Mediabox Ramadan Photography Project

This collection of photographs was taken by young people from the South Asian community in Bristol, to explore the importance of Ramadan.  The photographs were taken during Eid al-Fitr, a celebration making the end of Ramadan where people gather to pray, eat and celebrate together. These photographs provide an insight into this important religious festival.



Photography by Hira Hanif and Osman Hussain

Assembly at City Academy

On Tuesday 12th  we headed over to City Academy to deliver an exciting assembly presentation on community activism to inspire AS level students to get involved in the new Mediabox and Inter Act project at their school. The aim was to emphasise the power of community action and how powerful your voice can be. We wanted to inspire young people to take action and speak out about what was most important to them.

The presentation went well and we had several young people sign up with lots of ideas for action projects including a documentary about Islamophobia. We are really looking forward to getting started on this project and can't wait to see what ideas the students come up with.

Mediabox & InterAct: City Academy Visit to Refugee Rights Drop-in Centre

Last week we began the first sessions of our Mediabox and Inter Act project with City Academy. At the start of the week we met with AS level media students who will form the core of the group to introduce ourselves and find out how they would like to be involved.

Welcome Lunch

On Thursday we took 12 of the students to the Bristol Refugee Rights drop in centre for an introductory lunch and a chance to meet some of the young refugees who get support from the centre. Bristol Refugee Rights is a fantastic community organisation that provides a place of welcome for asylum seekers and refugees to meet and get support. They also campaign for human rights and support refugees and asylum seekers to play a full part in the life of the wider community.

Many of the students were a little overwhelmed when we arrived due to the sheer number of people who were there for the lunch. Food was provided by Awaz Utaoh, a local South Asian community organisation, and we were treated to an amazing selection of curries, dhal and rice dishes. When the lunchtime rush was quieting down we sat outside where the students were greeted by many of the refugees and asylum seekers who were keen to answer their questions and welcome them.

The afternoon took a slightly surreal turn when the props for the drama workshop taking place in the afternoon arrived.We were suddenly talking to people in amazing hats, masks and animal head dresses which the students found very amusing. This brightened the atmosphere and helped to put everyone at their ease.

It was a great afternoon and we hope that the students may be inspired to look at refugee and asylum issues for some of their social action project in the next few months.You can check out the rest of the photos from the day on our Flickr page here.

Mediabox & InterAct: Ramadan Photo Project

On Wednesday 25th August we met with 3 young people from South Asian community organisation Awaz Utaoh to being a photography project exploring Ramadan.We did several activities exploring what Ramadan means to each of the young people and choosing key themes for them to explore in photographs. Here are some of the words they came up with:

Ramadan or Ramzan is a time for fasting where Muslims of all ages do not eat or drink between the hours of dawn until sunset. It is a spiritual time of prayer and reflection and the young people said that fasting made them feel good and have good intentions towards others. Ramzan is also a time when Muslims give charitably, Zakat, and many of the young people were sending funds to their friends and families in Pakistan to help provide essential supplies to survive the terrible flooding.


The key themes they decided to focus on are:

Eid

The holiday that marks the end of Ramzan.

Chaand Raat

The night before Eid, a great time of celebration where families gather to spot the new moon tghat marks the end of Ramzan and the start of Eid.

Fasting

5 Pillars of Islam
5 practices that are essential for all Muslims.

It was amazing to speak to the young people about their faith and how it impacts on their lives. We hope that the photo exhibition will give an insight into what it means to be a young Muslim in Bristol. Watch this space for more details over the next few weeks.


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