Local Organizations to Host Iftar Event – From Prison to Power: Black Muslim Resistance

The CT People’s Survival Programs (CT-PSP) and the Muslim Justice Center have announced an event, “Black History Iftar & Discussion: From Prison to Power: Black Muslim Resistance.”

An Iftar, organizers note, “is the evening meal during the month of Ramadan, when Muslims break their daily fast at sunset. Beyond nourishment, iftar is a sacred time for reflection, community, and solidarity—values that are especially meaningful in the context of collective struggle and healing.”

Organizers add that, “This gathering centers the lived experiences of Black Muslims, who sit at a powerful and often overlooked intersection of racialized policing, incarceration, and religious identity. Black Muslims are disproportionately impacted by the prison system, where Islam is frequently practiced under surveillance, restriction, and punishment, even as it has long served as a source of resistance, dignity, and political consciousness behind the walls.”

The featured speaker at the event is to be Bryan “Luv” Jordan, organizers say, “is a justice-impacted scholar, self-taught legal researcher, and community-rooted restorative justice practitioner whose work was forged through survival inside the U.S. punishment system.”

Organizers add that,

Sentenced to life in prison, Luv served more than two decades of incarceration. While still incarcerated, he helped secure the freedom of several wrongfully convicted people and later fought for—and won—his own release through legal advocacy and persistence. He is the co-founder and president of Guided By Purpose Initiative, Inc. (GBP), a community-led organization confronting street violence in inner-city communities and challenging Connecticut’s reentry system by centering dignity, preparation, and community care. Luv is a founding member of the Coalition of Communal Healing through Justice Reform and serves as Lead Researcher for the Challenging Discrimination in the Law Project at the Yale Institute on Incarceration and Public Safety.

The event is Thursday, February 26, from 5:00pm to 7:00pm, ” ,” organizers say, adding that RSVPs can be made at tinyurl.org/iftarfeb2026. “Attendees will be contacted via email with event location,” organizers add.