On April 18th and 19th, WhyIslam made history by hosting their first ever virtual international Hispanic Muslim conference through the WhyIslam, ¿Por qué Islam? (WhyIslam Spanish) and Foro Islámico Global Facebook pages, as well as the 877-WhyIslam YouTube channel.
“La conferencia virtual de musulmanes hispanos, Entregándose al Islam: Cómo construir una base espiritual sólida” or “The Hispanic Muslims Virtual Conference, Committing to Islam: How to Build a Solid Spiritual Foundation” was unique in that it united leaders, scholars, and experts across four continents to present their topics to a completely Spanish-speaking audience. There was a total of fifteen speakers representing nine countries, considered leaders in the global Hispanic Muslim community and experts in their fields, presenting a variety of topics, such as spiritual upliftment, Islamic history, the psychology of new Muslims, emotional stability and resilience in light of current events, maintaining a balanced life, productivity, serving humanity, parenting, and preparing for Ramadan.
Some of the speakers included Sheikh Isa García from Argentina, known for his widely distributed Latin-American Spanish translation of the Qur’an, WhyIslam’s own National Hispanic Outreach Coordinator, Imam Wesley Lebrón, Colombian and Mexican psychologists, Aziza Di Bello and Yessica Martínez, Sheikh Mohammed Idrissi, founder of the first Arabic, Islamic studies, and dawah learning center in Seville, Spain, Sheikh Hossam Ed-Deen Allam, professor of Islamic Jurisprudence at Al Azhar University, Dr. Mariam Saada, professor and expert in Spanish historical linguistics, and many other notable names.
The live-streamed event began at 2pm ET and ended at 6pm both Saturday and Sunday with question and answer sessions. Jalil Navarro, Mexican American convert and community organizer from Dallas, Texas, moderated the event and kept the audience engaged. The conference garnered over thirty-six thousand views across all platforms and over five hundred positive comments. One audience member named Miriam, a Mexican American living in New York, said, “This is the first time I see information like this presented in Spanish.” There was a lot of positive feedback, with many attendees asking when the next conference will be organized. Here are some other comments from the audience:
“What a beautiful conference; it is making me reflect so much alhamdulillah. May Allah bless you all,” – Anabel from Granada, Spain.
“Masha’Allah, glad to see many of the panelists are converts, themselves. I would love to reach this level one day. I will prepare for that purpose to share Islam with others, insha’Allah,” – Nallely from Mexico City, Mexico.
“JazakumAllahu khaiyran for all of this knowledge and for inspiring us. This is a renewal of our faith alhamdulillah,” – Sister Nawal from Mátaro, Spain.
“Thank you. This has been a blessed conference. I have learned so much,” said Victor from Santiago, Dominican Republic.
“Thank you for allowing us to listen to great speakers who not only share with us their knowledge, but also their humanity,” – Emma from Guadalajara, Mexico.
The accessibility made possible through social media, as a result of the worldwide shutdown due to the coronavirus pandemic, made this conference even more successful as attendees tuned in from different parts of the world in the comfort of their own homes. The Hispanic virtual conference is still available on our Facebook pages and YouTube channel for anyone to access.
“Indeed, those who have said, “Our Lord is Allah ” and then remained on a right course – the angels will descend upon them, [saying], “Do not fear and do not grieve but receive good tidings of Paradise, which you were promised.” (Qur’an, 41:30)