USA

The Bronx Fire Tragedy

On Sunday, Jan. 9, a fire broke out in The Bronx’s (NY) Tremont neighborhood, setting an apartment building on fire. At least 17 people have died, including children. Some 60 people were reported as injured and at least 100 households have now been displaced with no clothes, no food, and no place to go in this brutal cold weather.

The fire is being described as the nation’s “worst apartment fire in 40 years.”

When our neighbors are in pain, we step in to help. Your donations to our USA Humanitarian Aid fund can help families cover the cost of shelter, food, clothing, and basic essentials.

Please donate now and donate generously.

Islamic Relief’s U.S. Afghan Refugee Response

For Afghan families that are now in the United States, our teams are working with partners to reach families and provide them with support and essential items to help them as they arrive and transition to a life in our communities. Here are some of the ways we are working on these efforts now (and remember to stay tuned to this page for more information as it develops):

• Providing food aid including 10,000 food boxes containing nutrient-dense dry food items for resettled Afghan refugee families
• On arrival, we’re working with the United Way of the National Capital Area (NCA) to provide greeting/service orientations, transportation from the airport, interpreters, and pre-paid debit cards to purchase essential items
• Engaging our local refugee network to give much-needed resources that assist with local resettlement efforts
• Creating an IRUSA guide on religious and cultural sensitivities for Afghan refugees for use by other humanitarian organizations
• Distributing essential hygiene and sanitation items including hygiene kits, socks, underwear, soap, hand sanitizer, and masks
• Working with shelters and religious leaders to ensure newly-arriving families receive the sheltering, emotional care, spiritual care, and cultural items they need like the 500 prayer mats we delivered to Afghan refugee families
• We’re advocating and amplifying the voices of our Afghan brothers and sisters and you can get involved
• We’re also working to provide legal support and financial aid for refugee families in the near future

Your advocacy, volunteerism, and donations are how we can help support and get aid to Afghan families who are in desperate need right now. Click below to take action today, and stay tuned to this page for more information as it becomes available.

Focus on the United States

Homelessness, hunger, poverty, lack of clean water access, sanitation, and health care aren’t just international problems. They exist right here at home in our neighborhoods. The end of 2020 brought the sharpest rise in the U.S. poverty rate since the 1960s, according to a study by the University of Chicago and the University of Notre Dame, placing the poverty rate now at 11.8%.

Much, but not all, of this can be attributed to the coronavirus pandemic, but the suffering of so many American families extends well beyond that:

For instance, “Black Americans were more than twice as likely to be poor as their White counterparts in December—an improvement from the summer months when they were nearly three times more apt to live in poverty—but an increase from before the pandemic, when the differential was under 2,” reports Bloomberg.

And when disaster strikes, like brutal winter weather, tornadoes, wildfires, or man-made tragedies, the need for urgent aid and support grows exponentially especially for families already vulnerable to poverty and suffering.

Islamic Relief’s Dedication to Serving Neighbors in Need

As Islam teaches us, charity starts at home, and that’s why Islamic Relief USA is dedicated to supporting work across America that makes sure families have shelter, kids have food, and disaster survivors and refugees get the support they need. In 2020 alone, IRUSA reached vulnerable communities in more than 350 cities nationwide!

Here’s just a sampling of our recent efforts across the U.S.

• • Distributing hot meals in urban cities across the U.S. for vulnerable neighbors
  • Supporting efforts that advocate for and advance services for refugees
  • Providing free health services to vulnerable neighbors
  • Distributing food boxes, filled with nutrient-dense meals, packed by IRUSA volunteers to families across the U.S. suffering from hunger
  • Bringing community-based services together through our Day of Dignity events to provide low-income and homeless individuals with access to free resources, including hygiene kits, food, haircuts, medical screening, financial advice, resume building, and more
  • Deploying Disaster Management Team members and volunteers members to support survivors in areas hit by devastation