Students Question Religious Diversity on Campus

While students at Howard University begin to pack-up for their winter recess, university organizations are providing activities to get the students excited and help them reflect on the joys of the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays.

One event, the annual tree lighting, will be taking place on Nov. 16. HUSA is expecting a large number of students to enjoy the celebration.

However, there are many students on campus who belong to other religious faiths and do not participate in Christian practices, like the lighting of a Christmas tree. Some students feel that the tree lighting ceremony, and other holiday activities, only caters to Howard's Christian students.

Sophomore broadcast news major, and HUSA Community Outreach Coordinator Angel Mills, is a Christian, like a majority of the students at Howard. She believes that because Christianity is engrained in the legacy and founding principles of the university, services aren't provided for students of other faiths, yet religious freedom is encouraged.

"Howard does allow students of other faiths to create their own student groups and practice their own faiths. In my opinion, this helps to close the disparity experienced by some students," she said.

Other than that, Angel said that it is not the responsibility of the university to promote the events rather they are usually programs that are student-led.

Student-led organizations of faith representation is also something that senior sports management major, Rebecca Kirshner, believes is an important part in creating authentic relations between religious communities.

Rebecca is half-Jewish, but is a confirmed Catholic. She also engages in various Jewish holidays with her family, such as Chanukah and Passover.

Having religious experiences between Christianity and Judaism, Rebecca would like to see an emergence of Jewish culture within the university, but believes it is only natural for a school founded on Christian principles to cater to its Christian students. It is the job of the students to step forward and represent their faiths.

Because she is a Christian, the tree lighting and other programs are something that she looks forward to.

"Bible Study and the tree lighting are fantastic ways for students to come together under their beliefs. It would be nice to see a giant Menorah next to the Christmas tree though," she said.

While Rebecca would like to see more student-led Jewish recognition on campus, Fanta Traore, a freshman political science major, enjoys her own religious practices on campus, and takes advantage of the recognized student associations that other students of her religion have organized.

Fanta is a traditional Muslim. She engages in prayer up to twice a day, but does not wear a hijab, which she said is not a requirement contrary to popular belief. Additionally, she, like other students, is not bothered by the degree to which certain organizations promote Christianity.

"While Howard is a school founded on Christian principles, I do not feel out of place or as if the Christian religion is forced upon me," she said of the university.

Fanta is actively engaged in the Muslim Student Association, and has participated in the many activities such as the movie viewing of "Moozlum", a film documenting Muslim-Americans after 9/11, as well as attacking various stereotypes.

Although Fanta enjoys these activities, she still would like to see an increase in the acknowledgement of her own religious holidays, like Eid. The two-part holiday that includes sacrifice, prayer, special meals and sermons.

While Rebecca and Fanta continue to increase awareness of their own practices, they both agree that attending a college that sticks firmly to Christianity has the right to favor their founding principles. However, Angel agrees that the degree to which any religious group is promoted on campus is solely up to the students.

Creating an authentic and diverse religious life at Howard depends on the open minds of students and their willingness to accept and discuss other faiths.