The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, and Tayba Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to serving individuals and families impacted by incarceration, today issued a reminder to correctional facilities nationwide that they must provide religious accommodations for Muslim inmates during the holy month of Ramadan.
Ramadan is expected to begin on the evening of February 28th and last until the evening of March 30th.
Both organizations regularly receive an uptick in requests from incarcerees seeking assistance during Ramadan.
Tayba Foundation issued the following statement: “Incarcerated Muslims deserve the same rights to receive all necessary accommodations for proper worship, just like their Christian counterparts—especially during Ramadan. Ensuring equal access to religious practices is essential for upholding dignity, fairness, and religious freedom for all.”
Tayba Foundation is committed to providing Islamic education, training, advice, and consultancy to chaplains and their institutions. The organization’s goal is to support the well-being of Muslims in prisons—before, during, and after Ramadan. To contact them, call or text Amin Anderson at 803-415-4551 or [email protected] for emails.
“Respecting an individual’s sincerely held religious beliefs is essential. That value does not vanish in prison,” said CAIR Research and Advocacy Director Corey Saylor. “Taking a few steps to ensure incarcerees can pray and eat during Ramadan is easy. CAIR stands ready to advise officials, or step in with civil rights tools if prison administrators ignore this core value.”
CAIR provides its Correctional Officers Guide to Islamic Religious Practices as a quick overview of the needs of Muslim incarcerees.
SEE: CAIR Releases Updated Corrections Officer’s Guide to Islamic Religious Practices
BACKGROUNDER:
Ramadan is the ninth month on the Islamic calendar which follows a lunar cycle. This year, Ramadan is expected to start the evening of February 28th and will end around March 30th, 2025. Islam uses a lunar calendar. Institutions are advised to check with local Muslim places of worship to confirm the start of the holy month.
During Ramadan, Muslims fast from dawn to sunset, abstaining from food and drink. Muslims eat a breakfast meal (called suhoor) before dawn. Prisons and jails across the nation normally accommodate fasting inmates by providing specially timed meals early in the morning and at sunset.
Last year in Maryland, the Prince George’s County Department of Corrections implemented a new policy authorizing incarcerated Muslims at the institution to hold consolidated congregational Friday (Jum’ah) prayer services.
SEE: CAIR Welcomes Md. County’s New Policy Permitting Consolidated Friday Prayers for Muslim Incarcerees
In 2023, CAIR called on the Virginia Department of Corrections (VADOC) to make simple adjustments to a policy that had forced Muslims in their care to choose between observing their faith or enduring borderline starvation.
Tayba Foundation is a non-profit organization dedicated to serving individuals and families impacted by incarceration. We believe in the power of human change through holistic education, guidance, and support. Our work is organized into three interrelated program areas: Education, Life Skills, and Re-entry.
END
CONTACT: CAIR National Research and Advocacy Director Corey Saylor, 202-384-8857, [email protected]; Tayba Foundation Staffer Amin Anderson, 803-415-4551, [email protected]; CAIR National Deputy Director Edward Ahmed Mitchell, 404-285-9530, [email protected]; CAIR Government Affairs Director Robert McCaw, 202-742-6448, [email protected]; CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, 202-744-7726, [email protected], CAIR National Communications Manager Ismail Allison, 202-770-6280, [email protected]