I’m meeting more and more BAMs who have stopped going to the masajid, conferences and other community events because they’re tired of the b.s. I’m one of them. I’m actually getting involved in the non-Muslim organizations that cater to my community.

Ok, I understand what you meant more clearly now and I agree with you on that. You are certainly right that the Muslim community needs to be concerned about issues that affect humans period. And the blind eye to Muslim on Muslim atrocities is not cool either.

My point was, though, that everyone is against innocent women and children being killed anywhere. It is sad and unfortunate and you would have to be a pretty awful individual not to think so.

But it does come down to action. There is a difference between being against something in principle and taking a forceful stand against it. I am talking about something like a Muslim organization sponsored protest against what happened to John Bell or against Darfur or as you said any of the abuses in the Muslim world (for immigrants) not a pocket of them but an institutionalized effort, this I think is what can usher in real change.

And the same in reverse for Black Muslim orgs/communities maybe it’s the ones that I know, but I don’t notice too many chocolate brown faces at anti-Israel rallies.

This, (I think) comes back to the inclusion/exclusion discourse 

Snap, snap to you and Abu-Dharr on the personality leadership tip. It could definitely be a problem. I would condemn those “preachers”/speakers and not just those who follow them. With leadership comes responsibility so if you are going to bask in the attention, you should work for that community, particularly is you are a religious or pseudo religious figure.

Salaam alaikum Abu Darr,

You are so on point. When I get time to breath, I want to write a piece on new models of community leadership. I have talked to a number of Muslims, bloggers and non-bloggers a like, who have problems with the cult of personality. Muslims are trying to model community development along the lines of the evangelical church, minus the effective programs and influential lobby. We need real community leaders who are servants. I’m so not down for the lecture circuit imams, nor am I into hitting up lectures and talks as entertainment.

There is a vacuum of leadership, and folks are waiting for the Mahdi before getting it together. What I’m saying is that we need to think about new models of leadership. We need to start asking different things from our imams. We need to focus on real human interaction and leaders who are teachers and spiritual guides. They need to be in touch with their members. I think the rock star imam is doing us a disservice.

But don’t think that people’s tolerance for hearing about racism and exploring possible solutions has been diminished by the blogosphere. In fact, most Muslims who refuse to listen don’t read blogs much. I think that having honest exchange requires change. And that is what people are resisting. Also, very few people want to admit that they are complicit in something or benefit from a system of inequality. I’m not as much trying to force my perspective on anyone else. But I do think it is important for us to understand the implications that these patterns have for ourselves, as well as our children, and therefore the future of the Muslim American community.

I’m definitely interested in your take on MANA. I was abroad last year and clearly stuck on the West Coast this year. But I know a few insiders who are also point out the shortcomings of the big conference events. Perhaps we’ll see some changes. We can only pray that Allah purifies our intentions and guides us on the right path.

Speaking of narratives, these were my thoughts after attending the MANA conference in philly last weekend. I posted it at the muslimmatters blog, but it’s relevant to your post as well. You raise important issues, alhamdulillah.

My opinions/observations on MANA’s role, the black Muslim movement, and the comments above:

One must bear in mind the baggage various Muslim subgroups have.

Most immigrant Muslims to the US/Canada have an attitude of overt condescension, subtle patronization, or a tendency to co-opt the egalitarian spirit of Islamic brotherhood/sisterhood, while maintaining a “not with my daughter/son” attitude in their hearts and lives.

I think racism and the ummah has been so blogged to death by Muslims, that we no longer have the attention span for hearing more.

A brother at the MANA convention mentioned how almost 50% (or more?) of America’s Muslims (whether you go with the 2 million, or 6 million figure, Allah knows best) ARE of African-American origin. This really should not surprise anyone – given the history of the civil rights and black political movements in the 20th century alone. Philadelphia has generations of Muslim families. “As-silsila al-qawm aswad,” if you will (forgive my bad Arabic).

Now, lest anyone ask, “but were they really Muslim?” one should inquire how a Muslim is defined to begin with – given current sociopolitical contexts. Were families at the time of the Mihnah where Imam Ghazali and Imam Juwayni al-Haramayn were on the run, where Hanafis and Shafis were fighting till blood spilled, questioning the Islamic authenticity of their neighbors and fellow townsmen? Were those who opposed Imam Ahmad for upholding that Qur’an is created, “not really Muslim enough?”

If history is a sheikh, then we have much to learn from him.

MANA is run by Imam Siraj Wahaj, someone who has tirelessly dedicated himself to the upliftment of Muslims. Now he may not attend those gatherings where people complain about the high fundraiser surcharge, or whether the Biryani is cooked to perfection. And that’s ok alhamdulillah – because Muslims NEED people who are eager for khidma (servanthood). Too many people chase positions of leadership and fame, and do NOTHING when they sit in those chairs.

So for non-black Muslims to sit and pontificate whether the aqidah of those ‘kallus’ is sound enough for the ahlussunnah position as outlined on their SunniPath link, while they munch on the last plate of baklava at 2am in the morning, somehow strikes me as pathetic and out of touch with reality.

Sh Hamza Yusuf was once interviewed about the Rihlas and Zaytuna’s future (disclaimer: I am no supporter of either, nor am I publicizing with intent to appraise either). He basically said, any organization will rise and remain as long as the people within it are committed to the cause – and that one should not dependent on personality cults or charismatic leadership alone, to carry the torch.

This has been a real problem, in my view, with many Black political movements in the US – Islamic or otherwise. Many await the next Martin, Malcolm, Marcus, Malik, or whomever. It’s in clear view whenever you take a look at the pews and the chorus in many Black churches, stirred to a frenzy by a firebrand preacher. Then everyone goes home, the spirit fizzles, and it’s back to mindless sinning and distraction again.

This ALSO remains a problem with the current Muslim dynamic of MANA/ISNA/RIS conferences. It is not much different from the financially robust evangelical preachers, who are popular with contemporary Christians.

The fundamental vacuum is that of genuine Islamic leadership. Until the day when it arises, the ummah may remain scattered, divided and leaderless. Allah strengthen us, and may we pray that Qur’anic du’a – O our Lord! Make our spouses and children the comfort of our eyes, and make us leaders of the God-conscious!

I am BLACK MUSLIM, one of many who share a deep love for all Muslims. It is the Arabinizing of Islam that gets under my skin. If you do not walk , talk and dress like an Arab you are not practicing TRUE ISLAM. I was once told by an Arab ‘that if I did not speak Arabic ALLAH would not hear my prayers’. I kindly replied that if the god he is referring is so dumb, shallow and uncaring he is a god I do not want or need!

What about all these REAL MUSLIMS, who sell pork and liquor to the non believing community? They would not do this in the land of their fathers. What about the lack of respect shown to Black People?

As of yet I have not heard anyone of these people offer a word of condolences for the participation and profit that their fore parent reaped on the mind,body and soul of Black Folks.

Yes we are in a uneasy truce. The Muslims natural born of this country do not owe the immigrant Muslim community anything but AS SALAAM ALAIKUM.

I’m sure many of us can see ourselves in it (I’ll be the first to point the finger at myself—thank you for putting it out there). I had no idea that the convert numbers were so high (then again it makes sense since most of the civil rights era black Muslims would be considered converts—- wonder how that study defines the term).

At any rate, while I think I agree that we need to have dialogue about the historical/sociological factors that make up the Muslim community, but I think that’s not something that we can wait and do in a step by step fashion. It needs to happen in-tandem with efforts to gel the whole community. Otherwise, there will be no real Muslim political voice/group/voting block etc.

Every other group/voting bloc has its varieties with competing interests, yet many of them manage to come together for a common cause (blacks for Obama and Latinos on the immigration issue I guess would be examples). Why can’t Muslims do the same without moving past the grievances first?

It wouldn’t hurt the organizations that represent Muslims to put together an agenda that is concerned with Israel-Palestine and Police-brutality in a meaningful way. Discussion and dialogue is important but as my piano teacher used to say “The train is moving on, and you still at the station!” and if that happens, if Muslims are still at the station, then their political relevance becomes defunct. (At least the idea of it is still strong, even if it is attached to a particular stereotype of who a Muslim is)

I don’t know, maybe all this is to say that the inclusion-exclusion paradigm is at the very heart of the issue. And so, it has to be the springboard for any dialogue.