Exclusive: The Lynching of Hamza Yusuf

….by Hanan al-Harbi

Shaykh Hamza Yusuf is a scholar of Islam and a popular preacher who has helped disseminate traditional, mainstream, spiritual Islam, and actively opposed fundamentalism, literalism, and extremism. He is also an accomplished college administrator.

And although, like myself, he has many human shortcomings and is not above criticism, he deserves recognition for his service to Islam and Muslims. So, despite our differences, I speak truth and stand for justice so much so that I would not hesitate to defend Shaykh Hamza if he were subject to injustice. And that moment has come.

If the New Year is synonymous with resolutions, many Muslims evidently did not commit to avoid slander, libel, and defamation of character when responding to some of the comments that Shaykh Hamza Yusuf made at the Reviving the Islamic Spirit Conference in December of 2016.

The year ended, and the year began, with a storm of controversy that was supposedly spurred on by the observations made by the white American Sunni Muslim scholar on the Black Lives Matter movement and Radical Political Islam. It was a storm in a teacup that spoke more of the stereotypes and racism of the critics than the views of Hamza Yusuf. What exactly did the Shaykh say on December 23, 2016? I let him speak for himself:

“The United States is, in term of its laws, one of the least racist societies in the world. We have some of the best anti-discriminatory laws on the planet… We have between 15-18,000 homicides a year, 50 per cent are black on black crime… There are twice as many whites that have been shot by police but nobody ever shows those videos. It’s the assumption that the police are racist and it’s not always the case… I think it’s very dangerous to just broad stroke any police that shoots a black as immediately being considered a racist, sometimes these are African American police officers. The police aren’t all racist.”

Hamza Yusuf also added that:

“We should all be against any ideologies of supremacy of one people over another people, it’s completely antithetical to our religion but we have some of the worst racism in our own communities… the anti-Jewish rhetoric that you hear in the Islamic community is horrific… do you know what it’s like to be a Pakistani in a lot of the Gulf States or from India or from Kerala even worse? People talk about white privilege, what about Arab privilege over non-Arabs in the Middle East?”

He criticized Muslims who “have turned Islam into a political ideology.” He said that most of Islam has nothing to do with politics. He explained that groups like the Muslim Brotherhood, Hizb al-Tahrir and al-Qaedah were a reaction to political expression rooted in the corruption of Islamic doctrine. He also claimed that Yasir Qadhi was a source of division among Muslims.

In his unwarranted and unnecessary response to unmerited criticism, Shaykh Hamza Yusuf apologized for criticizing Qadhi, explained that he had no desire to belittle the struggle of African American people against racism, and asserted that he did not believe that the Muslim Brotherhood spawned al-Qaedah. What is more, he stressed that he did not want to see supporters of the Muslim Brotherhood persecuted for their political beliefs.

Shaykh Abdullah Hakim Quick responded by stating that:

“Muslim leaders in the Americas who do not recognize the systematic subjugation and continued suppression of black people in the West and do not speak clearly against the organized racism that is raising its head today should step down and keep their mouths shut!!! They do not represent Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) in their cowardice and should stop blaming black People and Native People for their weak family structure or drug addiction. Stop victimizing the victims. Is their [sic] no blood in our veins or is it cold water? Are Muslims attending conferences to be entertained or to seek guidance? May Allah raise up courageous leadership from our people and protect us from hypocrisy!!!”

Dr. Jonathan AC Brown said that:

“Muslims in America should stand with Black Lives Matter, as should anyone who has a problem with an absurd number of unarmed men being shot with impunity. Not only is this a clear justice issue, but Muslims suffer from similar problems, and many Muslims are black! Muslims who don’t have the bandwidth to be supportive on this issue should remain silent on it… In short, white men should let African Americans speak for themselves and support them. They probably shouldn’t offer their opinions on issues regarding the African American community. We can sit and insult the ‘Muslim Brotherhood,’ whatever that means, till we’re good and happy. But to use ‘the Muslim Brotherhood’ in the same sentence with Isis, terrorism or extremism cannot be tolerated. It lends credence to the absurd policies advanced by the UAE/Sisi regime, which have led to the oppression, imprisoning, rape and torture of thousands in Egypt and elsewhere. In the US and Europe, it advances the UAE/Islamophobe agenda of criminalizing mainstream Muslim organizations.”

Ustadh Ubaydullah Evans, ALIM’s first Scholar-in-Residence and Executive Director, asserted that:

“Shaykh Hamza’s commenting on black on black violence and the breakdown of the black family in connection with the value of black life and police brutality is unacceptable. Someone must explain to my Shaykh that the fact of white privilege precludes the possibility of his being able to make such comments with any integrity.”

Imam Suhaib Webb alleged that Shaykh Hamza Yusuf dismissed

“the Black Lives Matter movement, police brutality against blacks in America, the racial bias in the criminal justice system in the US, sentencing guidelines, prison terms and a few other issues that, as a white man, he should address with extreme care.”

Dr. Su’ad Abdul Khabeer, Sakina Hasib, and Hakeem Muhammad accused Shaykh Hamza of pathologizing black people. Many critics discredited Hamza Yusuf on the basis that he was “white” and even called into question his title of “Shaykh.” What is more, he was openly accused of being a racist and a bigot. Did he deserve to be dragged in the dust? Let me consider the comments that he made.

Shaykh Hamza Yusuf claimed that “The United States is, in term of its laws, one of the least racist societies in the world.” According to the World Value survey, the most racially intolerant countries in the world, in order, include India, Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Vietnam, Indonesia, South Korea, France, Turkey, Bulgaria, Algeria, Morocco, Mali, Zambia, Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines, Bangladesh, and Hong Kong whereas the most tolerant countries include, in order, the United States, Canada, Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Guatemala, Britain, Sweden, Norway, Latvia, Australia, and New Zealand. In a combined study of two surveys published by the Washington Post, the ten most racist countries in the world included, in order, India, Lebanon, Bahrain, Libya, Egypt, the Philippines, Kuwait, Palestine, South Africa, and South Korea. The Shaykh is also correct when he states that the US has “some of the best anti-discriminatory laws on the planet.”

Shaykh Hamza Yusuf never alleged that there was no racism in the United States. The country has a long and shameful history of racism, segregation, discrimination, and injustice towards all those who were not White Anglo-Saxon Protestants. First Nations, Africans, French Canadians, Hispanics, Asians, the Irish, Italians, Jews, Catholics, and Muslims have all historically suffered injustice in America. The same, however, can also be said for poor White Anglo-Saxon Protestants who have been exploited, marginalized, and treated like trash. The Shaykh is also perfectly cognizant that the judicial system is not always just and that the correctional system fails to correct anything.

The Shaykh, who is well-traveled and well-educated about social issues throughout the world, is not naïve, narrow-minded, and fixated on the United States. His comments were the product of a global outlook. For hyper-sensitive self-centered individuals to claim that Hamza Yusuf was trivializing or minimizing the reality of racism in the United States, and the Western world, is utterly unfair. He was focusing on the big picture and exposing double standards.

Although Mehdi Hasan was aggressively trying to corner him, in the impolite, uncouth, insolent and disrespectful fashion that was popularized by Fox News, Shaykh Hamza Yusuf attempted to redirect the conversation toward reality:

“We have between 15-18,000 homicides a year, 50 per cent are black on black crime… There are twice as many whites that have been shot by police but nobody ever shows those videos. It’s the assumption that the police are racist and it’s not always the case… I think it’s very dangerous to just broad stroke any police that shoots a black as immediately being considered a racist, sometimes these are African American police officers. The police aren’t all racist.”

African Americans represent 13.3% of the population of the United States. Nonetheless, they have been responsible for more than half of homicides for nearly 30 years. As Department of Justice statistics show, blacks committed 52% of murders between 1980 and 2008. Caucasian Americans, however, committed 45 % of homicides while composing 77% of the population.

Black Americans commit crimes at a rate that is 7 to 10 times higher than white Americans. What is more, data shows that 93% of blacks are murdered by other blacks. (Conversely, 83 % of white victims are murdered by other whites). So, if Shaykh Hamza can be criticized for one thing, it is for underestimating the magnitude of black-on-black crime.

In the 1940s and 1950s, the rate of black crime was lower even though racism was deeply entrenched and institutionalized. There is not always a direct correlation between poverty, racism, and crime. The rate of Caucasian crime did not increase significantly during the Great Depression. Although the Irish were impoverished and forced into starvation by British imperialists, there was no notable spike in criminality.

Most rural, and many urban, French Canadians were poor during English-domination in Canada; however, their rate of crime was never disproportionately high. Many people of the world are far poorer than African Americans, have fewer opportunities, and suffer from far greater levels of persecution in the Americas, Asia, and Africa, yet do not turn to crime.

Shaykh Hamza Yusuf is correct when he makes a correlation between black crime and the breakdown of the family structure. If most African American children in the 1960s were born to two-parent households, in 2013, over 72% of them were born out-of-wedlock. Consequently, “structural racism” cannot be exclusively blamed for the disintegration of the African American family.

Capitalism does not compel African American men to fornicate, produce, and abandon illegitimate off-spring. It is a question of choice. Lack of morals, lack of ethics, lack of proper parenting, and lack of paternal engagement are largely responsible for producing a materialistic, hedonistic, and self-destructive underclass of African American men. Black illegitimacy is not driven by white racism.

A major theme in the message of Malcolm X, perhaps the greatest Muslim leader this country has produced, to the black community was: “Clean up your own back yard.” Black Americans need to stop using color as a crutch, perpetuating the blame game, and hold themselves accountable. White supremacy has been deeply damaging to people of color. The scars of slavery remain. And racism continues to rear its ugly head. However, African Americans are ultimately responsible for their own destiny. While it is a sin to oppress, it is a greater also a sin to remain oppressed when real steps toward self-liberation can be taken.

There is no doubt that African Americans have been oppressed. However, there is no doubt that certain African Americans consciously continue to oppress themselves. In short, some have failed to break the psychological chains of slavery. They need to show some pride and rise-up in righteous reform. Many have done so, and many have succeeded. Islam has specifically been a source of salvation for millions of African Americans.

Although it is almost entirely ignored by both the mass media and activists, Native Americans are the most likely to be killed by cops. African Americans come in second. Hispanics come in third. And Caucasians come in fourth. And while Americans of indigenous and African ancestry are shot at a rate that is 2.5 to 3% higher than Caucasian Americans, whites are also murdered at an alarming rate. In fact, American police officers kill more people in days than most other countries kill in years.

Shaykh Hamza Yusuf was not minimizing the murder of black men by police officers of all races, he was placing it in the broader context of police violence and brutality. And while racism certainly plays a critical factor in some cases, poor hiring practices and poor training also play a major role in how the police handle certain situations. Many police officers are not properly trained in conflict resolution, de-escalation, crisis management, mental health issues, psychological intervention, and non-lethal modes of subduing subjects.

As a man with a sense of justice and balance, Shaykh Hamza refused to stereotype all law enforcement officers. As he said straight out: “The police aren’t all racist.” While it cannot be denied that African American men are murdered by police officers at a disproportionate rate, it cannot be denied that African American men commit violent crimes at a disproportionate rate and murder police officers at a disproportionate rate.

When 43% of cop killers are African Americans, per FBI statistics, it should come as no surprise that some police officers fear for their lives when confronting black suspects. The idiotic constitutional right to bear arms, the sheer stupidity of conceal and carry laws, the massive supply of illegal weapons, and the culture of violence that dominates the media, cause police officers to be overly anxious and too quick to click the trigger. For some of them, it is better to shoot first than to get shot. Unfortunately, the fear of police on the part of African American men, the natural result of poor practices in law enforcement, produces  the same effect. The situation is dangerous and volatile and can only be resolved by means of a concerted and comprehensive strategy.

Despite the allegations of Shaykh Abdullah Hakim Quick, Shaykh Hamza Yusuf is well-aware of the subjugation and suppression of African Americans in the West and the reality of racism. Hence, calling Shaykh Hamza a coward and a hypocrite who does not represent the Messenger of Allah is truly unbecoming of a scholar.

As for accusing Shaykh Hamza of pathologizing black people, as done by Dr. Su’ad Abdul Khabeer, Sakina Hasib, and Hakeem Muhammad, this is simply slanderous, libelous, and scandalous.

Ubaydullah Evans describes black pathology as “the idea that black people are inherently incapable of thinking and behaving correctly and it is often used to explain away systemic racism.” While I may not agree with all his views and the manner he formulates them, I am quite confident that Shaykh Hamza does not believe that blacks are intellectually and morally inferior by nature.

The Shaykh was not generalizing. The Shaykh was not victim-blaming with the objective of trivializing the reality of racism and its ravages. He was simply promoting good, prohibiting evil, and reminding people that God does not change the condition of a people unless they change what is in themselves (Qur’an: 13:11).

As far as Evans is concerned, the accomplishments of Hamza Yusuf are inconsequential for, as he states, “he-is-still-white.” If white people cannot be objective due to their whiteness than black people cannot be objective due to their blackness. It is ironic that the people who accuse Shaykh Hamza of stereotyping blacks are themselves guilty of stereotyping whites.

While it is true that some white Americans blame disadvantaged blacks for the condition in which they find themselves, the same cannot be said of Hamza Yusuf. If anything, the Shaykh is concerned with the plight of African Americans and sincerely concerned about their condition.

The language used by Shaykh Hamza Yusuf is no different than the language used by W.D. Fard, Elijah Muhammad, and Malcolm X. Identifying symptoms does not imply that one ignores the underlying disease. Some African Americans are culturally sick (in the same way that some Caucasian Americans are culturally sick). Although history, upbringing, and environment can predispose people to certain diseases, their life-choices are also a significant contributing factor.

Slavery, racism, segregation, and discrimination have spread socio-political, economic, moral, and ethical illness among some African Americans. The system has much to blame. However, people affected by epidemics are also responsible for perpetuating them. If one opts to live a life of filth, it is pointless to blame germs for one’s poor health. America has oppressed many; however, many people have overcome oppression, Jewish Americans being the foremost example.

The mere fact that one is an Amerindian, for example, does not mean that one is condemned to repeat the cycle of poverty, abuse, and addiction. Opportunities may not be entirely equal; however, one would be hard pressed to find a country that offers more opportunities than the United States of America. Immigrants and refugees of all origins have arrived by millions over the centuries with nothing more than the clothes on their backs; however, with hard work, study, diligence, and determination, they achieved the American dream. In some cases, they succeeded in one generation. In others, it took several generations; however, they made the necessary sacrifices to ensure the long-term success of their descendants.

Dr. Jonathan AC Brown is correct that Muslims are required to stand for social justice. However, his claim that Shaykh Hamza is not supportive of the struggle of African Americans is not sound. To claim that whites cannot express their opinions on issues pertaining to blacks is as preposterous as claiming that blacks cannot express their opinions on issues pertaining to whites. And while Muslims are expected to support the struggles of the oppressed, they are under no obligation to support any specific movement especially when the so-called cure is worse than the disease. In short, they should be guided by their conscience.

BLM is unapologetically black. It affirms diversity, restorative justice, loving engagement, intergenerationality, globalism, black families, black villages, black women, collective value, and empathy. It also happens to be transgender affirming and queer affirming and is “committed to disrupting the Western-prescribed nuclear family.”

The founders of Black Lives Matter include Alicia Garza, a queer woman whose spouse is transgendered; Patrisse Cullors, another queer; and Opal Tometi, a Nigerian-American woman who explained in an interview with The Nation that “we are diligently uplifting black trans women and so the work on the ground in many places does reflect that.”

If Dr. Jonathan AC Brown, a white American Muslim academic and outspoken supporter of gay marriage and the Muslim Brotherhood sees no contradiction between LGBTQ activism and Radical Islamism, he is also ironically an apologist for slavery and sexual assault.

In fact, on February 7^th, 2017, Professor Brown delivered a lecture at Georgetown University titled “Islam and the Problem of Slavery” in which he affirmed that “I don’t think it’s morally evil to own somebody” and “[f]or most of human history, human beings have not thought of consent as the essential feature of morally correct sexual activity.” If this man is a moderate, what can we expect of the extremists?

When asked about “wrongs done by Arabs to other people,” Dr. Brown aggressively asserted that “the Prophet of God had slaves. He had slaves. There’s no denying that. Was he — are you more morally mature than the Prophet of God? No, you’re not.” In reality, rather than enslave, the Prophet Muhammad freed slaves. Anyone seeking clarity on this subject should read “An Islamic Response to ISIS Revival of Slavery” by Imam Abdul-Malik Mujahid (https://www.soundvision.com/article/an-islamic-response-to-isis-revival-of-slavery).

The version of Islam presented by Professor Brown is not that of the Prophet Muhammad: it is that of the Umayyads and the ‘Abbasids; it is the Islam of Ibn Taymiyyah, Muhammad ibn ‘Abd al-Wahhab, the Muslim Brotherhood, the Taliban, Hamas, Islamic Jihad, al-Qaedah, al-Shabab, Boko Haram, al-Nusrah, and ISIS. It is not Muhammadan Islam but the “Islam” of the enemies of Muhammad who usurped power after his passing.

The fact that Brown is the Director of the Prince Alwaleed bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding, a Saudi Arabian funded program, should not be lost on anyone. It suffices to say that Liberal degenerates and Islamist extremists make strange bedfellows.

According to Black Lives Matter, “Black people are intentionally left powerless at the hands of the state”… and “Black lives are deprived of … basic human rights and dignity.” If this is how BLM supporters feel, I suggest they study the history of Africa, the Middle East, or Asia to get a better appreciation of civil and human rights in the United States of America.

It was white men who proposed that all men were created equal. It was white men who eventually abolished slavery while African, Arab, and Asian Muslim leaders objected, insisting, in many cases, on continuing the practice well into the 20^th century. It was white men who created a country, a constitution, and laws that provide blacks, and all other citizens, with unparalleled rights and freedoms. Muslims stand with the oppressed but they must also stand for truth.

Black Lives Matter claims that “Black poverty and genocide is state violence.” BLM supporters should study the English language to understand that “genocide” is the attempt to physically exterminate members of a given group. Poverty is not genocide.

Black Lives Matter claims that the fact that 2.8 million black people are locked in cages in this country is state violence. In reality, there are approximately 2.3 million incarcerated criminals in the United States; 1 million of whom are African American. If whites are 64% of the American population, they represent 39% of prisoners. If blacks are 13% of the American population, they represent 40% of prisoners.

Imprisoning black criminals is no more state violence than imprisoning white criminals. The fact that blacks are given longer sentences for the same crimes as whites — entirely apart from the fact that they commit more crimes per capita – is indeed a form of “state violence.” Although African Americans tend to serve disproportionately longer sentences when compared to Caucasian Americans, it is delusional to describe them as “political prisoners.” Drug dealers, robbers, rapists, and murderers are not prisoners of conscience.

[ Editor’s Note: This is a long time held bogus contention, the racial disparity. It is done in the usual way that any psyops construct would use. You just only use the parts of the story that support where you want to go, and ignore everything else. Here the deal in on phrase, “enhanced sentencing guidelines”, that have been around for a long time.

This allows judges, usually on the federal level, to a sentence for a crime that has a range of imprisonment, say “25 years to life” for drug dealing. How much time a convicted felon gets is heavily influenced on the past criminal record, where unfortunately many black criminals excel, especially gangmembers and those in the drug business when they have a string of prior convictions.

Another example I remember from when California passed a statue where a third violent felony conviction would get you a life sentence. This was something designed to address the continued crimes done by “habitual offenders” when let out went back to their old ways. And yes, when they were not let go the violent felony crimes rates improved.

And lastly, most of the minority crimes numbers are pushed by the stats from black and hispanic young gang members. There are no white gangs of any consequence anymore other than some bikers. All of this  I have just covered is completely airbrushed out of the history, and there is more …Jim W. Dean ]

Many of the problems attributed to race by Black Lives Matter are really issues of class. The rate of criminality among poor whites is comparable to that among poor blacks. Address the issue of poverty, improve education, and increase opportunities among African Americans, and the level of crime will go down accordingly. Middle and upper-middle class African Americans do not commit any more crimes than middle and-upper middle class Caucasians.

The problems in question are not limited to blacks or whites. They impact society as a whole. Incarceration trends are alarming. Racial disparities in sentencing are disquieting. And while contributing factors need to be considered, there is a serious need for radical criminal justice reform in the United States. All Americans suffer as a result of systemic shortcomings. All Americans suffers from the injustices perpetuated by Capitalism.

Black Lives Matter claims that black women, children, and families are the victims of relentless state violence; that Black queer and trans folks bear a unique burden from a hetero-patriarchal society that disposes of them like garbage and simultaneously fetishizes them and profits from them; that “500,000 Black people in the US are undocumented immigrants and relegated to the shadows;” that “Black girls are used as negotiating chips during times of conflict and war;” and that blacks living with disabilities and different abilities bear the burden of state sponsored Darwinian experiments that attempt to squeeze them into boxes of normality defined by white supremacy.

The allegations made by Black Lives Matters are as deluded as they are demented. The philosophy of BLM is best described as political insanity and moral depravity. Most rational, fact-based, intellectually-minded readers would disagree with both the problems described and the solutions proposed. Black women, children, and families are not perpetually persecuted in the United States. Although 80% of LBBTQ murder victims are minorities, an argument can be made that Queer and trans folks of all colors are more oppressed by violent macho homophobic black male society than by white “hetero-patriarchal society.”

While it is confirmed that there are more than 400,000 illegal black immigrants in the United States, it is preposterous to blame the State for a plight they chose to impose on themselves when they could have applied to immigrate legally or seek refugee status. It is like the Moroccan saying, “He hit me and then he cried.” These illegal aliens break US immigration law and then blame the US. Moreover, illegal workers depress wages and hurts job prospects for African American men. According to Peter Kirsanow, a US Civil Rights Commissioner, “Black males are more likely to experience competition from illegal immigrants.”

As for “Black girls … used as negotiating chips during times of conflict and war,” what on earth does that have to do with the United States? Those are crimes committed by black Africans against black Africans. What is more, women of all colors are victimized during war. Unfortunately, Black Lives Matter cannot see beyond the surface. They care only about color and blame all evils on whites without given them credit of any kind for their accomplishments. Rather than speak of white supremacy, we should speak of black envy of white excellence.

As for the claim that the State subjects disabled African Americans to “Darwinian experiments,” these are the words of paranoid people who suffer from serious delusions. There is no doubt that scientific experiments were conducted on a small number of African Americans without their consent in the 20^th century; however, similar experiments were also conducted on American Indians, Caucasian Americans, and other communities.

Moreover, anyone who claims that black lives are “systematically and intentionally targeted for demise” in the United States requires a psychological assessment. America is not committing genocide against African Americans. At the very most, a segment of African American men are destroying themselves and their communities through self-destructive behavior.

Simply because some of its overarching goals are sound does not mean that Black Lives Matter should be blindly and uncritically supported by Muslims. In fact, the movement has been accused of racism and violence by people of all colors. BLM activists openly incite violence against law enforcement officers. BLM activists openly express racist anti-white sentiments.

Yusra Khogali, a co-founder of Black Lives, Toronto, Canada, wrote that “white skin is sub-human,” that “white people are recessive genetic defects.” She even tweeted a prayer in which she asked Allah to keep her from killing white people.

Liberals, however, have responded to such hate speech by stating that it was perfectly justifiable when placed in the context of “oppression.” What oppression? Canada did not play a part in the slave-trade. Canada has never been an imperial power. Canada was a refuge for African Americans who escaped from slavery. It is evident that racist bigots like Yusra Khogali live in alternate universes, spewing venom in echo chambers of hatred, prejudice, and stereotypes.

A simple search of social media reveals a long litany of violently racist rants made by BLM leaders and followers who encourage robbery, rape, and white genocide. Consequently, it comes as no surprise that many political players, both domestic and international, have described Black Lives Matter as an anti-white, racist, terrorist organization.

Muslims should indeed be opposed to anti-black racism; however, they should also be opposed to anti-white racism unless, of course, they are idiotic enough to believe the Zuckerberg-sponsored Google claim that black people cannot be racist because racism requires power and privilege. This same argument is used by BLM supporters who argue that the sexual assault of white women by black men cannot be described as rape since rape requires power and privilege.

The supporters of Black Lives Matter include Muslims who now find themselves without domestic patronage. They are those who sided with Hillary and the Democrats out of fear of Trump. They are the same ones who earlier made an unholy connection with Obama, which had as its subtext a tacit tolerance for ISIS, or at least a lack of any motivation to vigorously denounce the Takfiris, since it must have been known that Obama and/or the CIA were to a certain degree supporting them. The forces who covertly brought us ISIS presented a Liberal face in this country.

The notion that Black Lives Matter is a true grassroots liberation movement like the Civil Rights Movement was, not a case of social engineering by Liberal ideologues and funding-sources, is something the Liberals believe in religiously. So, it comes as no surprise that those Muslims who seek Black Lives Matter as a true expression of Black liberation also see the Muslim Brotherhood in the same way. In the same way that Black Lives Matter presents itself as liberation movement, the Muslim Brotherhood presented themselves as democratic freedom fighters while, at the same time, they were engaged in burning Coptic Churches, sexually assaulting women on the streets, and murdering Shiite scholars. Liberals have swallowed this duplicity hook, line, and sinker.

The Black Lives Matter movement is not a popular uprising. It is the beneficiary of over 100 million dollars in funding from liberal foundations, including, $33 million dollars in grants from George Soros through his Open Society Foundation. Despite the “good intentions” of some of its supporters — blacks, whites, Hispanics, Muslims, immigrants, and women — Black Lives Matter overtly espouses racist and violent views and employs subversive street thugs and professional provocateurs for the benefit of billionaire globalists.

Black Lives Matter has reduced an ideological, socio-political, philosophical, and economic conflict of world proportion to a racial conflict that pits blacks against whites. The real conflict, however, is between the 99% and the 1 percenters, between Humanity and Inhumanity, between God and the Devil, between the overwhelming population of the world of all races and religions and the secular globalist Satanists who hoard virtually all the wealth in the world. It is a battle of belief: a war of morals and values.

The leaders of BLM embody all the evils of the New World Order. If some morally-damaged and ethically-challenged “Muslims” wish to march behind Alicia Garza, Patrisse Cullors, Opal Tometi, and Yusra Khogali, they can follow them all the ways to the depths of Hell. As for myself, I will follow in the footsteps of the Prophet Muhammad for the lawful and the prohibited apply until the ends of times.

Crescent International, however, had the audacity to claim that “For someone in Hamza Yusuf’s position to belittle the Black Lives Matter movement is not only demeaning and racist, it is completely antithetical to the values of Islam and the Sunnah of the noble Messenger.” Other Muslims activists have asserted that “Black Lives Matters is our movement.” Such people are pawns of the global elites.

Although many Muslims are willing to leap like lemmings, many Christians, both African American and otherwise, have not been deceived by the dark side of Black Lives Matter. And while they oppose prejudice and police brutality, they refuse to cast their lot with gangs of criminals, rapists, racists, globalists, secularists, communists, anarchists, Islamists, abortionists, man-hating feminazis, and LGBTQ activists.

As for criticizing the Muslim Brotherhood, a movement with Freemasonic foundations that received funding from the British, many sober-minded scholars consider it more palatable than blindly defending them and thereby sharing in their shortcomings and sins. Scholars can view the world scene from above, analyzing all parties, without necessarily taking sides. Being critical of the Muslim Brotherhood does not imply that one is supportive of Sisi.

As uncomfortable as it made some Muslims feel, Shaykh Hamza Yusuf also made another poignant point:

“We should all be against any ideologies of supremacy of one people over another people, it’s completely antithetical to our religion but we have some of the worst racism in our own communities… the anti-Jewish rhetoric that you hear in the Islamic community is horrific… do you know what it’s like to be a Pakistani in a lot of the Gulf States or from India or from Kerala even worse? People talk about white privilege, what about Arab privilege over non-Arabs in the Middle East?

Many Muslims are fond of blaming others. Blame the West! Blame the Jews! Although the West is to blame for certain wrongs and Israel is to blame for certain wrongs, Muslims should stop simply pointing the finger and start blaming themselves. Am I victim shaming? Absolutely not. I am holding people accountable for their own action or inaction.

Racism, discrimination, prejudice, sexism, classism, bias, stereotypes, and misogyny are present, to varying degrees, in many Muslim communities. It comes across as acutely hypocritical for Muslim immigrants to criticize the shortcomings of the West without also criticizing the shortcomings of their countries of origin. What’s good for the goose is good for the gander. Many Muslims can dish it out criticism but they clearly cannot take criticism.

As for hurling around accusations of “white privilege,” it is quite often a manifestation of reverse racism employed by envious and indolent individuals who wish to blame their failures on others. Are white people privileged? Some of them are: economically, socially, and educationally. Are all Caucasians the beneficiaries of “white privilege?” Certainly not. Economically-disadvantaged whites and working class whites may have some advantages over African-Americans who suffer from the same challenges, however, they do not get a free pass. In most cases, white success is not privilege: it is earned.

Apart from the globalist elite, all human beings are victims of the savage capitalistic system. In fact, it thrives by turning blacks against whites, whites against blacks, Muslims against Muslims, and non-Muslims against Muslims. The very concept of “white privilege” has been called into question by academics as a racist construct that confounds color with social class. Although I would certainly not encourage Muslims to side with the extreme right-wing, they should seriously reconsider siding with radical leftist liberals and secularists and their degenerate social agenda.

As for his assertion that Islamists have turned Islam into a political ideology, Shaykh Hamza Yusuf is absolutely in the right. He has enough knowledge and sense of history to recognize that “Islamism” is not Islam; it is a gross overemphasis on the political components of Islam.

Shaykh Hamza Yusuf knows full well that politics play an important role in Islam and that the quest for social justice is at the center of the faith; however, he also recognizes that the heart of Islam is spiritual. He knows, as any scholar does, that most of Islam revolves around moral and ethical development as opposed to the struggle for political power. He understands that Islam is to be built bottom up and that Allah does not change he condition of a people until they change what is in themselves.

Islam did not start with a State: it started with personal development and the quest for social justice. It was only after he built bona fide believers that the Prophet set out to establish a physical government. And despite Evans claims to the contrary, the Messenger of Allah did admonish the oppressed for their sins by promoting the good and forbidding the wrong.

Shaykh Hamza Yusuf is perfectly justified to criticize groups such as the Muslim Brotherhood, Hizb al-Tahrir, and al-Qaedah. At the same time, he is certainly cognizant that there is a huge difference between the Ikhwan al-Muslimin and Daesh. If Mehdi Hasan had sufficiently good manners and etiquette, I am convinced that Shaykh Hamza could have articulated his case more clearly. Unfortunately, and thankfully, the Shaykh does not speak in sound-bytes.

The Muslim Brotherhood may be “moderate” when compared to the likes of ISIS, but so are al-Qaedah and al-Nusra; however, there is no denying that many Ikhwanis have filled the ranks of ISIS in Libya, Tunisia, Egypt, Syria, and Iraq. There is no denying that the Ikhwan al-Muslimin legitimized the excommunication of Muslims in modern times. And there is no denying that Ayman al-Zawahiri, Osama ben Laden, and Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi are all the excrement of the Muslim Brotherhood.

The Muslim Brotherhood can be compared to marijuana, al-Qaedah to crack cocaine, and ISIS to meth. However, there is no denying that Salafism, in even its moderate forms, is the gateway drug to the most brutal, barbaric, and Satanic forms of Takfirism.

Should association with the Muslim Brotherhood be criminalized? Not any more than association with the Democratic and Republican Parties should be. (By the same token, criminal actions by members of any of these groups should not be ignored). Islamist movements form a spectrum ranging from relatively mild and benign social activists to straight-out psychopaths. Persecuting more moderate Islamists will only push people into the camp of the most extreme of extremists.

And rather than prosecuting partisans of Islamist groups based on guilt by association, how about going after those who created them in the first place? Whether it is the Muslim Brotherhood, the Afghan Mujahidin, the Taliban, al-Qaedah, Hamas, the GIA, al-Nusrah or ISIS, all so-called “Radical Islamists” and “Muslim” terrorists have received support from the enemies of Islam and their allies.

As for Yasir Qadhi, since when did he become infallible and unassailable? He is a man of no academic or scholarly importance with a long history of supporting Salafism and making inflammatory statements about Shiites. A cause of conflict and division among Muslims? You are damn right that he is.

Like all human beings, Shaykh Hamza Yusuf has no shortage of flaws. For some, he comes across as arrogant. For others, he has the warmth of a cactus. Be that as it may, the man is certainly not a racist, a bigot, or an unconscious and unavowed white supremacist. If he can be blamed for anything it is with surrounding himself with snakes for decades, false friends and hypocritical colleagues who turned on him treacherously like a pack of hyenas instead of engaging in dignified damage control and duly-deserved defense. And Allah knows best.

Hanan al-Harbi lives a life of solitude, prayer, and contemplation in Greenland, in a cave warmed by thermal springs, where she awaits with impatience the return of Imam Muhammad al-Mahdi and the Messiah, Jesus Son of Mary. 

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