10/14/1997
IWDM Study Library
Islam Contributes to America 
South Florida University Tampa, Florida

By Imam W. Deen Mohammed

It’s an honor for me and my association of Imams and mosques and schools to be your guest here at the University of South Florida. President Freddy Castro and to our brothers Wali Shabazz and Dr. Cappa we appreciate your support and your interest and having us come here during this opportune time to present our picture to you.
Our picture as you know as Muslims is one that is distorted. We can say by major media. I recall hollywood movies and even libraries and authors of books contributing to the bad picture of Muslims in the world. I think it comes from the Crusades times. There was a time before the Crusades when Muslims were in Spain for 500 years. There were declarations for Muslims, for Christians and Jews.
In fact, Christians and Jews were together of course in Spain and achieved a lot. Learned Jews had told me that they think of that time as a great time for intellectually Jews. In fact, they said that not only did the Muslims put the spark in the air for Renaissance in Europe and in the West but also for a return to intellectual studies, devotion to matters of science, and et cetera, philosophy and science among Jews. 
Those of us who are trying to represent Muslims in the world today, we should be aware of the history of our relations with the people of book the Christians and the Jews and should try to understand what has happened to bring about this bad situation that we have now for Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. I believe that this is the best time on earth for human beings. I don't think there ever was a time that favored us really having a good life and the peace that we were want on this earth more so in the time that we have right now.
In fact, I would say as a Muslim who knows the Prophet Muhammad, who loves the Prophet Muhammad and our Prophet and the last Prophet and the universal Prophet, I would have loved to be- to have really back then at the time with our prophet to have seen him face to face, to have worked with him, support him and died for the cause. I would have loved that. If I was invited now if that was possible by some magic to take me back to that time. I will ask the prophet to forgive me. I will tell him, “This is the best day in the history of man. This is a day that we can best represent you and our religion and do more good than ever have been done.”
I will tell him, “Forgive me. May I see you in paradise? I hope. Insha Allah". Then he stays here for some time in America to continue with the good work and see the marvelous things that are going to happen in the future for us to have peace and a good life on this earth. Islam's contribution to America should be no different from Islam’s contribution to the world. The main contribution that Islam makes to world community, the world society or the world community is the emphasis on higher learning education.
During the early days of Islam, we know Islam produce thinkers, philosophers, scientific thinkers. Even when we speak of the collection of hadith but as high as an objective work, as a scientific work. Islam produce these great minds. In a relatively short period of time, there were centers of learning for the whole world. People came from around the world to those centers in Damascus, Syria, Baghdad, Iraq. In Africa, Timbuktu, and Morocco and other places.
The oldest university that we know of is perhaps one of the best. The one that is the most popular, the biggest university is the University of Azhar of Egypt. Cairo Egypt the Azhar University with the long centuries of history, Islam wants us to see education as the herald of progress, civilization. It opens the way for civilization and all kinds of progress. We can stop slavery by political protests and moral protests. It has happened for us. Moral protest, spiritual protest, religious and political protest.
The Abolitionist, Frederick Douglass and others who championed the cause of freedom for the black people, for the Black Man of America or the African-American people. They won emancipation proclamation. It came. But, the job of finishing that process and really bringing satisfaction to our souls would have to be done by education. It is being done by education. More would be accomplished by education to free people from all kinds of slavery that can be accomplished by war or political pressure or even moral pressure. Moral pressure is important to awake the consciousness.
As Frederick Douglass did, he worked hard to awake the conscience of the American people. He said some great things that I think are very profound. That was very ingenious of him to say what he said and had great psychological effect then and even now when I read what he said. It has an effect on me. He wanted pointed to the Christian, Democratic West and he reminded the West, the leaders of our society then and the public of our society at that time that they were Christians and that they claim to believe in Jesus Christ.
Peace be upon him, the prophet Jesus Christ. He reminded them that they claim democracy and would love to be seen as the leaders of democracy. He said and I'm quoting him, “Your behavior is such that would shame a nation of savages.” These powerful words have the effect of bringing the people's people to look at themselves and to question their behavior light of the high principles and high ideas, the wonderful ideas that they identified with.
But, the process had to continue. Even now, we are thinking of ourselves as being an underclass people. Many of us, we think of ourselves as still being denied, not being accepted. Education is the instrument that's going to completely free us. Education. When the leaders become more educated and appreciate true education, quality education more and apply the instrument or the tools and the knowledge and principles of quality education to further the liberation of African Americans.
We hope to see some more success. Now, people are free. What do they want? What would they motivated to see? It was knowledge. The history says and tells us that when freedom came and the worker in the field, I've heard that there were free-- Say something right away if you want to get a book or a piece of paper to try to read and they can be seen after the emancipation of proclamation during rest time, resting on their plows, reading books, reading a piece of paper. That was their thirst. That was their great desire.
The precious part of the human being is not so much as flesh, 150 or 70 and 60 pounds of flesh. The precious part of the human being is the human intellect. It was our prophet who said to us dear Muslim believers. Our prophet said, G-d never created anything better than the human intellect. We know it's the human intellect that enables us to see ourselves as free people and people of free will and enables us to rise above the animal nature and the animal level of performance.
To really think of ourselves as creatures put on this earth to beautify the earth, and to take care of even the animals. To serve the world, serve the world. The whole world, for the betterment of the world. For the betterment of all life, not just human life, animal life. It was our prophet, too, who told us about the respect we need for animals. Once there was a Muslim gentleman walking down the road with other Muslims, and he saw a dog coming down the road. He would not move and the dog would not move and he would not move.
He was just going to run the dog off the road and he was reminded that the dog had rights, too. What we would like to see Muslims do in these times, we would like to see Muslims awaken to the great principles that the Prophet, the religion, gives us. To the great respect that this religion asks for and we would like to see us join movements for the protection of animals, to protect animals from cruelty. This would help change the image of Muslims. If we would just learn where our sensitivities should be, and join efforts in the world, that would give us an opportunity to serve in the path of G-d as the Quran, our holy book, and our Prophet would have us serve.
If we would do that, the image of Muslims would be corrected and the world would see us right away as people in humanity who love humanity and want to see a better future for all humanity. When I'm speaking around the country and overseas even, that's what's motivating me. A desire to bring the right sensitivities back to Muslim people, especially our leaders so that we will be able to really serve as G-d intend for us to serve G-d and humanity on this earth. After all, we cannot give G-d anything. G-d says even the one who, the martyr, who gives his blood, his blood does not reach G-d. G-d cannot do anything with that blood.
He says what reaches Him, G-d says what reaches Him is your respect. Your taqwa, that's what reaches him. That respect begins with respect begins with respect for your Lord Creator. Appreciation for your G-d who gives everything and makes everything possible. Then that respect goes to our parents, and to our near relatives, our close relations, and it goes out to our neighbor. Prophet Muhammad said peace and blessings be on him, he said, G-d impressed him so regarding how he should respect the neighbor and how he should care about the neighbor until he thought at one time that the neighbor was going to inherit him. 
This is the importance on respect for our neighbor. The neighbor maybe of your faith or not of your faith, we have to care about our neighbors. It was that kind of respect and that kind of sensitivity that won even nations, countries, to come over to Islam. Indonesia is the most popular country in the Muslim world. Most populous of all Muslim countries. Not a white country. It's not a black country. It's a brown country. Indonesia. Their history tells us and they would be proud to tell us, they were brought to Islam because of the great character they witnessed in the Muslims who were business people who came to Indonesia to do business, to do trade.
They were impressed so they wanted to find out what accounted for this marvelous, this excellent behavior in these people. They inquired and they learned that their religion accounted for that behavior in them. The whole nation eventually converted to Islam and now it's the most populous of nations in the Muslim world. Education is the liberator. Prophet Muhammad is the first be seen as an educator, not as a warrior. Not as a general leading the Muslims in conquests, to dominance, but as an educator. Our holy book, G-d says to us in our holy book that Muhammad the prophet is the one that is mentioned in the Torah and in the Injeel.
What we now call the old testament and the new testament in the Bible. He is the one mentioned and I found the language a similar language that is used in our holy book, I found it in the Bible, says that he is the one that comes to break all the bonds of slavery. To lift from the people the heavy yokes. To break all the bonds of slavery. How was he going to do that? He's going to do that by bringing their respect to knowledge and to the G-d who created knowledge. We don't think of G-d as the creator of knowledge, but G-d is the creator of knowledge. All knowledge comes from creation. There's no knowledge coming except from creation or revelation. G-d is the one that created everything.
The knowledge is in everything that's created. No learned person have gotten any knowledge except from what G-d has created. The knowledge for the human body as we--I'm telling you anything on these campuses but you need to think about it. Islam is a religion that just wants us to reflect, to think about it. The knowledge of the human being, all comes out of the human beings. The knowledge of my skin, makes the doctor become the skin specialist, he has to get that knowledge out of my skin, out of human skin. The one who become a brain specialist gets it out of the human brain.
The one who becomes a heart specialist he gets it by studying the human heart. The psychology he gets it by studying the human psychology. The outer environment, the one who studies the stones, the minerals and et cetera, he has to study that and get that knowledge out of there. If he's knowledge doesn't agree with what's there, he has no knowledge. He has to get the knowledge from what G-d has put into all these things He created. His knowledge cannot disagree with what God has written in these created things. If we who say we believe in G-d, if we reflect on this, we appreciate G-d more. This is the kind of thinking that Islam brought to us.
This is the kind of thinking that Muhammad the prophet brought to his followers. That caused them to be inspired and motivated and they did not want to be silly people, arguing with each other and trying to out-joke each other and impress each other with their lines of poetry et cetera. They want to join the movement of Muhammad the Prophet for liberating the intellect of the human being. For bringing a better world. To bring a better world to humanity, and they did that. They joined him and became strong, staunch, fierce followers of his, but peace-lovers. Lovers of humanity and lovers of peace.
Islam contribution to America must be then, our appreciation for education. Muslim leaders should be supporting education. We should be on record for valuing higher education, all knowledge, common sense, science, higher education. We should be building institutions of learning. We should see institutions of higher learning popping up in America with oil dollars, with dollars from the oil reserves, and with other monies that we have, that the businessmen, with the monies of the rich. We should see higher institutions popping up like it did after the coming of the Quran and the teachings of the prophet.
Within a relatively few years, institutions popped up and the Muslim institutions became the Magnus drawing the intellectuals to come and see what the Muslims intellects were all about. That caused the Renaissance, the revival of interest in the sciences throughout the world. That's what we need to see. We need it as a principle and as a philosophy for liberating African black people too. The Jews they did a lot of things to help us. We think of the Jews only as going with the marches and losing their lives down south but the Jews did something else wonderful. Jewish authors, they questioned racism in this country.
One Jewish author I recall, he encouraged the scientific study of race and racism and that's where the answer is. It's in the scientific study of race and racism. All of these differences can be explained. We still have too much ignorance even on this campus, even on this prestigious campus. I guarantee you I can question some of your students and they will have ignorant ideas of their dignity as a person. They're black-skinned, they will think it's their dignity.
The texture of their hair maybe they'll be so proud. They'll show it off like a rooster shows off his crown but that's not the real thing we should be showing off. What we should be showing off is abstract is not in concrete. It's the precious mind, the rational mind, the intellect of the human being, the human heart, the human soul that wants to obey G-d but is in the dark until the mind is turned on to the light.
This is what we should be interested in and this is our identity. Our identity is first a human identity. If we don't have that identity strong in us first, whatever identity we take on after that will have a weak base to support it so it crumbles when pressure is brought against it. This is a situation for too many blacks in America or African Americans or Africans. I hope one day we'll feel comfortable saying we are Africans because that's what we are.
The French who stays here and the Irish who stays here or the Italian who stays here for generations. Do they stop calling themselves Irish and Italian or French? No. Why do we have to say it Afro-American? How come we can't have the whole word? Because it is not the world anymore that's making us feel inferior, it's the thinking, the condition of our minds that make us feel inferior and we don't have the freedom of soul and intellect yet to embrace the full word African.
Al-Islam's contribution is also unity. Our concept of unity, our concept of unity. We should share it with the people. We should let them know that we believe in one G-d. We believe that one G-d is the creator of the universe and that He has designed the universe, given its design and also its destiny. The great learned teachers in Al- Islam, the philosophical thinkers want us to understand that the whole material creation is a matter that is progressing or as scientists in the West would say undergoing evolution. The highest evolved of all of that matter is the human intellect.
The destiny of matter itself is the establishment of the human intellect in his great role that G-d assigned that determined for it so that we will have a better world for ourselves and a better world for all living creatures. From the belief that G-d is one we moved from that premise when we understand it and understand brothers, Imams and scholars in Al-Islam teaches the students in Al-Islam that even that belief it has a rational base.
We speak of the Prophet Abraham, Ibrahim in the Arabic language as our second father just as the Jews and Christians do and we also say that our religious order is an order after the order of that Prophet peace be upon him, Abraham or Ibrahim. We say of him that he is the man of rational faith. Not just faith, not just believe but a belief of faith that has a rational basis.
When we witness that G-d is one we do it upon a conclusion arrived at after we study as Abraham did the creation itself and determined that there is a designer for it or conclude that there is a designer for this universe, that there is a creator of this universe and that that one is G-d. That's how he arrived at the concept of G-d or the belief in one G-d. When we say we witness that G-d is one we mean that we also used our rational senses. We didn't just blindly come to that position that G-d is one. We also used our rational senses to bring us to that belief that G-d is one. We say “ash hadu”.
I witness. Witness means that I have observed this, I have used my rational mind and think about this and I conclude yes, I agree with Muhammad, I agree with the Quran. G-d is one. From that position, G-d is one and creation is one created by G-d. It has a oneness, all matter is tied together by universal laws, it's one scheme of logic. The logic does not oppose itself or become a strange logic and two different logics working together to destroy the universe. No. The logic is consistent for matter, one design, one universal law, one continuous universal nature underlying and holding everything together.
Then we say that man is also one, life is one and this is what science tells us so we are not at odds with science, the religion is not at odds with science that life is one and humanity is one. We think of our first parents as Adam and Eve but as students of this religion, we have to understand that Adam represents the human person in the single picture that's the same for all nationalities, for all races.
Adam represents that single picture for human beings and that's the picture of our human intellect, our distinct human identity, humanity, human intellect, human person. It's the human person identity that we claim that we are all members in when we say Adam is our Father. And when we say Abraham is our Father we are talking about an orientation of the mind, spirit, the whole, the heart and the whole person because we are told in Al-Islam that Abraham brought his whole self to G-d. His heart, his faith, his spirit everything. He trusted his intellect. He brought his whole being to G-d.
For this accomplishment of Abraham is expressed like this and He fulfilled his obligation to his G-d, fulfilled it and that was to deliver himself completely to his G-d. Now, if you find an intellectual on the campus like Abraham that have given even his intellect in obedience to his creator you have a wonderful person on this campus. You have a special person on this campus. You have a person on this campus that G-d is very close to, loves, very close to and G-d is working with him right by his side all the time.
This is the highest achievement for the human being to submit not just his faith or his spirit to G-d but to submit the most precious part of the human being to G-d. The intellect, the rational mind itself. How can we do that if we don't have the rational appreciation for G-d? The rational basis for appreciating G-d? I would pity the world if one of these great minds could get into power and guide and become our leader on this earth. If he had some of these silly notions of the being and existence of G-d that I know is in some of these denominations and some of these small-minded religions I would pity the future.
I would pity those of the world for following him and accepting him and I would regret the future that he would lead us to giving his intellect to G-d. You give your intellect to G-d with the wrong perception you in trouble. I don't blame many of you on these campuses for not giving your intellect to G-d. They have not shown you the right way to look at religion yet. You went to the wrong Church or the wrong synagogue or the wrong mosque.
Another contribution we can make is to show that we love peace, to show that we want peace not just for ourselves but for the whole world. For everybody on this earth. When we say we are Muslims, we are saying that we are peacemakers. Peacemakers, the root word is Salama. The name of our religion is Al-Islam, al Islam which means to give yourself to peace-making. To give yourself to respect for peace, to love for peace, to peace-making.
They say to surrender to G-d. To surrender to G-d, but this word doesn't say surrender to G-d. This word says Salama, it says peace. Yes, it is a surrender to G-d but how is that surrender done? The surrender done is done by us wanting peace between ourselves and G-d and peace between ourselves and our fellow man, no matter what color skin is or where he's from. That's how that peace comes. 
We should be seen as peacemakers and every Muslim should be a policeman over himself or over herself. Prophet Muhammad didn't have jails. He didn't ask the society to build jails. Prophet Muhammad had no police department. He required of each Muslim citizen that he or she be the policeman or the policewoman over themselves. This is the Bible, this is the Torah, this is the Bible that we should believe in G-d and trust that once the citizen comes into the right relationship with his G-d then the nation, the government order can trust him. He will keep the peace, He will keep the civil order of the society. He will do that himself.
How can we have citizens like that if we don't give them the best of the knowledge and the best of the education and the best of the sensitivities that our G-d has given to us as Muslims? We will never have that unless we do those things. Race, G-d want us to see race rationally. When we go against the races, we may become extremists right along with Him. To jump on a person for wanting to dignify their race or for wanting to see their race have the life that they themselves admire even though we might not agree with that life.
It's not the way to have peace between races that are opposing each other or hate each other, dislike each other. The way to do it is to try to rationally understand, what's motivating this person, what's behind this person's actions? What's behind our actions? I don't care if it's a KKK, klansman or anybody else. It is the inherent respect and honor that G-d gave us. Prophet Muhammad said when G-d created everything, He created dignity and respect for that thing. In that thing, it's written, it's inscribed in everything up on everything, dignity, respect, honor.
All of us may be struggling in the dark and stumbling over ourselves and others and running into other people but we are searching for that respect, that honor that G-d created us for. If this world can come to respect that G-d created each of us for honor, for nobility, for dignity, for respect and that we may not all pursue the same life or the same interest in life, we'll become culturally different. We'll become religiously different, spiritually different. We won't all have the group personality that the other one will have. The African-American group personality will be different from the Irish-American group personality. We'll be different even in our group sensitivities. We'll be different.
When you're different, naturally there's something about the other you don't like. Or something about the other that you rather keep away from you. Well, what's wrong with that? Believe me, there are many groups and now they're black too. I found a lot of black people. I don't want to live next door to them. Yes, there are members of the white race. I don't want to live next door to them. I'll really raise hell if they come in my neighborhood with some scheme to change my neighborhood so that my neighborhood will be mixed with them and the people that I care about being next door to.
Yes, I will raise the hell too because I wouldn't like that. We should have the right to be away from people we don't like and we should accept that everybody's not going to like you. You should accept that. That's human nature. If we accept that, then everybody will respect each other. That's what we should have, respect not love. We don't have to be sentimentally in love with each other as racists. I don't have to be sentimentally in love with the Irish people but I should have respect for the Irish people. I should have an appreciation for the achievements of the Irish people that benefit the whole humanity.
I should have appreciation for the Germans contribution that benefits all humanity. I should appreciate the Germans intellect and the Germans contribution. Maybe some Germans I wouldn't want them next door. "Hey, you look like Hitler. I don't want you next door to me."

But at least appreciate the intellect of that people and not condemn the whole people because of how some present themselves. We need just a simple common sense. Respect for each other, but we go to the extremes. The Democrats, wonderful democrat party but they go to extreme emotional. Too emotional. Go to extremes. Never know when to stop, never know when enough is enough. Some Christians who want to promote love your neighbor, love everybody but let's have some rational content to that love.
These people who go through these extremes with their sentiments, extremes, with their opinions, and etcetera they're the ones who have this world in bad shape. If we will come back to respect for our intellect that G-d created and try to insist that whoever is talking to us that you respect common sense and respect the rational mind. If we would ask for that or we'd have a much better world to live in. I go among the Arabs, I have no problem. I go into their neighborhoods where their shops are, I have no problem.
Some of my people going there, they have problems. "Those Arabs, they're racists. Those Palestinians, they're racists." I never met a Palestinian and got any hint that he was a racist. No, there is no racism in Palestinians. How do they come to that conclusion? Because he went there and the Palestinians saw him. He didn't see Al-Islam, he saw him. He saw that black person and he was turned off so he didn't care to have him in his store. He's going to blame that on racism. Al-Islam wants us to also have appreciation for government. We are not people who want to be attacking the government.
G-d wants all of us evolved to appreciate civilized government and all of us should respect any effort to have civilized government. We shouldn't just get emotional and attack our government. Never attack the government, attack the bad that's in the government. Never attack anything except for what's wrong in it. Only the wrong that's in it, not the whole thing. Let us think about what we attacking before we attack it. Let us think about what we're doing the lead people in a hatred for or disrespect for our government.
Too many African-Americans have disrespect for the United States government. Too many African Americans see the United States government as an oppressor but it is in this government that we have achieved the amount of dignity and respect that we have now, that we have overcome some of the worst problems that the humanity have ever had on them and that's the problem of racism. We have overcome racism. Some of us say, "No, racism is still the issue." It is not the issue. Racism is no longer the issue. Most of our serious rational thinkers have already come to that conclusion and they are beginning to tell us that we've gone too far with this thing. We were reacting too much.
Racism is not the problem. A few ignorant people, that's the problem. There are few ignorant people still harboring hatred, that's the problem. Some are white, some are black, that's the problem. We don't need to have some new laws or new constitution to deal with those little small people. Just be intelligent. The intelligent one of us can manage the rest of these people. We can manage them and have a little understanding of them. Don't call them crazy, they're not crazy, they're misguided. They're miseducated.
They have wrong religion maybe. Maybe they have a religion that's causing the problems for them. Their perception of Christianity may be causing a problem, their perception of Al-Islam may be causing problems. Let's address their minds and respect what G-d has made. G-d has created them with a human intellect. Let's respect that all of them have a human intellect and let us try to reason with them and not be so harsh on them, not be so hard on them. Why do I speak like this? I used to be in their position.
I used to be black and I thought all whites were wicked by nature. That's what I was told. When you're told something as a baby and you trust your parents, you love your parents, and you believe that they love you, they're sincere, they're innocent in their darkness, so I believed them. I grew up with that belief, that all white people, that we were being treated the way we were treated because they couldn't help themselves. That they were wicked by nature. Sinful and wicked, and hateful and devilish by nature. That's what I was told.
I was told that they were artificial creation that they weren't created like the rest of the people. That they were an artificial creation that some scientist by the name of Yakub had created them on an island of Patmos in the Aegean Sea 6,000 years ago. That's what I was told. Now you laugh, but the white extremists, racists, they have been told something just as ridiculous and that's why the teacher gave us the same kind of mind that they had to help whites like that, look at us and see their own ridiculousness.
Yes, it was a marvelous work that was done to show the racist America their own picture. Say, "Wow, look at these blacks. They have taken your position. Do you like the way they look?" Believe me, the work of the Honorable Elijah Muhammad, the Nation of Islam has had a healing effect on white America. Yes, indirectly. In a subtle way, it has worked to heal racism and white people.
Now all we have to do is use the rational method and we can complete the job and all of us can come out of the mental institutions. The blacks too because we took up their position. Believe me, there are many African Americans who think that they are not racists but they are. They have been influenced. They have been affected by the teaching of the Nation of Islam and they have come into a spirit. They have come into a mindset that is racist. Whether they call it black supremacy or not, that's what they are promoting. A lot of those centering themselves in Africa now really is racism. That's what it is.
When you move to tell lies about your own history, to exaggerate your own achievements, something incorrect is in your thinking and the motive is not good. A good motive will not produce liars. A good motive produce truth bearers, not liars. We don't have to exaggerate our creation, have a myth of our creation if we just study scientifically for this human being, and respect the G-d that designed this human being, we can have more sense of honor, more sense of respect for ourselves. We can realize more nobility. We can have the peace that our souls want for us.
G-d says that He says, "We have certainly made honorable by nature every child of Adam." Now, why don't we believe G-d? Those who say they're Muslims, they still want to say the white is inferior to the black. Why don't they just believe G-d? They claim to be Muslims then the Quran is your book, Quran is the sacred book for you. Why don't you just believe what G-d says? G-d the Creator gave nobility and honor in the creation when He created every son of Adam. I hope the time will come when we will have-- We have, in fact, we do have. We have the Minaret of Freedom an effort by learned people in the academic world.
An effort to bring back this emphasis in knowledge and to bring back these sensitivities for what is best in the human creation and in the human destiny. We have the Minaret of Freedom and others. These are mostly immigrant Muslims, there are some African-American with them now but the effort was started by immigrant Muslims from abroad. They are seeing that there is a compatibility for the reasoning, the logic in Islamic justice and western democracy. Islamic social justice and western democracy.
These people are becoming the leaders now, they're not seen yet because they're just beginning, but in time, their great work is going to reach the many of Muslims in America and throughout the world and we are going to come closer to our American citizens, embrace them. We're going to see that we're not far apart as we think we are. That we're really very close together in our thinking.
Not only that, when we understand Christianity and the mission for Christian people, the global mission for Christian people that their Bible wants for them or their gospel wants for them, and when we can understand the Jewish people, the global mission that G-d wants for them, we're going to be able to come closer together and understand each other. G-d says He has not made us different so that we should despise each other or stand over each other, but G-d has made us different so that we'll be curious and want to get acquainted with each other.
The more we get acquainted with each other and get the true knowledge of each other, the more we're going to respect each other and the more we're going to see the common bases or the common grounds for cooperation. I don't want to take up too much time, many other things I want to bring to your attention, but I'm going to conclude with one thing that I think has made more trouble perhaps than any other thing and that is a saying in the Quran, G-d saying. G-d says that the religion of Al-Islam shall become more popular or the most prevalent religion.
The religion that's more readily seen and noticed. Said, "It shall become popular or prevalent over all other religions, though the idolatrous or the pagans detest that, hate that." This has been misunderstood and misinterpreted, and some very deeply scarred scholars in Al-Islam and preachers in Al-Islam, they have come to the idea because of the hurt in them. They want to believe that Al-Islam wants us to be against Christians and against the West. That we should never be satisfied until Al-Islam has conquered the world dominance. G-d says, "For them, I say to you," G-d says in our holy book He will never give the rule that is the power over others, over nations to anyone who seek corruption or seek dominance.
The Prophet was told, these are the words of G-d to the prophet and to all of us in our holy book, "Fight them." Fight who? Who was the prophet fighting? He was fighting a society that had no interest in civilization. He was fighting a society of idolatrous people, pagan people, idol worshippers. People who had their own idea of how they should live and what the world should be. They had not received enlightenment. They had not received revelation or enlightenment. Those are the people he was fighting. Prophet Muhammad was not fighting the Christian world, that came later.
The crusades brought all that. He was fighting enslavers of the intellect, people who were in the way of the intellect, progress for intellect and civilization. That's who he was fighting. He was fighting them only after they became aggressors and attacked him and tried to stamp out the light of Al-Islam and writ the peninsula of Arabia of Muslims. Then that's when he was given permission by G-d to fight them, to resist them and to fight them. G-d says, "Fight them until there is no more persecution and religion is for G-d." Now listen to that. Listen to that, please, especially you Muslim thinkers. "Fight them until there is no more persecution and religion is for G-d."
Understand that this is our scripture that also tells us that the worst of all oppressors is the one who impose false religion upon you. These people in that time of ignorance, the idolatrous people of Arabia, they had religion, they boast that they had religion, but their religion was oppression. It oppressed the human soul, it oppressed the human mind, the human intellect. "Fight them until there is no more persecution and religion is for G-d." I stand upon this against any argument intellectual. I'm not a degree person, I only have a good high school education, formal education and I only went to Chicago Loop Junior College to learn English a little better so I could speak a little better.
I don't have college degrees, but I stand against anyone who wants to argue with me, and I say to you right their G-d is obligating us to stand for the freedom of religion. We should be standing for the freedom of religion. If any one's religion is threatened by someone who wants to deny them the right to have their religion, it is the Muslim leaders who should come to the side of that person and say, "No, G-d has ordered freedom of religion." G-d says to you say to people who differ with you, seriously differing with you, say to them, "To you your religion and for me my religion. “Let there be no compulsory in religion, don't force people to accept it.
Why are all those wars against aggressors? Then came the crusades and there was a different motive. The Muslim world who has experienced great wealth and great conquests, it went to their head and they were affected by it, then they were fighting, not for the glory of G-d, they were fighting for the glory of their wealth and for the security of their wealth, for the security of their dominance in the world. It was a political war. Crusades were political wars that hurt religion. Few of them were noble and G-d was with them. Salahuddin was a G-d-fearing man, a medical doctor. He fought an honorable war and G-d gave him victory.
Thank you very much, I hope we will come to understand our own life, and our own purpose on this earth, and our Creator better so we can be better human beings and tolerate each other's differences, cultural differences, religious differences and et cetera. Peace be on you, As-salaam Alaikum.
Crowd: Wa-Alaikum-Salaam. Takbir. Allahu Akbar.

Moderator: At this time, Imam Mohammed is willing to have a short question and answer period. We would ask that people who are interested in asking the Imam questions to step to the microphone please and please be mindful of the person behind you and only ask one question. For the press, we'd like to inform you that there will be a short press conference after the question and answer period. Unfortunately, we were not able to entertain your questions prior to the presentation, but the Imam is gracious enough to do that at the end of the question and answer period.
People who have questions, we'd appreciate if you would come and stand behind this brother- one second please, sir, and ask the Imam questions, thank you.
Speaker 1: My question is in three parts, sir. Are there any serious attempts to reach Louis Farrakhan and the Nation of Islam to bring them in the mainstream of Islam? If so, who are making this overture and what are the results? Are not Farrakhan and his followers Mushrikoon according to the Sharia because of their sacrilegious views about Wallace Fard and Elijah Muhammad and other wrong practices? Nice, and number third of that question is, is not the Nation of Islam a cult since it deviates from the doctrine of Islam?
IWDM: Now I said when I was speaking that I once held the same opinions, the same views that they hold. I believe that the same mercy and grace that came to me to bring me from that position to where I am now, it can come to them, so I don't want to write them off. A lot of them are innocent, they're very sincere, they just don't have the real picture of the world, they don't have the true knowledge, the true history of things, so they live in a myth that was created for them, and they think that myth is reality. I think there's hope for them. A lot of them are brilliant, Farrakhan is a brilliant man.
They're very brilliant and if they can give that energy to constructive work, I pray that G-d will open a way for them to come to the right understanding, and I see among their leaders, hope. I don't want to name any of them because that would only put those persons on the spot, but I know among their leaders, there are healthy thinkers. In time, the same thing that occurred to bring us away from that, will occur for them inshallah, G-d willing. You are correct, what they have amounts to shirk. The god idea they have is shirk, is a false idea and it is something that we have to reject and work against.
Then the religious order is more a cult than it is a religion, you are very much correct. I know because I used to be there.
Speaker 2: Imam, from all accounts, Islam is the fastest growing religion in America. What do you feel is the reason for this? Is it because the intellect of the Americans is awakening to the true message of Islam or you think there are some other reasons for the rapid growth of Islam in America?
IWDM: I think there are many reasons. One is the increase in the number of Muslims in the citizenry of America now coming from Asia, Middle East, Asia, even Africa. There is increase in the number of Muslims who are American citizens now because of immigration. There's also an increase, I think, that it's owing to, in the African-American community, I think what is owing to our desire to become Muslims more than anything else it is this religion's universality. It is a religion that my common sense can grasp. I can grasp it with my common sense that G-d is one and He's creator and that's it.
A simple religion that asked no more of us than that we believe that G-d is one and expect to live a life in obedience to that G-d, to pray to that G-d, to give in charity, to fast for Ramadan, and to make pilgrimage to Mecca all together as a global community accepting all nationalities, all people in one family brotherhood. This is what appeals to us. We have been isolated, we have been rejected, we have been socially stigmatized and pushed out. Al-Islam comes now and put this emphasis on the unity of man, on the one G-d and gives us a simple formula to live by and we don't have to strain our brain to say, "What is Al-Islam?" It's very simple.
When our Prophet was asked what is Al-Islam? He gave what I just gave. He said Al-Islam is to believe in G-d, to pray, to give in charity, to fast the month of Ramadan, and to visit the holy house to make pilgrimage to the house built by Abraham and his son Ismail for the unity of mankind. I think that accounts for a lot of the conversion in African-American community, but also, we know that the Nation of Islam has had a great role in attracting African-Americans to Islam. What they have done is exaggerated the human worth or the human creation for the black man and put down, reduce or actually made of no value hardly the creation of the white race.
For blacks who suffer rejection and don't understand right now why they can't make progress, that is a strong attraction, a very strong attraction, but I don't think the conversions that we see by the temple of Islam or in the temple of Islam following is accounting for this growing numbers now. It is mostly the migration of Muslims to America and the rational appreciation for the religion of Islam.
Speaker 3: As-Salaam-Alaikum.
IWDM: Wa-Alaikum-Salaam.
Imam Abdul Malik: Sorry for being late, Brother Imam. I just want to ask a question, perhaps you covered it earlier, can you shed some light on the significance or the role in leadership of women in the world of Islam? Thank you.
IWDM: Respect for women and women rights is an issue now that most of us don't want to address. It's because we have allowed the cultures of the Muslim world to oppress women and we don't know how to explain why we're in the situation we're in. It is our cultures that have oppressed women, not our religion. No women felt that she was treated differently or denied her rights in the time of the prophet or in the time of the early rulers of Al-Islam, leaders of Al-Islam and in the history of Islam in Arabia.
They didn't feel that, they were bold, they spoke out in the open, they spoke out in the public, they challenged ever their rulers. There is a report that the ruler himself was saying something and a woman within his hearing heard it and she knew it was incorrect, so she spoke out against him and he acknowledged his mistake and apologized to her and corrected himself. We know that even now, not just then, but even now, Muslim scholars, we don't treat the women intellect any different than we do the man.
We quote Aisha RadiAllahu Anha, G-d be blessed with her. We quote Aisha as an authority in Islamic knowledge and reporting. For they early Ummah, we quote her with equal respect that we give Abu Hurairah and more. We respect her even more because of her closeness to the prophet. We don't reject anyway.
Today, that same respect for the equality of women is existing, but the cultural treatment, the treatment of women by these different cultures is what's causing the problem. We find that Muslim citizens have no problem having a woman as their president. There might be right, right now, at least three presidents in the Muslim world, women, female presidents. We have long ways to go but our religion is not in our way, our cultures are in our way.
Speaker 5: As-Salaam-Alaikum, Brother Imam.
IWDM: Wa-Alaikum-Salaam.
Speaker 5: With all due respect, brother, do you mind briefly sharing with us, what is that position in which you're in right now that transpired after your departure from the Nation of Islam? Because you may have mentioned a second ago about with the position that you're in today.
IWDM: That's a big story to tell. That's a pretty big story to tell. I think I've answered it already. The presentation that I've made answers your question. Before I was believing that man was G-d and that the black man was G-d. I was believing that the white man was the devil. That's what I was told, that's what I was believing. I was believing because the white man is the devil, America should not be supported. That America is not the society for us. The US government had no hope for us, no hope in the government for us, that we should have our own Nation of Islam, or separate government.
That this American society and this government and everything would be destroyed by G-d. That's what I was told. That's what I was believing, but as the very skillful planners wanted it, it happened. They wanted that the Quran be amongst us, that strange teaching attract us and that it attract only the uneducated who had no rational or intellectual arrogance that would make problem for the scheme. That the uneducated would embrace it and they wouldn't know the difference between fiction and fact and they will follow it blindly, but in time, that their minds will be more educated, not by going to the white man schools, we were told to have our own schools.
That our own schools emphasizing material, reality, respect for the sciences. That in time, our minds would be made strong, our intellects would be enriched, minds would enrich, we would become men of knowledge, and we would have to discard a lot of these things that made no rational sense. We would look at the Quran and say, "Here is the book. Here is where our Muslim lives should be and this is what we should follow." That's exactly what happened. A man from overseas came in with a scheme, a plot to get the Quran established in the ignorant neighborhoods of African-American people. Neighborhoods of the ignorant, the uneducated and it worked.
Now, it's inspiring us to become educated, to become industrious, to become developers. We have a courageous vision. Muslims in our community, we're going to build new Africa in America. You're going to see streets with names like Timbuktu Street, Kenyatta Street. Yes, Morocco Street. You'll see a sign up saying, "Reduce your speed, you're now entering New Africa."

IWDM: This is a reality. Islamic heritage is very important. Some of us who are not Muslims, we want to pretend that there is no Islamic pass for African-Americans, for blacks in America, that there is no Islamic heritage for blacks in America, there is. There's more of an Islamic heritage than there is of a church heritage or Christian heritage. That's the fact of history.
Speaker 6: Imam, As-Salaam-Alaikum.
IWDM: Wa-Alaikum-Salaam.
Speaker 6: Do you have any program, a special program to unify all the major association like ISNA and combine together? Do you have any program to fight for religious right for Muslims in this country with respect to Friday prayers and little concession during Ramadan, also, observing the Islamic laws during wedding, and divorce, as well as inheritance?
IWDM: Yes. When we study the history of Muhammad the Prophet, peace be upon him, for about half the time of his great works on this earth, he was just trying to reach others, the better minds of the people and the poor with his message. To bring about appreciation for knowledge and raise the minds of the people, that's what he was doing. He had not instituted prayer, the five daily prayers. He had not done a lot of the things that we now take for granted. We say, "If you don't have this, you're not Muslims."
He hadn't done those things. When he got a situation where a big area of land was opened for his work and the people in that area, Medina, were supporting his work.
When he got a geographical situation for his work, his mission, then he established the community of Muslims. G-d raised them up into the heavens and showed him the vision and he came to us on the earth returning from the vision. He established the five daily prayer and the building of a real concrete community started. A government started, so after struggling myself to lead the community into five daily prayers, I realized that we don't have that situation yet, but we still insist that Muslims are missing, are not fulfilling their duties or their obligation to G-d and this religion if they miss these prayers.
We accept that we're supposed to pray five times a day, daily, but I'm not pushing for that anymore. I used to push pray, I'm not doing that anymore. We're going to have to have Muslim neighborhoods, we're going to learn to do what other national groups or ethnic groups have done, and that is live with yourself, live in a community to yourself, have a Muslim neighborhood. We need Muslim neighborhoods and have business people, industrial minded people supply the needs for that neighborhood, grocery stores, hospital, businesses for employment. You have a neighborhood, you're employing your people, so the time for prayers can be regulated by that neighborhood and the people can be off work.
The people can write to stop work and pray will be respected and the Adhan can be called and everybody can respond to it. We're going to have to use the method of gradualism that the prophet used and use his strategy and his wisdom for us to realize the life we want to in this new world in America. I don't think we should press for this right now, press hard for people to make the Friday- even the Friday prayer, they're working. G-d says, "The security of your life to the survival of life itself is respected by G-d." Muslims are allowed to even eat pork if they're starving and there's nothing else to eat to stay in life, but you're just not given the permission to enjoy it while you're eating it.
You're supposed to dislike eating it, but you are permitted to do it. We are not permitted to like missing prayers, but we should work for situations where prayers will not be so hard for us. G-d says He wants us to purify ourselves and is difficult to purify ourselves when we have been conditioned to a life of ease and corruption. When He says He does not want hardship for us, He wants ease for us. Our G-d is a merciful loving G-d who wants ease for us. When we pressure ourselves too much and make life too miserable for ourselves, then understand that G-d is a loving and merciful G-d.
Let's work ourselves in a situation where we can have Muslim neighborhoods where these obligations will not be too difficult on us. That's my suggestion and that's what I'm following. I hope soon to realize that, but not just for Muslims, for all poor people. I think G-d has blessed Muslims to be a model of success for all poor people. The African-American Muslims, G-d has blessed us to be a model of success for all poor striving people. If we'll just go on and pursue our destiny like we should.
Speaker 7: As-Salaam-Alaikum.
IWDM: Wa-Alaikum-Salaam.
Speaker 7: I have a comment first and then I have a question. It seems as though, with all due respect, sir, that you speak of respect, but then at the same hand, that you are kind of disrespect the Nation of Islam or Minister Farrakhan. I happen personally to admire and love him because I watch his works and I see what he does.
IWDM: I do too. I love him too.
Speaker 7: My question to you is that you also speak about all the prophets that did fight against the bad in government and fought against all the evil in society, I'm wondering, do you see any bad in the United States government and what are you doing to fight that?
IWDM: Yes, the United States government is not yet as perfect as the constitution that the founding fathers wanted it to be. Is not yet as perfect as the founding fathers wanted it to be, but I assure you that I travel a lot outside the United States. We have a lot to be proud of as citizens and I don't think we should be pointing to the defects in our government without appreciating the great achievements of our government for democracy and human respect. There are great achievement for democracy and human respect, for tolerance, respect for all people, equal opportunity, et cetera.
You talk of me preaching in respect and, on the other hand, I'm also saying things that shows disrespect. If my child comes into the room and greets me, and there's slop down in his face running all down on his shirt, I'm going to tell him, "Go in the bathroom and wash your face." If they don't like doing it, I'm going to say that's nasty. Somethings you have to recognize and you have to be against those things, that’s not disrespect. I treat Farrakhan just like I would my own brother, my own sister, my own son, I treat them the same way, no different. I have been very easy with him today, you'd be surprised what I could come up with.

Speaker 7: My question was what you were doing to crush the wicked that this government- there's plenty that unless we have historical amnesia or not reading current events, this government is into a lot of bad, the US foreign policy is horrible. I'm wondering what are you doing personally to do anything about that just as all the prophets from Jesus onto prophet Muhammad?
IWDM: We should work together to keep our government responsible and to help our government get better and better. We should work on that, but that doesn't require that we attack the government or say that the government is evil or oppressive. It doesn’t' require that. We should recognize progress for the good life that we want in this government. We have realized a lot of progress as a government for the good life that all of us want.
Your wife or anybody you know that you a problem with, if you bring out the problem and you work on the problems say, "Look, I don't like this in you", there comes a time if you're successful, that you realize a lot of progress for that relationship. Where after you realize a lot of progress with that relationship, you shouldn't keep the same spirit of anger or the same spirit of disapproval. You shouldn't keep that same spirit, you should realize that a lot of progress have been made for that relationship, and you should be less and less on the attack and more and more working for reconciliation, and embracing, and appreciating the good that has been accomplished.
I think that's what we have to do, we have to show now that we accomplished, we appreciate what has been accomplished. That's what we should be talking about more than these few problems or the problems that are still there. For, after all, I don't think any of you are ready to put a black man over your neighborhood, not to mention the United States of America that's talking the way you talk. I know I wouldn't want to see one of them. If you're all negative, how are you going to help the American people? How are you going to help us? You can’t help us. You have to respect the positive and not be all negative.


Speaker 8: Hello, I grew up in a Baptist Church and all I know is Christianity. I am here because I'm curious. I have been told that the only way to the kingdom is through Jesus, what kind of response would you have for me?
IWDM: My response to you would be, I'd rather see you a good Christian, happy with your life and serving G-d than to take you from that and you become a Muslim and not be as happy and not be as interested in serving G-d. Naturally, a Muslim wants people to be Muslim, naturally.
Speaker 8: I am happy, I'm just curious.
IWDM: Yes, follow your curiosity. You're a healthy minded person, follow your curiosity.

IWDM: Thank you, I think we should stop at this point. Thank you very much.


