As we move into the Fall season, and concerns about the COVID-19 Delta Variant persist, MALA is committed to finding new ways to collect, curate, and share oral histories in the socially-distanced virtual space. Oral history work requires an immense ammount of trust, and an ability to build spaces that are safe and comfortable for individuals to share their stories, and MALA remains committed to sustaining such spaces. As such, MALA is moving forward by hosting storytelling sessions via video conferences, which are then recorded, edited, and published accross a number of platforms to ensure that stories are being told and heard during these challenging times.
This new approach to digital estorytelling is not without its challenges and complexities: digital storytelling requires new infrastructure, new processes, and new approaches to outreach and publishing. MALA's staff and leadership are working hard to confront these challenges and to ensure that our storytellers feel represented, respected, and heard accross these new mediums and realities. When you support the Muslim American Journeys project, you directly fuel these efforts: you empower MALA to empower whole communities through storytelling. Your contribution helps MALA to finance the new and necessary storytelling infrastructure, to build the administrative capacity necessary to process and publish stories, and to provide necessary support and resources to the individuals and communities brave enough to share their stories in this moment.
The Muslim American Journeys project has always represented a unique avenue of representation for Muslim Americans and adjascent communities, and MALA is proud to continue to innovate and expand this platform. Your gift today helps to build representation, and to ensure all voices are heard in the American cultural narrative.
Thank you for your continued support and compassion!
Respectfully,
Team MALA
Links:
Good news! So far this year, MALA has received generous institutional funding for new story production campaigns during the summer and fall of 2021. As we continue tyo be recognized as an authority in. the storytelling and cultural exchange space, MALA is proud and honored to receive the opportunity to undertake new projects and expand our platform to spotlight an even broader spectrum of individuals and communities.
This summer we are excited to be working on two new collections: one collection which will focus on the stories of Black Muslims in the Chicagoland area, and another that will focus on stories from Muslims of AAPI heritage. We are honored and thrilled to be able to share the stories of these communities, and our work is cut out for us. When you contribute to thwe Muslim American Journeys project this summer, you are helping us to not only produce these stories, but to activate them through community engagement, open dialogue, and cultural exchange. Your support helps to actively build communities, break stereotypes, and foster important cultural connections accross the country.
MALA is off to a running-start in 2021, and poised to collect more stories than ever. Thanks to the generous funding of our partners and supporters, we have been able to set ambitious goals for the Muslim American Journeys project this year, both increasing the volume of stories we collect, and expanding the diversity of the project as a whole.
In 2021, MALA is placing a special focus on recording and curating oral histories from Muslim Americans belonging to Black and LGBTQIA+ communities. These individuals and the communities they belong to have long been marginalized and subject to discrimination in the United States--we feel it is our responsibility, as an inclusive and compassionate platform, to share the stories of these communities in hopes that we may help to build stronger compassion, resiliency, and understanding around the experiences and obstacles facing them.
This new focus represents MALA's continued resolve to innovate in the field of oral history and storytelling. We remain resolute in finding new ways to share and engage with the struggles, triumphs, and nuances of American identity and the countless cultures, stories, and perspectives that contribute to our social fabric.
When you support MALA, you support our efforts to share these perspectives--you contribute directly to the representation and agency of marginalized communities across the country. We are so grateful for your support and insight as we continue this journey together!
Links:
Despite the challenges presented by COVID-19, MALA has continued to seek innovative new ways to record and share stories of Muslim Americans. During the past several months, MALA has worked with our StoryCorps to use a virtual storytelling platform, allowing us to record oral histories remotely while continuing to ensure that stories are archived in the Library of Congress. Through this innovative partnership MALA has successfully recorded a dozen new stories in the past couple of months, with many more on the way. Be sure to stay tuned to MALA's website to check out new stories and track our new projects.
In light of the COVID-19 Pandemic, MALA, like many other organizations, has been forced to reimagine our programming for virtual audiences. Part of this process has involved findng creative and unique ways to continue to collect and share the stories of Muslim Americans. During the months past, MALA has launched a series of webinars and virtual community discussions that have brought in a number of storytellers, ranging from professional Muslim athletes, congressional representatives, corporate innovators, and inspiring artists. These stories have been archived on MALA's Youtube Channel, and can be viewed for free at any time.
Additionally, MALA has begun working with StoryCorps to coordinate virtual oral history interviews to be archived in the National Library of Congress. If you would like to sign up to have your story recorded, send us an email at stories@MALAnational.org!
During these unprecedented times, MALA is more committed than ever to finding innovative and creative ways to share and amplify the voices of Muslim Americans. We invite you to join us in this effort, and to help us empower a new generation of storytellers. When we share our stories, we share our communities.
Links:
Project Reports on GlobalGiving are posted directly to globalgiving.org by Project Leaders as they are completed, generally every 3-4 months. To protect the integrity of these documents, GlobalGiving does not alter them; therefore you may find some language or formatting issues.
If you donate to this project or have donated to this project, you will get an e-mail when this project posts a report. You can also subscribe for reports via e-mail without donating.
We'll only email you new reports and updates about this project.
Support this important cause by creating a personalized fundraising page.
Start a Fundraiser
Make a monthly donation & get 
