The American Muslim center of Dearborn was established and registered in 2002 and is led by Imam Mohammad Mardini. It is made up of a core of Lebanese Muslim families, many of them second and third generation Americans. Muslims of other nationalities, especially South Asians, also pray at the AMC, largely because it is a short distance from several Ford Motor Company facilities where many immigrant Muslims are employed. The building was formerly a Protestant church. The pews have been removed, and the sanctuary is now an open prayer space. Imam Mardini preaches from what was once the rear of the church; the elevated front of the sanctuary, once site of the pulpit and communion table, is now a space reserved for women. An area for washing before prayers has been installed downstairs, where a social hall and classrooms are also being built. The renovation and adornment of the AMC have produced a beautiful interior that reflects, in its design, a heightened awareness of the mosque's location in America. Added on January 18, 2008 and last updated 15 years ago