Source: The San Diego Union-Tribune
On October 12, 2001, The San Diego Union-Tribune reported that "San Diego Muslims are discovering an antidote to the fear and suspicion surrounding their faith: education ...Despite their numbers, Muslims remain largely strangers among us. There are an estimated 6 million to 7 million followers in this country, including approximately 100,000 in San Diego County...'We as a Muslim-American community have been here for over 100 years, but we've been living in a cocoon,' said Mohamad Nasser, chapter director of the Muslim American Society and an advocate of this education push. 'We haven't been reaching out and telling people about Islam.'" Nasser noted that after September 11, "the Muslim community realized it needed to come out of its shell and start speaking up."