On Tuesday, Dec. 16, Hamden High’s Muslim Student Union (MSU) had its first event of the year. This event was held in Mr. Coss’s room, with food catered by Dave’s Hot Chicken and mehndi drawn by Maya Bensrhir, with the goal of the event being to “spread awareness of the Muslim community at HHS,” according to Manaal Hussain, a junior who is the president of the club. This event was the result of three weeks of planning, and it was a success; all of the 20 people in attendance said that they had a wonderful time. Rim Hairane, a junior who is the historian of MSU, said that “[she] was having a nice time seeing friends. And I get to eat food.” Adiyat Ali, a senior, said that he “had a nice time and it was worth being [there].” 

The goal of MSU is “to share Muslim culture, get everyone involved [in it], and build a positive community,” according to Mrs. Elliotts, the club advisor. They intend to do that by fundraising and collaborating with other religious clubs like the Jewish Students Association. They have had two meetings this year, on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, depending on people’s availability. They have two main gatherings each year, one in the winter and one more for Multicultural Day, in the spring. This year is Sumaya Fnu’s first year serving as the vice president of MSU, and she said, “[We will] definitely have an event for Eid or Ramadan, maybe something for an iftar, but that might be too late.” Hussain and Mrs. Elliotts echoed this sentiment.