‘âNew York Muslims raise concerns about substandard Ramadan meals,â by Umar A Farooq, Middle East Eye, May 8, 2020 (thanks to The Religion of Peace):
Earlier this month, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio announced the city would be delivering 500,000 free meals to Muslims during the month of Ramadan.
âOne of Ramadanâs most noble callings is to feed the hungry,â de Blasio said.
Still, when Rima Begum opened the iftar meal she received from the city, she recoiled in disgust. Oozing from a sealed silver bag was a mush of corn, chicken and potatoes.
âIt reminded me of how when I was a kid you would learn about astronaut food,â Begum told Middle East Eye. âI wouldnât eat this; I wouldnât give this to my family,â she said.
De Blasio had said that 400,000 halal meals would be distributed at 32 Department of Education buildings and another 100,000 served through various community organisations during the holy month.
The meals being distributed directly from the city are available at 32 grab-and-go sites, and for those that cannot pick up the meals in-person, they are delivered through the NYC Food Delivery Assistance programme.
It was through this delivery programme that Begum received what she described as a âpile of goopâ.
âWeâd like transparency on how the city government procures food for both their Get Food NYC program and NYC Food Assistance,â Thahitun Mariam, a community organiser in Bronx, New York, told MEE.
When it came to meals distributed through community organisations, there was a different picture.
Linda Sarsour, a community activist and former executive director at the Arab American Association of New York, said that the meals distributed through AAANY came directly from the city and were of good quality.
It is the difference in food sourcing that has caused concerns among New York residents and community activists.
Purchasing meals from a defence contractor
The food received by Begum and others from one of the cityâs distribution centres, and not from a community organisation, originated from J&M Halal Foods, a company based in IllinoisâŚ.
It is a lack of representation, even at the local level, that causes problems such as this, Moumita Ahmed said.
Ahmed, who is running for district leader for New Yorkâs Assembly District 24, said that some of the meals were âdisrespectfulâ and a waste of taxpayer moneyâŚ.
She pointed out that the money spent on these meals could have gone to local restaurants that have been providing meals for Muslims during Ramadan for years.
âOur communities deserve better. Our communities deserve more than just goop in a plate,â Ahmed told MEE.
âWe are the richest country and the richest state on the planet. We have the ability to provide quality meals to our Muslim families who are observing Ramadan,â she added.’Â https://www.jihadwatch.org/2020/05/nyc-muslims-enraged-at-disrespectful-quality-of-taxpayer-funded-meals-provided-by-city-for-ramadan?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=the_2020_05_11_jihad_watch_daily_digest&utm_term=2020-05-11