Fox 9
Wednesday April 22, 2020
MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - To allow Minneapolis residents to pray together during Ramadan while maintaining social distance during the coronavirus pandemic, Adhan—the call to prayer—will be played over a loudspeaker in the Cedar-Riverside neighborhood five times per day for the duration of the Islamic holy holiday.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey allowed the noise permit and the Minnesota chapter of the Council on American Islamic Relations paid for the audio equipment to make the broadcast possible, according to a news release from the City of Minneapolis.
The loudspeaker will be located outside the Dar Al-Hijrah mosque at South Fifth Street and Cedar Avenue. Keeping with the Muslim tradition, the call to prayer will be sounded five times per day, beginning at sunrise and ending shortly after sunset.
The call to prayer is expected to reach thousands of Cedar-Riverside residents.
"This historic effort to promote religious inclusion–offering the call to prayer in Cedar Riverside Community–will be welcomed by the Muslim community and all those who value diversity and mutual understanding,'' CAIR-Minnesota Executive Director Jaylani Hussein said in a statement. “The call to prayer will be especially meaningful to the many senior citizens in the Cedar Riverside neighborhood who have been isolated due to the pandemic. It will help them feel more connected to their community and mosque in this sacred month.”
Ramadan begins the evening of Thursday, April 23 and ends the evening of Saturday, May 23.