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Five books to read on the history of Black Muslims

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Five books to read on the history of Black Muslims

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From writers and scholars, to activists and community organisers, artists and musicians, Black Muslims have played an integral role in fighting for Black people, even while in bondage.

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The explosion of mass protests across the US against the killings of Black Americans George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade, and multiple others by police officers has reignited crucial conversations around anti-Black racism and the legacy of slavery across the globe.

The Black Lives Matter movement against anti-Black racism has gained new momentum and energy, taking place as Black people are dying at disproportionate rates from Covid-19 and unemployment rates have spiked. Simply put, many Black people have nothing to lose.

The movement has led many Muslims in the United States, especially non-Black Muslims, to seek out knowledge on the history of Black Islam in the US and to find ways to support the Black Lives Matter movement.

Black Muslims in the US are not immune from police violence: in 2018, Somali-born Shukri Ali Said, 36, who was suffering a mental health crisis, was shot and killed by police officers in Johns Creek, Georgia. The four officers involved in Said's death were cleared of wrongdoing.

And then on 9 May this year, Sudanese-American Yassin Mohammed, 47, who may also have been in the middle of a mental health crisis, was killed by police officers, also in Georgia.

Mohammed and Said's cases have drawn little attention outside of their local communities - an act of erasure which points to the persistent marginalisation within communities of both Black people with disabilities, and Black Muslims.

While the Black Lives Matter movement is only six years old, the fight for Black liberation in North America is over 500 years old, and Black Muslims have often been at the centre of it. From writers and scholars, to activists and community organisers, artists and musicians, Black Muslims have played an integral role in fighting for Black people, even while they were in bondage.

Of the plethora of relevant books available on the subject, five texts stand out for their accessibility and ability to help contextualize the relationship between the current uprisings and Islam and Muslims in the United States and beyond.

1. Servants of Allah by Sylviane Diouf

Upwards of 30 percent of all enslaved Africans transported to the Americas were Muslim, with the vast majority going to the Caribbean and South America, most notably Brazil.

Published in 2013, Sylviane Diouf's book, details how enslaved Africans in the Caribbean and Americas resisted white supremacy, maintained connections to other Africans across the diaspora - and, in some cases, the African continent - and were able to find ways to practice their religion under intense surveillance.

The book highlights several important Black Muslim figures in the Americas including Omar ibn Said and Bilali Mohamed - both writers and Islamic scholars whose intellectual legacy is still felt today.

Diouf notes that many enslaved Muslims were trained soldiers who used their tactical knowledge to lead slave revolts. For instance, theMalêRevolt in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil was led by free and enslaved Muslims during Ramadan in 1835. While the rebels were ultimately defeated, the uprising played an important role in pushing Brazil towards abolishing slavery.

Servants of Allah was one of the first English language books published on African Muslims and the transatlantic slave trade, joining Allan D Austin and Michael Gomez's foundational work on enslaved Africans in the Americas. Like Gomez, Diouf moved beyond biographies of individual Muslim men to explore the diasporic nature of Islam in the Americas and Caribbean.

The book became popular after 9/11, three years after its original publication, because it showed the long roots Muslims have had in the United States. It challenged assumptions that Islam was foreign and new to the US. Non-Black Muslims were "eager to demonstrate that Islam was as much of an American religion as any".

According to Diouf, Servants of Allah helped Black Americans legitimise their connections to Islam with non-Black Muslims, who questioned their authenticity. Reading the book in the age of Black Lives Matter allows readers to see how anti-Blackness and Islamophobia are interconnected: both were central to founding the Americas and Caribbean, and Black liberation is tied to ending Islamophobia.

2. The Autobiography of Malcolm X

In response to accusations that he and the Honourable Elijah Muhammad incited violence among Black people, Malcolm X wrote, "It is a miracle that a nation of black people has so fervently continued to believe in the turn-the-other-cheek and heaven-for-you-after-you-die philosophy. It is a miracle that the American black people have remained a peaceful people, while catching all the centuries of hell that they have caught, here in white man's heaven!"

This quote speaks to the rage that many Black people in the US feel right now. While there is a rich history of violent rebellions, armed protest, Black gun ownership and a commitment to self-defense, including the Deacons of Defense and Justice, the Black Panthers, Harriet Tubman, Ida B Wells, and Nat Turner's rebellion, this current moment feels different.

The Autobiography of Malcolm X (1965) details the religious and political growth of one of the most admired and hated men in US history.

Despite being over 50 years old, the book remains relevant. Malcolm X covers a wide range of topics, including the social and psychological effects that the state can have on Black families, the role the media plays in constructing and perpetuating anti-Black Islamophobia, and the need for Muslim men to stand against sexual harassment. It also urges racial justice activists to speak in terms of human rights instead of civil rights, to show how justice movements across the globe are related.

The Autobiography of Malcolm X will be a helpful read for anyone who is unfamiliar with the everyday indignities that Black people face, both at the individual and structural level. The book shows how despite the legislative victories Black Americans won during the Civil Rights Movement, anti-Black racism in 2020 is just as prevalent as it was in 1965.

3. Black Star, Crescent Moon: The Muslim International and Black Freedom Beyond America by Sohail Daulatzai

Sohail Daulatzai's 2012 book is a perfect complement to The Autobiography of Malcolm X. One of Malcolm X's most significant influences to American Islam was his embrace of Black internationalism, building on the work of activists Audley Moore, Shirley Graham DuBois, and Louis Little.

Black Star, Crescent Moon uses Malcolm X as one of its primary vehicles to examine the cultural and political history of Black radicalism, Black Islam, and "the Muslim Third World" in the post-WWII era. Daulatzai highlights how Black radicals have linked their identities, art, and activism with the liberation movements in Africa and Asia because they share common struggles and common goals.

The book also helps to explain how a shared experience of state-sanctioned violence led Palestinian and Lebanese activists to tweet tips to Black Americans on how to deal with tear gas and rubber-coated bullets during the American uprisings in 2014 and again this year.

Daulatazai also explores how some Black Americans see Islam as a resistance tool, which has served as a bridge to Asia and Africa and its people, and why the US government found this dangerous. He writes: "[T]o be Black is one thing in America that marks you as un-American, but to be Black and Muslim is quite another, as it marks you as anti-American."

Published after Barack Obama's first presidential election in the middle of the "War on Terror," Black Star, Crescent Moon highlights how having a " Black face in high places" does not translate to Black liberation. His critique of the post-racial feelings that Obama's election evoked in many Americans (people believed racism had ended while President Obama continued the "War on Terror") helps readers understand why, despite having Black mayors, police chiefs, and district attorneys, big cities like Chicago, Baltimore, and Atlanta are hotbeds for police brutality and anti-Black racism.

4. Being Muslim: A Cultural History of Women of Color in American Islam by Sylvia Chan-Malik

The one shortcoming of Daulatzai's book is the lack of attention it pays to Black Muslim women and their intellectual contributions. But this text, by Sylvia Chan-Malik, provides a much needed corrective.

Chan-Malik's book provides an important reminder to not ignore Muslim women's activism and that it might appear in unusual places, including photographs, poetry and documentaries.

She writes, "[A]ny historically accurate account of American Islam and US culture must necessarily make central the lives and experiences of Black American Muslims - and in this case, Black American Muslim women - as their contributions have forcefully shaped the meanings and presence of Islam in the United States."

Being Muslim (2018) explores how Muslim women of colour in the 20th and 21st centuries have played an important role in building Muslim practices and identities, as well as shaping how race and gender are viewed in the US.

Taking a chronological approach, the book starts with the Ahmadiyya Muslim Movement in the 1920s - a minority sect who regard their founder as a prophet - and ends with a discussion of contemporary Muslim feminism in the United States.

And the book resists narratives that characterise Islam as a foreign or immigrant religion - a perspective that privileges Arab and South Asian Muslim Americans yet ignores the impact that Black Muslims, including Black Muslim women, have had on Islam in the United States, as well as white and Latina Muslim women.

Chan-Malik reminds all Muslims in the United States that they are indebted to the labour of Black Muslims, including Black Muslim women. Being Muslim emphasises that race and gender matter when discussing Islam, and this extends to our activism too.

5. Muslim Cool: Race, Religion and Hip Hop in the United States by Su'ad Abdul Khabeer

Even though Muslim Cool (2016) is not a history book, it is still important because it provides an extensive discussion on constructions of race within Muslim communities in the US.

Su'ad Abdul Khabeer introduces the term, "Muslim cool," which she defines as "a way of thinking and a way of being Muslim that resists and reconstitutes US racial hierarchies". The mainstream racial hierarchy places whiteness at the top, Blackness at the bottom, and everyone else somewhere in between, if they exist at all.

The book challenges views of the United States as being either post-racial or only existing in a Black-white binary. Race still matters.

Abdul Khabeer argues that Blackness is central to American Islam; it shapes both individual Muslims' and interethnic relationships amongst Muslims. This is because the US public's understanding of Islam was first shaped by Black Muslims, including the Nation of Islam, the Five Percenters, and early Black Sunni organisations.

Muslim Cool also provides an excellent overview of the Inner-City Muslim Action Network (IMAN) in Chicago, Illinois. The non-profit organisation is a site of "Muslim cool" because of its commitment to doing anti-racism work in the local community. It provides an important model for cross-racial community building because the organisation and its volunteers are ethnically diverse, while maintaining a commitment to combatting anti-Blackness amongst Muslim and non-Muslim communities.

Many Muslim non-profits focus on the concerns of middle- and upper-class non-Black Muslims', oftentimes limiting their activism to immigration and civil rights or to struggles outside of the United States.

While this work is also necessary, it cannot happen at the risk of ignoring the struggles that Black people, including Black Muslims, face right down the street from them. IMAN often uses hip hop and other artistic expressions to help build a bridge with different ethnic groups to reframe people's worldview and activism to include Black liberation.

The book concludes with a discussion of the Black Lives Matter movement. Muslim Cool reveals the delicate balance between non-Black Muslims embracing Black culture (hip hop), and appropriating it. Abdul Khabeer highlights the responsibility non-Black "hip hop heads" have to the creators of hip hop: stand with them in the fight against anti-Blackness.

This discussion is useful for people of colour who are interested in supporting the Black Lives Matter movement but do not have deep ties to local Black communities, because it provides a roadmap to ethically engaging in anti-racist activism.

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Five books to read on the history of Black Muslims

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The explosion of mass protests across the US against the killings of Black Americans George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade, and multiple others by police officers has reignited crucial conversations around anti-Black racism and the legacy of slavery across the globe.

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Racism in Our Ranks | Khutbahs with Purpose

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Racism in Our Ranks | Khutbahs with Purpose

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Racism in Our Ranks | Khutbahs with Purpose

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Topics: Black Heritage | Yaqeen Institute for Islamic Research

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An Islamic research institution dedicated to dismantling doubts and nurturing conviction by addressing relevant topics affecting today's society.

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Du’as of the Enslaved: A Journey Through Images

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Du’as of the Enslaved: A Journey Through Images

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The images found herein were made available through the generosity of the Arquivo Público do Estado da Bahia in 2018 and were photographed by the microfilm department's staff member and resident photographer, Tom Lança.

*(Image not identifiable within my own records)*

On the 27th night of Ramadan in January of 1835, hundreds of enslaved and free West African Muslims in Brazil set into motion one of the most meticulously-planned rebellions found within the archives of the Americas. These Muslims adorned their necks with strings tied to verses of the Qur'an, placed du'as within their pockets, and adorned their bodies with long, white garments. Dozens of the rebels gathered in a rented home to have suhur right before they were set to strike at fajr . Unfortunately, this home was discovered by state authorities, setting the rebellion into motion hours before the rebels had planned. This in turn destabilized the plans for the rebellion, and the revolt was put down within just a few hours.

What was special about this rebellion was not the mere act of resistance nor the participation of Muslims. Rather, it was the fact that the idea for this rebellion was born out of secret madra s sas and m u sal l as placed all around the Brazilian state of Bahía in an effort to educate enslaved and free black Muslims about the Qur'an. The documents made within these madras s as , found both on the bodies of the fallen rebels and within their homes, were kept as police records and today serve as testimonies to the faith of the black and enslaved martyrs of Islam.

We are about to set on a journey made possible through the inscriptions of these venerable Muslims. May Allah make us worthy of their prayers.

This dilapidated image shows the first chapter of the Qur'an, the Fatiha, found in the home of a Muslim by the name of Torquato. "In the name of God, The Merciful, The Compassionate. Praise the Lord of all the worlds, The Merciful, the Compassionate. Gift us the straight path, the path of those on whom You have bestowed blessings, and not the path of those on whom you have bestowed wrath, nor the path of those who are astray."

The remaining traces of this letter indicate that it was written by a Muslim named Abu Malak to Abu Habsabi. The first line shows the basmala in a clearly recognizable format. The second line says, "O, Allah, You are my Lord, there is not deity except for God." The rest of the second line probably included the name Muhammad, peace be upon him, since the third line says, "you are my messenger," followed by another line referencing Allah, saying, "And there is no power except in you." The rest of the third line says, "and indeed there is no...," but the noun here is cut off. The fourth line says, "To Abu Habsabi, forgive...," perhaps a plea to Allah to either forgive Abu Habsabi's sins or those of the sender. The final line then might indicate "our sins," or "his sins." The blurry Portuguese inscription at the bottom, written by Brazilian authorities after the rebellion, says something along the lines of, "To the negro Antonio, belonging to the state's authority," indicating that the recipient of this mail was called by the Portuguese name Antonio.

This du'a was written by an enslaved man by the name of Domingos from the Hausa people. The long du'a includes various indiscernible lines due to the dilapidation of the paper, the blurring of the ink, and Domingo's wording. The first few lines are venerations of Allah through calling upon Allah's attributes such as magnanimity and compassion. The fourth line says, "Oh Generous God, grant me sustenance wherever I may be and grant me contentment." Line six says, "Praise be to God who has removed all sadness." Throughout lines ten to eleven, and then again throughout lines fifteen through seventeen, Domingos asks Allah to grant him "peace and a peaceful abode." Lines twenty through twenty-two say, "Bless this earth and bless our return, indeed God is capable of granting us that return, as He is Omnipotent, and there is no power and no strength except in God."

This paper was also found in home of the enslaved Hausa, Domingos. Rather than acting as a written du'a , the formulaic expressions within each box are meant to identify various parts of a prayer. Overall, the prayer begs Allah to bless the city of God and to grant them refuge from every place. The third box to the left may indicate a prayer regarding the rebellion, but this is unclear. The lines at the bottom say, "There is no power or strength except in God, the elevated and majestic."

The following dua was also found within the files of the enslaved Hausa, Domingos. The opening lines are quite powerful and read, "In the name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful. Bless us from the terrors and evils and fortify us against all of the defamations against us, and purify us through all of the shame imposed upon us." Lines seventeen through nineteen read, "I ask you to grant me the love that you have for the poor and I trust that you will forgive me and have compassion towards me. I ask you, our Lord..."

The following images are from the magazine Memórias da Bahia, Volume 10, Universidade Católica da Bahia.

Loose pages from the archives.

Book of prayers from the archives

Manoel do Nascimento Santos Silva, also known as Gibirilu, the last known survivor of the revolt in Bahia.

This unnamed Brazilian Muslim woman seems to be wearing prayer beads around her neck and wrists.

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Du'as of the Enslaved: A Journey Through Images | Yaqeen Institute for Islamic Research

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The images found herein were made available through the generosity of the Arquivo Público do Estado da Bahia in 2018 and were photographed by the microfilm department's staff member and resident photographer, Tom Lança.

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All Muslims owe a great debt to Black history, but what about the present? Sh. Omar Suleiman discusses what it means to engage in meaningful solidarity with the African American community today, and our religious obligation to do so. (Youtube Video)

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Meaningful Solidarity - Sh. Omar Suleiman | Lecture

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Shaykh Omar Suleiman discusses the gravity of injustice by breaking down types of oppression and the punishment of oppressors on the Day of Judgment. (Youtube Video)

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Hadith #1 - The Gravity Of Injustice | 40 Hadiths On Social Justice

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While many start the story of Islam in America with the Enslaved Muslims brought from Africa, Islam has rich early interactions through luminaries like Khashkhash Ibn Saeed Ibn Aswad and Mansa Musa. Knowing this history is significant and reshapes the story of how Islam in America is told altogether.

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African Muslims in America Before Columbus | Islam and the Black American

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Sh. Abdullah Oduro describes his early life growing up detached from his Ghanian roots, and how he found Islam. Follow along as he recounts his journey to connect with his culture, and how his spiritual journey inspired it all. (Youtube Video)

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Introducing Sh. Abdullah Oduro | A Muslim Convert Story Part 1

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Black Muslim History & Meaningful Solidarity

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Black Muslim History & Meaningful Solidarity

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Shaykh Omar Suleiman (Youtube Video)

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Black Muslim History & Meaningful Solidarity . Sh. Omar Suleiman

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A study of important Black figures in Islamic History - ILF Texax (Youtube Video)

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Black & Noble - A Study of Important Black Figures in Islam - ILF Texas All Rights Reserved

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A report on anti-black racism in the British Muslim community.

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This report has been conducted for the sole purpose of improving the condition of Black people to further unite the British Muslim Ummah.

Black Muslim Forum Report 2020
Executive Summary

100 self-identified Black Muslims were surveyed between June and December 2019

Participants were asked 7 questions: 4 multiple choice, 3 long answer

Data was analysed and divided into two sections with 4 main themes, some key ideas and suggestions:
Lived experiences themes: Anti-blackness, Mosque / Madrassah, Culture and Marriage

Lived experiences key ideas: Expression of frustration and a desire for a safe space

Suggestions: Education and Awareness raising

53.95% of participants felt that overall they generally did not belong to their local mosque

84% of participants felt that overall they did not belong to their university's Islamic society

63.41% of participants felt that overall they did not belong to the UK Muslim community

48.98% of participants faced anti-black discrimination or colourism within a UK mosque or religious setting

36.36% of participants faced anti-black discrimination or colourism within a family setting in the UK

79% of participants faced anti-black discrimination or colourism within a secular setting in the UK

46 of the 100 participants could give a rough estimate of discrimination they had faced over the year 2018 alone

Proposed Actions

Use Black Muslim Forum's presentation summarising this report to educate your ummah about anti-blackness in the Muslim community

Share our short infographic, which can be found on social media (@blackmuslimforum [Instagram]) within your networks and on social media

Challenge anti-black racism in a personal capacity and at every instance that it crops up

Consider facilitating anti-racism workshops and classes rooted in Islamic teachings within your faith body and mosque

Background

"Verily, there is no superiority of an Arab over a non-Arab or of a non-Arab over an Arab, or of a red man over a black man, or of a black man over a red man, except in term of taqwa".(Narrated from Abu Nadrah from the khutbah of Prophet Muhammad SAW. Classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in as-Saheehah, 6/199).

Racism is not a new phenomenon and has been documented through history. However, for many reasons, such as the advantages that are sustained by contesting the idea that white privilege and racial superiority exists, many still deny its existence, especially in the Muslim community. From physicians such as Carl Linnaeus in the 18 th century outlining the genetic inferiority of the Black race, to the systematic killings of unarmed Black civilians in the United States, anti-black racism has remained a rampant disease that has plagued our society including the Muslim community.

Much of Black history taught in British schools tends to be associated with the trans-Atlantic slave trade and the role of the United States in this, therefore making it easy for one to forget that Britain also profited greatly. Many of our current institutions were built off the backs of Black people and a large proportion of our corporations and individuals up until the year 2015 were also repaid by the UK government for the loss of their assets (slaves) following the abolition of the slave trade.

Looking within Islamic history, there has been a growing body of work outlining the problem of anti-black racism which was rife during the medieval period and has permeated to the present day.

For many contemporary Black Muslims, the problem of being at the intersection of blackness and Islam brings to the forefront many challenges. While the general Muslim ummah is efficient in identifying the islamophobia inflicted upon the community by foreign international forces, the same is not true for the racism that lies within. The issue when brought up is often ignored, belittled and in many cases arouses anger blaming the expression of such issues as divisive and hostile.

Islam, in the way the Prophet (pbuh) preached it, has historically been inseparable from social justice and this is a practice that has died out in specific relation to the plight of Black Muslims.
Justification of the study

"I'm for truth, no matter who tells it. I'm for justice, no matter who it's for or against" -Malcolm X

Black Muslim Forum (BMF), founded in 2018, was set up for one reason: to improve the conditions and circumstances for Black Muslims globally, addressing unmet social needs that are little tackled at societal or structural level. Over the past year, BMF received many comments from Black Muslims, detailing their lived experiences. It was noted that many of these Muslims felt silenced by the ummah, sharing feelings of disconnect and a lack of acknowledgement of the issues of discrimination and racism. This survey was conducted to provide concrete evidence and data on the issue of anti-blackness in the British Muslim community. Further to this, the study hopes to provide attainable and pragmatic recommendations and actions that can be implemented in the ummah by mosque leaders, education providers and parents alike.
Information on data collection
The survey used to collect the data for this study was an online survey created on Survey Monkey. The survey opened on 1 st June 2019 and closed on 31 st December 2019. The survey was shared privately to members of the UK Black Muslim community as well as on Black Muslim Forum website, Twitter, Instagram, the Somali Society of Brunel University, King's College Somali society, Sheffield Somali Society and Amaliah.com.

Once the survey closed, the data was analysed by BMF. Question 1 - "Do you identify as a Black Muslim living in Britain" - was used as a filter question. Participants who responded no to question 1 had their data removed from the study as they did not meet the study requirements.
Limitations of the study and further research
The main limitation to the study was the small number of participants. 100 participants experiences are not enough to make generalisations about the Black Muslim ummah.

Avenues for data collection could have excluded groups in so much as, due to the platforms used, many of the participants may have been younger or students, which may impact on their experiences. In the future, the study would be shared further, with special consideration placed upon collecting data from participants who may not have access to online studies.

Demographic information was not collected for this study as BMF was interested in qualitative experiences. Further research, with larger participants, would aim to collect the age, ethnicity, gender and location to allow for comparison to be made between these characteristics.

To ensure a greater collection of additional comments from participants, further research would mandatorily require all questions to be answered and commented on.
Results and analysis of data
As the data was analysed, lived experiences was an obvious theme throughout the data. Due to the questions asked by the survey, participants gave anecdotal stories about their lives as Black Muslims. The main issues experienced/discussed by participants within this theme were: Madrassah/Mosque, Anti-blackness, Culture and Marriage. The second theme the survey aimed to collect data on was action. Within the theme action, participants discussed awareness (of racism in the ummah) and education (for the ummah about the issues of race and racism).

Key theme: Lived experiences

"Islam is not a religion of empty laws and structures but one which points towards a higher ethical order."(Zaid Shakir).

The following questions asked participants to give details about their lived experiences:

1. According to the different headings, to what extent do you feel belong to the following communities: Local UK Mosque, UK ISOC/MSA, UK Muslim community?

2. Have you ever faced anti-black discrimination or colourism within a UK mosque or a religious setting?

3. Have you ever faced anti-black discrimination or colourism within a family setting?

4. Have you ever experienced anti-black discrimination or colourism in a secular setting in the UK?

5. Over the last year (2018), were you faced with an anti-black or colourist incident in the UK? If yes please enter the date with a rough estimate of the date and month if you do not remember.

Madrassah / Mosque
Participants mentioned several recurrent experiences. Being stared at in the mosque and made to feel self conscious was an experience that cropped up several times. Participants also experienced derogatory comments within religious settings stereotyping Black people as well as insinuations that they were not Muslim. Many participants were assumed to be reverts because of their skin colour and received patronising praise over basic actions such as making wudhu. Some participants altogether avoided the mosque as they felt as though they were not welcome. Many others outlined their experiences of attending madrassah's in the UK such as being called racist names, being told their skin is too dark and being made fun of as well as an instance where physical violence ensued (a Black Muslim madrassah student having a rock thrown at her eye by a racist bully at a predominantly Bangladeshi school). A participant also mentioned being told that her name - the Africanised version of the name Fatima is not from the Qur'an and should be changed. Others reported feeling invisible and being publicly humiliated in a religious setting such as a participant being neighed at in a Kurdish Mosque. One of the most striking comments was from a participant who reported racial segregation at a mosque whereby Black worshippers were commanded to pray at the back of the mosque.

It can be said in light of these comments that in many regards, the anti-black racism experienced in Muslim settings in the UK is on par with or even greater than what is experienced in a secular setting. Segregation and physical violence were amongst the most extreme manifestations of anti-black racism reported by participants that would not typically be reported in secular institutions such as state schools in the UK in 2020.
Anti-Blackness
Many respondents felt that the ummah is not aware of the problem of anti-blackness in the community: a problem area that needs to be tackled. Participants reported experiencing anti-black racism within religious, family and secular settings. One participant reported

" My first experience of overt anti black discrimination was when I was 4 years old in school in Exeter. Myself and my brother were the only two black kids at the school (possibly the only non-white) I spent break times being chased around the playground by a group of white boys telling me I wasn't allowed to play in "this part" of the playground. They were a few years older than me and would call me names like "poo" etc. This was back in 2002."

Similar reports of overt racism include being called a "nigger", being called "blick" and a "monkey".

Others reported more subtle forms of anti-black racism:

"Where I live (Stoke on Trent) this is inevitable. I experience this pretty often. Anti-black discrimination is one that I deal with at work (with other students) and it is done in a very passive aggressive way. Also when I express strong opinions on issues, I quickly get labelled as aggressive even though I'm not expressing them any differently than anyone else. I've been told my facial expressions "need working on". Because apparently when I don't smile, I just look angry."

Other subtle forms included being disregarded when speaking, being excluded and being stopped and searched by police.

The impact of anti-black racism in light of this evidence is manyfold. Not only does it manifest through overt forms but also in subtle but destructive patterns.

The main cultural issue that arose from the data was the importing of the colourist model from some South Asian and Arab countries to the UK where it has been superimposed onto the Muslim community here- the Black Muslim community bearing the brunt of it.

Secondly some participants spoke about the dominance of some South Asian and Arab cultures whereby those ethnic groups are interchangeably associated with being Muslim to the exclusion of Afro-Caribbean cultures where the latter cultures are viewed as inherently haram (impermissible).

Other issues that were prevalent among participant experiences was anti-blackness from Black Muslims themselves manifesting through colourist, texturist and featurist ideology. For example, one participant spoke of:

"Someone suggesting I should bleach my skin/perm my hair"

A central issue that arose was the issue of colourism and darker skinned Black Muslims being encouraged to bleach and lighten their skin. The upholding of lighter skin within the family structure was prevalent:

"My family and comm unity consider calling someone "lighty" a term of endearment and a symbol of beauty. They add it to names like Sarah Lighty etc and use it in place of darling or sweetheart etc."

And,

"My mum's side of the family is lighter in complexion naturally. I take my rich dark skin tone from my Dads side. I am constantly reminded that I "could have" been beautiful, had I been a bit lighter. My younger sister is a bit lighter and I always get compared to her looks wise. It's always, "if you were light like your sister you would be beautiful because you'll look like our side."

Several respondents mentioned difficulty in marriage because of the colour of their skin rooted in a family culture or from the culture of the wider Muslim community. This participant mentioned:

"Comments on my skin tone and hair texture growing up. Told not to marry someone darker than me and with tougher hair so I don't have children like that etc."

This demonstrates how unfortunately entrenched colourism and texturism is to the institution of marriage in the Muslim community. Other participants mentioned similar ideas about:

'Fairer brides being more acceptable and beautiful'.

Finally, a participant mentioned the overt racism within the rubric of marriage that she experienced first hand:

"Husband's aunt offered to find a wife for him when I was in the room (they are light skinned so are not interested in darker tones from their own country let alone anyone else). He pointed to me and said he has a wife and that she should concentrate on finding a husband for herself instead of being a racist."

These comments are striking but not at all surprising. Of all themes mentioned, it is common knowledge in the Muslim community that marriage is where the issue of anti-black racism is most prevalent.
Key theme: Actions

"Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to the people who prepare for it today."-Malcolm X

Question 7 specifically asked participants about their solution to the issue of racism and anti-blackness in the Muslim ummah:
"What changes do you think need to be made in both secular and religious settings to combat the problem of anti-black racism and colourism in UK society?"
Many felt more representation was needed. One participant cited the need for more Black leadership and role models in general, particularly in government. A large percentage of participants simply stated 'awareness' as a means to eliminate ignorance as well as honest and open dialogue for better mutual cultural understanding. Many cited the need for religious leaders and organisations to specifically outline how sinful it is to be racist or colourist and to raise awareness on the depth and prevalence of the issue across the Muslim community.

Respondents felt the need for more education within faith institutions reflecting the diversity of the British Muslim community. Respondents felt the need for wider education on the evil of anti-black racism especially colourism. One participant mentioned including the,

"Depiction of Muslims as more than one race. Racial education and the achievement of Black Muslims in Islamic centres, mosques and university societies"

Similarly many participants mentioned the need for the eradication of cultural hegemony in Islam:

"People need educating that not only Asian and Arabs are Muslim and that Black Muslims can also keep their cultures where it does not affect and impact on the deen."

Likewise another participant mentioned the need for:

"More diversity in masjids. More education so that people are not ignorant and become aware of this issue. Colouris[m] isn't the only issue as well. Texturism and featurism is also a form of anti-blackness so we need to consider those of all the spectrum and not exclude or ignore their experiences"

Participants mentioned this education could be delivered through workshops, lectures, media and sermons.
Conclusion
Black Muslim Forum was not surprised by the data as these are realities that have been experienced by Black Muslims across society frequently expressed in colloquial settings. Many respondents highlighted four key areas in their experiences of anti-blackness in British society: Mosque/Madrassah, Anti-Blackness, Culture and Marriage. According to the survey, 46 participants reported racist incidents over year 2018 alone.

What is most important to take away is that respondents also had suggestions for what should be done to improve those lived experiences. What came out most strongly was the need for further awareness raising and education for Black / non-Black Muslims and non-Muslims.

Despite the limitations to the scope of the study, BMF believes that the study has revealed deep rooted issues concerning anti-black racism within the Muslim community. Multiple participants spoke of the subtle, and overt racism they had been subjected to in the ummah and the vast majority of commentators spoke of the need for awareness raising and education. Black Muslim Forum plans to address this with, not only this report, but a series of resources that can be used by faith leaders, educators and families.

Appendix 1 - Survey Questions

Do you identify as Black and Muslim living in Britain?

According to the different headings, to what extent do you feel belong to the following communities: Local UK Mosque, UK ISOC/MSA, UK Muslim community?

Have you ever faced anti-black discrimination or colourism within a UK mosque or a religious setting?

Have you ever faced anti-black discrimination or colourism within a family setting?

Have you ever experienced anti-black discrimination or colourism in a secular setting in the UK?

Over the last year (2018), were you faced with an anti-black or colourist incident in the UK? If yes please enter the date with a rough estimate of the date and month if you do not remember.

What changes do you think need to be made in both secular and religious settings to combat the problem of anti-black racism and colourism in UK society?

"They had the audacity to ask me if I was Muslim, when they saw me - a black woman in niqab" - Experiences of Black British Muslims
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"They had the audacity to ask me if I was Muslim, when they saw me - a black woman in niqab" - Report on the experiences of Black British Muslims

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This report has been conducted for the sole purpose of improving the condition of Black people to further unite the British Muslim Ummah. Black Muslim Forum Report 2020 Executive Summary 100 self-identified Black Muslims were surveyed between June and December 2019Participants were asked 7 questions: 4 multiple choice, 3 long answerData was analysed and divided...

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Google Drive full of resources & material

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Full book pdf

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5 Ways of Understanding Black Lives Matter

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5 Ways of Understanding Black Lives Matter

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Frank Leon Roberts, Cynthia Erivo, and Ledisi - Youtube Video

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"5 Ways of Understanding Black Lives Matter": Frank Leon Roberts, Cynthia Erivo, and Ledisi

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Hassan Mahamdallie, Director of the Muslim Institute, considers recent archival finds uncovering the stories of men and women from black and Asian people in Britain, including 2000 photographic records.

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There are two complimentary foundation texts for those interested in the history of black and Asian people in Britain. One is Peter Fryer's Staying Power: The History of Black People in Britain; and the other is Rozina Visram's Ayahs, Lascars and Princes: Indians in Britain, 1700-1947.

Both books were published in the mid-1980s by the radical Pluto Press, and provided 'historical ammunition' at that time to a generation of activists from African, Caribbean and Asian backgrounds, and their allies who were fighting against racism and for civil rights. Fryer and Visram's work, meticulously researched through archival material and obscure records of all sorts, constructed a neglected but significant strand of 'our island story' going back centuries.

Those protesting against being cast as foreigners who had no past and no right to be considered British, were energised by reading that Georgian London had a thriving free black population; that the 19th century London Chartists were led by William Cuffay, the disabled son of a slave; and the Suffragist movement included radical women of South Asian descent such as direct-action veteran Sophie Duleep Singh. These episodes and individuals raised black and Asian peoples above having a mere presence in Britain, into the realm of having been active contributors to its history, society and culture.

Aspects of this history have often emerged from unexpected sources. In 2004, working on an art education project in South-East London, I learned that Dr Andrew Bamji at Queen Mary's Hospital in Sidcup had an archive of case-notes of wounded First World War soldiers who had undergone pioneering plastic surgery by surgeon Harold Gillies. These included photographs, notes and X-rays of many African and South and East Asian colonial soldiers sent to Queen's Hospital (as it was then) after suffering extensive facial injuries - for example having their faces shot away by shell-fire. I also interviewed a Somali sailor living in a retired seaman's hostel in East London, who held me spellbound with yarns of his time in the British merchant navy in the 1940s.

Since the 1980s, for various reasons other identities have come to the foreground, particularly religious ones. The history of Muslims in Britain is now a thriving branch of inquiry and has begun to deepen our understanding of the dynamic between Britain and Islam and its followers. The impetus is very much the same as it was in the 1980s - to prove that a specific group considered outsiders has been an integral part of the warp and weft of British society for a very long time.

Following in the footsteps of Fryer and Visram are historians busy working through archives to piece together the British 'Muslim narrative'. The recent discovery in the National Maritime Museum of 2000 photographic records of Bangladeshi ships' cooks in its archives is an important part of this quest. The hidden story of the 'Lascars' pioneered 30 years ago by Rozina Visram is now being brought fully to life. Names and faces come into focus; origins, personal accounts, individual voices and specific events add often surprising dimensions to what we already know.

The work of the NMM in reassessing the historical record of lascars is of intense interest to the fellows of the Muslim Institute, of which I am director. The Institute is a free-thinking organisation dedicated to expanding critical dialogue and deeper understanding between Muslims and wider society.

Today all Muslims, particularly in the West, are trying to navigate between various rocks and hard places. It is good to know that those that came before have also been on this voyage, have also been beset by challenges on the way, but have ultimately weathered the storm. We are indebted to the NMM for extending an invitation to the Muslim Institute to take part in the study day on 10 September and play a small role in uncovering our shared maritime history.

By Hassan Mahamdallie, Director of the Muslim Institute
Muslims at Sea: From Barbary Pirates to Brick Lane, 10 September 2016
Find out more about The Gillies Archives from Queen Mary's Hospital, Sidcup

More about the Muslim Institute

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Uncovering a history of black and Asian people in Britain

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Hassan Mahamdallie, Director of the Muslim Institute, considers recent archival finds uncovering the stories of men and women from black and Asian people in Britain, including 2000 photographic records of Bangladeshi ships' cooks in the archives of the National Maritime Museum.

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The Islamic History Project is an initiative founded on the belief that through reviving our connection to Islamic history we can empower Muslims of today

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Europe's Islamic Past

Europe's Islamic past is a detailed history of Islam's relationship with Europe from as early as 700 AD. The series goes through the influence Al Andalus had on the rest of Europe, Muslims in the Victorian era, and Shaykh Abdullah Quillium's establishment of the first revert Muslim community in Liverpool. The series also covers topics such as Britain's colonial legacy overseas, racism and current attitudes towards Muslims living in Britain.

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Al Andalus Series

Listen to an in depth explanation of the history of Al Andalus, a golden era of Islamic civilization that carried Europe out of darkness and into the enlightenment. This series goes through the success of the Muslims in the field of science, medicine, architecture and scholarship. This series includes great discussions from our guest speakers who draw upon the lessons of Al Andalus and how they can be applied in today's context.

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Europe's Islamic Past Europe's Islamic past is a detailed history of Islam's relationship with Europe from as early as 700 AD. The series goes through the influence Al Andalus had on the rest of Europe, Muslims in the Victorian era, and Shaykh Abdullah Quillium's establishment of the first revert Muslim community in Liverpool.

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A project curated by Dr Kayla Renée. The goal of this project is to provide teachers, professors, researchers, journalists, and people interested in learning more about Islam with resources on Black Muslims.

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Everyday Muslim - Black Heritage Project

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Everyday Muslim - Black Heritage Project

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This is the first archive collection based on the stories and memories of the Black, African and Afro – Caribbean (BAAC) Muslim community in Britain.

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This is the first archive collection based on the stories and memories of the Black, African and Afro - Caribbean (BAAC) Muslim community in Britain. Focused on London, the collection is gathered by recording oral history interviews, collecting photographs, documents. Additionally, a research aspect, explores, archives to develop the first representation of the community from a historical perspective.

The project spans three generations, providing valuable witness testimony of the ways in which the community have sought to maintain their religion, culture, heritage and identity in London.

The hidden histories recorded here include information on changes to daily life for London's British Black Muslims based on the themes of childhood, work-life, dress,culture/faith and celebrations. As well as, emphasising the diversity of cultures and nationalities that form the Black Muslim community.

The full archive collection will be available at the George Padmore Institute, from early 2019 with a selection accessible at Brent Museums and Archives.

We have worked closely with the community since 2015. A consultation group was set-up inviting community members from a variety of backgrounds to advise on every aspect of the project. This included the name for the project, setting interview questions, suggesting interviewees for the oral history recordings, exhibition ideas and planning events and our symposium; An Exploration of Black Muslims in British History and Heritage, March 2017.

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Exploring the Diversity of Black British Muslim Heritage in London

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This is the first archive collection based on the stories and memories of the Black, African and Afro - Caribbean (BAAC) Muslim community in Britain. Focused on London, the collection is gathered by recording oral history interviews, collecting photographs, documents. Additionally, a research aspect, explores, archives to develop the first representation of the community from a historical perspective.

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'Black and Muslim in Britain', an award winning online series of videos exploring stories and dialogue around being Black and Muslim in Britain.