Source: The Buffalo News
On December 27, 2000, The Buffalo News reported both "growth in the area's Muslim population" and the fact that Ramadan, the Muslim holy month of fasting, "has unified the religious community" in the area. "During Ramadan, observant Muslims abstain from eating, drinking, smoking and sexual intercourse between sunrise and sunset, for spiritual renewal. Ramadan usually lasts 29 or 30 days...Ramadan activities include educational programs about local and national Muslim issues, the community and donating food to charity." Today was the day of Eid El-Fitr, the "feast of fast-breaking," which marks the end of the holy month "with prayers and brunches in mosques in Buffalo, Amherst and Lackawannam." Celebration of community plays a big role in the holiday, although "the community approach to observing the end of Ramadan is not typical in Muslim countries, where the events surrounding Eid El-Fitr are observed in homes by extended family members." On the growth of the Muslim population, The Buffalo News reported that "twenty-three years ago, there were only two area mosques with a couple of hundred Muslim families; now there are eight mosques with family memberships in the thousands."