Arab American culture will be sprinkled throughout NFL draft in Detroit
These prayer halls will be geared up for worshippers of the Muslim faith: tents with an authentic design and decor, a place for washing hands and storing shoes, and rugs ready for use. But they'll be in a most unlikely place — in the midst of the craziness that is the NFL draft, and the hundreds of thousands of fans expected to descend on Detroit for Thursday's kickoff.
Nicki Ewell, senior director of events for the NFL, said the two prayer tents will be in the footprint of the draft: one on Jefferson near Hart Plaza, the second close the stage — the center of the draft — in Campus Martius.
The prayer halls will be open the same hours as the draft: noon to 10 p.m. Thursday and Friday, and 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday. While draft activities are free, visitors will need an NFL OnePass to access the festivities, including the prayer halls.
More: Get the NFL OnePass The OnePass app is your ticket to the 2024 NFL draft in Detroit: What to know
Ewell said the NFL made the decision to include the prayer halls a part of the draft experience after many conversations with the people of the region. She said the NFL wanted to be inclusive for all football fans, including those from the large population of Arab Americans in the Detroit area and beyond.
The NFL had a Dearborn Heights company, Led Lion, design and build the tents to house the prayer halls, and a Shelby Township company, Suite Storees, to design the interiors.
Both are Arab American businesses and just two of several that will be participating in the draft, among them two Yemini coffee shops, eateries, a janitorial service, and a florist, Blum Floral Boutique in Ferndale, which is handling all of the tropical-themed floral arrangements — 100 in all. Owner Naddine Ahmad said the arrangements come in all shades of blue, purple and green, but she's lost count of the number of stems.
"This is a community that is excited to be at the table and will wow the rest of the world at the draft," said Bilal Hammoud, executive director of the Arab American Chamber of Commerce.
He said this is the first time the NFL has joined with the Arab American community in such a large way at a major sporting event. So often, he said, Arab American businesses are "under the radar" when someone is looking to include a minority business.
Ewell said it is all part of the NFL's attempts to be intentionally inclusive by making sure that companies with owners from the Arab American, Black, Hispanic and LGBTQ+ communities, as well as women and veteran-owned businesses, were included.
The tents were installed and decorated Tuesday, just prior to the start of the draft Thursday.
Ewell said the NFL's intentional inclusivity "brings value across all sectors" of the economy and "does not go unnoticed by the community."
Hussein Mokahal, whose Dearborn Heights company Led Lion, built and installed the tents, said they were designed to create a serene, peaceful environment for prayer and reflection.
Members of the Muslim faith say ritual prayers five times a day: before sunrise, at midday, midafternoon, sunset, and when the sky goes dark. The prayer halls will be open during many of these times of prayer, giving football fans a place to reflect, to focus the heart and mind in service to their faith.
"This is a powerful example of how sports can bring us together and celebrate our diversity," Mokahal said. "It creates a welcoming envionment for all."
Sports, said Muslim scholar Mohamad Ayyad of the Islamic Center of America, "helps unite people and not divide them."
Contact Jennifer Dixon: jbdixon@freepress.com
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: NFL draft in Detroit includes Arab American culture, prayer tents
