City’s second Eid festival of the year axed
COVID-SECURE
A FESTIVAL to mark the second Eid, Eid-al-Adha, has been cancelled.
The Eid festival, which would have taken place at the end of July or beginning of August, is the second to be cancelled this year due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Discussions on holding the festival safely had been held by organisers, until it was reported that cases of the virus were increasing in the city.
The decision was made to cancel the event, ahead of the local lockdown imposed by the government last Monday.
Organiser Greg Griffiths said: “It’s a shame, because the Eid festival is very much a community religious event.
“But it would have been impossible to run it at this time.”
Eid is one of the many religious occasions that have been celebrated under the restrictions of lockdown. Others include Easter, celebrated by Christians, Vaisakhi, celebrated by Sikhs, and Passover, celebrated by the Jewish community.
Families would usually spend these significant holy days together or as part of a community, but this year they have been quiet affairs, spent together through video calls.
Earlier this year, Leicester’s Muslim community celebrated Eid al Fitr, which marks the end of Ramadan.
The Leicester Mercury spoke to city resident Yasin Nathani, who would usually celebrate by spending all day visiting family, but this year he had a quiet Eid at home with his loved ones.
The Eid festival is one of the largest events in the city. In previous years, it has attracted more than 10,000 people of all backgrounds. Last year, the rain didn’t stop thousands from attending the event.
Members of the community will not be the only people affected by the cancellations.
“Like many other events, it is having a massive knock-on effect on the vendors and companies involved,” said Mr Griffiths.
“Regional events collectively bring massive value to the local economy - we have 30 to 50 traders at some events.”
Mr Griffiths, who runs On The Scene events in Leicestershire, said the events team would still be working towards the next Eid festival, which will be held in 2021, and were already considering health and safety measures to keep it “Covid secure”.