in general — sometimes the environment is not the
best,” MacDonald-Rushdan said. “And we want to give them a safe
place where they feel respected, where we preserve their dignity,
which often times I think is lacking in shelters today.”
Samyha, a 27-year-old woman, was just placed in the center this week
with her 5-year-old son. They are the only ones who are not Muslim
woman, a fact she said doesn’t bother her.
“They welcomed me in, I'm there and I’m thankful,” said Samyha,
whose first name is being used to protect her identity. “Even though
I’m not Muslim. The things I know about them now, I didn't know
before, so I’m going to be open-minded. You can't be judgmental —
they’re not judgmental toward me.”
Source:Metro U.S
The Amal Women's Center says it is open to all women who need it.
a vibrant purple door stands out.
The door opens to the Amal Women’s Center, a transitional home for
women and children operated by the Muslim social services
organization, ICNA Relief.
Opened this week, it marks the first Muslim-operated transitional
housing shelter in Massachusetts, according to Malika MacDonald-
Rushdan, ICNA Relief’s state field office director.
Amal means “hope” in Arabic, MacDonald-Rushdan explained. The
door’s vibrant purple color signifies that feeling.
“We hope to ease the transition, giving these women the support and
tools they need to gain self-sufficiency,” she said. That help includes guiding them to referrals programs that teach English as a second language and others offering classes to earn a high school equivalency
degree.
The center's caseworkers also provide assistance with skills training and job applications.The facility is open to all women seeking shelter.
The small transitional home opened its doors on April 17, and already
six of the 12 beds are occupied. To welcome the center to its Intervale
Street location, Boston Mayor Marty Walsh will take part in a ribbon-
cutting on Saturday.
Amal Women’s Center has been in the works for four years, and marks
ICNA Relief’s 14th facility across the country. It predated Donald Trump's presidential campaign, and has nothing to do with politics, MacDonald-Rushdan said.
She did note, however, that the center won’t accept undocumented women, which could jeopardize the program’s
existence.
Walsh and other city officials have been especially supportive of the
center, she said. The mayor has also been outspoken about ensuring
that Boston is a sanctuary city, which should protect and welcome
people from all countries and faiths.
Organizers aren’t worried about fitting in with their new neighborhood,
either. A mosque stands next door and the three-story home, which
went unoccupied for 20 years, had been a minister’s quarters, which
prominent Muslim leaders visited over the years.
“Our neighbor next door remembered Malcolm X walking up this
street,” MacDonald-Rushdan said. Photographs of Malcolm X and
Minister Louis Farrakhan, controversial leader of the Nation of Islam, hang on the walls inside the center.
The Muslim center’s kitchen follows Halal food preparation methods,
but MacDonald-Rushdan said the facility was welcoming to all, meant
to help any woman who needs it, no matter her belief.
“The environment in some of shelters — not just for a Muslim woman
but for women in general — sometimes the environment is not the
best,” MacDonald-Rushdan said. “And we want to give them a safe
place where they feel respected, where we preserve their dignity,
which often times I think is lacking in shelters today.”
Samyha, a 27-year-old woman, was just placed in the center this week
with her 5-year-old son. They are the only ones who are not Muslim
woman, a fact she said doesn’t bother her.
“They welcomed me in, I'm there and I’m thankful,” said Samyha,
whose first name is being used to protect her identity. “Even though
I’m not Muslim. The things I know about them now, I didn't know
before, so I’m going to be open-minded. You can't be judgmental —
they’re not judgmental toward me.”
Source:Metro U.S
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