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First and third Saturdays, the San Francisco Muslim Community Center offers free produce at AAACC

November 15, 2025

The San Francisco Muslim Community Center, originally founded in 1978 by African American Muslims in the Fillmore district, is returning to that neighborhood after spending 13 years in the Excelsior area. Rising rent costs and unsafe building conditions forced the community center to relocate from its Mission Street location to a permanent facility on Haight Street, made possible by a longtime congregation member who owns the property. While the new building undergoes preparation, the center operates temporarily from the African American Art and Culture Complex on Fulton Street, where it holds Friday prayers and distributes food.

Who is affected

  • San Francisco Muslim Community Center congregation members
  • African American Muslims and the broader African American community in San Francisco
  • Residents, families, and elders from the Fillmore and Western Addition neighborhoods
  • Diverse Muslim population including Arabs, Africans, Pakistanis, Latinos, indigenous and European American converts
  • African American residents impacted by the opioid and stimulant crisis

What action is being taken

  • Free fresh produce boxes are being distributed every first and third Saturday of each month at the African American Art and Culture Complex
  • Weekly Friday congregational prayers are being held at the African American Art and Culture Complex at 762 Fulton Street
  • The Center is providing prayer services, study sessions, food distribution, and counseling
  • The new Haight Street facility is being prepared for full operation

Why it matters

  • This relocation represents the preservation of an African American-led Muslim institution in San Francisco amid ongoing gentrification pressures that have displaced faith communities from the historically significant Fillmore neighborhood. The center's return to its original roots maintains religious and cultural continuity for a community that has served San Francisco for nearly five decades, providing essential services including worship, education, food assistance, and crisis support during an ongoing opioid epidemic that disproportionately affects African American residents.

What's next

  • The Center is preparing to relaunch its addiction and recovery program in response to San Francisco's ongoing opioid and stimulant crisis.

Read full article from source: San Francisco Bay View National Black Newspaper

First and third Saturdays, the San Francisco Muslim Community Center offers free produce at AAACC