Nation’s Impact
Needless to say, the heyday of the Nation of Islam was before my time. My parents weren’t involved in the Nation and it was never a part of my religious upbringing. Nevertheless, its impact is still felt in the black Muslim community and the larger black community. Malcolm X was and is a hero and so even if one didn’t hear about the Nation in the passing conversations of the elders you learned about them in his book, the Autobiography of Malcolm X. In short, the Nation was an organization of black people (loosely) associated with Islam and dedicated to social justice for blacks at the height of the civil rights movement. One thing (among many) that made the Nation distinct from normative Islam was that it was distinctly for black people, a Message to the Blackman in America as was the title of their leader, Elijah Muhammad’s, book.
Nation to Orthodoxy
While the Nation of Islam still exists its impact is a thing of the past. Many of its followers and leaders from the movement left the Nation back in the 70s and onward, and several of those who left converted to orthodox Islam. And while that is positive much has been lost in this transition. Before we talk about what was lost, we must make the obvious point that salvation in the afterlife is most crucial and thus despite what was lost far more was gained by those who left the Nation and converted to orthodox Islam. Still, something was lost, and that was the tailoring of a specific social movement for black people in America. The Nation of Islam had a message to the black man in America; has that message been completely lost with the move to orthodoxy?
It took some time but in the past decade or so I’ve noticed black Muslim leaders waking up to the idea that they may have “thrown the baby out with the bathwater” that despite the Nation’s incorrect Aqidah and lack of religious practices they did have useful tools and organization that successfully dealt with black specific issues in the Muslim community. Orthodox Muslims have yet to do the same but we remain in need of filling that void. Issues the Nation addressed such as marriage preparation, financial security, modesty, health, fitness, etc. still need to be addressed. And they need to be addressed within the specific communal consciousness of black people, i.e. the message needs to address the specific concerns, historical considerations, and societal positioning of black people in America. A small example to illustrate the need for Islam to be specified to the people it addresses is that of the Imam who goes before the congregation and urges the people not to force their daughters into marriage because it is haram and goes against the sunnah. The content of the message is true and it is true no matter where you say it but it is not relevant or valuable to every group of people. It might be relevant to a group of Pakistani or Arab Muslims but it certainly isn’t to a group of black Muslims.
Islam for All
Orthodox Islam has a message to all of humanity but it also has a message to each group and each individual. Some points are more relevant to some groups and some to others. To make Islam relevant to any group we have to find the message that resonates with them and helps them solve their specific issues. The message of Islam does not exclude anyone nor does it whitewash the identity of its congregants into superficial ideas of brotherhood. The bonds that tie us to Islam universally are faith, conviction, and practice but each community (and individual) has its own unique issues to deal with. Utilizing our tradition to combat our specific needs is how we find salvation both in this life and the next.
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Efforts by Muslim leaders to speak to black-specific issues:
Stations for the Grassroots, https://youtu.be/QzQdwEqFDZw
The Black Imam’s Roundtable, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lYh6EtDtP5g
Ummah Ramadan, https://www.facebook.com/ummahforus/
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