Riding for Rohingya team at the Tour de Bronx (2017)
The team did a great job,” said Konneh in an interview over the phone. “People were excited we were doing this and wanted to join us. I think that excitement brought a lot of accomplishment to us as a team. No one had seen anything of that magnitude for raising awareness.”
When it came time for a team sponsorship, Konneh reached out to a colleague who was familiar with Zakat Foundation of America’s work.
“I knew about Zakat Foundation before, but reconnected with them through Kemal Birtek, who had reached out about Khalil Center starting an office in New York City,” said Sarah Sayeed, a senior advisor to the community affairs unit who specializes in issues relating to the city’s Muslim community. “I also heard about Zakat’s work to help many communities including the Rohingya online.”
“Famod had an idea to use the Tour race to raise awareness of the Rohingya,” added Sayeed. “By giving riders a humanitarian cause of focus, it helps unify them and helps raise awareness about their cause with other riders and onlookers.”
My connection to the community is my religion,” says Konneh. “We’re all Muslim and believe, regardless of our ethnic or cultural roots, we’re all brothers.”