There's a story in today's Washington Post that dovetails with David's experience moderating a dialogue among Muslim-American leaders and Congressional staff last week.

David heard from local Muslim leaders in a policy context. Today's piece in the Post tells the story of the Falls Church Dar al Hijrah mosque that has cast off its longtime reputation of being by, for and about the Muslim faithful by opening itself up in myriad ways:

These days, the mosque bustles with visitors chattering in Spanish and Vietnamese as well as Persian and Urdu. Immigrants from a dozen countries gather there each Thursday, many with toddlers and baby strollers, to pick up donated chicken, bread, fruit and vegetables.

On weekends, the doors are thrown open for community blood drives or mental health fairs. At night, mosque officials often attend meetings at nearby churches, synagogues or social agencies, including a monthly brainstorming session called Culmore Partners.

These interactions with the community do not focus on religious issues, writes author Pamela Constable. But they have a lot to do, oddly enough, with public policy:

It was the threat of a crackdown on illegal immigrants that first brought Dar al Hijrah into close contact with advocacy groups. A meeting was called in Culmore to discuss how to help families in cases of raids or arrests, and mosque officials offered their premises.

There you have it: Muslims advocating for immigration reforms on behalf of Hispanic laborers as a way to address Americans' misperceptions about terrorism. That's why we're called the Global Interdependence Initiative.