Reclaiming Our Legacy

Reclaiming Our Legacy

By Imam Zaid Shakir

Opening Supplications

In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful. All praise is due to Allah, Lord of the worlds. And peace and blessings be upon the Master of the Messengers, Our Master Muhammad and his family and companions. Peace and blessings be upon you all. All praise is due to Allah.

Introduction: A Great Blessing and Honor

It's a great blessing to be here. In fact, it's a great honor to be here in the presence of so many dedicated individuals who are working to really bring Islam—I wouldn't say to a new frontier, to an abandoned frontier. And that's the communities, the nations, the peoples of what are generally referred to as Latin America.

The Historical Islamic Presence in the Americas

Reclaiming our legacy is a fitting title because we have to realize that there was an Islamic presence in the islands of the Caribbean and the lands of Mexico, present-day Mexico, Central and South America. When, if you read, for example, Ivan Van Sertima in "They Came Before Columbus," he documents the presence of West Africans freely moving back and forth between the lands I mentioned. And those Muslim people, by and large, and they were interacting and they left traces—not traces—they left evidence of a significant Muslim presence.

Evidence from the Conquistadors

To just give a brief example: when Cortez first went to the former capital of the Aztec Empire, Tenochtitlan, he writes in his diary that it was a beautiful city that had many temples and mosques. And so if we reflect on that statement, if he just said temples, then we can understand temples. Even if he said mosques, we can understand he's coming from the lands of the Inquisition. They're being inundated with how to identify—as Brother Mujahid just mentioned─how to identify a Muslim, how to identify a mosque. So he just said mosques, but he meant temples. But he said temples and mosques.

When Christopher Columbus sailed along the southern coast of Cuba, he noted that there was a beautiful mosque on a hill. It's in his diary.

The Alliance Between African Muslims and Indigenous Peoples

When the importation of African slaves began into those lands, immediately they started making alliances with the native people and inviting them to Islam. And we know the first—just to see the linkages—we know the Muslim presence in Andalusia. That's not just Andalusia. Andalusia is the southern part, province of present-day Spain, but throughout the Iberian Peninsula: north, south, east and west, before the reconquest.

But this alliance between Islam and the Spanish-speaking peoples and the native peoples of this land—Brother Esteban who drove us here mentioned one-his mother I think is from northern Mexico and his father is from Oaxaca in southern Mexico. And many of the tribes there, they still speak their native languages. They speak Spanish, but they speak their native languages. Their native people. And when we put these walls up, we're dividing lands of people who are indigenous to this part of the world.

The First Slave Revolt of 1522

But anyway, in 1522, the first slave revolt occurred in what would be called the New World, in the land that's presently called the Dominican Republic. It was then called Hispaniola. 1522, on the plantation of Don Carlos Colón. These Wolof Muslims who were—in Africa they were horsemen-they commandeered some horses, they defeated the Spanish garrison, and they ran off into the jungle and they made what was called a maroon community.

Do you know who Don Carlos Colón is? Anyone know? It's Christopher Columbus' son—to show you the connection.

The Spread of Islam and Spanish Response

And so those Muslims, they began to propagate Islam amongst the indigenous people. And the Spanish were so alarmed they banned the importation of Muslims because the indigenous people receptive to the message of Islam. And they had just finished—they were at the height of the Inquisition—having recently expelled the Muslims as a political force from the Iberian Peninsula with the reconquest of Granada, or the conquest of Granada in 1492. 1522—it's just less than 50 years later—and they banned the importation of Muslims because the Muslims were so proud of their religion.

Islamic Heritage in Florida

And it's all throughout our history. Florida wasn't an American state until 1845. It was under Spanish control and the principal city in Spanish Florida was St. Augustine. St. Augustine was built by Moriscos—those peoples who were Muslims in the Iberian Peninsula, forcibly converted from Judaism but primarily from Islam. Soon as they got here, they started practicing Islam again. And when they built the citadel in St. Augustine, even you can go this day, in the archway of the city, they will carve the slogan of the Muslims: (لَا غَالِبَ إِلَّا اللهُ - Lā ghāliba illā Allāh—There is no victor but Allah). And you can find that today. It's all throughout our history.

Muslims and the Seminoles

The Muslims ran away into the Everglades and formed an alliance with the Seminoles. And so you see the Seminole leader Osceola, who was married to an African woman who might have been a Muslim—he's wearing a turban if you look at his pictures. It's all throughout our history.

Martyrs for Islam in the Americas

In 1540, we know that a Muslim Wolof—so Wolof they were called Kilafo-Pedro Kilafo was a martyr, a shaheed. He was killed close to present-day Guatemala in 1540. What was his crime? For propagating Islam amongst the native people. He was boiled to death in a pot of oil.

In Peru in 1560, Lupe Solano was imprisoned for life for propagating Islam amongst the native people.

Building Upon Our Legacy

So the roots are very deep, brothers and sisters. And so reclaiming that legacy is an apt description for this program. But it's also appropriate for our time. We can look at the history and we can note that history, but history is meaningless if it doesn't provide us with a foundation to build a strong and a better tomorrow. That's the role of history.

Supporting Islam in Spanish

And so we have an opportunity in supporting our brothers and sisters from Islam and Spanish. When we support them, we're supporting ourselves. When we support them, we support a stronger tomorrow.

The Changing Face of America

This country, as we know—and evidence of that is seen in the last Congressional elections—we have two Native American women elected into the Congress. We have two Muslim women, one of them wearing hijab, elected into the Congress. We have a record number of women. We have a wave of African American women. We have in New England, where I come from, Connecticut, we have our first African American Congresswoman from Waterbury, Connecticut. We have in Boston, Massachusetts, African American woman going into the Congress-think her name is Ayanna Pressley. There's change in this country.

The Latino Community and the Future

And at the forefront of this change is the Latino community. In 20 years, it's estimated, or by 2050—may Allah bless everyone here to see that, some people see that gray in the beard, ya Allah—one third of the population of these United States would be Latino. Wouldn't it be fantastic if a significant number of that community were Muslims? And what would the implications of that be for the Muslim community?

Islam as an Indigenous Religion

Where, as we said, you have indigenous people to this land, people and even those who—my ancestors might have came from Spain or Portugal—their ancestors were here in many instances before the United States was established, going back to the days of Spanish colonization. But overwhelmingly indigenous people. What are the implications of that for Muslims?

The implications are that Islam is an indigenous religion with roots amongst the enslaved African population. And we know there's so much literature on that, such as Sylviane Diouf's incredible book "Servants of Allah: African Muslims Enslaved in the Americas," Dr. Allan Austin's groundbreaking "African Muslims in the Antebellum South." So those are roots.

The Indigenous Populations of America

When this country was established, there were three indigenous populations, if you will: the native people-so it's established, the 13 colonies that became the 13 original states along the eastern seaboard, the Atlantic coast -African slaves, European settlers, and indigenous tribes. But when this country expanded westward and into the southeast, into the southwest—here in Texas and Arizona and New Mexico—you have another indigenous people, many of whom by and large were speaking Spanish, but not exclusively. And many of our brothers and sisters are the descendants of those people as well as the descendants of the Spanish colonizers. That's an indigenous population.

Islam's Deep Roots in America

And so you have large numbers of an indigenous population becoming Muslim. The implications of that is Islam is now an indigenous religion. It is not an imported religion. It's not an illegitimate transplant. It's a religion that has deep roots in the soil of this country. And we have to make that connection, brothers and sisters.

Standing Together

We have to stand with our brothers and sisters who were here before the borders, who were here before the fences, who were here before the walls. This is our historical responsibility. (لَا إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا ٱللَّٰهُ - Lā ilāha illā Allah—There is no god but Allah).

And I'll tell you something: you stand with those brothers and sisters, they'll stand with you. They're not scared of the gringo. They have a long history of resistance. You stand with them, they'll stand with you. You stand with them, you won't stand alone. And it's time for Muslims to realize that—that as Muslims, those who might have migrated here, their parents migrated here—you don't have to stand alone. You have native and natural allies who will stand with you if you stand with them.

Addressing the Retention Crisis

And so now we have an opportunity to stand with them. We have an opportunity to extend Islam. They're coming to Islam, but as brother Mujahid said, 7 out of 10 that come in, they go out. Imam Siraj Wahhaj frequently refers to a bucket with a hole in the bottom. We pour water in the bucket—that's the new Muslims—and then a lot of it just drains out of the hole. It's time to patch up the hole.

Establishing Strong Institutions

And the way we patch the hole up is by establishing institutions that can help to solidify the iman of those converts. And that's exactly what Islam in Spanish is. Islam in Spanish is an institution that has been established to solidify the faith of those who convert from the Latino community, be they here in the Southwest, predominantly Southwest part of the country, be they in Mexico, be they in South America in Venezuela or Colombia or Peru or other countries where the reach of Islam in Spanish has extended itself to.

The Global Reach of Islam

We like to take great pride as Muslims that Islam spread to every continent on earth. And it's true, it did. You have Muslims in Asia. And you have, if you look at Christianity—and there might be Christian guests here, some family members who are Christians, we're not saying this to be offensive, we're just looking at natural demographic facts-if you look at Christianity, by and large the Christian world is Western Europe, North and South Central America, the islands of the Caribbean.

If you look at the Buddhist world, by and large the Buddhist world is East and Southeast and into South Asia. No one will say there has ever been a significant Buddhist population here in the United States, South America, in Western Europe.

If you look at the Hindu population, it's the Indian—what's called the Indian subcontinent. I don't know what that means, because the Arabian Peninsula and the Indian subcontinent—and the Arabian Peninsula is bigger than the Indian subcontinent. We get a peninsula and they get a subcontinent, but it's all good. But Hinduism, Hinduism is confined to the Indian subcontinent. That's it. Some Hindu population in present-day Malaysia, but a very small minority.

Islam's Unique Global Presence

You look at the Muslim population—there's significant—there's no Hindu or Buddhist populations in Africa, but there's a Muslim majority in Africa. There historically have been and still are significant Muslim populations in Europe: the Iberian Peninsula at one time, Sicily, but now Bosnia, Albania, the European part of Turkey, Macedonia—all of these places have significant Muslim majorities. You look at Central Asia, there's significant Muslim population amongst the Tatars. You look at Southeast Asia, the Malays and the Filipinos, southern Philippines.

So in Africa, Asia, Europe, Central Asia—all have Muslim, significant Muslim population. This is unique amongst the religions of the world.

The Cost of Islamic Expansion

But I point that out to say this: that didn't happen by accident. That didn't happen without a lot of work. That didn't happen without the sacrifice of time, energy, effort, and money.

We talk about the intellectual accomplishment of Muslims, how we built these great universities: Qarawiyyin in Fez, Qairawan in Tunis, Al-Azhar in Egypt, Mustansiriyah in Baghdad, and the great universities in the Indian subcontinent, previously mentioned. When the Muslims had the strongest, the greatest, the most productive and advanced educational institutions, those teaching activities and translation activities that were going on there—if you read some of the literature on the Abbasid Empire and you look at the records of the money that was being spent an astronomical amount of money was being spent to fund those endeavors.

Investment Required for Growth

And so the propagation, the education, it required money. It required strong institutions. It required sacrifices. And to establish and to fortify one of the fastest-growing Muslim populations on Earth—that's the population Islam and Spanish is dealing with.

I know people in Mexico City—their entire families converted to Islam. I know a family in Los Angeles—maybe they don't live there—at the time the daughter was going to UCLA, and we had an MSA West conference there, and she came up, said this is my father, this is my mother, these are my siblings. All of them converted to Islam.

The Need for Support

So the people are coming to Islam, but they need support. They need education. They need educational material. They need structured facilities. They need in many instances assistance. And that's why we're here tonight, brothers and sisters.

Our Purpose Tonight

We're here tonight to provide the support so that people like our brother Christopher can not only be called to Islam but can be supported as a new Muslim. So that the radio broadcasts that are going into Latin America can become stronger and can have more air time. And then when people respond to the call, they'll be not just a musalla and wherever that musalla was—who is the musalla? Oaxaca, Veracruz? Veracruz. We have not just a musalla in Veracruz, we have a beautiful masjid in Veracruz. And in Tijuana and in Acapulco-it's not just a resource, but that's a place I know—and Oaxaca and Chiapas and Mexico City and everywhere-in Colombia, Peru, and Ecuador, Venezuela, and Brazil—they'll be filled with masjid. And the seed money will start here. The seed money will start here.

Exponential Growth of Good Deeds

And I'll conclude where brother Mujahid concluded, from a slightly different angle. He concluded by mentioning the 10,000 people one person touches in their life. And then through exponential growth, so those 10,000, each one of those 10,000 reach 10,000—now you're up to 100,000. And each one of those 100,000 reach 10,000—now you're up to a million. And each one of those million reach 10,000. That's exponential growth.

And so our money also grows exponentially (الحسنات بعشر أمثالها إلى سبع مئات إلى أضعاف كثيرة - Al-hasanātu bi-'ashri amthālihā ilā sab'i mi'ātin ilā ad'āfin kathīrah—Good deeds are multiplied tenfold to seven hundred times to many multiples). The good deeds are multiplied 10 times over, 700 times over, many times.

Brothers and sisters, when you give tonight to support this cause, that dollar is a (حسنة - hasanah—good deed). And that dollar does the work of 700 dollars, 7,000 dollars, 7,000,000 dollars.

The Fruits of Your Investment

And as it grows and as that (مصلى - musalla) becomes a masjid, and that masjid becomes a masjid, and then a sister (مصلی), and that sister (مصلی) becomes a masjid and a (مصلى), and so on and so forth, it all comes back to you, brothers and sisters, because you planted the seeds. You were there at the beginning. You were the pioneers. You provided the money that it took to get the project off the ground. You provided the money it took to make the project solid and viable and strong.

Building from a Strong Foundation

And from that strong foundation, from that strong base, a mighty building was built. But without the base, it wouldn't be possible. This is your opportunity tonight. And we pray to Allah (سبحانه وتعالى - Subhānahu wa-ta'ālā) that you take advantage of that opportunity so that our brothers and sisters like Brother Mujahid and his wife and Brother Esteban and all of the brothers and sisters, Brother Christopher and Brother Alex and all of them doing this incredible work can reclaim that legacy.

Closing

(Wa-s-salāmu 'alaykum wa-rahmatu Allāh—And peace be upon you and the mercy of Allah)