Islamic Events

American Muslims Get a Lesson in Fundraising

At Elmhurst College over 100 leaders of mosques and Muslim non-profit companies gathered to learn how to fulfill their Islamic responsibility to do charitable works without drawing the attention of the FBI. Since 9/11 it has become increasingly difficult for Muslims to do this, especially abroad.

Muslim Advocates, the IRS and the MacArthur Foundation all gave information on how to make bookkeeping transparent, report the collection of foreign funds properly and reassure U.S. officials that the money will never end up in the hands of terrorists. Missteps in the past lead to a crackdown by the federal government and this in turn started a cooling in charitable giving.

These steps are being taken in light of the new climate under President Obama. Many Muslim organizations are signing up to have the Better Business Bureau’s charity watchdog comb through their financial records. So far eight organizations have signed up for this. This lets the government know that these charitable organizations are following best practices.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-muslim-charity-12-jun12,0,3690922.story

© 2009 American Muslim Observer.