Why Muslims must join America’s growing immigration movement
Perspectives :: 3014
Why
Muslims must join America’s growing immigration movement By
Abdul Malik Mujahid
You may have been caught off guard by the intense,
well-attended rallies across the country that have taken place in the last few
weeks in support of undocumented immigrants.
Attendees were protesting
against Senate Bill HR4437 that would have criminalized not only these
immigrants, but anyone who helped them, including families, churches, employers
and others.
The mobilization over this issue has fired up the 40
million-strong Latino-American community, which is now the country’s largest
minority and represents the bulk of undocumented workers. But Muslims need to be
fired up about it too.
Why this is
important for Muslims
After the 9/11 terror attacks, Muslims were
detained, harassed, fingerprinted and deported. At least half a million Muslims
have been affected in some manner by these measures.
What is critical
to note though, is that Muslims who were undocumented, whether as workers,
students or in any other capacity, became subject to many of these harsh
tactics. It was noted during fishing expeditions for “Muslim terrorists” that
even having an expired visa became an excuse for many Muslim men to be subjected
to detainment and subsequent deportation. Undocumented status became a handy
reason to punish Muslims, who were deemed guilty for 9/11 by association.
While some Muslims have launched legal challenges against their unjust
treatment, they are the minority. Most have chosen to suffer in silence.
This growing movement is not just about undocumented laborers. Nor is
it solely the concern of the Latino community. It is about all of us, whether we
are immigrants ourselves or their children and grandchildren.
This is
about fairness, dignity and an end to the hypocrisy that ignores illegal
immigration when it’s convenient, but chooses to crack down harshly on it when
it’s expedient.
It is also about respect for all, including green card
holders, who still sense that their status is shaky at best unless they choose
to become US citizens. It’s about ensuring that those permanent residents who do
choose to become citizens are made so in a timely manner. Currently, there are
reports by Muslims and non-Muslims of years of backlog and delays to their
obtaining citizenship, even when all of the rules have been obeyed, the
paperwork completed and fees paid.
Most importantly, a fair system will
ensure the protection of civil rights for all people.
What Muslims must do on a practical level
First,
Muslims must reach out to and work with the Latino community, which is at the
forefront of this movement. This means attending rallies, writing, speaking and
financially supporting the cause in order to establish that this is an issue of
justice for all immigrant communities. And America is a nation of immigrants,
the majority of whom arrived on its shores undocumented, from the European
Pilgrims to African slaves to today’s Mexican day laborers.
Second,
Muslims must help bridge the gap that has developed on this issue between
African-Americans and Latinos. While the Black Congress and a number of
African-Americans have offered their support to Latinos, others feel threatened
by the fact that African-Americans are no longer the country’s largest minority.
A number also believe that Latinos are stealing jobs. This tension is becoming a
barrier in the fight for justice.
One-third of American Muslims are
African-American and a growing number are Latino. The Muslim community,
especially its African-American and Latino subsets, are in a unique position to
dialogue and help bridge the gap that is unnecessarily hindering
African-American support for this cause.
Muslims failed to successfully
launch a movement for their rights post-9/11. Today, we have a golden
opportunity to work with those who have started the second civil rights movement
when we should have. We must become part of this cause today, before we watch
our rights, the rights of our children and the rights of all suffer.
Join May 1st March in
Chicago
More than 200,000 Latinos and others will be
marching.
Date: Monday, May 1, 2006, Noon
Location:
Thompson Center 1- 3 PM Thompson Center (100 W. Randolph, Chicago)
More
Info: To arrange buses from your mosque to the rally contact the Council at
(312) 506.0070. council@ciogc.org
All Masjids and schools are mobilizing
thousands of Muslims for May 1st. Volunteer and Donate by calling the Council at
(312) 506.0070. Flyers and posters available.
Printed from the Council of Islamic Organizations of Greater Chicago website (www.ciogc.org).
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