Brothers and sisters! We are in the month of February. Since 1976, every U.S. President has officially designated the month of February as Black History and Heritage Month. It is an annual celebration of achievements by black Americans and a time for recognizing the central role of African-Americans in U.S. history. Also, their freedom from slavery is commemorated during this month.
The Jumu’ah Khutbah is one of the ways that we, as a Muslim Community, communicate with each other on issues that affect us and are of concern to us. My khutba today is on the problem of racism and its solution that Islam offers to humanity.
The well known human rights activist Malcolm X was assassinated 55 years ago, in 1965 on the 21st day of February. Malcolm X realized that no black person would ever be truly free of racial subordination until there was a collective escape from the tyranny of racism. As Muslims, we also reject racism as many Muslims such as Malcolm X and Muhammad Ali did before us. Racism is unjustifiable. It is a gross violation of the principles of our Islamic faith.
The document of the ‘Declaration of Independence’ signed in 1776 defines America and what it stands for. The very second sentence of this historic document says, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” Article 1 of the ‘Universal Declaration of Human Rights’ says: “All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.”
It was fourteen centuries before the Universal Declaration of Human Rights that Prophet Muhammad (SAW) had not only preached the ideals of freedom, equality and fraternity, but had actually established these principles. Islam not only recognizes different people and languages but declares that all people regardless of their origin, color, ethnic background, faith, and gender belong to one family. They are all children of their first parents–Adam and Eve, may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon them. Allah (SWT) honors the children of Adam by saying,
وَلَقَدْ كَرَّمْنَا بَنِي آدَمَ
“And indeed We have honored the children of Adam” (al-Isra’, 17:70).
We should know that Muslims acknowledge the honor Allah (SWT) bestowed upon the wise sage Luqman before the advent of Islam, upon Bilal (RA) in the early days of Islam, and among many others, Malcolm X and Muhammad Ali, here in America after the birth of Islam. All of them—Luqman, Bilal, Malcolm X and Muhammad Ali were blacks of African descent.
يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ إِنَّا خَلَقْنَاكُم مِّن ذَكَرٍ وَأُنثَىٰ وَجَعَلْنَاكُمْ شُعُوبًا وَقَبَائِلَ لِتَعَارَفُوا إِنَّ أَكْرَمَكُمْ عِندَ اللَّهِ أَتْقَاكُمْ إِنَّ اللَّهَ عَلِيمٌ خَبِيرٌ
“O mankind! We created you from a male and a female, and made you nations and tribes so that you may know one another. The best among you in the sight of God is the one who is most mindful of God. God is All-knowing and All-Aware.” (al-Hujurat, 49:13)\
Celebrating Black History month in February is an excellent opportunity to learn about the struggle and achievement of African-Americans, and their creativity and contribution to human civilization, and also to reaffirm the struggle and determination to fight prejudice and racism.
For Muslims who are not African-American or who do not have roots in Africa, it is imperative to remind ourselves of Allah’s statement that humanity must “know one another,” not just on a superficial level, but through bonds of brotherhood and sisterhood. That includes doing our best to understand the perspectives and experiences of Black Americans, as well as addressing and correcting persistent prejudice against Africa, Africans, and Blackness. We must also never forget the role of the people of African origin in the development of Islam from the beginning of the mission of the Prophet Muhammad (SAW).
The contributions of Black people are often overlooked in society. As Muslims, we often hear about the example of Bilal (RA), a Black Muslim who was deeply loved by the Prophet Mohammed (SAW). Bilal was a slave who was one of the first individuals in Makkah to respond positively to the Prophet’s call to truth and become a Muslim. The Prophet (SAW) chose him to perform the Azan – the call of the faithful to prayers. His decision was based on the Qur’anic teaching against racial discrimination, which explains the rationale behind God’s creation of humanity in different tribes, color, religion and race, so that we know each other.
It was a Black woman – Barakah bint Tha’alaba also known as Umm Ayman, who the Prophet described as my “mother after my own mother. She is the rest of my family.” She was the only one who knew him from birth to death, and he said that she was a woman of Paradise.
It is true that in today’s day and age, there are instances when Black Muslims face prejudices within our own Muslim communities. Many examples from the experiences of Black Muslims have been recorded such as being made to feel less Muslim because of not being an Asian or Arab or being rejected for marriage due to color of the skin. That we as Muslims today, have allowed an ounce of racism to take place in our communities, is not Islamic at all and far from acceptable in the eyes of Allah (SWT).
This must be challenged as it was challenged in the time of the Prophet (SAW). In one incident, Abu Dharr (RA) uttered a racist remark. The response of the Prophet (SAW) was to tell him: “You are the man who still has the traits of ignorance in him.” Upon hearing this, Abu Dharr repented, apologized, and humbled himself to the man to whom he had addressed in a racist language, and showed his deep regret at what he had done.
In his last sermon, the Prophet (saw) said: “All mankind is from Adam and Eve. An Arab has no superiority over a non-Arab, nor does a non-Arab have any superiority over an Arab; a white has no superiority over a black, nor does a black have any superiority over a white, except by piety and good action.” This final message clearly explains that the only superiority that someone has over another is in piety and good action. The Prophet (SAW) challenged racism. In the same way, we too should adopt this Sunnah and challenge racism where we see it, be it in our schools, universities, mosques, workplaces or anywhere else.
There are numerous examples of Black Muslims in Islamic history as well as in recent times that should be celebrated as inspirational role models for all people of whatever ethnic background or faith they may be. Sadly, as we reflect on the current religious practices and social conditions of so many Muslim communities in the United States, we find them divided along artificial lines of nationality, families, ethnic identity and culture.
أَقُولُ قَوْلِي هَذَا وَأَسْتَغْفِرُ اللَّهَ لِي وَلَكُمْ وَلِسَائِرِ المُسْلِمينَ وَالمُسْلِمَاتْ فَاسْتَغْفِرُوهْ إِنَّهُ هُوَ الْغَفُورُ الرَّحِيمُ
الحمد لله رب العالمين والصلاة والسلام على سيد المرسلين وعلى آله وأصحابه أجمعين
Brothers and sisters! Alhamdulillah, Islam is the fastest growing religion in the United States. We should know that the majority of the population embracing Islam comprises of African-Americans. Why are they embracing Islam in such large numbers? Is it is because of the intrinsic nature of Islamic human equality
When people think of Africa they think of blacks, civil wars and the AIDS epidemic. The intellectual discourse on topics like African history in the Islamic context is inadequate and almost absent from the history books. Today almost 50 percent of the people in Africa are Muslims. Africa and Islam have more in common than we think. Islam came to Africa during the early 7th century. And of the Africans brought over to America in the slave trade, many came from Muslim families.
Our African-American Muslim brothers and sisters have a particular responsibility in addressing racism. In beginning to do so, they can take their lead from their formerly enslaved brothers. Despite their lack of freedom, many of them were never “owned.” This fact is strikingly clear in their biographies. Individuals such as Ayyub bin Sulayman, also known as Job Ben Solomon, Ibrahim Abdul Rahman, and Yarrow Mamout, to name a few, did not allow the ravages of chattel slavery to rob them of their dignity, honor, nor their human worth.
In celebrating Black History Month, we should be able to include that rich Islamic history that has been hidden from us in the midst of Islamophobia that has marked out Muslims and Islam as “medieval and uncivilized.” American Muslims need to know that in these times of deliberate misrepresentation and spin, Islamic scholars were the inheritors, keepers and developers of Roman and Greek learning.
At this critical time in the history of our country, it is important for Muslims, whose legitimate existence in this country is being challenged in some quarters, to connect to our American Muslim roots. As Muslims, our story in this country did not begin with the coming of Syrians, Lebanese, Albanians, or Yemenis at the turn of the 20th Century and later. It began with the lives of those courageous African Muslim slaves whose blood, sweat, and tears were instrumental in building this country. Their struggle is our struggle, and our struggle should be viewed as a continuation of theirs.
So today, brothers and sisters, I encourage you to actively take part in Black History month by promoting the work of Black Muslims and those of other faiths. I encourage you to dedicate your time and efforts to rejecting the discrimination that our own communities and others reproduce. Do not take away from the achievements of Black Muslims. Do not silence Black Muslims when they attempt to speak out about the racism that they face from fellow Muslims or others. Be an ally, be a friend.
May Allah make us of those who are able to tackle prejudice in our society, challenge structural racism within our communities and keep us steadfast in our faith. Ameen.
