Selasa, 08 Februari 2011

Islam Flourishing Among Latinos Ethnic in the United States

On a hot summer day last year, Stefani Tinsel, girl Latino (Hispanic), to be different. Unlike her friends who wore a short cut to avoid the heat, female workers in West New York, NJ, is actually wearing a long shirt, plus headgear. Yes, he decided to scarf after bersyahadat some time earlier.

Tinsel, 19, who converted to Islam more than a year ago, still trying to adjust themselves to certain habits. Headscarves in the summer, is not without challenges for him. "I still consider how friends and family will see me," he said. "They look at us like," Why is he wearing it, is not so hot '. "But, he said, he ventured to change. "I do this for God, and one day I will be rewarded for what I do."

There are immediate benefits of wearing a hijab, she said. "Not being harassed by men as much as before veiled when walking in the street. Tinsel is not alone as a Hispanic woman who become converts. The amount is now quite a lot, but no official figures are mentioned. Because the U.S. Census Bureau does not collect information about religion.


However, according to estimates made by national Muslim organizations like the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) and the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA), currently there are about 40 thousand Latino Muslims in the United States.

Likewise, it is difficult to know how many men and Latin women who is now a convert. But, according to a survey conducted by the Latino American Da'wah Organization (Lado), whose mission is to promote Islam in the Latino communities in the United States, the number of Latino who converted to Islam a little bit more women than men, with the percentage of 60:40.

Juan Galvan, the head of Lado in Texas and co-author of the report "Latino Muslims: The Changing Face of Islam in America," explaining that the numbers were not scientific, but based on voluntary surveys have been conducted on the site Lado since 2001.

"From observation and experience the true figures," said Galvan. "From my personal experience, there are definitely more Latina Muslims than Latino men. In many mosques in the U.S., Latin ethnicity dominates. At the Islamic Education Center of North Hudson for example, of the 300 people who became Muslim beryshadat last year, 80 percent are ethnic Latin.

Overall, says Peter AWN, a professor of Islamic studies at Columbia University, there is no doubt that a growing number of converts in Latin. Louis Cristillo, an anthropologist who focuses on Islamic education at Columbia University, show that there are some indicators that reflect the growing trend of Latin embrace Islam.

For example, there are a number of regional and national organizations serving the Latino Muslims, and there are even support groups that can be found in the virtual world specifically for the Latino who wants to repent. He mentioned one example, namely www.hispanicmuslims.com and latinodawah. org.

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

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