[Ppnews] Detroit Muslims - A vigilant, determined community moves on

[Political Prisoner News]

A vigilant, determined community moves on

By Ashahed M. Muhammad -Assistant Editor- | Last 
updated: Nov 10, 2009 - 8:48:19 AM
http://www.finalcall.com/artman/publish/National_News_2/article_6565.shtml

DETROIT, Mich. (FinalCall.com) - Muslims recently 
gathered at Masjid Al-Haqq, a non-descript brick 
duplex in an economically depressed part of the 
city for the traditional Islamic Friday congregational prayer called Jum'ah.

Followers of the late Imam Abdullah embraced, 
talked and relied on each other for support and 
strength­all vowing to continue his work. 
Rambunctious children ran and played in the back 
of the mosque, sternly but lovingly told by the 
elder men in the mosque to keep their voices 
down­but nothing like the abuse claimed in the FBI's affidavit.

A strong spirit of brotherhood, camaraderie and 
unity was present, nothing like the toxic 
atmosphere or heated rhetoric of government 
overthrow alleged by the FBI. There was no talk 
of anger, revenge or retaliation Nov. 6, only 
spiritual guidance and faith to overcome challenges.

A bearded man with a black turban, Amir Mika'il 
Stewart Saadiq, who had been under Imam 
Abdullah's tutelage for almost a decade, delivered the khutbah, or sermon.

A tolerant and easy-going man, he told those 
gathered while it would not be easy, they should 
not be angry or bitter. Imam Saadiq advised 
listeners to direct their energy toward 
continuing the outreach and service for which 
Imam Abdullah was known. He also told congregants 
grief counseling would be held later that evening 
for the children of the mosque emotionally traumatized by recent events.

“Allah is with us,” Mr. Saadiq said. “How are you 
going to retaliate when they can do whatever they 
want to do to you anytime they feel like it?” he asked.

Mr. Saadiq added that the Islamic community, as 
was Imam Abdullah, remains unapologetically 
supportive of freedom for Imam Jamil al-Amin who 
is currently serving a life sentence at the 
Supermax prison located in Florence, Colo. The 
onetime Black Panther leader known as H. Rap 
Brown was convicted in 2002 of killing a Georgia 
sheriff, but his followers still maintain he is innocent.

“Sometimes, religious communities can be naïve. 
We know Muslims do evil just like Christians do 
evil, but we believe Imam Jamil al-Amin is 
innocent of all charges,” said Imam Saadiq.

“Imam Luqman was the heart and soul of the 
community,” said Akil Fahd, who had become really 
close to him over the past five years. Pausing 
several times to collect his thoughts, Mr. Fahd 
was one of the men who conducted the “ghusl,” the 
ritual of washing and preparing Imam Abdullah's 
body for the Janazah prayer prior to his burial 
at Knollwood Cemetery in Canton. He said the late 
imam's body was “full of holes” and the religious 
leader had been shot at least 18 times. Imam 
Abdullah's family members corroborated Mr. Fahd's account.

Mr. Fahd acknowledged that Imam Abdullah was 
known to carry a weapon for protection, 
especially to prevent being robbed on days when a 
large amount of charity was collected.

“It was protection for his general person, not to 
be offensive or to attack other people,” said Mr. Fahd.

Mr. Fahd said members of Masjid Al-Haqq are aware 
of the so-called informants listed in the FBI 
affidavit. But, he said, the Muslims are not 
feeding into what they see as a divide and destroy strategy by the government.

“This is part and parcel of the COINTELPRO 
strategy, to turn brothers against one another 
and questioning each other's commitments,” said 
Mr. Fahd. “We are just focusing on the legacy of 
Imam Luqman Abdullah and the activities that he 
was a strong advocate of, reaching out to and 
feeding the poor, trying to assist brothers who 
are returning home from incarceration, instead of 
focusing on the intrigues of the government.”

In retrospect however, he did offer some advice 
for other Muslim organizations to prevent agent 
infiltration and to identify those who may be 
working on behalf of government schemes.

“The thing we have to be cognizant of­particular 
within poor communities­is that they are mainly 
targeted by individuals who come and appear to 
have generous resources,” Mr. Fahd said. “They 
will kind of try to get up under leadership, try 
to gain the trust of leadership, then (during) 
the times when the community is in need, they 
will give the leadership some sort of financial 
support. They target more of their socialization with leadership.”

In another part of town that same day, Imam Dawud 
Walid, Michigan's director of the Council on 
American-Islamic Affairs (CAIR) delivered the 
Jum'ah sermon at the American Muslim Center in 
Dearborn, just a few miles away from the location 
where Imam Abdullah was killed.

His message was drawn from the Islamic book of 
scripture, Holy Qur'an, chapter 49 and verse 6. 
Imam Walid said before jumping to conclusions 
based rumors, media broadcasts or the internet, 
reflect on the words of Allah: “Oh ye who 
believe! If a person of questionable character 
comes to you with news, thoroughly verify it lest 
you should unknowingly do harm to others and then 
regret what you have done,” the imam said.

At the nearby Motown Kabob restaurant on Woodward 
Ave. and Milwaukee, those eating lunch spoke 
highly of Imam Abdullah and his work, describing 
how the mosque was open 24-hours a day for anyone 
to come by and get out of the cold, or ask 
questions about Islam. If a husband and wife were 
having problems in the home, instead of allowing 
conflict to escalate, men would go to the mosque, 
stay until things cooled off, and then seek to resolve the problem.

Along the route to a nearby coffee shop on Joy 
Road where Imam Abdullah would get his coffee, 
storeowners testified of a “good brother” who was always willing to help.

Masood Qayyum, a young man in his 30s, has known 
Imam Abdullah for 15 years and looked up to him as a mentor.

“It's like, you have to stay strong, and that is 
the type of energy that he gave­a strong energy­ 
to give you the strength that you need as a man 
being out here in society and dealing with the 
things you have to deal with on a daily basis,” said Mr. Qayyum.

Twenty-six-year-old Amirah Jabril knew Imam 
Abdullah her entire life. He was a family friend and was like an uncle to her.

“He was a wonderful man, he was an influence over 
so many people. This man stood up for a cause and 
was shot down execution style. Where is the 
justice in that?” Ms. Jabril asked. “There is no 
justice in murder. None. There can never be.”




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