Latinos continue to be the fastest growing minority in America and in Islam. If either of those facts come as a surprise, there is much for you to learn about our culture.

Consider the situation of a Muslim who is caring for a sick relative or an elderly parent. The afflicted family member cannot bathe or eat on their own, they cannot dress themselves, or walk to the bathroom to answer the call of nature.

Hispanic Heritage Month is observed annually in the United States from the 15th of September to the 15th of October. It began as Hispanic Heritage Week in 1968 and was upgraded to a month in 1989 to “honor the cultures and contributions of both Hispanic and Latino Americans as we celebrate heritage rooted in all Latin American countries,” according to the official government website (hispanicheritagemonth.gov).

Can you recall the first time you heard about or were directly affected by racial bias, colorism, or any other type of discrimination?

The entertainment industry is shifting towards an inclusive and diverse assemblage of characters, now more than ever, without overlooking its global Muslim audience.

Type “Latino Muslims” into any search engine and the results will display a plethora of recent media reports about the fastest growing minority within Islam. Names like PBS, NBC, BBC, AlJazeera, the New York Times, the Washington Post, NPR, Univision, and Telemundo have all produced their share of reports and documentaries fixated on this phenomenon.

I’m at peace and I feel like I have the answers I need to live my life according to what God wants from me.

The scholar Ibn Kathir said in his explanation of the meaning of the Qur’an that, “This verse refers to those who call themselves Christians, who follow the religion of the Messiah and the teachings of his Gospel. These people are generally more tolerant of Islam and its people, because of the mercy and kindness that their hearts acquired through part of the Messiah's religion.

With everything going on in the world today and the news that surrounds us, we know that things can get a bit confusing. As your Muslim neighbors and fellow citizens, we would like to assure you that we stand with you against all forms of oppression and injustice in the US and anywhere else in the world.

Latino Muslims are one of the fastest growing segments of the American Muslim community. Though not part of the 'traditional' narrative, Islam is an inescapable part of Latino heritage.

Keeping this in mind, Latino and non-Latino Islamic organizations must develop both educational and support initiatives in order to establish the correct belief and implementation of Islam. In addition, they need to help steer newcomers away from deviant beliefs or downright negligence.

The first Muslim settlers were primarily Arabs from what is known to us now as Lebanon, Palestine, Syria, and Egypt. They emigrated to Ecuador for the same reasons they came to the rest of the Latin world, escaping from World War I and II.

When I started college back in the fall of 1998, I had a passion and desire to learn more about my culture. I wanted to know more about my Latino heritage, its splendor, and its history. So, like any other curious student, I began to do an abundant amount of research to fully understand the meaning of being Latino.

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."

“I wanted to offer my own children a chance to learn Islam from an early age, something that as a convert, I was not able to do,” said Diaz. “And I wanted to give them the opportunity to do so in their own language... Of course, we didn’t stop at just our own kids, we began printing our books and offering them to other parents like us so that their children can also benefit.”

mam Abdullah Daniel Hernández, known as Abdullah Danny by fellow New Jersey natives, presides over the Pearland Islamic Center in Pearland, Texas, an extension of the Islamic Society of Greater Houston (ISGH). Imam Abdullah, who converted to Islam in 1999, studied at Al Azhar University in Egypt from 2004-2007, completing five years’ worth of extensive coursework in Islamic Sciences.

Tucked away in a quiet rural neighborhood in Somerset, New Jersey is the brown brick building that houses the New Jersey Chapter of the Islamic Center of North America’s (ICNA) WhyIslam Project. Within its confines, in a second floor office with rose-colored walls, sits the administrative assistant and only female employee of the department, Nahela Morales.

Like many bilingual parents, Wendy Diaz and her husband Hernán Guadalupe decided that once they start a family, they will first teach their native language, Spanish, so the children will be able to learn their mother tongue.

The vast majority of Latinos are Roman Catholic due primarily to their culture or upbringing. But many of these inhabitants of North, South, and Central America are uncomfortable and disenchanted with the various beliefs and practices…