Mission Statement

I begin with the traditional Islamic greeting, Asalaamwalaikum.

For newcomers, that means "peace be upon you."

I'll start this blog with its mission statement and purpose. As a young Muslim in Canada, one quickly runs into the problems of Muslimkind in this most Western of states. Primarily, I think there is a dearth, almost a complete absence of leadership for our community. I'm not saying that your local Imam is not a leader, nor the President of _insert small-time Muslim organization_ here. They do their work and we should be thankful to them for that.

What I'm writing about is the lack of vision, charisma, communicative skills and humble integrity missing in so many of the men who claim to represent Islam to our fellow Canadians and Westerners in general. I may stray into bluntness in my posts from time to time, so if I hurt anyone's feelings, remember, this is the Internet and it is a two-way street for communication.. So frankly, we as Muslims in the West do not need anymore angry, heavily-accented bearded middle-aged men wearing Jilbābs shouting about "racial discrimination" and hijabs. We don't need maulwis and self-appointed shaykhs "admitting" that adultery carries capital punishment or the death penalty by stoning. We don't need men who can barely speak English or French on TV defending Islam. In fact, we shouldn't have to be defending anything at all. But I'll save that for another day.

What I'm saying is that, for the majority of us, we are second-generation immigrants meaning we were most likely born in Canada or brought here at an early age. We're also relatively young, between 13 and 30. We speak the local language fluently, though some of us still struggle witht he "back-home" accent (I'm looking at you, my Mississauga brothers ; ) We grew up here, we went to school here. Many of us have never been to our countries of origin. By and by, on every account, we are Canadians. And yet, somehow, we don't feel like it sometimes. To so many fellow citizens, we are still "them," or "those Moslems." And this is because domestic Canadians don't think of us, the second generation, when they talk about Islam. They think of our "leaders".

And that must change.

We need new leaders. We need new voices, who can defend Islam when it is attacked, promote it when it should, and establish regular communication within and outside of our Ummah. The rest of society needs to know who we are and what we believe in before they decide if they want to attack our faith.

This blog will offer a space where any young Muslim, Canadian or not, can express their beliefs and opinions, unfiltered. You can write an article, cover a story happening in your neighborhood, share a personal experience. You can post photos or videos, poetry, fiction or illustrations, or even something as simple as a link to a website. Or you can just sit back and take it all in. Myself, I will be covering topics ranging from societal and political issues facing us, to strictly religious and spiritual topics. Though I am not a shaykh or Ālim, I will try to offer the more prominent opinions and different sides of key matters facing us.

Censorship or limits on opinion will not be an issue. Are you a Shi'a or Sunni? Doesn't matter. Want to spend an article talking about puberty or alcohol? Go ahead. Current political issues? Iraq? Usama? Go right ahead.

All I ask, like any teacher or professor might also do, is for clear expression, decency, respect for others and backing up your claims with facts. Inshallah, we will all come away having learned something useful or become aware of issues we never knew existed.

Asalaamwalaikum and Ramadan Karim,

Hamza

// And that those who have been given knowledge may know that it is the truth from thy Lord, so that they may believe therein and their hearts may submit humbly unto Him. Lo! Allah verily is guiding those who believe unto a right path. // (Qu'ran 23:54)