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Showing posts from May, 2019
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Muslims worldwide are about to enter the second half of Ramadan, a month widely known to the public as one for fasting. However, growing concerns around the environmental crisis and social struggles across the globe have lead Muslims to consider its deeper meaning. For an increasing number of Muslims, Ramadan is interpreted as a time when they distance themselves from material needs, reconnect with nature and spirituality, acknowledge the suffering on the planet and challenge destructive behaviours. It is a time for resistance to consumerism and oppression. In the UK, an increasing number of Muslims are becoming aware that consumer culture is  hijacking Ramadan . In 2018, brands unashamedly turned the sacred time of  suhoor  – the meal before dawn – into a party, and called for Ramadan to become  the equivalent of the Christmas season  in terms of its commercialism. But my research shows that a powerful counter-narrative and a new  generation of Mus...