The Islamic Center of Riverside is a mosque in Riverside, California. Built in 1979, Friday services regularly attract over 1,000 worshipers.

History

The mosque is a member of the Islamic Shura Council of Southern California network of mosques. The building was erected in 1979–80 and designed by architect Shakil Patel. The site, close to the University of California Riverside campus, was chosen to enable the mosque to serve university students as well as the wider community. Along with 23 other "Islamic Centers" in California, the mosque has held an annual open house offering Californians an opportunity to learn more about

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...

in the wake of the September 11 attacks. The mosque is known for its "interfaith efforts and welcoming atmosphere." The Islamic Center organizes an annual ceremony, held at the Riverside Convention Center. During the ceremony, all Muslims from the

Inland Empire The Inland Empire (IE) is a metropolitan area and region inland of and adjacent to coastal Southern California, centering around the cities of San Bernardino and Riverside, and bordering Los Angeles County to the west. It includes the cities o ...

who are graduating from high schools or college are honored, and cash prizes are awarded to top students in several categories. Members filled 50 cartons with relief supplies and raised over $15,000 for victims of the

2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami An earthquake and a tsunami, known as the Boxing Day Tsunami and, by the scientific community, the Sumatra–Andaman earthquake, occurred at 07:58:53 local time (UTC+7) on 26 December 2004, with an epicentre off the west coast of northern Suma ...

. Mustafa H. Kuko became

imam Imam (; ar, إمام '; plural: ') is an Islamic leadership position. For Sunni Muslims, Imam is most commonly used as the title of a worship leader of a mosque. In this context, imams may lead Islamic worship services, lead prayers, ser ...

of the Center in 1998. At that time, only about 2% of those attending the Center were American-born; by 2012, about 15% were. In June 2014, Kuko told '' The Press-Enterprise'' that the Center has worked hard to prevent young people from connecting with terrorist propaganda. He said that the press "overlooked what we have been doing in our communities for many years... We have been talking to our communities. We have been talking to our families." On July 21, 2017, guest speaker Imam Mahmoud Harmoush delivered a speech at the Islamic Center of Riverside that drew controversy for allegations of anti-semitic rhetoric. Harmoush later claimed that his words had been misinterpreted by "politically-motivated people who fish in dirty water."

2015 San Bernardino attack

Syed

Rizwan Farook Rizwan ( ar, رضوان, links=no) is an Arabic name and surname. It may refer to: * Riḍwan also spelled Rezwan or Rizwan, the angel in charge of maintaining Jannah or Paradise in Islam Athletes *Rizwan Akram, a Dutch cricket umpire and former ...

, one of the shooters in the

2015 San Bernardino attack On December 2, 2015, a terrorist attack, consisting of a mass shooting and an attempted bombing, occurred at the Inland Regional Center in San Bernardino, California. The perpetrators, Syed Rizwan Farook and Tashfeen Malik, a married couple ...

, and neighbor Enrique Marquez, who is currently under investigation in relation to the attack, attended prayers at the Islamic Center of Riverside along with one of the victims of the shooting. Farook and the other shooter Tashfeen Malik, who were married abroad, held their wedding reception at the Islamic Center of Riverside. Farook abruptly stopped attending the center in 2014 following his marriage. The Center's director did not recall ever hearing extremist ideology from Farook, and stated that if such ideas were known, they would have tried to stop it, as Farook's actions betrayed the principles of Islam. The Islamic Center of Riverside held a prayer vigil on the Friday after the shooting, extending sympathy to the shooting victims and condemning the attack.

References

{{Coord, 33.97892, -117.33444, type:landmark_region:US-CA, display=title Mosques in California 1979 establishments in California Mosques completed in 1979