Muslim asylum seekers say food served at Queens shelter is not halal, cannot be eaten during Ramadan
NEW YORK -- Advocates for Muslim asylum seekers in New York City claim shelters housing them are disproportionately underserved, especially as they need to fast for Ramadan.
It should be a time for peaceful reflection on the holy days, but it's not at the Bellerose shelter in Queens.
"We need help. Really, really, really need help," said Abdoulaye Bah.
Bah, from Guinea, West Africa, has been in the U.S. for seven months. He lives at the Bellerose shelter with other single men, most of whom are West African Muslims and can only eat just before dawn and after sunset during Ramadan.
"When the refugees get the food, they have to say to themselves, 'Do I sustain my health or do I stay true to my religion?'" said Muhammad Mazhar, a shelter volunteer.
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Mazhar and others at the shelter say it's because the food they're getting isn't halal, which is forbidden.
Before being asked by security to come back to the shelter Friday, a group of asylum seekers came out to show they're wearing the same clothes and shoes they arrived with.
Advocate Kabir Javaid shared how he's seen the city respond to requests to have religious groups step in to help, as others have with shelters that don't predominantly house Muslims.
"When the Muslim organizations ask them, 'Hey, make us the same, give us the same credentials as Catholic Charities,' ... there's no funding for them," said Javaid.
A City Hall spokesperson said about 65,000 asylum seekers are still under the city's care and that it's grateful for the Islamic leaders who've helped, and, "... we will continue to work with our faith leaders on how best to provide migrants with the support they need."
"We can do delivery, we can clean. Most of the jobs, the citizens cannot do it but they cannot give chance to us. We are Africans, we are ready to help, we are ready to pay tax," said Bah.
Bah fears retaliation for speaking out, as he's gotten reprimanded in the past for criticizing the shelter's food. He said he's left with no other choice.
