Human Beings,
Not Numbers
Making
Amends
Racist past
jettisoned in
renaming
college dorm
Art shines on the
humanity of the
incarcerated
‘City
of
Roses’
See Metro, page 9
Volume XLVI • Number 29
See Local News, page 3
Established in 1970
www.portlandobserver.com
Wednesday • July 19, 2017
Committed to Cultural Diversity
Photo by C hrista M C i ntyre /t he P ortland o bserver
Students at Madison High form the Muslim Student Alliance, working together to break stereotypes about Islam, picking up leadership and education skills, while
volunteering in the community. Pictured from left (top row) are Ahlam Osman, Fowzia Ibrahim, Balkissa Noor and Amira Jeylani; and (front row) Yasmin Elmi, Samaax Noor
and Zahra Abukar.
Empowered
by C hrista M C i ntyre
t he P ortland o bserver
A group of students at Madison High, the most ethni-
cally and culturally diverse school in Oregon, is leading
the way to facilitate positive perceptions about families in
Portland who have emigrated from Muslim-majority coun-
tries around the world. The young adults formed one of the
first of its kind, the Muslim Student Alliance to educate and
break stereotypes about the culture and religion of Islam.
As sophomore Samaax Noor, a member of the alliance
explained, “At Madison no one tolerates racism. You can
Madison grows Muslim
Student Alliance
walk down the hall, go into a classroom and explore a whole
new culture. Then go down the hall, into another classroom
and see something completely different, but you’re still
welcome. That’s the beauty of it all.”
It was during the holy month of Ramadan last year, as
many of these students observed their faith in silence, that
the roots for change were generated. From dawn until dusk
Muslim students at the northeast Portland school fasted in
the tradition of the religious observance, continuing with
the same dedication to their classes as in other months.
During P.E., for example, Muslim students would
stretch, run laps, and push their bodies to the edge while
practicing their faith by foregoing water and food. Many of
their fellow students and teachers weren’t even aware of the
cultural and religious practices.
This year during Ramadan, Muslim students at Madison
met in a classroom set aside during the lunch period as a
designated space where fasting students could support one
another. The math classroom of Miss Brown, who has sup-
ported the alliance from its beginning, became a symbol of
C ontinued on P age 5