Houston Chronicle
By Ken Chitwood · Jul 5, 2012
Growing up in New York and Houston, Isa Parada was always part of a vibrant faith community. An altar boy in his family's Roman Catholic parish, his family regularly prayed and read Scripture together. Today it is no different for Parada, save for one thing: He is now a Muslim imam.
A convert since 1996, Parada is fluent in Arabic and was educated in Muslim theology in Saudi Arabia. With family roots in El Salvador, Parada is part of a growing number of Hispanic converts to Islam.
Mujahid Fletcher runs a Houston-based nonprofit called IslamInSpanish that produces a Web site, DVDs, and a radio program designed to educate the small but growing number of Latino Muslims. Fletcher sees the organization as a tool to counteract some of the misconceptions about Islam that he initially encountered among his own friends and relatives.
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