Lanka's Hasna builds first US mosque for women

A 29-year-old film school graduate, Hasna Maznavi, whose parents are both from Sri Lanka, has set up a new women-only mosque in southern California, described as the only such mosque in the United States.

The idea was conceived with support from a fellow Muslim Sana Muttalib, a 31 -year-old lawyer, who says the traditional separation between men and women is more than physical.

Ms. Maznavi says when she goes for her prayers, even during off hours; the few men in the main hall would gently point her upstairs to a separate area for women.

"I started to feel unwelcome," she told The Wall Street Journal, spearheading a major breakthrough for gender empowerment in the Muslim community in the United States.

Speaking from the new mosque, Ms. Maznavi said: "This is a place where Muslim women can come and experience inspiration and then return with that to their communities."

Hasna's father is a physician who migrated from Sri Lanka to the US in the 1970s. Hasna was born and bred in California.

The Wall Street Journal Hasna Maznavi, right, and a friend hang banners for the Women's Mosque of America's first service this week. Pic courtesy