Founded thirty-five years ago by Cambodian refugees from the Cham ethnic group, the Islamic Center of Santa Ana moved into a new space this past Spring and a first order of business was reaching out to the local Latino Muslim community by offering a Friday prayer, known as a khutbah, in Spanish. “It’s an opportunity to serve the community that you’re located in,” says Issa Edah-Tally, an advisor to the Southern California mosque. “About 78 percent of those who live in Santa Ana are Latino, and if word spread out to that 78 percent of the population that there’s an Islamic Center here, maybe more of them will gravitate here.”
César Domínguez, a teacher with the Los Angeles-based La Asociacíon Latino Musulmana de América, delivered the mosque’s first sermon in Spanish. He said the experience was “very beautiful for me and for the people who attended.” He continued, “Religion is such a personal experience. For some people, me included, it’s always much more enriching to explore these paths from my culture or my language.”
