For the past few Ramadans, we've donated hijabs to Muslim women's shelters across the U.S., because supporting places that provide a safe haven to women who are displaced due to domestic abuse, homelessness, and other reasons is a priority for us. And, we value and salute all the organizations that work to provide help in any way for these women. 

It's only natural that our next step is partnering with an amazing organization, ICNA Relief Women's Transitional Housing, for a very special project! We're releasing an entirely new product category, inspired by YOU! The product is bold, empowering and celebrates who we all are! And the best part is - a percentage of the proceeds from sales of this product will be going to ICNA Relief!

You'll have to wait just one more day to find out what the product is, but in the meantime we wanted to take this opportunity to engage with our community and tell you more about our partner, ICNA Relief Women's Transitional Housing, which champions the cause of women's empowerment. 

As stated on their website, the mission of this program is as follows: 

They currently have 17 women's transitional housing sites throughout the country, with hopes of having 20 by the end of the year, insha'Allah. They provide a place of refuge and temporary housing to homeless, abused, neglected and underemployed women. The program's main goal is to maintain women's dignity by providing them with resources and services to help them gain independence as quickly as possible. This includes legal counseling, financial assistance, emotional healing, action plans and goal setting, and one-on-one case management.

Women staying at ICNA Relief Transitional Homes are also given courses that teach them life skills, as well as computer skills to help them find jobs and be on their way to financial independence. They are offered a number of workshops, including but not limited to financial literacy, professional development, abuse prevention and so much more.

In some homes, women even have the opportunity to join weekly halaqas (religious classes) if they wish. Malika McDonald, ICNA Relief's national director of Women's Transitional Housing, tells me that one of their priorities is to preserve women's privacy. With this in mind, many of the classes they provide are open to the public, so that no one knows who is staying at the home and who isn't. 

Where Your Proceeds Will Go 

A percentage of proceeds from your purchase of our new HH product will be donated to this program. The transitional housing facilities are funded mostly through donations. Once a facility opens and runs for enough time that it has a track record, ICNA Relief can apply for grants. Even then, each facility has expenses that include utilities, facility expenses (furniture, appliances, bedding, etc), food, hygiene products, counseling fees, medical fees, staffing and more. 

Due to lack of space and resources, many transitional homes are forced to turn women away once they're at maximum capacity. If they do have to turn a woman away, they still do their best to provide her with as many resources as possible. The donations from your purchases will go to any number of the things listed above to help ICNA Relief provide services and care for as many women as possible and aid them in turning their lives around for the better, insha'Allah. 

It is incumbent on us as Muslims to care for each other, especially those of us who are most vulnerable. Nu'man b. Bashir reported that the Prophet (S) said:

As a company that pride's itself in working towards the empowerment of all women, Haute Hijab cannot be happier or prouder to be partnering with ICNA Relief on this initiative! 

Stay tuned for the release of our new product! We're sure you're going to love it! And together, we can make a difference!

If you'd like to make your own donation to ICNA Relief, click here.