More schools closing for Muslim holidays

October

For the first time, schools will be closed tomorrow for Eid al-Fitr (the holiday that marks the end of fasting during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan) at New Jersey’s Cliffside Park school district. Cliffside Park isn’t alone: According to the New York Times, more school districts in the Garden State are closing for Muslim holidays. For more on Cliffside Park’s decision, check out this story.

Would you like to see schools in your district closed for Eid al-Fitr? Are there other holidays that you feel schools should be closed for?

This entry was posted on Wednesday, October 10th, 2007 at 2:57 pm by Alice Gomstyn.
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One Response to “More schools closing for Muslim holidays”

Robert October 15th, 2007 at 5:19 pm
I’ve always understood that public schools closed for religious holidays on the assumption that a significant percentage of their student body would be absent on that day, rather than out of any particular recognition of the holiday. So the question becomes, is the Muslim population in Cliffside Park high enough to merit closing the schools for Muslim holidays? If it is, then it makes sense. If it’s a very tiny minority that’s being catered to, then it doesn’t. I suspect it’s the former, but I don’t live in the area, so I don’t know.

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