My memories of Imam Jamil Al-Amin
by Abdul Malik Mujahid

"Is there anything I can do for you? Do you need something?" asked the calm, serious, bespectacled Imam, who towered above me in height at about 6.5 feet.

The last time I met Imam Jamil al-Amin was when I was in Washington, DC on behalf of the Kosova Task force, USA. A Masjid was trying to raise funds for Kosova. I found Imam Jamil sitting there. That's when he asked me this question.

When I think back to all of my meetings with Imam Jamil, I remember him asking me the same question.

It was not just me. He asked everyone he worked with. He was always looking for ways to help people. A regular speaker at almost all Islamic conferences, I shared the stage with him many times. Not anymore though. All those who used to invite him seem to have forgotten about him.

Be mindful of Allah not fearful of the FBI

If the secret evidence law, cases against Muslim leaders and organizations, and a Grand Jury investigation of The Islamic Society of North America (ISNA)the Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA), etc are designed to intimidate Muslims then they are working.

ISNA's former president Dr. Ahmed Zaki Hammad's Quran Literacy Institute's assets are frozen, but neither ISNA nor the two largest Masjids in Chicago where he was an Imam have hardly done anything about it. Hammad has difficulty even raising funds for his legal defense.

One of the four top most leaders of Muslims in North America, Imam Jamil, has been in prison for a year now but hardly anything is being done for him by Muslims. It is as though we have declared him and others in his situation guilty and we are trying to forget about them. For Muslim workers and leaders, the message seems to be, "serve us until you are free" then you are on your own. Thank you very much.

Why is the Muslim community so willing and ready to forget the universal principle Allah has established for all humans: everyone is innocent until proven guilty?

Or is everyone listening to the kind of advice being give to me: "Br. Mujahid you don't want to do anything about this. The FBI is going to come after you." Whereas not all of us agree with every Muslim's agenda and rhetoric, we must not allow the fear of human beings to stop ourselves from helping Imam Jamil and others seek justice in their time of need. It goes against the Islamic principle of fearing no one except Allah.

Imam Jamil's efforts for Muslim unity

I first met Imam Jamil when Bosnia Task Force, USA called the historic rally of 50,000 Muslims in Washington DC in 1993. I was national coordinator of the task force, which was an alliance of ten national organizations of Muslims in America.

Here was a former leader of the Black Panthers standing up for "white" Bosnians, leading people of all color. I requested him, along with three other national leaders, to be the only speakers at the rally. He recruited the famous civil rights comedian Dick Gregory to be one of the speakers on the spot. At the time, he was vice president of the American Muslim Council (AMC) as well as the Amir of his community. I found him to be a humble, calm and silent person. That's where I heard his question first, "is there anything I can do for you," although he was my guest.

Imam Jamil always welcomed every move for Muslim unity. When I called the initial meeting to propose the idea of the Islamic Shura Council of North America, Imam Jamil responded wholeheartedly. Imam Jamil became the second chairman of this Shura Council.

There is one Shura Council meeting I attended with Imam Jamil which I will never forget. Dr. Syed Muhammad Sayeed, Secretary General of ISNA, Imam Plemon Al-Amin, Chairman Shura of Muslim American Society (led by Imam W. D. Mohammad), and I were present. The meeting was in Imam Jamil's community mosque in Atlanta. That is where I saw what a Masjid of poor people in America is like.

While waiting for people to arrive he picked up a broom and cleaned the Masjid. We sat down and ate one of the most simple suppers with other members of the Shura Council. I don't remember all the proceedings of the meeting. But I do remember one of the resolutions which he presented and all members supported was for the better treatment of Omar Abdul Rahman, the blind Egyptian scholar currently imprisoned in America. None of us probably thought at that moment that Imam Jamil would be charged with something and sent to prison.

On another occasion, I met him at his provision store where there was no proper place to sit except a hard wooden bench. I remember asking him, "were you involved in the robbery before you became a Muslim for which you went to prison?'

"No, I was not involved in that,' he told me.

While I was in the store, not a single customer came. There were really only a few things to buy in that store. Imam Jamil is a supporter of natural, healthy products, and I could see a lot of material selected based on that criteria. While no customers came to the store, several young and old people did, asking Imam Jamil to give them some money. And a person who probably didn't have much to give, gave them anyway. He gave me a gift of honey syrup with ginseng in it.

I kept meeting him in different programs, mostly on stage, while waiting for our turn to speak. When we could talk to each other, he would always ask the question: "Is there anything I can do for you?"

In the end, it's about justice and personal responsibility

No, my reaction to Imam Jamil's plight is not an emotional response. I wanted to do something for him as soon as it became clear that he was subject to the same sort of "leading while black" phenomena.

I thought there is the Shura Counciil, ISNA and ICNA. They have always invited him to be their speaker as long as I could remember. They will do something for him. I waited and waited. I did not hear anything except the complaints by Muslim civil right activists about how difficult it has been to get their issue on the agenda of these organizations. The immigrant leadership of Islam is once again failing to lead and develop alliances with other people who are suffering in society.

So where do I stand, as someone already involved in so many things, an Imam in Chicago, leading Sound Vision, and coordinating the Kosova Task force, a father of six and a husband? I waited hoping others will stand up for Imam Jamil. But no one did much.

"What can I do for you Br. Mujahid?" The Imam's words echo in my head.

Everyone is innocent until proven guilty

In this world, there is a legal system which will decide in its own way whether Imam Jamil is guilty or not. In the Everlasting World, the One Who already knows the Truth will distribute true Justice. But on that day we will be also asked the question: did we stand up for justice or not?

And that's the day I will be asked what I did for Rodney King, Amadou Diallo, or Imam Jamil al-Amin. That's the Day when we'll also have to answer if we were just standing up for Imam Jamil because he is a Muslim, or were we standing up for the principle of justice for our brother and others who have been wronged like him?

It doesn't matter whether the victim who has been denied this right is Amadou Diallo or a white police officer. It makes no difference whether someone has a complex history or a non-existent police record. In this world justice is difficult. But we can try, with the help of the One Who already knows the Truth, Who will always judge people with Truth. We must ensure that we live just, principled lives, and that we take a stand when it is needed.

Remember: it can happen to you

If any of us think we are immune from the injustice now being faced by Imam Jamil, we are being blissfully ignorant. Tomorrow, you could be the next victim. Your crime: being Muslim. Or black. Or brown. Let me give you a personal example.

I and some friends were once driving to the funeral of a friend's father from Chicago to St.Louis, Missouri when we were stopped. Not by one police officer, but by a group of them. These were no traffic police.

When they questioned us, they surrounded all three sides of the car, their hands close to their guns. Where are you going? they asked. A funeral, I told them. Why aren't you dressed for the funeral, they asked. Muslims don't dress up for funerals, I responded.

We later found out that there had been an alert out in the area asking police to look out for and stop bearded men and women in Hijab on the highway. Target: Muslims.

Another example is harassment at airports. Even before racial profiling became 'law', I had been subject to it at the airport a number of times. And I'm not an African-American. I can only imagine what I would have to face if I were.

Think about it: you're calmly waiting in line, getting ready to get your luggage and just get home to see your family and relieve your jet lag. Suddenly, you're pulled aside in front of everyone, your luggage opened up for public scrutiny. Humiliating at best, degrading at worst. Your crime: you're the wrong color.

The cases of the Quranic Literacy Institute and Dr. Ahmad Zaki Hammad, as well as Chicago's Imam Khalifah are just two examples of Muslims whose rights and property (in the former case) have been unjustly taken away. Few Muslims, individuals or leaders, have spoken up in their defense.

Secret evidence is another tool which is used in America that destroys the principle of innocent until proven guilty. And yes, there are Muslims in prison in America right now, in this country that considers itself a paragon of human rights because of secret evidence. They have been proclaimed guilty until proven innocent.

Muslim civil rights = rights for all

In the end, this is an issue of Muslim civil rights. But Muslim civil rights are not exclusively for Muslims: they mean justice for all, for every human being.

And by pursuing the rights of Imam Jamil al-Amin, Muslims can not only learn about the suffering of other minorities (i.e. African-Americans) in the American judicial system. We can also do our duty of standing up for justice.

We can stand up for justice for all, justice that is bias free and guarantees, not just with words on paper, but in practice, that a person is innocent until proven guilty. From there, we can help other countries develop laws for civil rights and justice.

At this moment Muslims are isolated in their struggle for civil rights. As one of the Jewish attorneys of one Muslim victim recently told me, Muslims are the new "niggers" of America. They have to pay the price and lead other Americans. Otherwise, more of this will continue to happen to Muslims.

What can I do for you Imam Jamil?

Imam Jamil, our brother, is now in need. He is a fellow human being, who needs us. He needs us to stand up for justice, not just for him, but for the principle of innocent until proven guilty.

He has asked me and others: What can I do for you? Now we must ask ourselves what we can do for him and answer him with support and action.

Abdul Malik Mujahid is president of Sound Vision and coordinator of the Kosova Task Force, USA.

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