COSMOS booklet

10 years of Service

History of Cosmos COSMOS has been serving community since 2009 but its roots in the community date back almost four decades. In the mid-eighties Imam Fred Nurridin of the Al-Ansar mosque, Mohammad Shakir and the late Dr. Moiez Tapia of Islamic Institute began participating in MCCJ’s Clergy Dialogue. After hurricane Andrew, the American Jewish Committee, AJC joined and the three organizations held their first interfaith breakfast. Peggy Landers covering this event wrote, [Miami Herald, November 30, 1994], “Jews, Muslims share views to end years of alienation.” Shakir told Peggy Landers, “This is our Jihad to strive for a peaceful co-existence in this community.” Rabbi Tabachnikoff added, “Your population is growing ours is going down. We want to ride your coattails.” Why? “To establish our common values.” This four decade old effort to counter fear, mistrust, and alienation finally came to fruition in 2010, when COSMOS was established with a stated mission to reach out to other communities, media, private and public agencies to improve the Muslim image and put a human face to the Muslim story in South Florida. In those early days, Joan Canner, former area director of the AJC said, the gathering of interfaith leaders has been “a slow birthing process” because “not everyone thinks it is a good idea. Jews tend to stereotype Muslims, and Muslims tend to feel alienated from Jews. You have to find a channel of comfort.” The same could be said about some people today. We at COSMOS never underestimated the gravity of the situation; the pain and suffering of our people, or the tragic loss of human life around the globe. But we also believe that this challenge demands more engagement and not less, more dialogue and sensitizing good people on all sides about the failure of political leadership that is producing more human suffering. Our mission is to reach out to those good souls on behalf of Muslims to change the narrative. We need to demonstrate the peaceful side of Islam and Muslims—show Ihsan. Immigrant Muslims arrived in South Florida more than fifty years ago, while indigenous Muslims have been at work in this community for at least a few decades longer. They had laid the groundwork through participation in the civil rights movement advocating for the rights of minorities. Immigrant Muslims began transitioning from an immigrant mindset to this is our permanent home mindset, appreciating the contributions made by early Muslims and what they had done in the community; finally joining hands with them to build a permanent community here. Within the past 20 years, and especially after the horrific attacks on Sep- tember 11, 2001, the entire Muslim community reset its priorities and moved for- ward to offer a better understanding of Muslims and Islam in South Florida. During the past decade, the political currents and growing xenophobia led Muslims to build alliances with like-minded citizens, engage with civic, social, and political in- stitutions, sensitize the media, and become engaged citizens. This natural progression brought about the creation of COSMOS – the Coalition of South Florida Muslim Organizations in South Florida. COSMOS is a loose coalition of South Florida Muslim organizations – professional, political, and religious – working together toward the same basic goals. Today, it is a fully en- gaged Muslim institution, busy building bridges and connecting communities for mutual respect, peaceful co-existence through service, education, outreach and engagement.

10 Year Journey...

Cosmos Dinner 2019

Education



Interfaith



Outreach



Mission Statement Representing the Muslim community to foster a better understanding of Islam, American Muslims and Muslim cultures through engagement, education, outreach, and community service with and for the South Florida community. www.cosmosfla.com [email protected]