MSA Live focused on memory of Deah, Yusor and Razan

The UNC Muslim Students Association put their own spin on Saturday Night Live with skits, a “Weekend Update” and a few political impressions at MSA Live: The Legacy of Our Three Winners on Friday night.

The event was held to honor the Feb. 2015 shooting victims — Deah Shaddy Barakat, 23, Yusor Mohammad Abu-Salha, 21 and Razan Mohammad Abu-Salha, 19.

Ayoub Ouederni, president of UNC MSA, said they sold out of the original 240 tickets for the event, but there was still demand to attend.

“The Union had to call the fire marshal to authorize an exception for the fire code so we could bring in more people,” Ouederni said. “So we have never seen an event like this. Turnout was amazing.”

Ouederni said even after the exception they had to turn people away at the door. He said proceeds from the event went to help build a center for Muslim students on campus.

Ahmad Tejan-Sie, outreach co-chairperson of UNC MSA, said the event was organized to remember Deah, Yusor and Razan. He said each year, UNC MSA hosts an event, but they wanted this year to be different.

“We normally centered it around fasting, but this time we wanted to change it a bit,” he said. “Because it has been a year and a half since the (shooting). We wanted an event that was more focused on looking forward, rather than a more somber affair while in grief.”

The main speaker of the event was Linda Sarsour, a social justice activist. Tejan-Sie said Sarsour works to combat Islamophobia and other forms of discrimination.

During her speech, Sarsour gave examples of Islamophobia happening recently in the United States.

“I want you to be aware of the reality that we live in, and just because Islamophobia may not have impacted you directly or your friends or your family, but it’s real,” she said. “So the question is how do we, as Muslims, engage in a society where this is a reality that we live in.”

Yousef Abu-Salha, Yusor and Razan’s brother, and Farris Barakat, Deah’s brother, also spoke at the event. Abu-Salha discussed growing up with Razan and the impact she left on him.

“So I ask of all of us, and myself foremost, to reflect on some of the things that Razan did in her life and the messages that she shared with me and I knew she would want me to share with everyone here as we try to emulate in our lives and continue their legacy and try to make a better world like they did every day.”

Barakat spoke about his memories of his brother, like the recent marriage between Deah and Yusor.

“They worked hard to serve other people,” Barakat said. “They were never far from the time in which they were going to give back to other people.”

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