By Jasmine Harr was raised in a Christian Catholic household but chose to devote her life to the religion of Islam after being introduced to it by a friend.
“It’s been quite the journey, but I feel so at peace,” Harr said.
Harr, 20, is a junior at Long Beach State and is majoring in business administration with an emphasis in management. She is in the process of converting to Islam and is one among the growing number of Muslim students on college campuses and elsewhere.
Jasmine Harr (left) is among the growing number of Muslim students in MSA. The MSA President is Rena Youseff (right) Photo credit: Ashley Wilkes
Rena Youssef, the president of the Muslim Students Association chapter at Long Beach State, noted an increase in the number of members in the organization on campus.
“Last year there was maybe half of the number of members that we have this year,” Youssef said.
Young American Muslims is one of “the fastest growing demographics in the U.S.,” according to a 2019 survey of MSA West student members, with 37% of Americans in the Muslim religion under 30.
Despite the increase of students converting to Islam, Rena said Muslims still faced judgment and discrimination by others.
“In the media, we’re portrayed as being forced to be Muslim, and forced to worship God, and forced to wear the hijab, forced to have beards and wear modest clothes, and that it’s oppression,” Youssef said. “But in reality, it’s freedom for us to practice our religion and to worship our God.”
The increase in Muslim students can be attributed to the growth in population nationally, and the inclusion of more resources for them on college campuses. Some resources that are becoming available on college campuses nationally include prayer spaces, Muslim chaplains, and Muslim student associations.
MSA has a growing number of members on college campuses throughout the country. The focus of the organization is to promote education about Islam and inclusion for Muslim students. Muslim students are more likely to participate in student organizations (68%) compared to their religious (64%) and non-religious peers (58%).
Jasmine, who is now an MSA member at Long Beach State, started her conversion during Ramadan.
Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar and is observed by fasting, reflection, and prayer.
“It takes a lot of discipline to fast,” Harr said. “You learn to be grateful and patient.”
As she fasted, Harr fully submerged herself into the teachings of Islam, reading an English-translated version of the Quran. She attended King Fahad Mosque in Culver City towards the end of Ramadan.
Harr said her parents, although of different religious backgrounds, supported her as they saw how passionate she was about pursuing the teachings of Islam.
“Like everybody else, I have my own mental struggles and I would say, previous to Islam, I struggled a lot with depression and anxiety,” Harr said. “But I felt that the more that I learned about Islam, there was just so much peace in just leaving things in the hands of God.”
