The following message was menat for the list, but was actually accidentally
sent to the original poster. My apologies. I do not know why Outlook
Express did that. Usually when I hit reply, it sends it to the list and not
the sender.
Anyway, sorry about that.
Ginny
Hello, Gambia-L,
This message is very interesting, and as I was reading it, I had some
thoughts... First of al, it does not surprise me that the FBI has gone
after this man. If you look at the FBI's relationship with groups such as
the Black Panther Party, leaders of the Civil Rights Movement such as Martin
Luther King, Jr., and even in recent times The Branch Davidians of Waco, it
is clear that they do not take kindly to anything that seems to threaten the
status quo.
As far as Imam Jamil Al-Amin is concerned, it would appear that the FBI
seems to have more of a desire to "get" this man, as it were, than for any
sense of justice. It seems to me that they can only see him as he once was,
and they still, I think, consider him an enemy to the government.
I guess what I am saying is that this whole thing does not surprise me.
It would seem that if you do not fit in to what it means to be "an American"
I.E., follows the laws of this country, and does not question authority
under any circumstances. Well, I'm not sure if that is even it. I am just
trying to say that I think that law enforcement targets people who do not
follow the "American" idea of things, which really, there isn't a clear
definition of.
Anyway, as I was saying this does not surprise me, considering that we
live in a country where a man (Diallo) can be shot for reaching into his
pocket for his wallet. I tall goes back to whom government and law
enforcement in particular views as detrimental to soceity and their ideals.
Obviously, even now, there are people in this country who feel that people
like Imam Jamil Al-Amin, are a threat to their way of life.
Anyway, I am going to go now. I am having one of those moments where I
feel I'm running in circles and not getting anything accomplished. I am
just saying that I had a feeling when I first heard this on TV that there
was more to this, and it makes me sad that some groups of peple have to live
in fear of the law because they live thier lives somewhat different from
others. And we think this is a free country?!
Ginny
----- Original Message -----
From: "Habib Ghanim, Sr" <
[log in to unmask]>
To: <
[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Friday, March 24, 2000 12:04 AM
Subject: Imam Jamil Al Amin- a true picture
> n the Name of Allah, Most Beneficent, Most Merciful
>
> THE PEACE AND JUSTICE FOUNDATION
> 8604 Second Avenue, PMB 173
> Silver Spring, Md. 20910
>
> special note: While the length of this e-mail (approx. 3 pages) may pose
> a
> minor inconvenience to some, I believe you will find the subject matter
> worth
> it. Its purpose is to counter the deluge of negative and false
> propaganda.
> Most of you receiving this, for a variety of reasons, will not be able
> to
> attend the forum later tonight in Maryland; and thus, your receiving
> this is
> the next best thing. For those interested, audiotape(s) will be produced
> from
> this evening's forum, and will be available tomorrow. Just send a
> contribution of any amount, payable to The Peace And Justice Foundation,
> and
> we will send you a copy of what we produce. (Please be as generous as
> you
> can.)
> A Fact Sheet on Imam Jamil Al-Amin
>
> Imam Jamil Abdullah Al-Amin was born Hubert Gerold Brown, the youngest
> of
> three
> children, in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, on October 4, 1943. He acquired the
>
> nickname â€oRapâ€? from the streets (growing up) as a result of his
> impressive
> dexterity with language, combining keen intellect with blunt coarseness.
>
> He attended Southern University from 1960-64. In 1964, he moved to
> Washington, DC, and became politically involved in the Student
> Nonviolent
> Coordinating Committee (SNCC). In May 1967, at the age of 23, H. Rap
> Brown
> was elected chairman of SNCC, succeeding Stokely Carmichael.
>
> In July 1967, he addressed a civil rights rally in Cambridge, Md., a
> small
> town on the eastern shore. Brown arrived late, and from the hood of a
> car
> gave a customary fiery address (later described by authorities as,
> â€oinciting
> the people to riot.�) After he spoke, a young woman requested an
> escort
> home. As Brown and two others escorted her up the street, assailants
> opened
> fire on them from bushes nearby. (Years later, reflecting upon that
> incident,
> Imam Al-Amin would remark, â€oWe found out later the gunmen were black
> policemen.�) After the shooting there was a lot of commotion in the
> streets
> which quickly escalated into a riot.
>
> Two days after the explosion in Cambridge, Brown was arrested by FBI
> agents at
> Washington, DCâ€Ts, National Airport and charged with unlawful flight to
> avoid
> prosecution. Three weeks later, the State of Maryland charged him with
> inciting a riot.
>
> By 1968, much of SNCCâ€Ts leadership had merged into the Black Panther
> Party for
> self defense, which had been organized in Oakland, California, by Huey
> P.
> Newton and Bobby Seale; Brown would become the organizationâ€Ts Minister
> of
> Justice.
>
> In 1969 Brownâ€Ts first book was published entitled, Die Nigger Die!
> (publ.,
> Dial Press). The central premise of this book can be found in the
> following
> excerpt: â€oI lived near Louisiana State University, and I could see
> this big
> fine school with modern buildings and it was for whites. Then there was
> Southern University, which was about to fall in and that was for the
> niggers.
> And when I compared the two, the message that the white man was trying
> to get
> across was obvious...Die Nigger Die.�
>
> Brown went underground before trial on the Cambridge (Md.) charges and
> made
> the FBIâ€Ts most-wanted list; he resurfaced near the scene of a holdup
> (a bar)
> and shootout in New York City in 1971. Consequent to this, he would
> serve
> five years in prison. In prison he would embrace Islam, and begin his
> transformation from H. Rap Brown to Jamil Abdullah Al-Amin.
>
> A New Focus in Life
>
> Paroled from prison in 1976, he moved to Atlanta, Georgia, opened a
> community
> store and became the Imam (leader) of the Atlanta Community Mosque.
>
> While H. Rap Brown was known for his fiery rhetoric and in your face
> confrontation, Jamil Al-Amin was known as a quiet, mild-mannered,
> stabilizing
> force in Atlantaâ€Ts West End community. In the words of 73 year old
> Hattie
> Stegall, â€oI never saw him angry. When someone would die in my family,
> he
> would come by and offer his hand. And when the Muslim children would
> fight my
> grandchildren, he would make them come to me and apologize.�
>
> Iman Jamil would grow to lead a national community of Muslims, with
> members
> scattered around the US and Caribbean.
>
> When Jamil Abdullah Al-Amin moved into Atlantaâ€Ts West End, it was
> reportedly
> a crime ridden section of the city known for prostitution and drug
> proliferation. Under Imam Al-Aminâ€Ts leadership, Muslims led a
> renaissance
> which has resulted in the West End becoming a source of pride for the
> city of
> Atlanta. Despite this, however, the Imamâ€Ts past coupled with his
> [Islamic] ori
> entation would serve as a lightning rod for additional struggle.
>
> On August 7, 1995, Imam Jamil Al-Amin was arrested in connection with
> the
> July shooting of a young man who was pressured by authorities into
> identifying Al-Amin as his assailant. Even members of Atlantaâ€Ts
> Police
> Department openly expressed amazement when agents of the FBI, the
> FBIâ€Ts
> Domestic Counterterrorism Task Force and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco
> and
> Firearms became involved in a case that the police themselves described
> as â€oa
> routine aggravated assault.� The charges were later proved unfounded
> and
> dropped.
>
> A few months ago, Al-Amin was stopped by police and charged with
> possessing
> stolen goods (an auto), driving without insurance, and impersonating an
> officer. He borrowed the car from a friend of his who operated a car
> lot, and
> who later (or so it was thought) resolved the issue of it being a stolen
>
> auto, operated without insurance. The badge that police discovered - in
> the
> process of checking his wallet for identification - was given to him by
> the
> mayor of the town of Whitehall, Al., where Imam Jamil (along with
> members of
> his community) initiated a community project. He was made an honorary
> member
> of the townâ€Ts police force; and the
> mayor of the town confirmed this in a letter to Georgian authorities.
>
> Instead of dropping the charges, in light of these mitigating
> circumstances,
> the prosecutor notified Al-Aminâ€Ts attorney that his office intended to
> pursue
> charges, with the caveat that a deal could be worked out where Imam
> Al-Amin
> would â€oonly spend six monthsâ€? in jail. Imam Al-Aminâ€Ts position was
> that he
> did nothing wrong, and so he rejected the â€odeal.â€? When the trial
> date came
> around, Imam Al-Amin refused to cooperate (show up); as a consequence a
> bench
> warrant was issued for his arrest.
>
> On Thursday, March 16, as Muslims around the world were in the process
> of
> celebrating the most important holiday in the Muslim calender (Eid
> ul-Adha),
> two sheriff deputies attempted to serve a warrant that was reportedly
> issued
> months earlier. One deputy was killed, the other injured; Imam Jamil
> Al-Amin
> was accused of being the assailant, and became a fugitive until his
> arrest on
> Monday, March 20th, in the State of Alabama by federal authorities.
>
> On Tuesday, March 21, a press conference, sponsored by a number of
> national
> Muslim organizations, was held at the offices of the Council on
> American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) in Washington, DC. A prepared
> statement
> read in part: â€oWe are not here today to judge the guilt or innocence
> of any
> party to this tragic series of events. Just as we do not prejudge, we
> ask
> that others wait until all the facts are known. In America, as in Islam,
>
> anyone accused of a crime is innocent until proven guilty... Finally, we
> make
> note of a past incident in which Imam Jamil was apparently falsely
> accused of
> a similar, though far less serious crime. At that time, the alleged
> victim
> recanted and claimed that he was pressured by the authorities to
> name Imam Jamil as the perpetrator.�
>
> Final Thoughts
>
> For more than two decades, Imam Jamil Abdullah Al-Amin has been one
> of
> the most respected leaders in the U.S., a man whose prominence
> transcends the
> Muslim community in America. From his years of involvement in the
> struggle
> for change in America during the 60s and 70s as H â€oRapâ€? Brown -
> first with
> the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), and later with the
>
> Black Panther Party for Self-Defense - to his embrace of Islam and
> transition
> to Jamil Abdullah Al-Amin in 1976, he has been committed to the struggle
> for
> justice and the liberation of
> the oppressed.
> The media and law enforcement community has consistently portrayed
> him as
> a violence prone â€oBlack Pantherâ€? (regurgitating a quote which,
> unfortunately, still holds true: â€oViolence is as American as cherry
> pie.�).
> No doubt, when the time for Imam Jamil's trial comes around, we will
> hear
> repeated references to his Black Panther past - as was the case in the
> trial
> of the award-winning journalist (on death row in Pennsylvania) Mumia
> Abu-Jamal.
> An excerpt, however, from Imam Jamil Al-Aminâ€Ts last book
> (Revolution: By
> The Book, publ., 1993 by Writerâ€Ts Inc.), is a far more representative
> reflection of the man he is today. In it he writes:
> â€oIt is criminal that, in the 1990s, we still approach struggle [by]
> sloganeering...saying, â€~by any means necessary,â€T as if thatâ€Ts a
> program. Or,
> â€~we shall overcome,â€T as if thatâ€Ts a program. Slogans are not
> programs. We
> must define the means which will bring about change. This can be found
> in
> [what] Allah has brought for us in the Qurâ€Tan and in the example of
> the
> Prophet (pbuh). Our revolution must be according to what Almighty God
> revealed.
> â€oThe struggle is an ongoing process...When the first slave
> rebelled
> against being a slave, he gave an alternative to slavery that has been
> built
> upon until now. Thatâ€Ts struggle; and there have been many movements in
> the
> struggle - the abolitionist movement, the antislavery movement, the
> civil
> rights movement...but, the struggle still goes on.
> â€oThe mission of a believer in Islam is totally different from
> coexisting
> or being a part of the system. The prevailing morals are wrong. Their
> ethics
> are wrong. Western philosophy has reduced man to food, clothing,
> shelter, and
> the sex drive, which means he doesnâ€Tt have a spirit. Successful
> struggle
> requires a Divine program. Allah (God) has provided that program.�
> This is the Jamil Abdullah Al-Amin that the opinion shapers want to
> keep
> hidden! This is the Jamil Al-Amin that threatens the status quo!
>
> In an article recently published in the National Review (February 21,
> 2000,
> pp.40-41), noted commentator Daniel Pipes takes aim at a number of
> American-born Muslims whom he considers a threat to the â€oAmerican way
> of
> life.â€? He observes: â€o...the one time radical H. Rap Brown, now known
> as
> Jamil Al-Amin, declares, â€~When we begin to look critically at the
> Constitution of the United States...we see that in its main essence it
> is
> diametrically opposed to what Allah has commanded.â€Tâ€?
> In the land of â€ofreedom of speech, conscience and religion,â€?
> this
> influential voice in the Western socio-political construct advises his
> readers on the necessary course of action: â€oThe first priority is for
> journalists, intellectuals, clergy, and academic specialists to awaken
> Americans to this still-incipient but rapidly growing problem...�
>
> If there has been a conspiracy to neutralize Imam Jamil Al-Amin (and
> others
> like him), could this line of thinking be at the heart of it?
>
> prepared by: El-Hajj Mauriâ€T Saalakhan
> Tel: (
>
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------
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