"I converted to Islam sixteen years ago. I am married and have two boys. My wife is
originally from Yemen. I was born in Germany and raised in the USA since I was 5. Islam is
a religion for all times, for all peoples and all places. Unfortunately, this is not reality in most
Muslim communities where they are divided up along race, nationality, ethnicity and sects
instead. In the US when a person says their shahada in the masjid there are loud shouts of
“takbir” but in most cases that is the most attention that a convert will get. What most born
Muslims do not understand is that people who convert often lose their families, friends and
other important things in life. It is a conscious choice they make to embrace Islam. The
Muslim community should rally around these new converts and make them feel part of a
new, wider family circle. Instead, the community remains stuck in their cultural ways and if
you do not fit neatly into one of these social constructs you are left out in the cold. The next
time you are at your Jummah prayer notice how after Salat is over everyone seems to
coalesce according to which ever particular group they are a part of. Palestinians here,
Egyptians there, or if the masjid is progressive you might see Arabs hanging out together.
You’ll see the Pakistanis hanging out with other Pakistanis, Bengalis with Bengalis. If you
don’t belong to any group you don’t really know where to go and most often people are
more than happy to let you stand alone. This is one reason why many converts will try to
adopt a certain culture in regards to dress, speech or otherwise in an attempt to fit in.
During the holidays, many converts have lost their families, so spend them alone. During
Ramadan, it is rare for a convert to be included in an iftar since these tend to be family
events, or amongst circles of friends, again broken down according to ethnicity. When it
comes time to marriage, the “takbirs” from your Shahada are long gone. Most of these
yelling “Allahu Akbar” because you became a Muslim would not consider you for your
daughter. The issue is especially bad for African American converts because there is a
serious race issue in the Muslim community. A large portion of people who convert either
leave the religion altogether or make a choice to not participate in the Muslim community
because of these issues. As I stated before, Islam is a religion for all people, places and
times. The Prophet himself (saw) took wives from various countries and backgrounds. One
of the biggest draw for many to Islam is the raceless nature of the religion, but the
community has failed in this respect. We should all strive to follow our religion and not our
culture, not our race, ethnicity or anything else. Let’s strive to remember what the Prophet
said on this issue in his last Khutba, and what Allah (swt) said in The Quran: “O mankind,
indeed We have created you from male and female and made you peoples and tribes that
you may know one another. Indeed, the most noble of you in the sight of Allah is the most
righteous of you. Indeed, Allah is Knowing and Acquainted.” 49:13.
originally from Yemen. I was born in Germany and raised in the USA since I was 5. Islam is
a religion for all times, for all peoples and all places. Unfortunately, this is not reality in most
Muslim communities where they are divided up along race, nationality, ethnicity and sects
instead. In the US when a person says their shahada in the masjid there are loud shouts of
“takbir” but in most cases that is the most attention that a convert will get. What most born
Muslims do not understand is that people who convert often lose their families, friends and
other important things in life. It is a conscious choice they make to embrace Islam. The
Muslim community should rally around these new converts and make them feel part of a
new, wider family circle. Instead, the community remains stuck in their cultural ways and if
you do not fit neatly into one of these social constructs you are left out in the cold. The next
time you are at your Jummah prayer notice how after Salat is over everyone seems to
coalesce according to which ever particular group they are a part of. Palestinians here,
Egyptians there, or if the masjid is progressive you might see Arabs hanging out together.
You’ll see the Pakistanis hanging out with other Pakistanis, Bengalis with Bengalis. If you
don’t belong to any group you don’t really know where to go and most often people are
more than happy to let you stand alone. This is one reason why many converts will try to
adopt a certain culture in regards to dress, speech or otherwise in an attempt to fit in.
During the holidays, many converts have lost their families, so spend them alone. During
Ramadan, it is rare for a convert to be included in an iftar since these tend to be family
events, or amongst circles of friends, again broken down according to ethnicity. When it
comes time to marriage, the “takbirs” from your Shahada are long gone. Most of these
yelling “Allahu Akbar” because you became a Muslim would not consider you for your
daughter. The issue is especially bad for African American converts because there is a
serious race issue in the Muslim community. A large portion of people who convert either
leave the religion altogether or make a choice to not participate in the Muslim community
because of these issues. As I stated before, Islam is a religion for all people, places and
times. The Prophet himself (saw) took wives from various countries and backgrounds. One
of the biggest draw for many to Islam is the raceless nature of the religion, but the
community has failed in this respect. We should all strive to follow our religion and not our
culture, not our race, ethnicity or anything else. Let’s strive to remember what the Prophet
said on this issue in his last Khutba, and what Allah (swt) said in The Quran: “O mankind,
indeed We have created you from male and female and made you peoples and tribes that
you may know one another. Indeed, the most noble of you in the sight of Allah is the most
righteous of you. Indeed, Allah is Knowing and Acquainted.” 49:13.
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