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- Muslim in America Admin

New York Amsterdam News > News > Black Muslims: Left out of the national conversation on Islam: Russell Simmons and Imam Talib.

Black Muslims: Left out of the national conversation on Islam: Russell Simmons and Imam Talib

By STEPHON JOHNSON Amsterdam News Staff AND
OROBOSA IGBINEDIO Special to the AmNews

Published: Thursday, August 26, 2010 12:04 AM EDT

“We have to be able to decode what’s happening and realize that this is religious intolerance on one hand, and it’s [also] good ol’ red-blooded American racial and ethnic bias on the other hand,” said Imam Al-Hajj Talib Abdur-Rashid, sitting in his office at the Mosque of Islamic Brotherhood Inc. in Harlem.

A controversial nationwide conversation has sparked following the proposal of a Muslim-themed community center two blocks away from Ground Zero. Those in opposition harbor the national pain of the aftermath of the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11 nine years ago and feel it is insulting and insensitive to the memory of the near 3,000 people who lost their lives. On the other hand, religious freedom is decreed in the Constitution, therefore, developers of the center at Park 51 have a legal status to build wherever they please.

I cannot add much more to what has already been said about the flood situation in Pakistan, which the UN has already called one of the worst natural disasters in recent world history, surpassing the South Asia tsunami in 2004 and Kashmir earthquake in 2005 (pictures). Over 20 million people- 1 out of every 10 people- in Pakistan have been affected by the disaster and around 1,500 have been killed. The area of land which thrives on agriculture has been destroyed and it’s been said that the land won’t be suitable for cropping for a long time. Over 3 million children are at risk of diseases carried by contaminated water and insects, thousands of villages remain under water, and yet, the international aid still has not been enough. The UN recently said that many in Pakistan have yet to receive any aid, and only a fraction of the millions, maybe billion, of dollars needed for immediate needs has been raised.

We need to keep donating and spreading the word so that more people see the urgency in this. Pakistan itself was unable to even celebrate its own independence day on August 14th because the situation is so bad. The Prophet (S) once said: “The best charity is that given in Ramadan”, so the best time to give is NOW. I ask you to please remember all those in Pakistan in your prayers, and to continue to generously donate.
Here is a link to Islamic Relief’s Pakistan Flood Emergency site.

JazakumAllahu Khairan and Thank you,

- Noman

“Whoever abandons something for the sake of Allah, He will replace it for him with something better than it”.

The concept is simple: leave something for Allah and He will replace it with something of greater value. These “potential sins” that I’m talking about aren’t as easy to leave as we would like, so for myself, the best time to leave the bad habit is during Ramadan, when Satan is locked up and cannot influence me. For example, I usually don’t swear/curse at all, but when it comes to video games or sports, I get frustrated and it slips out sometimes, and I don’t even notice it. Ramadan allows us to practice self control to the max (one of the biggest themes of the month), and with that we can abandon saying bad words and replacing them with a vocabulary that includes using Allah’s name more often, inshAllah. The intention is not to actually go back to these actions after Ramadan, but sometimes it’s difficult. In the end, if we cannot stop a certain action during any other time of the year, at least try to do so during Ramadan so that you can create more time for Ibadah (worship). Who knows, maybe one Ramadan you will actually abandon the action for good.

Now, what actions deserve the label “potential sin”? I’m obviously not a scholar, nor remotely close that is, so the actions I personally avoid in Ramadan are merely things that I find undeniable doubt in through the works of prestigious scholars. The sixth Hadith from Imam Nawawi’s 40 Hadith states:

“Truly, what is lawful is evident, and what is unlawful is evident, and in between the two are matters which are doubtful which many people do not know. He who guards against doubtful things keeps his religion and honour blameless, and he who indulges in doubtful things indulges in fact in unlawful things, just as a shepherd who pastures his flock round a preserve will soon pasture them in it.” [Al-Bukhari & Muslim]

People can argue and say that “well, in Islam, everything we do that does not involve worship has doubt in it”. I don’t find this true at all, however. Undeniable doubt for me means that, no matter how many fatwas I read, I can’t get myself to think that the action is right. I’m not being close-minded (I’d rather not go into this right now). Indeed, God knows and we do not. The purpose of this month is to attain Taqwa, or God consciousness (Baqarah:183) so do whatever you need to do, as long as it complies with Islamic Law or Shariah. There are many ways to make yourself better during this blessed month, so just do what is best for yourself, and inshAllah, Allah will forgive and reward you.

“He who fasts during Ramadan with faith and seeks his reward from Allah will have his past sins forgiven; he who prays during the night in Ramadan with faith and seeks his reward from Allah will have his past sins forgiven; and he who passes Lailat al- Qadr in prayer with faith and seeks his reward from Allah will have his past sins forgiven.”
(Bukhari and Muslim)

-Noman

I do not believe there is much proof out there to show that Obama’s presidency so far has been any better than that of the Bush administration. If anything, our economy may be worse as unemployment rates continue to rise along with the nation’s debt. And what has our president done to solve this issue? By constantly and freely investing on every multi-billion dollar project he can get his hands on. It is easy to blame Bush for all of this, but Obama must take some of the blame instead of acting like the celebrity he is not. Seriously. You are the president of America; do your job instead of going on talk shows or discussing your college March Madness Bracket on ESPN. Are his excellent speaking skills the only thing that separates him from Bush?

Another thing I have been disappointed in was the loading of an extra 30,000 troops into Afghanistan, something Obama said numerous times in the past he would not do. As the war escalates, resemblance to the Vietnam War in the 60′s becomes more and more apparent. Even those who were advocates for the deployment of more troops were disappointed because of how long it took. Also angering me was the president’s “mild” response, as said by Norman Finkelstein, to the Palestine flotilla attack. Obama showed us through his response that he, like Bush, is only concerned with America’s alliance with Israel, and he has not even condemned the attack. Definitely not something I expected from him.

Today, we are dealing with what has been called one of the greatest environmental disasters in U.S.  history with the oil spill in the Gulf Coast. What about Obama’s response to that? According to recent reports, 30 countries from over the world had offered aid to the crisis with a chance to clean the spill up in a matter of months, but the president had turned all but 12 of them down. And now, he is saying that the crisis could take years to solve. Though it is true that many of those nations offered ships in support only if America paid for them, Obama should have seen more urgency in the situation and done more to help the cause.

To conclude, in my opinion, President Obama has not shown good decision-making, nor has he backed up his talk over the past eighteen months. I think he is starting to see how difficult it really is to completely turn things around from a previous presidency. America voted for this man because he had a lot of optimism in moving this country forward, and I do believe that he still has that ability if he truly believes in what he speaks. He’s done some good with health insurance and going against Arizona’s new law on immigration. However, a lot of work needs to be done with the economy and international relations. Let’s hope Obama gets things right soon, or by November of 2012, the U.S. may be calling for another man to step to the stage.

-Noman

By Subhan Tariq

Piety is not the length of your beard or the amount of times you may pray
It isn’t the showing off of your actions or your interactions with others
Piety is based on your belief, not of your own greatness,
but on the greatness of your Lord

Humility is not cowering in the face of a difficult decision or wanting to have power
It isn’t the way you may talk to a girl or how you’re seen by others
Humility is based on your belief, not of your own greatness
but the greatness of your Lord

Desire is not the quest for simply attaining good deeds or the expression of thought
It isn’t the way you may want to act or the way you must behave
Desire is based on your belief, not of your own greatness
but the greatness of your Lord

Islam is not merely standing in prayer or giving to the poor
It isn’t starving while fasting or visiting Mecca
Islam is based on your belief, not of your own greatness
but the greatness of your Lord

Secondly I can now post on Muslim in America from my phone, so that means I’ll be posting more frequently and more consistently.

Lastly Inshallah I will soon be going to Pakistan. I will be keeping an updated daily blog from there complete with pictures. I ask that you guys remember me in your duas and that I can have a safe trip Inshallah.

That’s it for now, more soon,
- Muslim in America

In Islamic groups I have seen something similar. Instead of working together, the groups work against eaach other or independtly in an attempt to show up the other group or people and elevate themselves. This is not Islamic.

We should all, regardless of race or religion should be willing to work together to make the population better. We should all help to strengthen all groups and in the case of Student Government, e should work to make a strong unified student body. In the case of Islam we should work together to make Islam look better in the west and combine our resources to combine much more than what we can each do individually.

May Allah guide and protect us all.

That’s it for now, more soon
- Muslim in America

I will re-write a more formal version of this post and look forward to posting it and hearing from everyone.

That’s it for now, more soon..
- Muslim in America