The entrance to the Mosque, from the sidewalk. |
The view of the Mosque, from the street. |
The surrounding neighborhood, as viewed from the Mosque Entrance. |
The Mosque of Masjid Muhajireen at 185 Folsom Ave, in the city of Hayward, California is located in the county of Alameda, 94544. (data)
The 3,000 square foot facility was purchased from a Catholic congregation in 1994, at which point it was established as the first non-rented masjid Mosque in Hayward. Since 1994, the Mosque's attendance has grown rapidly, and the Mosque itself has seen several renovations in the last few years, with the most recent being finished in 2005.
The 3,000 square foot facility was purchased from a Catholic congregation in 1994, at which point it was established as the first non-rented masjid Mosque in Hayward. Since 1994, the Mosque's attendance has grown rapidly, and the Mosque itself has seen several renovations in the last few years, with the most recent being finished in 2005.
Building Communities Abroad
The Masjid Muhajireen, also known as the "Mosque of Immigrants," is an independent Mosque located in Hayward, California. A short walk from the Hayward BART station, the Masjid Muhajireen is nestled in a small suburban neighborhood. The structure itself is modest, and without it's minaret and large parking lot, it would be difficult to distinguish from the other homes in the quaint community.
On Friday, November 1st, 2013, Joe, Carrie, Lily and I took BART to Hayward to gather information about the Mosque and learn more about the practicing Muslims of the community and their experiences as Muslim Americans in the Bay Area. As we approached the Masjid, we were greeted with a smile and a handshake by a man who introduced himself as Abdul Tutaehil. We explained to Abdul that we were students from UC Berkeley doing a project on Muslim communities in the Bay Area, and he graciously offered to show us around, answer our questions and introduce us to the Imam. Abdul took us into a small office building on the property, adjacent to the Mosque, where he introduced us to Imam Qari Safiullah. Iman Safiullah is a very kind man, and although he spoke some English, he chose to answer our questions in his native dialect, Pashto, with Abdul kindly serving as our translator. Iman Safiullah told us that the Masjid Muhajireen was established in 1994 after the building was purchased for $500,000 from a Catholic congregation that had outgrown the venue. He explained that Muhajireen means "immigrants", and that most of the Mosque's attendees are first or second generation immigrants to the US from countries such as Afghanistan, Pakistan, Fiji, India and several Arab countries. "The word Muhajireen means immigrant. We have approximately a hundred different Masjids in the bay area itself," he tells us. In fact, Imam Safiullah estimated that 90% of the congregation were Afghan immigrants, or from the families of Afghan immigrants. "This is Masjid Muhajireen because mostly it is dominant over here by Afghani people. You see ninety percent of the folks here are from Afghanistan. And maybe ten percent are folks from Fiji.” Masjid Muhajireen's congregation has been steadily growing since its inception, spiking in the mid 1980's with the Muslim migration and the influx of refugees from the war in Afghanistan. The Masjid now serves 1,000 local Muslims, from the Hayward area and beyond, and continues to grow. In fact, according to Imam Safiullah, they are "looking to grow and are planning to buy a bigger facility within the area." The Mosque is active every day of the week, from sunrise to sunset for salat, or five times daily prayer. Imam Safiullah explained that their busiest day is Friday for the Jum'ah, or Friday prayer, for which they typically have 150 attendees. Imam Safiullah went on to explain the importance of Jum'ah, particularly for the Masjid Muhajireen as a weekly event in which local Muslims can come together and share their faith through sermons and prayer. He told us that for Muslims living in America, the Jum'ah is even more integral to building a Muslim community with a strong internal foundation. Feelings of alienation are a common symptom of being a Muslim American, especially for recent immigrants, however, the Jum'ah is a way for practicing Muslims to come together, meet other Muslims in their community, form connections and share their faith, cultures and interests. For the Masjid Muhajireen, the Jum'ah is more than a day of prayer, but it is also a day of learning about Islam, oneself, and one's peers within the community. We asked Imam Safiullah about Masjid Muhajireen's involvement in the local community, and he told us about various events the Masjid sponsors, such as food drives for the poor and cleaning local parks. "We are usually volunteering in any activity that is out there in the community. We are pretty active in the community. Whatever there is to facilitate, we do it", he tells us. The Masjid also offers other services to the community, such as marriage and funeral rights services, and sporting events for their younger members. "Yes, we do provide marriage ceremony. As well as the dead, we do provide the funeral services that are required. Counseling, yes. We do have a couple of youth programs. We involve our youth in our sports activities as well,” he says. The Masjid Muhajireen also offers free education services for children every Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday afternoon. Abdul explained to us how Madrasa, or children's school, is a central part of the Masjid Muhajireen, and helps further their mission of building a strong Muslim community in the Bay Area. "In the evenings, we also have students, like for the youngster’s session for the school. We call it Madrasa. So there is usually school for the youth. It is taught by the Imam himself. They get a lesson about how to pray and they get to know the history of Islam." Imam Safiullah explained how the classes are meant to give the children a sense and understanding of the history of Islam, within the context of their native culture as well as American society. "The classes for the youth are held in English because it’s a new generation that is brought over here. So we do give them a flavor of Pashto as well as our mother tongue, because they need to know about where they are coming from too.” We asked Abdul and Imam Safiullah about any hardships they may have faced in the community as Muslims. They explained to us that they have never experienced any legal issues or problems with discrimination, telling us that they are, "pretty much friendly with everyone.” After our interview, we got the sense that the Masjid Muhajireen was not only a sacred place for local Muslims to gather and pray, but also a tight-knit community center, focused on providing immigrant Muslims with a venue for activities and for providing vital services that Muslims immigrant might not have otherwise. Although the Masjid Muhajireen is focused on providing immigrant Muslims with a sense of community abroad, Iman Safiullah was eager to tell us that they are a completely open community, and welcome anyone who wishes to learn more about Islam. “We are open and welcome to anyone, no matter who they are" he tells us. |
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