Source: Alameda Times-Star

http://www.insidebayarea.com/timesstar/localnews/ci_3551515

On February 27, 2006 the Alameda Times-Star reported, "Every Friday, Ibrahim Talib and his brothers in faith look for a new street corner where they will give out free popcorn and cotton candy. Their East Oakland neighborhood might be marred by drugs and violence, but the popcorn stand is a streak of optimism in an otherwise bleak neighborhood, they say... For nearly two years, Talib and others have given away the treats as well, as warm meals, as an outreach initiative by the Masjid Al-Islam mosque. The mosque is at the corner of MacArthur Boulevard and 82nd Avenue, where prostitutes and drug dealers stride the streets, soliciting passing motorists, police say. Across the street, a broken fence borders a field with open syringes and condoms on the ground, clearly visible to passers-by. But the crime that normally would drive away religious people from the corner is the very thing that attracts the Muslim activists. Nearly 30 families have moved into the neighborhood over the years, all with one goal: to better the community."