9/11 stunned the world. It put Islam on the hot seat. Burqa clad Muslim women dominated headline news. Muslims in America became visible, targeted in some cases. The Patriot Act was passed, complicating life for Muslims even further.

A scan of Muslim institutions in America highlighted the need for greater capacity building so that more Muslims – men, women and children – could be served by Muslim non-profits. These organizations provide legal and health services, as well as conflict resolution counseling to families and victims of domestic violence.

One way of building capacity for Muslim insitutions is through philanthropy for social justice – a corner stone of Islam. We have a unique opportunity in the Bay Area to do this by developing “giving circles” in the Muslim community. A circle comprises of 10-15 women, who meet monthly or quarterly, and pledge $ 1,000 per year (the cost of a latte a day) to the giving circle funding pool. The Giving Circle member can either make the donation personally (in installments or once a year) or can raise the funds from her own network of family and friends. Giving Circle members decide on how to work collaboratively tp allocate these funds by choosing Bay Area Muslim institutions they want to support. The facilitator of the Giving Circle researches local Muslim institutions, brings iinformation, invites speakers from non-profits and arranges site visits to Muslim non-profits for the cirlce members if they are interested.

The Muslim Women Giving Circle is a member of the AAPIP National Giving Circle Network.

AAPIP is no longer housing giving circles. We are in the process of searching for a new fiscal host. We should have this decision finalized by Summer 2012.