Annual MuslimFest celebrates arts & culture

This year's poetry showcase, entitled “Voices and Shadows”, included performances by Amal Al Baz, Sofia Baig, Gaith Adhami, and Brother Dash. For hip hop fans, there was Native Deen and the up and coming young Canadian group Mustaqeem. There were also festival favourites Zain Bhikha and Dawud Wharnsby Ali. Local Ottawa resident Audrey Saparno also took to the Open Mic stage where she performed from her musical repertoire.

Last year, Festival and Events Ontario (FEO) cited the event as one of the top 100 festivals in the province. And Ontario's Premier Kathleen Wynne has expressed her full support for the weekend event.  “This festival is an opportunity for Ontarians of all heritages to experience Muslim culture in all its vibrancy.”

Muslim Link asked two young Ottawa residents to share their experience at the festival.

“My favourite aspect of MuslimFest was the universal sense of fun and joy felt by the young and old, and parents and children. I overheard children telling their parents how they wanted to write poetry, shoot short films or try their hand at graffiti( like the cool guy in the paint spattered clothes rocking the gas mask). The short films showcased at Noel Ryan Theater were another aspect of the event I thoroughly enjoyed. My understanding of issues such as the living conditions of the residents in West Bank was furthered through the screening of the film 5 Broken Cameras. {sidebar id=27} MuslimFest serves as an acknowledgement of both our identity as Muslims and the celebration of our achievements in the arts. Having called Ottawa my home for the past 21 years, I have witnessed the talent and dedication to the arts our city has produced through poetry, applied arts, cinematography and many more. Giving our fellow Ottawa artists a chance to showcase their unique talents in the arts would aid in reinforcing our sense of community and identity as Muslims. By giving artists the exposure, we can create a creative space that accepts and welcomes all types of arts and the talented individuals behind them. By supporting and encouraging them to continue in their artistic endeavors, we can ensure that our voices are heard and our achievements celebrated.”

-Aisha Warsame

“My favourite part of the whole festival was the international booths (they even had an Indonesian booth displaying different traditional dresses and various souvenirs) and of course the showcase talent show because I got the opportunity to perform some spoken word poetry and listen to the talent our community has to showcase. The feeling you get when you walk into Square One and see a sea of Muslims walking, laughing, smiling, enjoying themselves, kids entertained by the camel rides, and young men sharing the spirit of brotherhood at a friendly basketball game it is just unbelievable! You get this sense of empowerment through being an individual who belongs to a beautiful community. It is very important that we have these types of events and festivals because it undeniably demonstrates the growing number of Muslims we are blessed to have in this ummah and it also provides us with an occasion to be able to say “Hey, we can have halal fun too!” and invite community members who aren't Muslim to have fun with us.

- Hidayet Abbad

To learn more about MuslimFest visit www.muslimfest.com