This Ramadan: Taraweeh Livestream For Blind And Visually Impaired Muslims

This Ramadan, Islam By Touch is hosting a livestream of Taraweeh prayers for blind or otherwise disabled Muslims who are unable to attend prayers in the masjid. The prayers are led by Imam Shpendim Nadzaku, the Resident Scholar and Imam at the Islamic Association of North Texas.

An organization dedicated to making Islam accessible to the blind community, Islam By Touch works to provide English translations of the Qur’an in braille, as well as create a culture in which the Muslim community is made accessible to the blind. While there are multiple other barriers to this accessibility, the foremost to overcome is simply a matter of transportation.

“A vast majority of the blind community lives on fixed income,” says Yadirah Thabatah, who co-founded Islam By Touch with her husband Nadir. “Transportation to the masjid isn’t always affordable, and sometimes, it’s not even accessible. When we’re talking about someone living on a fixed income, if the cost of getting to the masjid is even ten or fifteen dollars, that becomes unaffordable quite quickly.”

According to a 2004 study by the National Center for Health Research, “poverty is a fact of life for many blind adults.” On average, only 19% of the blind population in the US is employed, and only 50% of them receive social security or welfare benefits, despite a majority of them living below the poverty line.

To add further to the challenge, many of our blind brothers and sisters have other medical conditions or disabilities that can impede their access to Islamic knowledge and the Muslim community. As complex as the issue can be seen, there is at least one very simple solution: Transportation.

“That could look like having a system of transportation for the disabled and even the elderly,” Yadhira Thabata suggested, herself a revert from the Catholic Church. “A lot of churches offer this service.”

To support Islam By Touch, you can visit their Ramadan fundraiser here.

Related reading:

 – Why Do We Need Discussions On Disability At Our Mosques? – MuslimMatters.org

– Positively Muslim in The West: Blind and in her 70s | Hifdh Student Umm Uthman – MuslimMatters.org