In January GCIV had the opportunity to host a distinguished delegation of government officials, NGO leaders, and teachers from Uganda who came to Atlanta to look at Muslim life in the U.S. The group was participating in the U.S. State Department’s International Visitor Leadership Program. Many members of the delegation heard stories about Muslims being afraid to practice their religion openly in the United States, and were afraid of what they might encounter. After spending three weeks in this country, they concluded that very vibrant and healthy Muslim communities thrived in the Unites States, and that many were party of an energetic interfaith movement.

The visitors arrived in Atlanta over the weekend so that they could share in the Martin Luther King, Jr. celebration. On Sunday, they had the opportunity to visit the Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historic Site where they learned about civil rights history and his role in the national movement. That evening the group split up and was hosted for dinner in the homes of two GCIV members’ families. This home hospitality was one of the highlights of their Atlanta program.

On Monday, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day the delegation spent the morning with Mr. Joe Beasley of the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition. Here they were able to get a glimpse of what the African-American community is like in the U.S. After the meeting, they had the opportunity to observe the Memorial Service held in honor of Martin Luther King at Antioch Baptist Church. They enjoyed the service and found it “powerful and moving.” They felt so lucky to have experienced the MLK holiday in Atlanta, and appreciated the opportunity to see how the African-American community celebrated.

On Tuesday, they began the day meeting with Ms. Jan Swanson of the Faith Alliance of Metro Atlanta. They relished in the opportunity to hear the experiences of her interfaith work in bringing together Christians, Muslims, and Jews by emphasizing the commonality of God. Afterwards the delegation met with Tayyibah Taylor of Azizah Magazine over lunch. The visitors admired the fact that women play an important role in American Muslim society. Finally, they met with Ms. Patsy Williams of Atlanta Interfaith Broadcasters to learn about the media’s involvement in interfaith efforts. The visitors were also interviewed for a segment to be used on their news magazine show called In Focus.

The delegation had the opportunity to visit Washington, DC, Baltimore, and Boston in addition to Atlanta. Many shared the sentiment that Atlanta was the highlight of their trip. They were able to share best practices with their professional counterparts, and hope to implement some of what they learned in their own work back home. Mr. Muguluma Hamed of the Inter-Religious Council of Uganda said that his delegation thought Atlanta , “I would like to say on behalf of my colleagues, that the Atlanta Program was voted the best, from Hotel location, staff, and facilities to organizations we visited, transportation, mention every thing. We trust that your team and you shall keep this high standard of organization for the benefit of other participants to come.” GCIV was honored to have these distinguished visitors come to Atlanta and meet with our many valuable professional resources.