Number of Latino Muslims Increases Significantly in the US

July 13, 2005

Source: Voice of America

http://author.voanews.com/english/2005-07-13-voa49.cfm

On July 13, 2005 the Voice of America reported, "Islam is one of the fastest-growing religions in the United States and Latinos represent one of the fastest-growing minorities. Increasingly, the two trends are meeting in the form of Hispanic converts to Islam... San Antonio native Juan Galvan says the transition to Islam is made easy for many Hispanics because of historic and cultural traditions dating back to the time when Muslims ruled much of Spain... Dallas resident Mustafa Carroll says Islam has spread among blacks and other minorities by the example Muslims have provided. 'We are not out proselytizing and we are not asking people to do it.  All we do is present the word and people take it.' One of the biggest sources of new converts to Islam is the U.S. prison system. Mustafa Carroll says Muslim brothers offer support to those inmates who want to change their lives... There are no firm figures on how many Latinos have converted to Islam, although there is an estimate of around 40,000, a small number compared to the overall U.S. Latino population of more than 35 million. But Latino Muslims say they believe many more will follow in their path as they spread the word about Islam in their communities.