1991-December-14

The Muslim Journal

The Problem Of Apartheid And Worldwide Racism

Imam W. Deen Mohammed

—Reprint from Muslim Journal's — December 14, 1990 Issue — in excerpt.
NOTE FROM THE SPEAKER: In effect this address is unchanged. Some revision has been made. I place at the beginning the following: Distinguished from Judaism "Islam" duely honors Christ Jesus (A.S.), Distinguished from Christianity, "Islam" duely honors Adam and John (A.H.S.)

There is much that I want to say, and I am going to restrict it to the problem of apartheid. In the broad sense that we have addressing apartheid yesterday and today, as I understood Professor Mazrui and the other speakers, we are not addressing apartheid only in South Africa, but we are addressing the evils of racism. I would like to address that with an interest in seeing progress made for us in America and for Africa and for the whole world.

I do believe that we can defeat the evils of racism in our communities, in America and in other places. But we have to understand something that I think the burden and pain of racism does not allow most of us to give attention to. We he-come desperate ID our spirit, and this desperation is natural for us. It is natural to be desperate. And we have a lot of desperation in us, and we do not want to listen to what requires too much concentrated attention. But I am convinced the racial evil can be destroyed.

What I am saying is that I am a part of the spirit and struggle for racial dignity and racial justice here in America. I feel that I am very much a part of our hurt and desperation. And I do not speak as an outsider, I speak as an insider. / believe that if we can get the strength and the patience to be more methodical in our response to these racially clad evils, we will he successful to the finish.

We (efforts for racial justice) need a method and a strategy. We need first to know what we are fighting or what we are burdened by. A lot of us are not fighting it, we are just burdened by it. And I don't think it is as simple as most of us think it is,. We just call it racism. We call it the evils of the white oppressor That is not enough. Why is the "white" racist like he is? He was born human just like we were.

What I am getting at is that racism requires a study. We have to study. The leaders who want to lead the fight and struggle against racism and worldwide apartheid, it requires that we study this thing. You will say there are books written by doctors in the field of Sociology and in related fields. So what is it for us to study? We need to study the development of racism. How did it develop and how it survives. How did this thing come upon the earth and last so long? What keeps it today? Why does it survive? We ("black" leaders) need to answer these questions for ourselves.

If you want to treat a disease, you first have to learn about that disease. You don't just say that thing is hurting and then just go at it. The doctor has to know the disease and has to be able to identify the disease in its development. Where did it come from? What started it? What is its life? Upon knowing the disease in its life and in its development and in its origin, then you can attack the disease and kill it.

I believe the same thing has to he done to racism. Why is it we are unprepared? It is because it is tied up with religion, and a thorough job is going to embarrass religion. That is why most of our leaders do not want to talk on the problem as it should he tackled. We know that it starts in religion. This idea that "white" is godly or heavenly and that black is demonic and corrupt (of hell) all started out in religion. We are afraid (unprepared) to tackle it there, where it started.

We are unprepared to tackle the image on the cross of a "white" man who is not the Christ Son of Mary. Allah says in the Qur'an to us, "Let us come to an agreement that respects us equally. "What is that agreement that will respect us equally? Allah says it; "That we raise not up any from among ourselves as lords." That had already been done and the Qur'an came five centuries after that had already been done. Some religious body on this earth had already lifted up one from among themselves and said, "This is the Lord!" That's the one reported in Christian doom to be the Jesus Christ, "Son of God" and "God".

Most of us are unprepared to address that. "We are not supposed to attack that. This is Christian God and dear to the hearts of Christians", says Muslim shepherds (Ra'is). I say racism is also dear to the hearts of many Christians, but it is a poison in their hearts. Likewise for this picture or symbol or image of a "white" male person raised up as Lord before the world on the cross — it is an evil not about Jesus. For that is not Jesus, peace be upon Christ Jesus. That image is the white man, the "white race". And that is what we have to realize: That "white man" is called "Lord", "only son of God", and "God".

By Allah's Mercy, the Qur'an and the Last Prophet Muhammed, 1 know they use this image or crucifix to support white supremacy and to fortify "White Rule" over the whole world. This crucifix is a subtle but powerful influence for keeping them in dominant power. Nervous sectarian Muslims, I am not unaware of the safeguards to such matters and I will not violate the safeguards. Your silence does more service to false worship than your "Da'wah" does for "Islam."

In a poor neighborhood, in a bad area, in a "black" area where our family lived when I was a boy, the racial figure of the crucifix was not to be unseen. And owing to God's Mercy in the militancy of our "awakening" minds, nationalist "blacks" of "the new world" were not mistaking the crucifix image for the real God.

Back then, "the image" was popularly known for having blue eyes, and I mean pale sky-blue at noon-day, with blond hair and all the unmistaken white male features. This is the person we saw in crucifixes on walls of poor African American ("black American") residences, and in the newspapers, and on billboards, and dressing the churches. That is the image we saw, and that is the one I am calling "the white man".

This crucifix evoked spooky sub-civilization human sympathies in order to neutralize the daily image and shooting of "the white race" by the camera of suffering human minds.

In the Qur'an, Allah the Merciful Creator says: "Raise not up from among yourselves none other than (the true) God (of all)." There is the God for all: Christians acknowledge "the One God." The same God (Allah) the Muslims acknowledge is the God the Christians acknowledge. The Jews acknowledge the same God. The three religions acknowledge "the God for all people". I believe this to be true of some other religions. Our esteemed (honorable) Muslim brother and Muslim Amir from the Zulus, Mr. Abdur Rahman Vus'muzi KwaZsnae interested us in a profound sense with his presentation and also with his concern to have Muslims know the same concept of "God" is in Zulu language and also in other African tribal languages, Many in man's international community know "the God for all."

What is wrong worship? To raise up for worship other than "the God for all", whether it be in Pagan dress from Europe or from "Africa", To publish "a prophet", Christ Jesus, in Pagan crucifix metaphor as God in man's body is to make "the abomination of abomination," and to "double-cross mankind". This crucifix "idea" is doubled up shirk.

A Pagan concept was raised up to put the races of "man" on unequal "terms", on unequal footing. A sadducean inspired Pagan conspiracy gave the world this "white rule" spellbinding (casting spells) image. To shy away from supporting a clean strike against "the abomination" encourages racist "white rule" everywhere. The image spellbinds the multitudes of all races. The racial claim on the image is a cruel burden on the human performance of "the white race".

Know that many Muslims are nationally classified in the membership of' 'the white race," though some of them have dark skin and black skin, literally. Worship of the image is the cruelest "fit-nah" (oppression) in the life of "the family of man." The image perplexes and spellbinds our oppressed, and makes cripples of all the people accepting it or shying away from it. To South Africa, let this be broadcast: "The image is not man's Lord."

Unless "the image" is suspected and rejected by more people of the many races and religions, "white rule" will go on secretly riding high and relying on the secret power of "the image". See "the image" for what it is: "naked" nasty cruelty, the secret enforcer of white supremacy. Those who believe in {or on) the image, or court the image, are slaves in the grip of world "white supremacy" scheme. The image was designed to "lift" the white man up with his "race" upon the power of seduction by seducing the sentiments, the emotions, the passions, and consequently the soul. Hence, retarding the intellect for the man the world over.

The learned in behavioral nature know the image suggestively instills the "idea" the race of the image is "superior", "God's only..." "divine", and "God". This conspiracy says the only way to see "the Creator" is to look at the image." This subtlety, this clever hint stealthily permeates the human soul and psychological core to alter, to deform the behavioral nature in the will of man.

"The image" is "the abomination of abomination", and maturing human nature wants to spit all of it out. Nature wants to puke. The silence of "the shepherds" bid the Muslim religious multitude to give this observation their dead ears. The dead are moved by the silence of Muslim shepherds to speak for their masters: "What Imam Warithuddin is doing is un-Islamic. Allah (Subhanah Wa Ta'Ala) in the Qur'an forbids that Muslims ridicule the gods of other people."

Is such a strike against "gods" or against idols and against the world's most oppressive idol-clad conspiracy? Those who want to swallow it have a right to their choice. I and others are not going to swallow the puke. In light of consistent and convincing proof, I cannot accept to agree to this urgency being given over to the silence of "the shepherds." Not much will be happening to lift from off of us the harden of race deforming racism promoted in this country and in South Africa until more of the victims break free and address this puke which has to be brought up.