Links | An Article about the course in the Sheffield Star |
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Laying to rest the myths about our Muslim brothers IN today's climate, an understanding of Islam is not just useful, it is essential. That's the message from dozens of city workers as they took part in Sheffield's first Muslim Culture Course - designed to inform, educate and dispel the myths surrounding the religion. The participants, mainly public sector workers from South Yorkshire including nurses, social workers and police officers, took part in the course. They were given a quiz on the religion and treated to a trip to the specially-built mosque on Industry Road. Later in the day the workers sampled Indian cuisine and took part in workshops based on Muslim prayer. Staff from organisations across the county made use of the event because of the growing Muslim community in South Yorkshire. The last census showed that ethnic minorities comprise 9.9 per cent of the UK's population. Maria Tonks, an equality and diversity officer from South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue, said the service was eager to learn more about Islam. She said: We are anxious to meet Government guidelines on the number of ethnic minorities we employ. And if we can understand more about their culture the more we can accommodate them when they become our employees. Maria also said that with the possible war with Iraq and the ever-present threat of terrorism it was also useful to dispel the common myths. There's a lot of myths surrounding Islam at the moment. People seem to think the majority of Muslims are in some way connected to Al Qaeda and that obviously isn't true. Sheffield is becoming a multi-cultural city and the more we understand each other the better we can work together. The events, which have also been held in West Yorkshire and London, have been organised by Kaushar Tai on behalf of the Muslim Association. Kaushar said the day revealed some surprising information about Islam - especially its close links with Christianity. And he added that the 110 workers who would take part in the courses would leave with an essential knowledge of the religion. During the talks and workshops at the Muslim Welfare House of Sheffield, in Broomhill, all participants had to remove their shoes. The ladies were also asked to wear a headscarf and trousers or an ankle length skirt. Phil Yelland, a 41-year-old social worker, said he was more than happy to make the most of the day. Phil, who has worked in social services for 12 years, said: I am here today for professional and personal reasons. There is a large number of Muslims in Sheffield and it's important that we begin to learn more about them. Courses like today's will help us enhance our understanding of the culture and allow us to improve our service to the ethnic minorities. That's why there are lot of public sector workers here - it will help us generally improve the service. |
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