Islam Gains Hispanic Converts

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Islam gains Hispanic converts

Ramadan rite expands with new trend in Florida

By Lisa Bolivar
Special Correspondent

September 30, 2005

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/loc...,2961024.story

This year's Ramadan celebration will be extra special for members of a Margate mosque who will observe the holiday in a brand new building instead of inside the cramped storefront they used to call home.

Masjid Jamaat Al-Mumineen's spacious new building is just behind the old storefront off Sample Road, where Margate touches Coral Springs, but this mosque will allow more families to gather for the traditional fast-breaking meal, called an iftar, said Bibi Khan of Margate.

"Because the space we were in was so small and congested, now more people can join us in more space," she said.

Ramadan, which begins around Oct. 4, depending on when the new moon is sighted, is a monthlong holiday in which Muslims abstain from food, drink, and any worldly pleasures from sunup to sundown. The holiday is part of five requirements, or pillars, of the Islamic faith. The other four pillars are the shahaddah, or the witnessing, where a believer declares three times that there is one God and Muhammad is the messenger of God; the performing of five daily prayers; paying the "poor due" or zakat, which amounts to about 2.5 percent of a person's monetary worth; and performing a pilgrimage, or hajj, to Mecca in Saudi Arabia once in a lifetime, if it can be afforded.

Melissa Matos is among some area Muslims who will be celebrating the season for the first time.

When she speaks of celebrating her first Ramadan, the 20-year-old clasps her hands excitedly anda smile spreads from ear-to-ear.

Matos, who took the shahaddah in order to become a Muslim in April, has started down a path toward a new way of life, a new circle of friends and a tradition that, she said, she knows will teach her to be a better person.

"What I am looking forward to for the month is letting go of a lot of things I do," said Matos, who lives in Miramar. "I am going to be more sensitive to things I didn't notice before, like hunger; I am looking forward to what it is going to do for my sensitivity."

Matos represents a growing number of Latin women who are taking the shahaddah and donning the traditional hair covering, called a hijab.

Altaf Ali, executive director at the Council on American-Islamic Relations in Pembroke Pines, said Islam is gaining an increasing number of Hispanic converts.

"More so in California, but in Florida it's a new trend. …Yes, there are several Hispanic Muslims that have been in Florida for some time now, but in regards to the conversion rate within the last few years, I've seen an increasing rate in Hispanics converting to Islam," said Ali, a native of Guyana. "I think the Hispanic culture itself is very rich in terms of family values, and that is something that is very prominent in the religion of Islam.

"Family values play an integral role in the formation of a Muslim community. Because of those family values, there is a lot of other norms that are consistent within the Hispanic community and Islam; for instance, respect for elders, married life and rearing children, these are some of the traditions Hispanics have in common with Islam."

Matos began learning about the faith, and what she found spoke to her heart.

"Its simplicity and its universality, it's for every culture, for every time, every country, it's for everyone," she said.

Zeleina Bakhsh, Bibi Khan's sister, grew up in Guyana and moved to South Florida with her family. Bakhsh also likes to celebrate the diversity of her faith, especially at this time of year.

"Islam is about unity, and we have that here among the brothers and sisters," she said, speaking of the fellowship at the Margate mosque. "It makes you feel very emotional in that month. We read a lot of Quran, we do dikhir (reciting the names of God) and Allah is giving you a chance to beg for forgiveness if you have made a sin."

Matos said she is looking forward to learning the lessons of the season.

"It's a time when Muslims get to basically learn sensitivity to others," she said. "During that time (of early Islam) when the people lived you had large class divisions, the very, very rich and very, very poor and it was a way to get people to understand what it is to be poor."

Ali said Ramadan also offers an opportunity for starting another year on a better footing.

"What I think is very significant this year is that taking into consideration all that has happened within the Muslims who live in America and the … challenges that we faced, the month of Ramadan once again boosts our morale and it increased our self-esteem," he said. "And once again we apply forgiveness toward those who have wronged us in many ways; the negative publicity and the injustices passed upon us.

"This is a time when we say it's another year, it's a time of forgiveness, a time of reflection and giving, and we reflect on the good things we've accomplished in our country, and what this country has given us, and we appreciate that. It takes us away from the constant battle of proving what we are," he said.

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LATINO WOMEN FINDING A PLACE IN ISLAM

Carmen Sesin, NBC News, 9/30/05

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/9352969/


A group of Latina converts to Islam participate in a class at the Islamic Education Center of North Hudson, in Union City, N.J

UNION CITY, N.J. — On a hot summer day, Stefani Perada took a break from her job in West New York, N.J., and stepped outside in her long jilbab, the flowing clothes clothes worn by many Muslim women.

Meanwhile, other Latinas in the mostly Hispanic neighborhood were taking advantage of the warm day, walking around in shorts and midriff-exposing halter tops.

Perada, 19, who converted to Islam just over a year ago, is still trying to become acclimated to certain customs, such as the jilbab and the hijab, which covers her head and hair.

"Mostly it's because of how your friends and family are going to look at you," she said. "They look at you like, ‘Why is she wearing that, it’s so hot.’”

But, she said, “I am doing this for God, and one day I will be rewarded for what I am doing.”

And there's an immediate benefit: She's not harassed as much by men when she walks down the street.

“You know how guys [say], ‘Hey Mami, come over here?’ I used to always hate that. I would cross the street just to get away. Now you still get some guys that are still curious, but it’s much less,” she explained.

“They are going to look at me for me, and not for my body.”

Growing number of converts?
Perada is not alone as a Hispanic women converting to Islam.

The exact number of Latino Muslims is difficult to determine, because the U.S. Census Bureau does not collect information about religion. However, according to estimates conducted by national Islamic organizations such as the Council for American Islamic Relations (CAIR) and the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) there are approximately 40,000 Latino Muslims in the United States.

Likewise, it is difficult to break-down the number of Latino converts to Islam into male versus female. But, according to anecdotal evidence and a survey conducted by the Latino American Dawah Organization (LADO), whose mission is to promote Islam within the Latino community in the United States, the number of Latinos converting to Islam tilts slightly in favor of women — with 60 percent women to 40 percent men.

Juan Galvan, the head of LADO in Texas and the co-author of a report "Latino Muslims: The Changing Face of Islam in America," explained that those numbers are unscientific, but based on the results of a voluntary survey that has been conducted on the LADO website since 2001.

“From observation and experience those numbers are correct,” Galvan said. “From my personal experience, there are definitely more Latina Muslims than Latino men.” Galvan explained said that there “just seem to be more” Latina Muslims at the various events he attends through his work with LADO.

At the Islamic Education Center of North Hudson, 300 of the people who attend the mosque are converts, and 80 percent are Latino converts. In addition, out of the Latino converts, 60 percent are women, according to Nylka Vargas, who works at the mosque with the Educational Outreach Program.

Overall growth
Peter Awn, an Islamic studies professor at Columbia University, says there is no doubt that the number of Latinos converting to Islam is growing.

Louis Cristillo, an anthropologist who focuses on Islamic education at Columbia University, points out there are several indicators that reflect the growing trend of Latinos converting to Islam.

For example, there are a number of regional and national organizations that cater to Latino Muslims, and there are even support groups that can be found on-line specifically for Latino converts — in particular Hispanicmuslims.com, as well the LADO organization at latinodawah.org.

In fact, last weekend, Latino Muslims in this country celebrated the third annual Hispanic Muslim Day with different activities throughout the day.


For women, particular challenges
Converting to Islam can be shocking for families who are largely Catholic and harbor stereotypes of Muslims, specifically concerning women.

Perada says her mother, who is Colombian, accepted her decision to convert because she never really pushed her into Catholicism. However, her father, who is of Italian origin, has had a tough time dealing with it.

“Sometimes he says things about the way I dress,” said Perada. “He’ll say, ‘Why do you have to dress that way. I’m Christian. I don’t walk around with a cross in my hand.'

“He always complains to my mom about it, but with me he just keeps it to himself. But I know for him it is very hard,” Perada added.

Vargas, 30, from the Islamic Education Center, is of Ecuadorian and Peruvian descent. She says her family is already accustomed to the idea of her being Muslim, since it has already been ten years since she converted. But she recalls the days in which her family was dealing with the initial shock of her new faith.

“When I started being more visible, that’s when things started getting weird. My sisters couldn’t understand why I would cover myself. They thought I was being oppressed or brainwashed,” said Vargas.

She admits it was difficult at first to adjust to certain customs, such as wearing the hijab or a headscarf and having to pray five times a day.

“First it felt kind of weird to be covered, but after a while it [the headscarf] becomes your hair. I refer to my hijab as my hair.”

‘A return to traditional values’
Like other ethnic groups, Latinos convert for a variety of reasons.

Some, says Cristillo, grew up in inner-city areas ravaged by poverty, drugs and prostitution, and were attracted in part by the fact that some Islamic communities were very active in cleaning up the neighborhoods.

Vargas, meanwhile, says she questioned many things about the Catholic faith in which she was raised and felt an emptiness in Christianity.

Galvan, from LADO, pointed out that many people come to Islam through people that they know, "friends, co-workers, classmates, boyfriends or husbands.”

Professor Awn said that many Latinas find there is a greater sense of economic and social stability in Islam and that it also represents “a return to traditional values.”

In that regard, Awn does not think Islam is any more patriarchal than other traditional religions, but recognized that “the younger generation is looking for a more progressive form of Islam."

And Perada does not feel that her adherence to the Muslim faith restricts her freedoms as a woman.

“If I get married, I know I am going to work, but I am going to be there for my kids, too,” said Perada, dismissing any notions that Islam would prevent her from living the life of any other modern woman

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A jew once confessed to me and said that the beautiful thing about Islam is that a Muslim in china will always feel for his brother in south africa.

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BY ALEXANDRA ALTER
aalter@herald.com

Wed, Oct. 05, 2005

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/12820867.htm

Ask Melissa Matos why she converted to Islam, and you'll likely get an answer that spans 13 centuries. She may refer to seventh century Arabia, where Muslims believe the Prophet Mohammed received the Koran from the angel Gabriel. Or she might describe Islam's golden age in medieval Spain. Or she'll recall Sept. 11, 2001, when fear and curiosity drove her to read about Islam on the Internet.


STUDENT WORKER: FIU student Melissa Matos works for the Council on American Islamic Relations in Pembroke Pines. e holds her copy of the Koran.


Matos, who comes from a family of Seventh-day Adventists from the Dominican Republic, has answered the question countless times since converting to Islam in April. She now covers her hair, prays five times a day, and today will observe Ramadan, a month of fasting, prayer and reflection, which began at sundown.

''Sometimes it does get a little difficult,'' said Matos, a 20-year-old political science student at Florida International University who lives with her parents in Miramar. ``I feel alienated from my family and my old friends, but Islam is so beautiful, it's worth it. And with Ramadan, I'm just doing it by myself, just me and God.''

Though Hispanic women make up a small fraction of the nation's 6 million Muslims, those converting to Islam are exerting influence beyond their numbers, teaching Spanish-Arabic classes, forming Hispanic-Muslim organizations and distributing the Koran in Spanish.

Matos, for one, plans to organize a lecture series this semester at FIU on the religion's little-known history in Latin America, including two lectures that will be in Spanish, she said.

Some have founded support networks. Piedad, a network of Muslim women that seeks to educate Spanish-speaking communities about Islam, has more than 344 members nationally. Other groups, like the Latino American Dawah Organization , which was formed in 1997, promote the legacy of Islam in Spain and Latin America.


DEVOTED: Former Seventh-day Adventist Melissa Matos now prays to Allah five times a day.


''It's a movement that is growing, particularly in urban areas,'' said Manuel Vasquez, a professor of religion at the University of Florida. ``It's part of the cross-fertilization that's occurring among immigrant groups.''

There are some 40,000 Hispanic Muslims in the United States, according to a spokesman for the Islamic Society of North America. The largest populations live in New York, Texas, Los Angeles, Chicago and Miami, American Muslim organizations say.

Jameela Ali, 26, became a Muslim seven years ago after she dreamed she was praying in a mosque filled with light. Her mother, who is from Peru, had converted to Islam several years before. Now her brother, 22, and sister, 21, have converted.

''You feel a much closer connection to God,'' said Ali, who lives in Pembroke Pines and teaches two other Hispanic Muslim women to read and write Arabic. ``You give up everything of your old lifestyle -- your old clothes, you're not going to clubs, you're not drinking, you're not smoking.''

Islam's growth among Hispanic women may result from the broader Muslim outreach following the Sept. 11 attacks, said Aisha Musa, an assistant professor of religion at Florida International University.

SPANISH KORANS

Sofian Abdelaziz, the director of the American Muslim Association of North America in Miami, said his group often gets requests for the Koran in Spanish. In the last several years, they've given away more than 5,000 Spanish translations of the Koran to South Florida mosques and prisons, he said.

Converts and Muslim leaders are quick to note that Muslims accept Hebrew and Christian scripture as revelation, but maintain that the Prophet Mohammed provided the complete word of God. Muslims follow the Koran, the holy book revealed to Mohammed. Islam's five central tenets include professing faith in God and his prophet, Mohammed, performing daily prayers, showing charity, fasting during Ramadan and making hajj or pilgrimage to Mecca, Islam's holy city in Saudi Arabia.

Islam spread rapidly after Mohammed's death in the seventh century and today is one of the fastest-growing religions in North America, scholars say. Hispanic converts in urban areas say it's become easier to find like-minded communities.

''It's so great to meet other Latin people because we all know each other's backgrounds,'' said Fatima Narvaez, 30, who converted in 2002 and now studies Arabic with two other Hispanic women on the weekends.

But convincing families that conversion is the way to go hasn't always been easy.

CLASHING BELIEFS

''They think I've rejected my way to salvation because I don't believe Jesus Christ is the son of God,'' Matos said of her parents, who are Seventh-day Adventists.

Roraima Aisha Kanar was raised Roman Catholic by her parents, Cuban exiles who settled in Miami in 1959. Kanar, 52, considered becoming a nun before converting to Islam at age 22. Her parents, devout Catholics, didn't want their grandchildren to be raised Muslim, she said.

''It was very hard to know that my own mother didn't respect my belief,'' said Kanar, who with her husband raised their three children as Muslims.

But others have found support from their families. Narvaez, who lives with her grandparents in Davie, was worried they wouldn't understand her new dietary practices. Islam forbids pork and meat that isn't halal, or slaughtered according to Islamic law.

''With Puerto Ricans, there's pork in everything,'' said Narvaez, who works in marketing. ``But they accommodate all my issues and cook halal food for me.''

Ali said she's renounced aspects of Hispanic culture that conflict with her beliefs, like cooking with wine or eating pork. But she still marks Christmas with her Peruvian family and cooks South American dishes.

''Islam is a way of life, but you don't suddenly have to start listening to Arabic music,'' said Ali. ``We still keep our heritage.''

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Religion, Culture Mix at Itfar Dinner

After Ramadan Dinner, Students Discuss Growing Role of Islam in Latino Culture

By Lauren Melnick
Spectator Staff Writer

October 12, 2005

Students came together to break their Ramadan fast over an iftar dinner and stayed for halal tex-mex in Lerner.
The mix of the two unlikely meals represented the blend of cultures at Tuesday night's "Latinos in Islam: Rediscovering our Roots." The event was organized to educate attendees about the role that Islam has played in Latino culture and the growing Latino Muslim population.

The program, which was scheduled to coincide with both Ramadan and Latino Heritage Month, was organized at the suggestion of Hernan Guadalupe, director and founder of the Latino Muslim Outreach Program and a recent Muslim convert.

"We believe [Latino Muslim culture] to be an interesting topic which hasn't really been discussed over the years," said Guadalupe. "My goal is to have people really enjoy the information and walk out knowing something new about Islam and about being Latino."

Originally from Ecuador and a native Spanish speaker, Guadalupe said he was raised in a strong Catholic household. It was not until his junior year of college in 2001 that he converted to Islam. In March 2005, he co-founded the LMOP, a New Jersey-based grassroots organization that aims to introduce more Latinos to Islam and clarify misconceptions and stereotypes about Islam.

Guadalupe attributed the appeal of Islam to "the clarity, simplicity, and satisfaction of this way of life," and said some Latinos converted because they "were not satisfied with the religion or way of life bestowed upon them by their culture."

Sandra Jimenez, CC '07, a friend of Guadalupe and spokesperson for Lambda Pi Chi, approached the Muslim Students Association for their involvement and co-sponsorship.

Members of the MSA said they hoped the program would build stronger ties within the Latino community.

"The event will help us learn and get to know the Latinos in the American Muslim community," said Sakib Khan, SEAS '07 and president of MSA.

Khan said hosting an event like this is an opportunity to develop a better understanding of the complex relationship between religion and ethnicity.

"We hope that this event will help to dispel stereotypes that Islam is an ethnocentric religion and enforce the fact that Islam is evident and engaged in virtually every culture in the world, as opposed to the view that it is simply something Arab or Oriental," Khan said.

The evening began with the breaking of fasts, a call to prayer at sunset, and dinner. Directly afterward was Guadalupe's presentation regarding Islam in Latino history and heritage. The evening concluded with a question and answer session.

While 70 people came to break their Ramadan fast, only about 30 stayed through the lecture.

"I like his balance between his two cultures," said Zuhaa Mohiuddin, CC '07, who attended the event. "What he had to say was really important. I'm big on interfaith interactions and culture, and love learning about different perspectives."

Other students said that they found it interesting to hear about the experiences of a convert since many were raised with Islam.

"I liked how he could connect with his Latino culture as a speaker," said Reim Atabani, BC '08. "He presented this in a way that a lot of speakers are not able to. They speak to the abstract of religion; he spoke of the personal experiences of Latinos. It really opens your eyes as a Muslim to see so much diversity."

The event was co-sponsored by Columbia's Muslim Students Association, Latinas Promoviendo Comunidad/Lambda Pi Chi Sorority, and the Latino Muslim Outreach Program.

http://www.columbiaspectator.com/vne.../434ccd7e69d50

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Embracing Islam, Praying for Acceptance

Many Latino Muslims, some raised Catholic, struggle with views of their new faith on the part of the public -- and their families.

By H.G. Reza, Times Staff Writer

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la...ck=1&cset=true

As a college student in Mexico, Marta Khadija Ramirez was so influenced by Marxist and existentialist writers that she stopped believing in God. That changed during a semester at a British school, where she was a visiting student and three Muslim classmates introduced her to Islam.

She decided to convert. But imagine the difficulty of a Latina steeped in Roman Catholic tradition trying to explain Islam to her family in 1983. And imagine that one of her sisters is a Catholic nun.

"Islam was unknown in Mexico then. It wasn't easy for my family to accept my decision," said Khadija, the youngest of 11 sisters raised on a ranch south of Mexico City and now a nurse who lives in Los Angeles. "My sister the nun was blaming herself for not teaching me enough about Catholicism."

Muslims throughout the world are observing Ramadan, a month of daytime fasting and repentance. For many Latino Muslims in Southern California, it is also a time to celebrate Islam's diversity and their conversion to a religion still struggling against intolerance in the overwhelmingly Christian United States. This year, the holy month started the first week of October.

The American Muslim Council estimates that there are about 40,000 Latino Muslims in the U.S. Local Muslims say there are about 1,000 Latino Muslims in Southern California, but that an accurate count is difficult because Islam is a decentralized religion.

The Los Angeles Latino Muslim Assn., founded in 1999, hopes to find converts through an outreach program to introduce Islam to the millions of Latinos living in the city. The group meets at the Islamic Center of Southern California in Los Angeles, and on Sundays during Ramadan members break their dawn-to-sunset fast together at the Vermont Avenue facility. The group also meets at the Masjid Omar, a mosque in Los Angeles.

"We're trying to improve the understanding of Islam and at the same time provide spiritual support for new Latino Muslims making the transition from Christianity," said Khadija, president of the 50-member association.

Ramadan is the perfect time for dawah, or outreach, because it is when Muslims believe the prophet Muhammad first began to receive revelations of the holy Koran from the archangel Gabriel, she said.

The association runs Luz del Islam Publishing in Culver City, where Islamic literature is printed in Spanish. Group members pass out that material, including a Spanish translation of the Koran, at Latino book fairs and sponsor mosque tours and seminars for Latinos. They also provide speakers to Latino student groups at area colleges.

Still, Muslims have to overcome some public perceptions that, Khadija said, are unfairly colored by "misunderstanding and fear" since the terrorist attacks by Islamic extremists on Sept. 11, 2001.

Arwa Ayloush, whose name was Vilma Avila before she converted in 1991 while attending the University of Texas, said her parents' initial apprehension about her new religion stemmed from "fear of the unknown."

"You just left Laredo and now you're a Muslim. What happened to you, girl?" is how Ayloush, raised a Jehovah's Witness, described her family's reaction to her conversion.

Over time, the families of Khadija and Ayloush, a kindergarten teacher living in Corona, accepted their Muslim identities. Each later married Muslim men. Ayloush's husband is Hussam Ayloush, executive director of the Southern California chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations.

But for Richard Silva, 40, and others who converted after the 9/11 attacks, some friends and family members are still baffled by their embrace of Islam.

"They ask why I want to change my culture. I tell them I'm changing religion, not culture. I still eat tortillas," said Silva, an aircraft worker who lives in East Los Angeles and converted in 2002.

In spite of their small numbers, Latino Muslims interviewed said integration into their Muslim religious community was easier for them than for Latinos assimilating into society as a whole. "I never had a problem being accepted," Khadija said. "People from many different cultures who speak different languages worship together at our masjid."

Each took a unique path to Islam, but none follows the strict religious laws observed by some other adherents in the Islamic world. Some of the women wear the hijab (head scarf), but their wardrobes include modest western clothing, including jeans. Although they do not eat pork, few follow a halal diet, in which food is prepared according to Islamic dietary laws.

But all said they were looking for spiritual guidance that they were not getting from Christianity. Each one also questioned the Christian depiction of Jesus as divine. Former Catholics questioned the church's teaching that the Holy Trinity is God existing as the Father, Son and Holy Ghost.

"I had trouble believing that someone could come to this world as a man and become God," said Granada Hills mortgage broker Pablo Calderon, 29, who was raised Catholic and converted eight years ago. "I liked the Islamic teaching that says your paradise is set as long as you are righteous and believe in one God."

Kathy Espinoza, who grew up Catholic in Riverside and is now a social worker in San Jose, said the Muslims' reverence for the Virgin Mary and Jesus made the transition easier. Muslims believe that Jesus is a major prophet, and he is mentioned numerous times in the Koran.

"People think Islam is such a far-out religion, but it's not. We believe in many of the same prophets as Christians. We also believe in the Virgin Mary, the Immaculate Conception, Adam and Eve and creation," Espinoza said.

Espinoza was active in her Riverside Catholic parish, where she sang in the choir with her father, who played the guitar. Her brother, who was in the seminary when she converted in 2001, warned that if she "didn't accept Jesus as my Lord and savior you're not going to heaven," she said. The brother, who later left the seminary and married, came to accept her conversion.

The Catholic roots in Espinoza's family are so deep that she was afraid to tell her grandmother about her conversion. She died two months ago without knowing.

"My grandmother was a strong Mexican woman who would probably disown me if she knew I became Muslim," said Espinoza, who is unmarried.

Ayloush, 35, said Jesus' role as a prophet of Islam and the Muslim belief that he would play a major role in conquering evil appealed to Latinos, whose culture is rich with religious stories and tales about good and evil and light and darkness.

Despite the differences that many U.S. Christians believe separate them from Muslims, both sides have much in common, Ayloush and the others said.

"The theological differences are there, but they shouldn't be a fence that separates us. They should be a bridge instead," Ayloush said. "I'm a Little League mom. I'm there cheering for my kids who play sports, like the other moms. The only thing that's really different about me is the hijab."

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Aisha Ahmed's decision to convert to Islam and give up Catholicism and her Puerto Rican birth name, Maritza Rondon, did not come impulsively or under duress.

She spent five years studying the Quran and hired a teacher to learn Arabic before she was ready for shahadah, a declaration of faith led by an imam that is essential to the conversion process.

In the end, Ahmed's decision to become a Muslim and to take a name that belonged to the Prophet Muhammad's wife, she said, was borne of years of questioning her Catholic upbringing and discovering that, for her, the answers were with Islam.

"I have lived a humble and peaceful life since I converted. Everything is so clear," said Ahmed, 45, of Tarrytown. "I didn't see in Catholicism the unity and compassion I found in Islam. I saw more kindness and willingness to give."

Ahmed's change of faith is not unique among her ethnic group today. In recent years, thousands of Hispanics nationwide have been converting to Islam, particularly since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, when interest in the religion seemed to gain momentum.

Though precise statistics do not exist, the Council on American-Islamic Relations estimates there are more than 36,000 Hispanic Muslims in the nation today. Other estimates raise the total to 75,000. A study the group conducted also showed that 6 percent of the 20,000 annual converts to Islam are Hispanic.

Though the numbers are a small fraction of the estimated 6 million Muslims in the country, it is fast becoming evident that the conversion rate among this minority group is taking root and that its influence is being asserted through the formation of Hispanic Muslim organizations — "dawah," or outreach efforts targeted at Hispanics — and the distribution of literature and the Quran in Spanish.

"There hasn't been real scientific gauging," said Mohamed Nimer, research director for the Council on American-Islamic Relations. "But Muslim leaders are saying they are seeing more and more Latino Muslims, especially in New York, California and Florida."

Melvin Reveron converted to Islam last year, following a period of depression and internal doubts about Catholicism, he said.

"I called myself a Catholic, but I wasn't practicing as an adult," said Reveron, 41, a Puerto Rican who lives in New York City. "I realized the futility of confession. I felt alienated from God and unworthy of God's graces. If I was going to reintroduce God into my life, I thought this was the best way."

Reveron had read the Quran after Sept. 11 because he wanted to gain more knowledge about a religion that was being blamed for the attacks, he said. Culture and religion often can be mistaken, he said.

"People say that Islam is a religion that teaches people to kill, that it creates suicide bombers," said Reveron, 41, a supervisor for the Department of Social Services in New York City. "I reject that notion. Just because a criminal does something, the religion isn't wrong. There's something wrong with that person."

The Quran, he said, resonates with Catholics because it mentions Adam, Moses, Jesus and the Virgin Mary. Jesus is revered as a prophet — not as the son of God — within the Islamic religion.

"I looked at is as an intellectual continuation of what I had been taught," he said.

Like Reveron, many Hispanic converts say they have grown disenchanted with Catholicism and have difficulty accepting the church hierarchy, original sin, confession, the Holy Trinity and the saints. Others say they are "reverting" to a religion that is part of their ancestral history — Islam ruled Spain for several centuries.

Either way, following the five pillars of Islam, the foundation of Muslim life, is a more truthful existence, many agree. Islam's tenets include professing faith in Allah and the prophet Muhammad, praying daily, charity work, fasting during Ramadan and a pilgrimage to Mecca.

"I was very confident it was the correct way of living life," said Fatima Britos, 25, a John Jay College student of Argentine descent. "It is the straight path."

Britos recently attended a Columbia University student event titled "Latinos in Islam: Rediscovering our Roots" that saw a diverse group of people in attendance. The affair included a Mexican feast and a discussion led by Hernan Guadalupe on why Hispanics are converting to Islam today. The Ecuadorean-American outlined the Muslims' reign in Spain from 711 to 1492. Between 10 percent and 30 percent of Spanish words come from Arabic, he said. Guadalupe spoke of the cultural similarities and family values inherent to Hispanics and Muslims. Typically, Hispanic households are tightknit and devout, and children are reared in a strict environment — traits that mirror Muslim households, Guadalupe said.

"There are 780 years of Islamic influence that can't be ignored," said Guadalupe, 24, a mechanical engineer from South Brunswick, N.J. "If you understand that, as a Latino, you have Spanish blood in you, then you would understand ... that you have Islam in you."

Not coincidentally, Guadalupe converted to Islam on Sept, 11, 2001 — or "the day the towers fell," as he said — after years of studying different religions and culturesHe started the Latino Muslim Outreach Program this year, traveling to schools in the tri-state area to educate — not convert — people on Islam, he said.

Other organizations have formed in recent years, including Piedad, an Internet group with nearly 300 members whose mission is to teach non-Muslims and give leadership training to women, particularly Hispanic females.

"On a daily basis, I hear Latinos coming into the fold of Islam," said Piedad founder Khadijah Rivera. "It is so close to our culture that, once they understand, it is like second nature to belong to Islam."

But Catholic leaders do not consider the conversion rate a sign of the faithful growing disillusioned with the church, said Alejandro Aguilar-Titus, associate director of the Secretariat for Hispanic Affairs of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. Of the 45 million Hispanics in this country, 32 million are Catholic, he said. Conversely, there are more than 6 million Muslims in Latin America, and it has been reported that Islamic ideologies are spreading among indigenous groups.

"As far as we can see, Catholics becoming Muslim is more of an individual choice that comes through marriage, friendships or relationships," said Aguilar-Titus. He later added, "It saddens the church, but at the same time, there is respect for that person's choice."

Aguilar-Titus reflected on Islamic Spain and said the influence brought several practices and symbols similar to Catholicism.

"These elements could be very powerful and attractive to someone," he said. "I think that's more significant than being disenchanted with Catholicism."

In 1997, the Latino American Dawah Organization — LADO — was formed by a handful of converts. It serves to educate and promote the legacy of Islam in Spain and Latin America. One of its organizers, Juan Galvan, a Mexican-American who lives in San Antonio, said he has been in contact with more than 20,000 Hispanic Muslims in recent years, co-authored a report, "Latino Muslims: The Changing Face of Islam in America," and is co-writing a book on conversion stories. LADO's Web site features dozens of accounts.

The need for support networks is imperative because often Hispanics may feel isolated from others who are born Muslim or because of a language barrier, he said. Galvan converted in the summer of 2001 after having grown up active in the Catholic Church, serving as an altar boy and Eucharistic minister.

"It's a very clear and simple belief," said Galvan, 30. "But it's not enough to say I disagree with the Catholic faith and then become a Muslim. There's more to it."

Indeed, converting to Islam means a lifestyle change that to some can be difficult. Fasting, praying five times a day and giving up alcohol and pork — a staple in the Hispanic diet — can present challenges. Women must wear a hijab, but the misperception, many women argue, is that the veil is debasing. Though there are no definitive statistics, reports indicate there are more women than men converting to Islam.

"A head scarf does not symbolize oppression. It represents freedom," said Ecuadorean Sonia Lasso, while speaking at the third annual Hispanic Muslim Day at a mosque in Union City, N.J. "Because it is not our physical but our intellectual selves that are seen."

Perhaps the biggest obstacle converts face is with their families, who take great pride in their Catholic rearing and have little understanding of Islam.

Reveron said he has yet to tell his family, fearing irreversible repercussions.

"I haven't found the right way to tell them," he said. "You hear stories about families ridiculing and (the Muslim converts) being ostracized."

For Ahmed, her family was more accepting of her decision, so much so that her brother is now Muslim, and her mother has accepted Islam, she said. Her life is much more devout since her conversion. She works as a representative to the James House at Phelps Memorial Hospital Center in Sleepy Hollow. She volunteers extensively in Westchester and the Bronx, a move she credits to her faith. She worships at the Thornwood masjid, as well as in the Bronx, and is proudest of helping to establish a mosque in Suffern with her former husband.

While the horror of Sept. 11 moved many Hispanics toward Islam, Ahmed admits that the attacks on the World Trade Center gave her pause about her adopted religion. But it was Islam that prevailed, she said.

"I saw a tragic situation and at the same time had to understand that I am a Muslim," she said. "My faith was tested, but I stayed on track because I'm not going to let a group of fanatics change my faith. I became stronger. Once you believe, you can't go back."