Hermosa Beach church hosts event to humanize Islam and followers

Edina Lekovic, director of policy and programming at the Muslim Public Affairs Council, answers audience questions about Islam at St. Cross on Sunday. Photo courtesy Patrick Bridges by Saima Fariz Young people hold up cue cards, a la Bob Dylan in “Subterranean Homesick Blues.” One, a bearded man wearing a short, rounded skullcap with a prayer mat hanging in the background, holds a sign that asks: “WOULD YOU BE SCARED IF I MOVED TO YOUR CITY?” Later, a young woman’s card says, “Islam tells me to help the poor…but sometimes I’d rather just watch ‘Grey’s Anatomy.’” The images played across a screen at Hermosa Beach’s St. Cross Episcopal Church. The church, in association with Temple Shalom and the South Coast Interfaith Council, hosted the community dialogue intended to provide information about Islam and its followers to the local community. The conversation comes on the heels of a series of terrorist attacks, both at home and abroad, carried out by people claiming to be inspired by Islamic State. These attacks, speakers said, have had a disproportionate effect in shaping public opinion about a misunderstood religion and culture. “I think these are the settings that will help in…

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