Muslim men and boys pray at the Lewiston Armory in Lewiston as they celebrate Eid al-Fitr, ending the holy month of Ramadan, in April 2023. Under a bill from state Rep. Mana Abdi, a Lewiston Democrat, Muslim holy days Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha would be added to the list of state holidays. Russ Dillingham/Sun Journal

A Lewiston lawmaker is pushing for Maine legislators to recognize two important Islamic holy days as state holidays.

State Rep. Mana Abdi, a Lewiston Democrat, said both Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha should be added to other holidays, including Christmas and Thanksgiving.

As it is, Abdi told a legislative panel this week, “Muslim Mainers often face the dilemma of choosing between their faith and work or school obligations.”

Mana Abdi Submitted photo

Her call to create two new state holidays, whose dates would shift each year, met with mixed reaction in a public hearing Monday before the State and Local Government Committee.

Muslims make up 1.2% of Maine’s population, according to the most recent U.S. Census data. That’s about the same as the state’s Jewish population.

More than half of Maine’s adults call themselves Christians, according to the Pew Research Center.

Quinn Elleen Gormley of Auburn hailed the proposal.

“As Maine continues to grow more diverse, a form of growth we desperately need to meet our workforce requirements in coming decades, it is vital that we ensure we are adapting to the needs and realities of shifting demographics in our communities,” Gormley said.

“My religion’s holidays are always respected,” she said. “This is sadly not the case for many of our Muslim friends and neighbors.”

“This bill is a simple fix, and a strong nod towards inclusive practices,” Gormley said. “It’s a way of recognizing the reality that Mainers are increasingly diverse, and that not everyone who calls Maine home celebrates the same holidays, and we can recognize that and build in respect for these differences.”

But Diane Vernesoni of Topsham told lawmakers they should kill the bill.

“This is not a Muslim country and, while we welcome them to our country, I don’t feel that we need to change or alter our founding Christian values to cater to these ceremonies and make them a state holiday,” she said.

Vernesoni said she has “no problem with the Muslims living here,” but doesn’t want them “changing our country to be like the place they left to seek freedom from it.”

Eid al-Fitr marks the end of Ramadan, “a sacred month of fasting, prayer and reflection for Muslims worldwide,” Abdi said. Eid al-Adha, she said, “coincides with the Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca, a religious obligation for practicing Muslims and a time of sacrifice, generosity and community.”

Both celebrations are based on the Islamic calendar, which is based on lunar phases, not the solar-based Gregorian calendar used in most parts of the world, so they are observed at a different time each year.

Lewiston schools in 2021 added the two celebrations to their holiday calendar. Community members spoke in favor of the policy when it was reconsidered, and ultimately kept in place, in 2024.

Muslims pray during Eid al-Fitr at The Colisée parking lot in Lewiston in May 2022. Daryn Slover/Sun Journal

Pious Ali, a Portland city councilor, told legislators that “Maine is a place that prides itself on its diversity, on the richness of its many traditions, and on the fundamental belief that everyone should be seen, valued, and respected.”

“Recognizing Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha as public holidays is not just an acknowledgment of the Muslim community,” he said, “it is a reaffirmation of the very values that make Maine home to so many.”

Penny Morrell of Belfast, on the other hand, said the United States is “a Christian nation.”

“Those who come here want to enjoy our way of life,” Morrell said. “We must not tolerate any other nationality or religion to override our own. Those who come here must assimilate to our way of life.”

If they can’t do that, she said, “they should go back to their place of origin.”

Morrell said the Muslim holidays should not be placed “right up there with our sacred holidays of Christmas, Easter, Thanksgiving, Fourth of July and others that are patriotic and holy to America.”

Abdi said that during the last Eid, she and two other Muslim representatives had to attend a legislative session “instead of celebrating with my family.”

“While we are dedicated to public service, it was difficult to choose between our responsibilities and our faith,” she said. “And we are not alone.”

“Muslims in Maine face this dilemma every year,” she said.

Creating the new state holidays, she said, is “a matter of equity. Holidays like Christmas and Thanksgiving are built into the existing system, allowing employees time off without using personal leave. Muslim employees, however, often have to use their earned time to observe Eid, creating an unfair disparity in workplace policies.”

Ben Daley of Lewiston agreed.

“Alongside my Christian faith holiday of Christmas, celebration of other faiths’ holidays brings greater representation for other religions,” he said.

“In this time of increased levels of bigotry, it is important to stand with our fellow humans against the disease of ignorance and hate that is becoming more pervasive,” Daley said, adding that creating the two holidays “is one small way to make it known that we do not discriminate on the basis of religion in Maine.”

The committee has not yet taken action on the proposal, which is co-sponsored by nine Democratic state representatives in addition to Abdi.