Muslim & Black, In America

What does it mean to be a African-American Muslim?

It’s estimated that between 5 and 12 million Muslims live in The U.S. in the U.S. About one-third of them are black. And yet, to Mubarakah Ibrahim, it still seems that black Muslims are put too quickly into a stereotypical box — or that ignorance reigns around the intersection of their race and religion.

No more, Ibrahim says. She called upon Donna Auston, PhD candidate at Rutgers University and progenitor of the hashtag #BlackMuslimRamadan, to give listeners a history lesson in Islam in America, and the history of black muslims in particular. The conversation took place on Ibrahim’s WNHH radio’s ​“Mornings with Mubarakah.”

“There are interconnections, there are overlaps and there are intersections,” Auston said. ​“There’s a diasporic element … I think it’s important to bring that in. For me — my being black included growing up in the church, and all of that, I bring to Islam. I didn’t let that go because I changed my theology. I bring that to my interpretation of the Qu’ran, and I’m unapologetic about that. I started #BlackMuslimRamadan to highlight the way we bring out blackness into Islam … For me it’s a beautiful amalgamation of all of the components of who I am.”

The two also discussed police brutality and perception of black Muslims. ​“I call it a double-punch, because both demographics have had a lot of controversy around them,” said Ibrahim. ​“Especially post‑9/11”

Auston agreed, from an anthropological and historical perspective. ​“Black Muslims have been targeted by law enforcement, subject to invasive survellance … targeted for both of those things as far back as the 20s,” she said. ​“So these notions of post‑9/11 patriot act and surveillance, things that large swaths of the public seemed to think were necessary, these things did not start with 9/11. Maybe other people became aware of it, but it was always a fact of life for black muslims. It’s interesting to contemplate those things together in this moment.”

“But,” Ibrahim added at the end, ​“you get the best of both worlds.”

To listen to the episode, click on the audio above, or find it for download on Soundcloud, iTunes, or any podcatcher under ​“WNHH Community radio.”