Black Muslimahs: Meanings and Manifestations Hajar’s legacy and the countless generations that came after her BY BAHEEJAH AALIYAH FAREED
Summayah Abdullah
H
Baiyinah Abdulla
ajar (‘alayhi rahmat), the wife of Prophet Ibrahim and mother of Isma’il, was an African woman whose legacy continues to be performed every year by millions of Muslims. During hajj and umra, we are required to run between the Safa and Marwa, thereby observing a ritual that signifies her resiliency and patience and what the success of her efforts to feed her son ultimately brought to humanity. Another African woman, Summayah Bint Khabbat (‘alayhi rahmat), played a significant role in Islamic and world history as Islam’s first martyr. Abu Jahl killed this elderly former slave by stabbing and finally impaling her with his spear. Additionally, Haleema Al-Sa’diyyah (‘alayhi rahmat), the Prophet’s (salla Allahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) wet nurse (again of African descent) is honored for nurturing him as a baby and a child. Many “Black” Muslimahs (some descendants of slaves and servants and others not) have made significant impacts that continue to inspire us all to live for God. Although “Black” American women are often stigmatized as less than anything special in every aspect of life, we now know that this mindset is a mere consequence of the colonization/ slave-owner enforced mentality.
Chaplain Tahara Akmal
Among the Black women descendants of slaves and well known here and abroad are Harriet Tubman (1822-1913), the abolitionist, political activist and spy for the Union Army in the Civil War, and Madam C. J. Walker (1867-1913). Walker, a community activist and held to be the first female selfmade millionaire, thanks to her cosmetics and hair care products for Black women, was an extremely generous philanthropist and community activist.
LABELS Anyone who looks like they have African ancestry, especially those with brown skin, is often labeled “Black.” Many “Black” people now claim this title with positivity, although it has been used negatively throughout history. The new mindset uses the analogy of the “black credit card,” which is considered the premium card and represents status. Likewise, Blacks, including and especially descendants of American slaves, have built a legacy of perseverance and making significant contributions to improve their societies and the world at large — a legacy largely created by Black women. Still we have to choose whether to refute or own the labels the placed upon us by the white supremacist mentality.
Aisha Ruth M. Pratt
Perhaps the most common label put on Black women is the “angry black woman,” meaning one who even slightly disagrees with another person, makes her tone firm and asserts her and other peoples’ rights. A young Black Muslim girl named Isra Hirsi decided to tackle this concept and turn it into a positive in her TEDxWakeForestU talk (https://www.youtube.com/watch? reload=9&v=zHvH6ArQV4o). To be confident, courageous and unapologetically human should not cause Black women to be labeled as “angry.”
MARGINALIZATION Many Muslim families who arrived during and after the 1960s still feel that Blacks, particularly Black women, are fine to befriend but not to marry. Others pay homage to the strides of Blacks, including Black women, and revere Blacks as worthy of friendship, marriage and any other interactions, just as their own race is worthy. There is strength and triumph in not focusing on what is trying to work against us, but rather on what we are doing that is good for God’s sake. Despite marginalization, we can operate with serenity, peace of mind, courage, confidence, character and spiritual light. If we concentrate on how
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