By Dr Shaik Ubaid
I had a “eureka moment” yesterday while watching the movie about Malcolm X and Mohammad Ali-One night in Miami. It is based on some history but the night itself is fictionalized. As many of you know I never get tired of quoting Malcolm X and respect him for his sincere commitment to his people, his courage and his vision as well as his integrity. But while watching the movie I also saw the more human side of Malcolm
Iqbal’s poetry resonates with me because of his eloquence and command of the Urdu, Persian and English languages. He expresses his hurt, anger, frustration and despair at the pitiful condition of the ummah and the apathy of the Muslims who mostly do not care. But he also gives us hope and shows the light at the end of the tunnel. All with out sacrifice the beauty of poetry. He also proves the superiority of Islam over the West and help
Us not get awed by the technologically advanced western nations
Malcolm who has been trying to bring Cassius Clay to Islam and eventually succeeds in making him into Muhammad X ( Later Muhammad Ali) , has also been trying to get successful negro role models such as Sam Cooke the famous singer and Jim Brown the famous football player. He gets into arguments with them that night after Cassius beats Sonny Liston in Miami to become the world heavy weight champion and all four gather in Makvolm’s hotel room Malcolm pleads with them, reasons with them , plays mind games, gets frustrated and angry at them, and yells at them and they at him. They are almost physical scuffles. All this at a time when Malcolm is being rejected by Elijah Muhammad and his Nation of Islam. Malcolm also finds about the corruption of his hero Elijah Mohamed His large family is also facing economic ruins. Has bodyguards have become FBI informant. All this at a time when he’s aware that the struggle for the civil and human rights of the Black people is at a critical stage but he is not getting the support that he needs from the black elite. The Muslim world is getting behind him but not his people at home. So for a moment he breaks down and cries and I also cried. After years of pushing my people to wake up and to struggle in an organized way, after years of pleading with the affluent people to become more compassionate but finding them remaining mostly uncaring. It takes years to make the community wake up to each threat- the Hindutva fascist RSS in the US and not just in India. The genocide in Burma before it started but no body paid attention to my pleas for years and now Sri Lanka . The apathy of our ummah about Syria , Yemen, Palestine and Kashmir, about Egypt, Libya, uAE and Saudia. About the rise of fascism in the US. About The youth leaving Islam in droves and the good youth mostly not having much historical knowledge and not approaching the critical battles in a pragmatic way
Within a few months Malcolm was shot dead and Muhammad Ali had already betrayed him and stood with Elijah Muhammad. Soon the African-American community wins the legal rights but by not following Malcolm’s teachings their condition remains mostly unchanged.
Even the wave of conversion to Islam has ended in the African-American community and their children are leaving Islam just as many children of the immigrants are.
I strongly recommend that everyone should watch this movie. it is on Amazon and free for those who have Amazon prime
People should also watch The Dissident, the docudrama on Adnan Khashoggi and the oppression in the Arab world.
Unless we are politically empowered all the investigation reports will not help as we see in the Dissident
The only way for Muslims in the US to get empowerment is through building alliances with other faith communities and justice and human rights movement. The rise of China and its support will make the Arab dictators bolder and more cruel Only the power of America if it becomes more friendly to Muslims and human rights can counter China and RSS of India or Putin of Russia
Muslim community must wake up and start doing its job of standing up for itself and for justice. It must start using strategic thinking along with strengthening thrir connection with Allah our Creator
Alliance to Save and Protect America from Infiltration by Religious Extremists ASPAIRE.org was launched for empowerment of Muslims in America through grassroots alliances with other communities and social justice groups . Follow the Facebook page and twitter at AspaireUSA
Dr Shaik Ubaid is a New York based peace activist. He is on Twitter @ShaikUbaid
Views expressed are personal