Detroit communities find ways to connect during pandemic
#AAPI #AAPIHeritageMonth #CommunitiesOfHope
WDET’s Communities of Hope Roundtable features minority women who persevered through the pandemic
Detroit’s minority women found ways to open businesses and keep them running as the virus raged on through the world. While these women faced unique challenges, they found opportunities to keep pushing forward.
Recently I spoke to Sadya Chowdhury of Zafreen’s Kitchen, Cathy Manna, owner of Taste of Aden, and Helina Melaku, chef and owner of Konjo Me to learn more about their experiences of running catering businesses at the Communities of Hope Roundtable: Powering Through the Pandemic event held at Baobab Fare in Detroit.
Chowdhury says she pursued her dream to open a home-based catering business after losing her job in the beginning of the pandemic.
“Let me start something that I love doing,” she says.
After launching on Instagram, family and friends supported her business.
Chowdhury, Manna and Melaku were featured in the Communities of Hope series, featuring Detroit’s minority communities and learning how they held onto hope during the pandemic.
Detroit’s Durga Temple is raising money to expand
Ponkoj Das is the new president of Durga Temple, the oldest Bengali Hindi temple in Detroit. Das grew up in Detroit and moved back to the city during the pandemic.
Das says the pandemic showed that people needed a space to gather and worship.
The temple opened in 2006 with a handful of families. Now Das says the congregation has grown and more space is needed. He says the temple attracts thousands of worshippers from around the U.S. and Canada for major pujas.
“Obviously we do a lot of religious services. But the temple also serves as a center point for the community to come together, discuss any issues that might have a temple tries to help the community you know, in any way that we can.”
Durga Temple hopes to raise a million dollars for expansions. There is a $100,000 GoFundMe to raise part of that goal.
Halal Metropolis Podcast features creatives working to increase Muslim visibility in Southeast Michigan
Nargis Hakim Rahman was featured in the Halal Metropolis Podcast, where she discusses what it means to be a community journalist.
“Something that's newer in this generation is we don't only want someone that looks like us or speaks like us. Now we want representation that’s good for the whole community... We want the best candidate in that space."
The podcast features Muslim creatives from Southeast Michigan to explore how their work contributes to Muslim visibility in Metro Detroit.