MOSTResource.org

Resources on Muslims for the Entertainment Industry

  • Story Bank
    • Business & Technology
    • Entertainment
    • Culture & Lifestyle
    • Medical
    • National
    • Faith
    • Sports
    • Women
    • World
  • Resources
    • Faces & Places
    • Statistics
    • Infographics
    • Research / Reports
    • Quick Takes
  • Perspectives
  • Events
  • About
    • Contact Us
    • Staff
    • Parent Organization
    • Videos
  • Story Bank
  • Business & Technology
  • Entertainment
  • Culture & Lifestyle
  • Medical
  • National
  • Faith
  • Sports
  • Women
  • World
mostresource storybank video

Explored Our Story Bank Yet?

Our curated collection of thousands of stories has helped top Hollywood writers, producers, and creatives. Watch our brief video to learn more.

Faith, National — August 26, 2018   

Crisis of “Sheep & Zoning” Laws in Small Town Virginia

Original article by Abigail Hauslohner , published in the Washington Post on 08/25/2018

Photo Credit: Matt McClain for The Washington Post
Photo Credit: Matt McClain for The Washington Post

Eid al-Adha is an important holiday in the Muslim faith that commemorates the prophet Ibrahim’s willingness to sacrifice his son Ismail at God’s behest, and God’s ultimate decision to let Ibrahim slay a sheep instead. It is a day when butchers, like Lebanese Butchers Slaughterhouse in Warrenton, VA, have ordered hundreds of sheep, goats and cows to slaughter for their customers in observance of the special day. But this year, the Rababeh family (who own the butcher shoppe) were denied the special event permit needed to accommodate their hundreds of Muslim customers.

The reason behind the denial, town officials say, is that the butcher shoppe was in violation of local building codes and zoning ordinances. Though the Rababehs do not deny this, they say that they have been harassed by a neighbor for years and that the town government holds them to a higher standard because of their faith, and that they are targets of religious discrimination.

The Washington Post reports that the “alleged misuse of local zoning laws to discriminate against religious facilities and businesses owned by Muslims has sparked lawsuits and federal investigations in towns and cities across the country over the past decade. And courts have often sided with the Muslim plaintiffs.”

The situation drew the attention of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR). “We’re super sensitive when it comes to issues of zoning, or claimed zoning reasons to prevent the community from exercising its protected religious rights, because our organization has been dealing with this issue nationwide for so many years,” says Nihad Awad, executive director for CAIR.

Town officials eventually came around, thanks to CAIR’s intervention, and the butcher-house was able to proceed with its holiday operations as planned. “It’s an integral part of our culture. I’ve been coming here since I was growing up,” said Awais Paracha, a 21-year-old pre-med student.

Read more ...

Our Experts Are Here To Help

Contact Quick

Want to start a conversation with our experts for help with your project?

Related Articles

  • M Film Lab Now Accepting Applications for Screenwriting Program
  • American Eid – Interview with Director Aqsa Altaf
  • Post vaccine, Muslim travelers are heading to… Israel

More From The Story Bank

M Film Lab Now Accepting...

Applications are now open for the inaugural M Film Lab: a free-to-join screenwriting workshop and mentorship opportunity for storytellers and creators committed to fair artistic representation of … [Read More...]

American Eid – Interview...

American Eid is a new, short film on Disney+ about two sisters from Pakistan adjusting to their new reality in America when they are unable to take off school to celebrate Eid, the festival after the … [Read More...]

Post vaccine, Muslim travelers...

Last year the Abraham Accords were signed between Israel, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco and Sudan. This marked a public normalization of relations not seen in decades. And with this new … [Read More...]

Meet the first Muslim head...

As new head coach for the New York Jets, Robert Saleh is making history as the first Muslim American to lead a team in the National Football League. The Lebanese American is also the third Arab … [Read More...]

Meet American’s Youngest...

According to The Hill, Bushra Amiwala "is part of a new generation stepping into politics." In 2019, she was elected to the Skokie Board of Education in Illinois, making this Pakistani-American … [Read More...]

Enter your email to receive periodic updates

Sign Up Quick

Sign up to receive periodic updates

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • Twitter

About | Contact Us | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy© 2002–2025 MOST ResourceMOST Resource globe


We use cookies to improve your browsing experience and to collect anonymous data to enable us to manage our website. Our Privacy Policy is a complete disclosure of our data collection policies, including the choices you have to control information we might collect. Your use of this site represents your consent to our Privacy Policy.