Beyond The Nation

Feb 13

Episode

Beyond The Nation

What is it like to be an African-American Muslim in the US today?

Nation of Islam Minister Eric Muhammad (L) and his wife Jonae Muhammad enjoy the celebrations at the Millions More Movement in Washington, DC Saturday 15 October 2005. EPA/Chris Greenberg.

What does it mean to be an African-American Muslim in 2013? Fifty years ago, Islam in the US was laid against the backdrop of racial segregation, led by the likes of Malcolm X and Elijah Mohammed. But today things have changed, with Muslim influence represented in pop culture like the hip-hop music industry. Join The Stream as we go in-depth to talk about how the community has evolved.

In this episode of The Stream, we speak to:

Joshua Salaam, @salaamatweet
Singer, Native Deen
nativedeen.com

Zaheer Ali, @zaheerali
Project Manager, The Malcolm X Project at Columbia University
zaheerali.com

Su'ad Abdul Khabeer, @DrSuad
Assistant Professor, Purdue University

Amir Sulaiman, @amirsulaiman
Spoken word artist
amirsulaiman.com

What do you think? Let us know in the comments below.

View the story "Beyond The Nation" on StorifyBeyond The NationWhat is it like to be an African-American Muslim in the US today?Storified by The Stream· Wed, Feb 13 2013 10:16:17EPA/CHRIS GREENBERGAJstreamSince the country was founded, and in some estimates even earlier, there have been African-American Muslims in the United States. Experts believe many Africans who were enslaved in the US during the 19th Century had Islamic backgrounds. Watching Roots with my kids and I explained to them that African Slaves were Muslim, so with that being said http://instagr.am/p/Tp1pRFg7Nd/MuSlImNiStAWhen talking about Black History Month in the US, however, some people think the African-American Muslim population does not get its proper due.Absolutely. RT @AJStream: Are African-American #Muslims left out of #BlackHistoryMonth in the US? #Islam #Muslim - http://ow.ly/hEY3pHarris ZafarIn the racially contentious backdrop of the United States in the 1950s, a man named Malcolm Little converted to Islam inside a Massachusetts prison. Upon release Little, later known as Malcolm X, went under the tutelage of the Nation Of Islam (NOI) leader Elijah Muhammed.tumblr.comIn the beginning of his time with the Nation, Malcolm X was characterised as a black nationalist and used his voice to express opposition to racial oppression and segregation. He was so popular, he was credited with significantly increasing NOI membership."Children lined up outside Nation of Islam meeting"instagram.comTowards the end of his life however, Malcolm X had a change of heart. After visiting the holy city of Mecca, he renounced his black nationalist beliefs, citing an "experience of eating and drinking with 'fellow Muslims whose skin was the whitest of white'". He also split from the Nation of Islam.ourblackstars.comWhen NOI leader Elijah Muhammed died in 1975, his son W. Deen Mohammed, became the leader of the Nation of Islam. Eventually, Mohammed disbanded the group to instead align himself and many followers with mainstream Sunni Islamic beliefs.

By then, the US Muslim movement splintered and a man named Louis Farrakhan re-branded his own existing movement as the New Nation of Islam.

Louis Farrakhan/EPA/TANNEN MAURYAJstreamIn one of Farrakhan's most notable moments, he organised the Million Man March, in which anywhere from 400,000 to two million demonstrators participated.flickr.comAfter 9/11, many African-American Muslims said they believed their "identity is under seige". Below, YouTube user and African-American Muslim Beetrue09 addressed some of the stereotyping she faced online:I am an African American Muslimbeetrue09Some feel that African-American Muslims have still not reconciled their differences with Muslims from other countries.Yes. There absolutely is. RT @AJStream Is there a divide between African-American #Muslims & other Muslim communities in the US? #IslamSana RahimAn African American Muslim or Latino Muslim won't ever truly be accepted in the brotherhood of "brown" communities/MasjidsBrother Jamal X One media group, Black Public Media, hosted a series called 'Ask a Muslim' in 2012 to educate the public on Islam in the US from the eyes of African-American Muslims. In this episode, Muslims answer a question about their experiences after 9/11:Ask A Muslim (Documentary Web Series) 6 - "9/11"AskAMuslimSeriesI'm Muslim. I'm American. I vote. Happy Independence Day, everybody!tumblr.comToday the popularity of Islam in the US is influencing different facets of pop culture, particularly the hip hop music industry. In the song below, Muslim hip hop group Native Deen expresses their frustration with the negative media coverage of Islamic culture.Native Deen - My Faith My VoicenativedeenHere, lyrics from the song:Giving you the right facts, We keep repeating that Islam has been hijacked, We ain't like that, Then some lunatic goes on a rampage, Using violence and I'm outragedthekarmaoui.blogspot.com@AJStream @zaheerali Islam mixed with hip hop culture can be a model for AfricanAmerican youth instead of turning to drugs & world of crime!Neslihan KurosawaThe American advertising industry is also paying more attention to the diverse cultural spectrum in the US. The Prudential Insurance Agency advertisement below profiles one African-American Muslim man who recently retired: Prudential | Day One | Mujahid Abdul Rashidunseenmusic