A well-loved Muslim imam who worked for four years to bring understanding between religions in his Southern California community has been forced to leave the country due to technical error he made in his immigration paperwork.
Imam Ashraf Carrim was director of the South Bay Islamic Center in Lomita, Calif. Friends say he worked tirelessly to build understanding between Islam and other religions, serving on the South Coast Interfaith Council, the Palos Verdes Peninsula News reported.
Carrim, his wife and two daughters emigrated from Brisbane, Australia, on a religious visa valid from 2001-03. The U.S. Immigration and Citizenship Services (formerly INS) later upgraded him to immigrant status, the last step before he could get his permanent-residency "green card."
Imam Ashraf Carrim, right. (Photo: Tom Underhill) |
According to the report, Carrim mistakenly applied for immigration status too early. Though his application was approved, he was still told he had to leave the country or risk violating the law. Rather than wage a costly legal battle against the federal government, Carrim opted to leave.
The cleric has been forced out of the U.S. at the same time illegal aliens, mostly from Mexico and Central American countries, continue to stream into Southern California. There are over 2 million illegal aliens living in California, according to government estimates.
Over 70 well-wishers attended a tearful farewell potluck dinner recently to pay their respects to the family.
"The warmth that the interfaith community is giving me and my family is so wonderful," Carrim said. "It makes me feel great that people care for me, that I have people here who love me and support me."
Carrim was hailed as a model "citizen" who worked both before and after September 11 to spread a message of peace. He often said Islam should stand for, "I Shall Love All Mankind."
"If you are a Muslim and you don't abide by this, then you are not truly a Muslim," Carrim said, according to the local paper.
Carrim and his family have moved to South Africa and will likely go back to Australia, though he said he would like to return to the U.S. someday.
"I have all intentions to come back, but it's God's will what will happen," he said. "My time here has opened me up so much. I have learned so much about other communities."
After taking over the Islamic center, Carrim began a youth group there, and Muslims from other cities in Southern California traveled to his mosque to hear him speak.
"As I look over the last four years, I realize how incredibly special the time and the relationship with you was. ... This community needs you. This country needs you," said the Rev. Dr. Reinhard Krauss, co-pastor at St. Luke's Presbyterian Church in Presbyterian Church in Rolling Hills Estates. "We wish you God's blessings, Godspeed. We will keep you in our prayers and our hearts."
The Palos Verdes Peninsula News editorialized just before Carrim's departure:
"Ashraf is wise to leave the country voluntarily and avoid a costly battle with the U.S. government. He has left the door open for a return to America. The News hopes that one day, Ashraf and family again will settle in Lomita. Only then will the community be whole, made so by a man who preaches peace during times of hate."