Page 4 The Islamic Bulletin Issue 18 But, gradually, Christian armies advanced. After the fall of the last Moorish stronghold in Granada in 1492, the cross replaced the crescent on Spain’s minarets and Muslims were forced to convert to Christianity or be exiled. Many Latino Muslims in Los Angeles see their conversion as a return to their Moorish roots. Today, Southern California has the third-largest concentration of Muslims in the country, including 58 mosques and Islamic centers in Los Angeles County. “In Catholicism, there are just so many ways to go. Why am I going to pray to the saints?” she added. “When we find Islam, we don’t have to waste energy. It’s like if I call the operator to get a number, I waste energy. But with Islam, I have the number. I get connected directly to God.” Along with the formation of more Latino Muslim organizations, conversion stories have begun burning up the Internet. Ali Al-Mexicano, a 25-year-old Pomona computer technician, created his own World Wide Web page account of how he became Muslim that includes the first time he read the Qur’an. “It was so clear and written in a simple, understanding way,” he said. “It just hit me. This has to be the truth.” Though Al-Mexicano family accepted his conversion, several other young Latinos who have begun searching outside the traditional confines of Catholicism have found conversion to be a heart-wrenching affair, often tearing families apart. “We have a strong Islamic legacy...people are rediscovering that part of their heritage.” Islam penetrated almost every facet of Spanish life...music, architecture, literature.” Domy Garcia said her family in Mexico was confused and upset by her decision to leave the church. The Buena Park mother converted to Islam two years ago after rejecting the religion she said was forced on her Mexican ancestors. Undeterred by her family’s reaction, Garcia said her main concern now is raising her children as Muslims and introducing more Latinos to Islam. “My family just would not accept it. They said, ‘What happened? You’ve changed so much,’” she recalled. “But it’s all right, because on Judgment Day, my family won’t be able to help. It will be God.” The Latino-Muslim Movement meets every Sunday afternoon for discussions at the ILM Foundation, a community center managed by Saadiq Saafir, a prominent African American prayer leader, or imam. About 2 p.m., Elizabeth Chawki, a Native American who is fluent in Spanish, usually begins the sessions, which have focused on women, preparation of food, marriage and Islamic divorce. Despite the perception that all Muslims are Arab, Chawki said, converts see the distinction between religion and ethnicity. “This is about pure religion, not culture. We still eat our tamales and frijoles,” said Chawki, referring to some Latino dishes served after the discussions. Gomez, a native of Nicaragua with no prior religious affiliations, said it was after reading “The Autobiography of Malcolm X” that he began to explore Islam. Like several other converts, Gomez spoke with resentment about the Catholic Church’s involvement in Latin America. “Viewing Jesus as a prophet and a political leader, and not a God, made more sense to me,” he said. The Latino-MuslimMovement also aims to bring together Muslims regardless of race. At a recent meeting, Saafir reflected on the emerging phenomenon of Latino conversions as similar to the time when African Americans began accepting Islam 50 years ago. In allowing the group to use the Islamic center, Saafir hopes to tear down the barriers that divide blacks and Latinos. “We all realize that we’re Muslim first,” Saafir said. “This religion is going to bring us together.” Nur nodded. “Inshallah,” he whispered. court suPPorts musLim inmates -- Prisoners have right to attend Prayer services By Denny Walsh SACRAMENTO - Every Muslim prisoner in California has the right to attend traditional prayer services, a federal judge ruled Friday. Freedom of religion doesn’t end at the prison gate, U.S. District Judge Lawrence Karlton made clear in a blistering 15-page order in which he held the state Department of Corrections in contempt. Karlton demanded that the agency ensure that every Muslim inmate in California - an estimated 10,000 to 11,000 - be permitted to attend Jumu’ah prayer services at midday Fridays. He gave a 15-day deadline for submittal of a plan to permit inmate access to the congregational services that are part of the Five Pillars defining Muslim religious practice. Karlton’s order comes in a 1995 case in which Ernest Fenelon, a California Medical Facility inmate, sued for the right to attend the Jumu’ah services, generally held between noon and 1 p.m. The services of no other religion were at issue. Corrections officials contend that regulations preclude prisoners from leaving their jobs to attend “routine” weekly religious services. Making an exception for Jumu’ah services, they insist, would disrupt the work program, require a regulation change, “cause problems with security and prison operations” at prisons statewide. At Jumu’ah services, the “imam” - or leader - preaches a sermon before the praying begins. During prayer, the imam recites all the words and the worshipers silently follow him in his motions - for example, standing erect, bowing and pressing their foreheads on the ground. Friday’s action was the culmination of a series of rulings on the matter in favor of worship. In February, Karlton sided with Fenelon and issued a preliminary injunction, but his ruling was implemented only to permit such religious freedom to Fenelon - not to all Muslim inmates. At a June hearing, Deputy Attorney General Bernice Louie Yew told Karlton this was because his injunction was “not clear with respect to other prisoners.” “It is only my good sense that keeps me from putting you and your clients in jail and let you see what it feels like,” Karlton fumed. “Your duty is not to cut the salami so thin that you can see through it.” In Friday’s order, Karlton assured the Corrections Department it will face sanctions by the court if it fails to submit a plan accommodating all Muslim prisoners. Department spokeswoman Kati Corsaut said the agency “fully intends to comply with the order.” “We’re talking about the most basic of human rights,” said attorney Steven Burlingham, representing Fenelon. “They want to use their lunch hour to pray. Yet, we have been in court for four years. “It’s ridiculous to spend taxpayers’ money to fight this. There are lots better uses for the state’s resources. We’re not asking for television sets or a golf course. We want an hour to worship God.” In his motion for contempt, Burlingham claimed that, after Karlton issued his preliminary injunction in February, prison officials “took steps to retaliate against (Fenelon).” However, the judge found that three incidents cited in the motion do not prove retaliation. He adopted the recommendations of U.S. Magistrate Judge John Moulds. Quoting appellate case law, Moulds said the First Amendment requires that prisoners be afforded “a reasonable opportunity to worship in accordance with their conscience.” The U.S. Supreme Court found in 1987 that “Jumu’ah is commanded by the Koran and must be held every Friday after the sun reaches its zenith and before the ‘Asr,’ or afternoon prayer,” Moulds pointed out. “There is no question that (Muslim prisoners’) sincerely held religious beliefs compel attendance at Jumu’ah,” the high court said.
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