Muslims and taco trucks are uniting in California, and not just because of Trump

Saturday night marked the inaugural Taco Trucks at Every Mosque event, uniting Southern California's Muslim and Latino communities at the new Islamic Center of Santa Ana. The idea — the brainchild of Orange County activists Rida Hamida and Ben Vazquez — is partially a response to the election of President Trump, which has left both America's Muslim and Latino communities feeling besieged, and the name is a play on the campaign promise/threat from a Trump organizer, Marcos Gutierrez, that if Trump didn't win, "you're going to have taco trucks on every corner." But it's more than that, also, reports Anh Do at the Los Angeles Times.

Serving halal tacos to Muslims and Latinos after daily fasting during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan is a way to build bridges between the two growing communities. "The purpose of this month is to give charity, to grow our character, and our inner lives and to nourish our soul through service," says Hamida. "What better way to do that than by learning from one another?" Vazquez, a local history teacher, adds: "We have a saying — la cultura cura — the culture cures. There's nothing better than two sides coming together to cure evil thoughts about each other."

About 400 people attended the first Taco Trucks at Every Mosque event. The group Resilience OC, which helped coordinate the meet-and-greet, says more are planned in Anaheim, Irvine, Mission Viejo, and other Southern California locales. Read more at the Los Angeles Times.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up