Mayor of Dearborn, Michigan, in the USA, Abdullah Hammoud, told local media, “This is the first time a municipality has declared Eid al-Fitr and your faith is officially recognized like any other. I think this is of great importance.” he said.
Hammoud, of Lebanese descent, who was elected in 2021 and became Dearborn’s first Muslim mayor, said that for the first time, the Muslim community “will feel part of the city where he was born and raised”.
With the decision taken, it was stated that for the first time in the USA, all employees of a municipality will be entitled to paid leave on the first day of Eid al-Fitr, while official institutions such as courts and libraries will be closed on Friday, April 21, along with the city hall.
Ramadan Feast will be celebrated for the first time in a festive mood in the municipality
It was also announced that on the second day of the feast, a free Eid-al-Fitr festival will be held under the auspices of Dearborn Council.
Dearborn is known as the city with the largest Muslim population in the USA, and it is known that about half of its population of around 110,000 is of Arab origin.
While Eid al-Fitr is becoming more and more accepted in the USA every year, in some states with a large Muslim population such as New York and New Jersey, schools are closed on the first day of the holiday.
The United Nations Headquarters in New York has also been closed on the first day of the holiday for a while.