A new year is often associated with new beginnings and so was the case with GIO. We began the new year by electing a new Meekat with Ms. Maimoona Bushra being elected as the City President and Ms. Habeebunissa being chosen as the City Secretary on January 20.
The beginning of the year of 2020 found us in the midst of political unrest within the country. The anti CAA/NRC protests which started in December of 2019 were in full swing. Several members of GIO Chennai from various areas participated in a women’s rally in Egmore to express their support of democracy and what the constitution of India stands for.
The shortest month of the year, February is often advertised as “the month of love” due to the fact that Valentine’s Day is celebrated in it. GIO Chennai conducted an online campaign called Anti-Valentine’s Week to spread awareness about how celebrating a holiday with pagan origins which promotes Haraam relationships is counteractive to our religion . A poster was circulated everyday from 6th to 14th of February on various social media platforms. For World Day of Social Justice, observed on the 20th, posters with Hadith pertaining to justice were circulated.
It is no question that women were the front warriors when it came to the several protests conducted in opposition to NRC/CAA. Following the example of women in Delhi, women in Chennai also sat in protest in their own version of Shaheen Bagh in Washermenpet. To take part in this historic occasion, members of GIO trained GIO associates and children’s circle of Jamalia and put up a skit in front of the protesters of Shaheen Bagh, on the first day of March. The skit presented the devastating differences between a country our freedom fighters had envisioned versus the current political situation. Following this, it was befitting that International Women’s Day fell on 8th March. To celebrate women and their empowerment, a round table conference was conducted with selected members of GIO, Ms. Waheedha, an advocate and Ms. Poorani, a journalist. Women’s rights in light of different religions, education for women and how media affects women empowerment were some of the topics discussed. A few weeks later with the unfortunate spread of the virus, everyone found themselves locked in their houses. GIO Chennai took this opportunity to spread awareness about the situation, on how to stay healthy and how to spend all this extra time, through posters.
In April, as a way to engage the youth in their newly found free time, a series of competitions were conducted called Unveil Your Talents. 6 competitions were conducted on the topic “Corona Lockdown” with over 200 participants from all over the country and even a few international participants. After some difficult decisions, the winners were announced. All the participants were awarded e-certificates and the winners received prizes later in the year. Also, during the month of April, the members utilized their free time to gain some points for their Akhirah by memorizing Surah Mulk and quizzes were also conducted on the meaning and Tafsir of the Surah.
In May, online Summer Islamic Classes (SIC) were held as a way to welcome Ramadan. The SIC were conducted in various groups according to areas and language preferences. The classes varied from 5 to 10 sessions depending on the areas. Several members and associates of GIO also participated in an online exam conducted by JIH Chennai Metro on the books Road to Salvation and Khutbat (chapter on fasting) which was held on 3rd of May. To inculcate the habit of giving Sadaqah in young girls, GIO collected money from members and associates to help those in the organization who come from a lower economic background. After the completion of memorization of Surah Mulk, the members moved on to memorize another Surah. Surah Naba was selected by the members themselves.
Choosing a career path at the age of 17/18 is difficult as it is, but throw a pandemic in the mix and anxiety and stress levels are elevated to another level. To ease the stress and help school graduates make these important decisions, a 2 day online career guidance program was conducted on 7th and 8th of June. On the first day, the audience was addressed by Mr. Leyagath Ali, a professional guidance counsellor to ease their worries and help make the best decision for themselves. On the second day, GIO members and associates belonging to various career streams addressed the audience. The various career fields included medicine, engineering, architecture, sciences, paramedical sciences, general arts, education and government services.
On 28th of June, GIO Chennai conducted the first of many to come online workshops. The workshop was conducted on basics of watercolour by Ms. Atoofa Nasiha (LAC member) and introduction to poster designing on Canva by Ms. Khadija Ali (LAC member). Around 90 participants attended the workshop. These workshops were conducted with the aim of spreading the word about GIO and inviting young girls to the organization.
The first Tarbiya (training) program of the year was conducted on 12th July on the topic “Youth- We The Future”. Two speakers from Jamaat-E-Islaami were requested to address the audience and the program was conducted via Zoom. The second online workshop of the year, which was mehendi designing, was held on July 30. It was conducted by Ms. Afia Khan (GIO Pondicherry, President). The program attracted over 100 participants. An online personality development course was organized specifically for the members of GIO Chennai to train them to become good leaders. The course which consisted of weekly sessions spanned over a period of 3 and a half months. The trainers for said course were Dr. Ramlath(Psychologist) and Ms. Farrah Shariff (Psychologist).
In preparation for the second online exam conducted by JIH Chennai Metro on the book Witness Unto Mankind, the members of the organization met online thrice a week for the entire month of August to discuss the book. The members shared their unique perspectives on the thought provoking stances of the author. The exam was held on 30th August.
On Teacher’s Day which is held on 5th September, 3 posters appreciating the hard work of teachers, were circulated on various social media platforms. On the 6th, the 3rd online workshop of the year was organized. The conducted workshop was on cake baking by Ms. Zainab Ali (GIO Zonal Secretary) and cake decorating by Ms. Aysha Nafeela (ZAC and LAC member). Over 200 participants attended the program. The 2nd Tarbiya program of the year was held on the last day of the month. The topic of the program was “Has the pandemic increased our bond with Allah?” and a speaker from Jamaat-E-Islaami, Coimbatore addressed the audience. In addition, 3 new members of GIO gave mini speeches. The program was conducted via Zoom.
2nd October which marks the birthday of Mahatma Gandhi is celebrated as International Day of Non-Violence. GIO Chennai created a video on Gandhi’s ideologies of non violence and his quotes about Muslims to celebrate the occasion. The 4th online workshop of the year was conducted in collaboration with GIO Bidar on 11th October. The workshop was on Arabic Calligraphy by Ms. Atoofa Nasiha (LAC member) and English Calligraphy by Ms. Nurain Saqlain (GIO Associate, Bidar). Over 300 participants took part in the workshop.
The 5th and final online workshop of the year was held on 8th November on pencil sketching shading and perspective drawing by Ms. Sharfunissa (GIO Associate). Around 80 participants attended the program. These workshops were of great success and GIO received lots of new contact and associates through them Alhamdulillah. A special 6 day premarital program was from 10th to 15th November. Over 500 people participated and various experts addressed the audience. The program was held via Zoom. To spread joy to young ones on Children’s Day, the GIO team visited a home for special children and gave them small gift packages with a teddy bear and some chocolates. Due to the unfortunate situation of the pandemic, the members were not able to interact with the children, however, the children were more than happy to receive their gifts.
During the course of the month of November, several Seerah competitions were conducted by JIH Chennai Metro with assistance of GIO Chennai. With over 300 participants from many schools and colleges, the response was overwhelming. All the participants were given e-certificates and the winners of the 8 competitions were awarded their prizes in December.
With the situation slowly setting in with the new normal, the first in person program was conducted on 21st and 22nd November. A creative writing workshop was organized specifically for members and selected associates of GIO Chennai. The two day intensive workshop was conducted by Mr. Mohammad Naushad from Calicut. The participants were trained in the art of fiction and nonfiction writing.
Wrapping up with the last month of the year, a follow up of the creative writing workshop was conducted online on 21st December by Manisha Bhalla, a journalist. The speaker gave a talk on Introduction to Journalism, followed by an interactive Q/A session. The final program of the year was the 3rd Tarbiya program held in person. The topic of the session was “Applying skills to construct a better future” and it was conducted on the 27th. The Tarbiya program was followed by the prize distribution for Unveil Your Talents and Seerah Competitions. The winners were invited and were awarded the prizes and certificates.
Other activities conducted by GIO over the span of the year include weekly classes for young girls in nearly 20 areas. Some classes were taken in person while others took place digitally. Each GIO member was allotted to several teams created this year such as social media team, poster making team, video team, content team and news team. Daily posters of Hadith and Verses from Quran made by the poster team were circulated over various social media platforms. The news team and video team collaborate everyday to bring news headlines to the subscribers of GIO’s YouTube page.
Even though this was a year full of unforeseeable situations, GIO Chennai was able to adapt accordingly and make the best of the situation.
Alhamdulillah!
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