Muslim Women Charity Helping Change Irish Society's Perception of Islam
Founded by Dubliner Lorraine O'Connor in 2010, Muslim Sisters of Éire (MSOÉ) has been running a weekly soup run at Dublin's GPO for the last seven years and now feeds as many as 600 people every Friday night.
O'Connor, who converted to Islam in 2005, said she started the charity to help change Irish people's perception of the religion and to help migrant women integrate into Irish society.
"I was seeing what was missing from the Irish side and the Islamic side. I could see there was a misconception within Irish society about Muslim women. There was a misconception that they were oppressed, that they didn't have a voice, that they had to walk behind their husbands, that they didn't have any rights, and that they were victims of domestic assault," O'Connor told IrishCentral.
"I could also see that Islamic women weren't coming out beyond the barriers of the mosque."
O'Connor added that she wanted to "empower" Muslim women to come outside the mosque because they had "so much to give" to Irish society.
The charity has grown significantly over the past 13 years, with more than 100 volunteers now helping out compared to the small number that helped found it.
Their weekly soup runs have also grown substantially, increasing from roughly 250 meals pre-Covid to around 500 or 600 meals every week.
O'Connor said roughly 90% of the people that MSOÉ feed during the soup runs are non-Muslims.
"We're a charity. It's not about religion, it's about a need."
MSOÉ additionally runs annual Christmas campaigns, providing struggling families with hampers to help ease the burden at an expensive time of the year.
The charity is also set to launch its "bag for life campaign", which aims to provide homeless people with a number of vital supplies during the harsh winter months.
O'Connor said the campaign, which is in its seventh year, provides homeless people with a rucksack containing a tent, a survival sheet, a sleeping bag, hats, scarves, and gloves in addition to a protein pack and a hygiene pack.
Each bag costs roughly €100, with MSOÉ aiming to distribute 150 bags on Christmas Eve this year.
"We go out on Christmas Eve when everything is getting ready to shut down for Christmas because we don't celebrate Christmas.
"That is the day when we try and get to those rough sleepers because it is the difference between life and death - that's why it's called the bag for life."
Additionally, MSOÉ runs a helpline three days a week for women who are in trouble as well as providing legal support for migrant women.
The charity also holds numerous events every year to educate migrant women on a wide range of issues from breast cancer awareness to women's rights.
MSOÉ representatives also visit roughly four or five schools every month to teach students about embracing different cultures.
Source: irishcentral.com
