Keep an eye on the vulnerable during Ramadan As many British Muslims begin to plan for a month of fasting whilst they endure, reflect and build solidarity among fellow Muslim men and women, it is also a time to reflect on what has impacted this community in recent years and protect the most vulnerable moving forward.  Having grown up in a Muslim family, I can imagine many Muslims are beginning to prepare psychologically for a change in their routine where they refrain from eating and drinking between dawn and nightfall. As they break their fast they are going to consume extra sugar content. The weather condition this year is a blessing due to shorter days and chilled temperatures. A few years ago one of my colleagues had to break his fast due to dehydration and exhaustion on an unbearable hot summer's day. Extreme heat can be a threat to many people’s lives. This is particularly the case when there are underlying health conditions and those who are elderly. Living conditions &

Mumtaz Khan began her journey in Tower Hamlets where she learnt the tools to serve her community through social work and then as a local councillor in the East End.  During the pandemic, she lost her father and mother in law. This is her story. Early Life in Tower Hamlets Mumtaz and her five siblings, along with their mother, arrived in the mid 1970s to join their father,  to live in Spitalfields, Tower Hamlets.   They emigrated from Bangladesh to make Britain their home.  ‘There was a huge   struggle for my father to get us into the education system. There was a long waiting list. I also came at a time when east London was not the same east London that we were able to walk around quite safely these days,’ says Mumtuz. Fear, attack and racism She remembers the brutal killing of Altab Ali in 1978 by white racists which was a turning point for Bengali struggle in the East End.   The place where Altab Ali was killed was a minute walk away from where Mumtuz lived. ‘Dad kind of given us qui