Why Islam is my choice — Page 127
127 1920s. ” He writes, “The A ḥ madiyya Mission among Afro- Americans in the 1920s was far more significant than its number of converts would indicate. Perhaps, the A ḥ madiyya Mission could be understood as the beginning of a new, symbolic theme in Afro-American religious history. ” I would love to hear your comment on his assessment of the impact of the A ḥ madiyya Mission on Afro-Americans in the early 20s. R: The understanding that I get out of this statement, that prior to Isl ā m we have earlier discussed the condition of America and we also discussed how the Afro-American people were treated, how they were degraded—and Isl ā m came along and offered them hope. Because there was no hope in Christianity, because Christianity allowed those people to be oppressed. One of those things that they learned after becoming Muslims, they learned: do not oppress, and do not be oppressed. And that’s a very powerful statement to the Muslims. You do not oppress other people, but nor do you allow other people to oppress you. You keep that oppression down, whatever the cost. Look what Isl ā m had to offer the Afro-Americans, where they had nothing, as far as Br Ra ḥ mat Jam ā l with Ikr ā mul- Ḥ aq Jatt ā la in 1970.