We Bleed The Same Color

Dear Khuddam,

السلام عليكم ورحمة الله وبركاته

Today is MLK Day, and I wished to say a few words. The themes of civil rights activism and racial equality are being remembered. The ancestors of our African Americans faced unimaginable cruelty for centuries. Many horrifying details of those stories remain untold.

We don’t celebrate people so much as we celebrate and honor the legacies which people commonly associate with them.  As such, MKA USA joins the rest of America today in honoring racial equality.

Anyone who thinks they can honor racial integration by remembering it on one day of the year has missed the point. Our Holy Prophet (sa) taught us a message for all times.  In his final sermon he said: A white is no greater than a black, and an Arab is no greater than a non-Arab. It is a point of reflection for us all, especially for the “white” and the “Arab” of today’s Jamaat.

The Prophet (sa) continued by saying: The only degree of superiority one has over another is in their degree of taqwa (righteousness).

Therefore we are to strengthen our harmony and remind ourselves of the Quranic teaching that Allah has created us in different tribes in order to “know one another.”  Our diversity is there in order to bring us closer together.  This teaching is so crucial because while diversity can bring a people together, if not understood it can drive us apart.

MKA USA has a shura proposal on diversity education and training which I feel has not been given proper attention.  And so I do not wish that on a day when the rest of America is honoring harmony, that we should remain behind or silent on this day either.

We should continue to invoke Allah’s blessings and seek His protection.  Though we are ultimately for the outcome of our own souls, brotherhood is a very fragile affair.

Therefore, do not be the cause, or put loosely, the “shaytan” of another person by tempting their emotions. This happens when you look down on someone who’s complexion is darker than yours, or speaks a language different than yours, or has a class background different than yours.  True, we are here for Allah’s sake and not for the sake of mere brotherhood.  But you and me will be answerable to Allah for putting a stumbling block before others. One that will cause others to trip and to fall.

And if you have felt the eyes of judgement most probably because of your race, please turn that trial into an opportunity. Turn that stumbling block into a stepping stone, which brings you closer to Allah. What would have caused you to fall, actually caused you to rise. Blessings come in all disguises.

We may be overly identified by others by our race. We may even identify ourselves in this manner and take great pride in our nationalities.

But remember this.

On the day we will be called back to Allah we will not be black, or white, or brown. We will be either righteous, or not righteous. This is what the Holy Prophet (sa) told us in that farewell sermon.

May Allah enable us to be the spectacle of universal brotherhood and beauty as a model for the world.

Sincerely,

والسلام

Bilal Rana
1/18/2016

Serving as Ṣadr Majlis Khuddāmul Aḥmadiyya

United States of America

1 Comment
  • atif m. malik
    Posted at 13:38h, 24 January

    very relevant message. thank you