I had a friend a guy who I used to work
with you know at a real estate company
and he was like hey man
can I ask you a question you won't get
offended none
is it true in your religion part of your
religion is like taking your life like
you know like like blowing yourself up
so I was like if that were the case we
wouldn't be here we be all over the
place you know Islam's the
fastest-growing religion in the world
and it is the most misunderstood
terrorism is not so Islam these types of
X are not you know from this religion
and that's when I really started getting
an idea what is Islam how deep it was
and it wasn't what the media was
portraying when you embrace Islam it's
like this way that you have has been
lifted are you in breed for the first
time yeah you just feel like
why are Latinos converting in your
opinion the statistics suggest that the
Latino segment of the overall Muslim
population is the fastest-growing
they're leaving cultural Catholicism
they don't really understand what
they're leaving
thank you my dear how large is this
movement it's got to be at least 250,000
Wow but it's growing
what Mexico sends its people they're not
sending their best with all the racism
and the xenophobia happening where are
the Catholic Christian leaders in this
country really taking the strong stand
on that a lot of Latinos are saying
maybe Islam is offering something that
for sanity doesn't offer I'm worried
absolutely I'm worried Islamic culture
is extremely different
[Music]
inside America's Islamic community one
of the fastest growing populations is
Latino
and the epicenter of that movement is
here in Houston Texas home to not only
one of the largest Latino communities
but also one of America's largest Muslim
communities just 350 miles away from the
Mexican American border during one of
the worst deportation crises in recent
history and less than a year from the
Muslim ban we got to go and we got to
knock the out of these people
[Applause]
I've come here to meet Jaime I mean yeah
Lee the founder of America's first Islam
and Spanish Center to find out why two
of America's most discriminated groups
are actually coming together whatever
people come in we let them know that
look it's not a traditional mosque
we're the only producers in the world
producing material in the Spanish
language and distributing it you know at
the mass level people come through the
center today I'm here thinking in the
ways that the media has portrayed
Muslims most of their believing the
things that the media is portrayed about
most most definitely in fact that's the
default when people come in here before
coming in here we know they have
preconceived notions you know if I
didn't know Chinese people and on the
media says Chinese people kill people
who are not Chinese I wouldn't want to
Chinese neighbor right you know it's
just common sense that's the reason why
we built this place yeah getting rid of
some of these misconceptions then they
start thinking you know why don't I know
this stuff
[Music]
I'm a what brought you to Islam you know
I grew up in Houston and when I came
here I was eight years old all I knew
was Colombia and Venezuela I previously
lived there so I'm one of those
immigrant youth that came to America my
parents wanted for me to have a better
future
when I got here I realized that the
culture here was a bit different than
what my parents expected and we were
having a lot of issues in regards to
gangs popping up in the environment and
there was some trouble times where
unfortunately I saw some of my friends
get killed people getting strung out on
drugs and it was a survival mode I look
for answers and I looked at so many
different religions
and someone who gave me the quarter and
I began to read it and the more I read
it the more life made sense my mother
thought I was brainwashed when I became
Muslim because I stopped drinking
alcohol going out you know the girls all
the stuff that I had easily I let go of
it
and it was great that I did it at the
time I did it because few months later a
lot of my friends got caught and some
stuff that put them in trouble and I'm
like man that choice of me accepted
Islam saved me from that America is not
the most kind place to Latino immigrants
right now so why would you subject
yourself to being that double minority I
don't think being a Muslim and being
Latino is putting me in a position of
weakness it actually puts me in a
position of strength
I have to be the best Latino I could be
now you got to be the best Muslim while
Latinos are the fastest-growing
population within Islam very little
research has gone into discovering why
so I'm heading the rice university to
meet with professor Considine a
religious studies expert to gain clarity
on why so many Latinos are becoming
Muslim during such a critical and
divisive time in America why is it that
Latinos are seeking out Islam does it
have anything to do with the common
experience between Muslims and Latinos
in this country absolutely especially
after the election in 2016 where a lot
of these people felt purged when Mexico
sends its people they're not sending
their
they're sending people that have lots of
problems and they're bringing those
problems with us they're bringing drugs
they're bringing crime they're rapists
a lot of Latinos are recognizing that
not being white in this country comes
with certain barriers Latinos might also
be thinking Muslims generally speaking
they faced similar obstacles with all
the racism and the xenophobia happening
from the top of the government just a
five-year ban to an everyday existence
on the street who knows what they're
gonna bring it in this country we're
gonna bombs Isis what they need to go I
think a lot of people are seeing Islam
and the Islamic tradition in general as
being more tolerant of race people have
to recognize you know one of the most
racially diverse religions in the world
is Islam we stand in opposition to them
how large is this movement the
statistics suggest that it's got to be
at least 250,000 Latin Muslims in this
country Wow but it's growing this is the
future of America Houston is a microcosm
of the future of America it's the
Browning of America you know they say by
2050 you white people are not gonna be
the majority hangul 34 percent of the
American Catholic population is Latino
mainly immigrants and many of those
converting to Islam are coming out of
this community so I sat down with a
group of members from st. Cyril's
Catholic Church in Houston to get their
thoughts on the Latino Christian move to
embrace Islam what has been your
experience with the number of converts
moving from Catholicism to Islam within
the Latino community so it's a very
complicated issue actually rights it's
multifaceted but there's also a
concerted effort by the Muslim community
to reach out to Latino communities I
think it's no secret especially in the
climate that we have now and this has
been an issue for years with immigration
especially when you look at the
disenfranchisement of people's right and
that's what we're seeing in the
immigration stay I'm
and they turn to something and of course
I think the Islamic community something
that I think that they target and they
look for thank you look at the rise of
Islam within Arab or parts of on Middle
East where do you see its greatest
growth is the same place you see its
greatest extremism but you do feel as
though they may like placate to this
demographic or have a do I think it's a
I think it is a it's a concerted effort
I do but I'm worried real worried
absolutely I'm worried I'm worried from
an anthropological standpoint Islamic
culture is extremely different we see
what's happened in Europe we see what's
happening in England
how do you think they'll be received by
the larger American community skepticism
I would say very skeptical very
skeptical you know anyone who says that
we target disenfranchised individuals
they don't know us
people who talk like this they have any
Letus mentality possibly how are we
targeting we're not targeting
disenfranchised people
we're on digital media saloons this so
this is the brain man of the whole
operation right here we reached 14
million people just in a month in
Ramadan Wow sometimes there's some
attacks you know and they come due to
some bias sometimes and people have some
agendas this is our podcast station
right here I mean had you had to contend
with Islamophobia or racism because
you're a Latino you know when I became
Muslim it was three months before
September 11
I was one of the few Spanish speakers in
the community and so the Muslim
community asked me to speak in front of
the media
Univision Telemundo to explain about why
Islam was not what people were thinking
just happened over there you know with
the team's Twin Towers you know that
some Colombians for drugs doesn't make
me a drug dealer because I'm from
Colombia that some Muslim goes in
commits a you know a wrong act of
violence shouldn't make me feel bad
about being Muslim friends and family
that were so emotionally charged
regarding what happened over there in
New York that they were like how could
you write be part of that is that the
case for most Latinos converting the
family is the first shock yeah
we're in the north side of Houston about
45 minutes from the Islam and Spanish
Center we're gonna go meet up with Raul
Raul is a daca dreamer from Mexico that
converted to Islam in 2011 at the age of
19 and has since become an active member
of the Islam and Spanish center but like
many Latino converts Raul's family
disowned him for becoming a Muslim I was
in high school I was not doing so good
spiritually you know I was going through
a depression also like I'm under daca as
well at the time I didn't have papers so
you know I'm getting paid you know like
five bucks to to to wash the dishes and
our and stuff like that a lot of people
take advantage of immigrants and that's
when I really started getting an idea of
what with what is Islam and how deep it
was and how it wasn't what the media was
portraying and what's what
literally cured my depression are you
concerned at all being a docker dreamer
and now being Muslim oh man it's like a
double whammy for me yeah and with Trump
I'm just I won I'm lucky no I'm - I'm
Muslim and she does anyone get attacked
from all sides I'm you know long or even
huh me that
[Music]
basically my mom found out that was
funny in Islam and she pretty much
kicked me out of the house and the
moment closed out
she said I was joining a terrorist
organization a cult and they were
training me to kill at the time like
also I stopped being important so my mom
was just like when I fed you beans I
would put pork on there on purpose
he's playing straight-up objection
[Music]
I remember eventually my mom started
coming into the community seeing the
rest of the people there really all
these people would come up to my mom's
like hey do you know your son's like
going out there feeding the homeless
being a good member of the community and
stuff like that all they steamed them
all on comes up to me she's like how
come he didn't tell me you did all these
things he never asked you weren't
interested in tell me I believed them
seeing how much change
aslam had in me it's like when you
started seeing this like okay this isn't
necessary for back in Michigan he's
still all and if anything he's becoming
a better person my mom accepted Islam
just a few months ago and sent three
slamming Rivera when she did well yeah
most definitely
she decided to do out on her own and and
it was very very mind blowing you say
ton difficile I mean falafel be here
okay you're a chef Kenobi must serve
this family camp ya que estoy
the next day my mom told me that she
hasn't felt that much peace in years
his LOM it changes everything we've
heard from a number of conference that
we spoken to that there was an immediate
rejection within their family to their
conversion and I'm curious if you can
comment on that why members of the
Latino community are so resistant to
their own neighbor his sons daughters
wives and husbands converting the Islam
in one word ignorance its lack of
education its misinformation right so
this is part of the hangover from 9/11 a
lot of people in this country who are
not Muslim have certain ideas which are
steeped in stereotypes so they see Islam
as oppressing women they see Islam as
being backward they see Islam in
association with Isis and al Qaeda and
violence all things which can be
factually disproven if we just look at
the reality
[Music]
today's the Muslim holiday of Eid and
for a number of the members of the Islam
and Spanish Center this is going to be
their first major Islamic holiday so
we're gonna go inside and meet some of
the members of this community and find
out what this transition has been like
did you guys have any misconceptions
about Islam or about Muslims before you
became Muslim yes my family makes jokes
my brothers mostly they're like oh
you're going to the Masjid
oh they're teaching you to make bombs or
something I'm like no terrorism is not
so Islam these types of acts are not you
know from this religion what I knew
before when I became a Muslim to now
there's so many different
how has Islam impacted your cultural
identity I'm still we still have our
culture we still have our language and
everything's you know I'm still Mexican
I still like the same food I still eat
all of y'all so then I just you know my
faith has changed one of the things that
I think that we're gonna see at some
point is probably a backlash into the
fact that in the Islamic communities
when you grow up with that you grow up
with Sharia law there's a Sharia law you
mean like separation of gender is things
like separation of genders some of the
things you know they even brought that
out well how you know why would women go
to such what they seem as they more
oppressive one of the interesting things
is that reading some of these young
women is they love where in the Hajj ah
what does it represent it represents
modesty and a sense of purity it is what
I feel like is they feel like when they
go to Islam they're hitting the reset
button really and this is something that
that Islam does do in this it's sort of
a demonizing of white culture so do you
think that conversion is a misguided
decision I do I do I think it's a lack
of understanding what they're leading
is there something that Islam has to
offer the Latino community that maybe
Catholicism or Judaism or just like
another religion doesn't the core
principle that is so enticing of Islam
that you have a very personal
relationship with God without any
intermediaries there is nothing between
you and God you know traditional ways of
teaching religion has been because I
said so right because my father did some
but when you look at Islam you're
encouraged to ask questions in order to
meet doubt many of us came to the United
States from immigrant parents how many
youth came to America and lost our way
how many of us lives because of the
choices that were made
how can someone look living as a Muslim
as a minority in America right now and
look at what's being said in the
mainstream but what they're saying
the little way they're talking about
what's little what they think how many
of us put ourselves in that situation is
that well victimized mentality or how
many of us look at these circumstances
and say you know what these are just
challenges in life I'm gonna head
forward and I'm gonna deal with this in
the best of ways America at its
foundation is a land of religious
freedom and it's a country that was
built by immigrants but in today's
political climate Muslims seeking
religious acceptance are being
discriminated against just like the
immigrants seeking a new home
[Music]
ironically this intolerance and
oppression has brought these groups
together and from that shared trauma a
supportive and accepting community is
growing
[Music]