MAC Youth

MAC Youth is a department of the Muslim Association of Canada (MAC) that aims to develop Muslim Canadian youth with a comprehensive understanding of Islam who can be at the forefront of Canadian community development. As a movement that aims to establish a balanced Islamic presence within the fabric of Canada, we believe our youth are best positioned to partake in the evolving process of reconciling our Islamic principles with the general principles of the Canadian culture, without subjugating one to the other.

Our Principles

“We need spirited, energetic and strong young people whose hearts are filled with life, enthusiasm, zeal and dynamism; whose souls are full of ambition, aspiration and vigor and have great goals, rising and aspiring to reach them until they eventually arrive at their destination.” 

To a large extent, MAC Youth workers define the nature of MAC’s interaction with the Muslim community and the Canadian community at large. Consequently, MAC Youth workers understand, share, and strive to actualize the following notions:

• • The ultimate objective is servitude to Allah (SWT) through devotional practice, moral existence, and service to humanity. A MAC Youth worker’s loyalty is to Allah, not to a person or group.
  • The youth are the champions and the focus of our movement but MAC represents an inter-generational movement – not solely a youth movement. MAC firmly believes that the right of the youth to participate in decision-making and to assume leadership positions irrespective of gender, age or ethnicity, is an undeniable right.
  • MAC Youth development programs focus on creating an environment that defines and celebrates a Canadian Muslim identity. This identity is meant to provide the Muslim youth with a frame of reference that is Islamically sound and practically relevant to our Canadian context. A “faith in action” approach and youth-led initiatives are essential to MAC Youth work. Youth activism and societal engagement are highly encouraged and perceived as a means of facilitating personal development as well as providing opportunities to apply its principles and fulfill its objectives.

Together, we strive towards equipping the Muslim Canadian youth with the tools needed to be successful in all aspects of life.

About Our Youth Programming

MAC Youth aims to create a positive environment through structured activities that will encourage youth to meet their complex needs of belonging, autonomy, sense of purpose and achievement. Through grounding youth in their faith, helping them connect to their community roots, and presenting them with opportunities to help others, MAC delivers programs to help youth achieve their full potential.

MAC Youth Camps

MAC Youth offers several camp programs where participants have the opportunity to build character while enjoying the great outdoors. Through motivational talks and engaging activities, our youth develop lifelong bonds with one another and come back year after year to reawaken their inspiration as they learn to cope with the demands of everyday life.

MAC Youth camps run in the summer and winter. Whether they have a recreational or a spiritual focus, our camps are the perfect balance of sports, brotherhood & sisterhood, creative thinking, and spiritualism.

Check our MAC’s Summer Camps for 2024!

MAC Youth Groups

Youth groups help provide our youth with a sense of belonging and validation in the community by allowing them to regularly spend time with others like them, as well as with mentors who want them to succeed. Sisters’ and brothers’ youth groups (SYGs/BYGs), which specifically target high school students, meet every week to socialize, share personal reflections, engage in team-building activities, play sports, and/or eat good food together. The youth groups also hold special events such as sleepovers, themed workshops by guest speakers, and field trips.

Benefits of joining a SYG/BYG include:

• • Brotherhood and Sisterhood: The youth will build bonds and establish beneficial long-lasting relationships with other Muslim youth.
  • Strong Role Models and Mentors: Our university-aged mentors are able to connect and relate with Muslim high school students in a way that parents or elders in the community may not be able to.
  • Canadian Identity and Civic Responsibility: The program provides the youth with a safe environment to work through the struggles they face in reconciling their Islamic identity within their Canadian context.

EMAAN Awards Night

MAC Youth strives to foster, celebrate, and honour excellence in our youth. Each year, we set the stage for an evening of celebration called EMAAN, Educational Muslim Achievement Awards Night.

EMAAN’s mission is to celebrate student achievements and accomplishments. We recognize junior high, senior high and post secondary students’ excellence in all aspects of life, including academic, community service, and leadership. EMAAN is a unique, one-of-a-kind celebration which gathers a diverse attendance reflecting the cultural mosaic of Islam in Canada. Muslim youth are recognized with vibrant awards at an apex event of celebration and achievements.

For more information, or to volunteer, visit https://emaan.ca/