BUFFALO, N.Y. — Celebrations of the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr went on in Western New York on Sunday in spite of the coronavirus.
A car parade went from the University at Buffalo to the Islamic Center in Amherst on Sunday, a socially distant way to celebrate the end of Ramadan and weeks of fasting in the Muslim community.
In Florida, with no congregational prayers or family gatherings, Salsabiel Mujovic had been worried that this year’s Eid al-Fitr celebration will pale.
Still, she was determined to bring home holiday cheer amid the coronavirus gloom. Her family is praying at home and her kids are decorating cookies for Eid in a virtual gathering.
Like Mujovic, many Muslims in America are navigating balancing religious and social rituals with concerns over the virus as they look for ways to capture the Eid spirit this weekend.
“Growing up, I always loved Eid," Mujovic says of the Islamic holiday. "It’s like a Christmas for a Muslim.”