’30 Mosques in 30 Days’ creators talk at Pitt

On a Ramadan road trip across America, two men vowed to spend each night of the ninth month of… On a Ramadan road trip across America, two men vowed to spend each night of the ninth month of the Islamic calendar at a different mosque.

Aman Ali, 27, and Bassam Tariq, 25, found themselves stranded in rural Montana with a broken rental car. After relying on the help of a friendly fisherman, they set off with a repaired vehicle but were unable to make their intended destination that night in Fargo, North Dakota.

Desperate to find a mosque, they frantically began a search for another Muslim community in the state and stumbled across the first established Muslim community in the U.S. — located in Ross, North Dakota.

More than 150 mosques, 25,000 miles and two Ramadans later, the two American men have ended their fasting and cross-country travels. But they continue to speak to communities, colleges and other groups, narrating the stories of contemporary Muslim America.

Ali, a comedian, and Tariq, a filmmaker and advertising copywriter, spoke of their two-year travels at “30 Mosques in 30 Days” Friday night at David Lawrence Hall.

The event, hosted by Pitt’s Muslim Student Association, drew more than 80 people and served as the conclusion to Islamic Awareness Week.

“Every step of the way, we were amazed at how this community and country was,” Ali said. “I’m surprised at how many people hear about this. We don’t do it for praise — we’re constantly learning from it as well. It blows my mind how profoundly this touches people.”

Both Tariq and Ali expressed their gratitude and astonishment at the project’s success.

The idea originated after the two had noticed how many mosques were in their nearby New York City community. Urged by friends, they received more than $12,000 in funding solely from fans and friends on Twitter and Facebook to set forth across America and maintain a blog on the individuals they met.

“When we set out we had no intent. For us, we wanted to share stories. It could be positive, it could be negative. It could be in the middle,” Tariq said.

Ali agreed.

“We’re trying to put out authentic portrayals. Like any community, we’re not exempt from any criticism. We don’t want to sweep ugly things under the rug. We want to talk about problems openly and honestly,” he said.

The duo shared heartwarming and comedic stories, interacting with the audience constantly, partially due to Ali’s comedic background.

They recounted tales of faraway romance, of finding one’s identity, of acceptance and second chances. One phrase, from a Californian mosque, resonated deeply with Ali and Tariq: “Come as you are to Islam as is.”

“We as human beings — we are simple people by nature, but over centuries we’ve added bureaucratic junk and complicated everything,” Ali said.

Tariq, the quieter of the two, illustrated problems across Muslim America. One problem he said was the divide between immigrant Muslims and those who had converted to Islam. The problem with this is imposing cultural standards from both sides.

The pair has become famous across the world. Other religions and individuals have begun their own “30 Days” tribute, and newspapers and television networks such as BBC and CNN have documented Ali and Tariq’s road trip, which will culminate in a film premiering on PBS next year.

As for what’s next, the pair is considering an interactive project with people contributing their daily stories, weaving it into a film or community project showcasing the Muslim community around the world. They plan to continue visiting colleges, as they believe the youth are what drove the project.

Pitt’s MSA president, sophomore Louie Al-Hashimi, said he was thrilled by the performance.

“Going along with the theme of this [30 Mosques], just going outside your bubble, outside your comfort zone, is something that our organization strives for. It may not necessarily be a road trip, but we want to stretch ourselves to our limits,” Al-Hashimi said.