Nearly two hundred guests joined CIOGC and the Northern Illinois Conference of the United Methodist Church on April 19 to celebrate 12 years of unity at their Annual Methodist-Muslim Interfaith Dinner entitled, “Immigrants and Refugees: Our Nation’s Story.” The event was hosted at the newly inaugurated Mecca Center in Willowbrook, Illinois.
As one of the keynote speakers, Hassan Shibly from the Center for American Muslim Understanding shared about his immigration experience to the U.S. from Syria and how he immediately recognized the freedoms he was granted in the U.S. compared to the repression he and his family faced for practicing their religion and having opposing political views of the Syrian government.
In a time of increased xenophobia and fears about immigration, the event allowed Methodist and Muslim communities to engage in important conversations about how immigrants have played an integral role in the foundations of our nation’s history and success.