American Muslim

Oppression and Nationalism

Asalaam Alaikum,

Note: I originally emailed this to some friends on facebook. These are the replies from two friends, including my Muslim brother and GSU friend, Wesam Mahmmoud Ead. Please leave comments and he and I will both be replying in the comment section as well.

To: some peeps ...

Subject: verse for my Filastin/Bosnian/Turkiye/Kurd brothers and sisters

My Email:

"Asalaam Alaikum,Oppression is never right, whether it is done to Muslims or Muslims do it to others. I was reading Qur'an today and this verse popped out at me. People can get away with oppression in this world, but they will have to pay in the Afterlife. Everyone will be accountable for their actions:

"'Yet indeed, as for any who defend themselves after having been wronged - no blame whatever attaches to them. Blame attaches but to those who oppresses people and behave outreageously on earth, offending against all right: for them there is grievous suffering in store.' - Sura Ash-Shura (41-42)"

Brother B's response:

"Ya subhanallah bro. I totally agree with you. Oppression is never right and it should be stopped but unfortunetly there is a lot of it going around and before we get out to the world we muslims need to stop oppressing each other first then we can talk about that to the community and world at large inshallah. may allah help us all."

Wesam's response:

"Personally, I believe the primary obstacle that the international Muslim community faces is Nationalism. More specifically, the love for the state before the love for Islam, Allah, and the Ulema. Just name a Muslim dominated country, and I guarantee that Nationalism infests that particular countries mind and soul. Look at Turkey, Pakistan, Egypt, Iran, Somalia, Bangladesh, India, Indonesia and the list goes on.

"The vast majority of the time when an individual from any of those countries thinks of Identity they automatically think of national identity rather than religious identity. Unfortunately we see a clear example of this in most of our own parents. Regardless of whether any of us want to admit it or not, most of our parents could not fathom us marrying outside of our race and nationality, or even in more extreme cases, village or tribal sectors. That’s the exact problem with every example Brother Krishnan stated above.

"Look at the current situation in Turkey. I sympathize with both the Turkish and Kurdish people, however both of these particular group of individuals are completely soaked in Nationalistic beliefs which completely obliterates any since of religious relation with each other. If both of them saw each other as Muslim brothers and sisters first, then a separate Turkish state and a separate Kurdish state would not be necessary.

"An identical situation occupies the problem with Palestine. Unfortunately it has come to a situation where none of the Arab countries in the Middle East are willing to risk a penny or a drop of blood for their brethren in Palestine. When ever your discuss the problem of Palestine with most Non-Palestinian Arabs, the conversation usually ends with an:"Oh, I feel bad for the Palestinians however I don’t think its right for my country (for example Egypt, Jordan, or Saudi Arabia), to have to risk our well being, economic prosperity and standard of living just to stand up for the Palestinians.

"If an Islamic approach was taken to the Palestinian issue rather then a bogus Arab Nationalistic approach was taken, the problem would probably be solved over night given the vast resources that the Arab countries have in their possession. Look at the Muslim labor workers from India, Bangladesh, and Pakistan that travel from South Asia to the Persian Gulf Arab countries. When I see the way those scum bag Arab Amir’s and Kings treat their fellow Muslim brothers I become embarrassed to admit I’m Arab in public. I can’t believe they allow their fellow Muslims to work in such disgusting conditions, not to mention that they are treated poorly simply because the Arabs in those oil rich countries some how believe they are superior to the workers just because they are rich.

"I think NATIONALISM is our biggest problem. The downfall of Nationalism in our country’s = The Rise of Islam.