The Third Wave

Chapter 6 examines a third Latino Muslim wave characterized by a distinct historical context, attempted consolidations of Latino Muslim groups under a single umbrella organization, and the emergence and prominence of the IslamInSpanish group. The latest wave of Latino Muslims is being shaped by political discourses around ISIS, immigration, and the 2016 election cycle. Increasingly negative coverage of Latinos, Muslims, and Latino Muslims within this context has prompted renewed attempts to consolidate the resources of disparate Latino Muslim groups across the nation in order to unite and produce collective responses to hateful characterizations of their identity groups in public discourse. Two contemporary instances of these movements are analyzed in this chapter. The first is Mujahid Fletcher’s IslamInSpanish group and the second regards the reconfiguration of the Los Angeles Latino Muslim Association from a regional group to a national pan-Latino Muslim organization.