By Tahija Vikalo, Executive Director
On July 11, 2023, I had the great honor of being invited to and attending an Eid Celebration hosted by Vice President Kamala Harris and her husband, Second Gentleman Douglas Emhoff, at the Vice-Presidential Residence. It was a historic gathering for me personally and for Muslim communities in this country. This was the very first event dedicated to a Muslim holiday/community to ever be hosted by a Vice President at their residence.
It was such a pleasure hearing inspirational and hopeful words from the Vice President and her husband. It was a great moment to be in the same room with the two of them – the first woman, Black American, and South Asian American to be elected Vice President, and her husband, who is Jewish and deeply dedicated to interfaith work. The words of Vice President Harris resonated with me and the guiding principles of our organization as she noted: ‘Our faith is what allows us to believe in the good, but also in understanding that it requires our action to make it so.” We at the Sisterhood continue to be guided by the teachings of our faiths and, at the same time, strongly believe that our continued efforts and actions will contribute to positive changes in our societies and the preservation of our democratic values.
The event was organized in cooperation with the El-Hibri Foundation, which is tirelessly working, among other things, on establishing strong interfaith communities and offering support for religious minorities while fighting anti-Muslim and anti-Jewish bias.
It was my honor to represent the Sisterhood and to be surrounded by so many amazing leaders from Muslim communities in the US.
In Peace,
Tahija Vikalo, Executive Director
