Meeting Muslims In The Community

So I record PSP up to you Welcome to the deen show Bismillah in the name of God as we always start. Today, the D show is on location. And we like to start also by thanking all of our guests who've been tuning in since the beginning. Worldwide, the show has gone being viewed by over a dozen countries all over the world like to thank everybody. And also the viewers who have subscribed to our shows. Thank you very much. We're going to continue trying to show our God Willing every week coming up with a new show a new personality on the street with our friend here today.

Thank you for being with us today. You're doing some great things. Yes, sir. Yeah,

yes. So that's why we want to talk to you a little bit. You got we're here in Monson. What is the modern central standard for Yvonne is the inner city Muslim action in inner city Muslim action action network. And what do you guys about?

He started 10 years ago best students. Rami Nashashibi is executive director. And it is about working and doing a lot of work in the in the cities. We have a health clinic, we have free health clinic, we have a food program.

We also have now, which I'm the project coordinator is project restore, which is assisted living for ex offenders coming home from prison. He also mentioned a program called ceasefire, which I am the supervisor of Southwest ceasefire, which is who's gonna be like stop shooting cease the ceasefire is a long program that started in UFC by Dr. Gary slugged. Yeah. And it started in 1995. And I was supervising one of the site locations you see on the southwest side of the ceasefire for the last five years. So the idea here is, as you know, through the deen show, we try to educate the Muslims and the non Muslims about Islam, trying to let you meet different Muslims around the city, our

brothers in Islam, show you the type brother that we have. And to show you the uniqueness about this way of life who this brother here from talking to him for a few getting to know him has gone from a life of living to streets. Would you say? Absolutely, that that was your family? Absolutely. Yeah, we've all been there. But it's the thing we have in common How? When this Dean Islam, which is a way of life when it penetrates the hearts, when you let it in? It changes the life. Yes, sir. Yeah. But it's not nothing where now you sprinkle some magic on you got the Holy Ghost in your jumping up? No, it's it's through through through education through knowing who your Creator is, and, and living

according to his system, which we're trying to do the change starts to happen. Oh, absolutely. Yeah. So now we're talking about the things that you you're doing today is helping giving back to the community, the streets that you were living? Let's talk about this one in the past before you actually came to this point. We're gonna rewind real quick. All right. So talk to us real brief briefly. You were you were born a Christian? Well, yeah, in a household Baptist household, the best Baptist Christian.

In the society? No, it wasn't my mother. Of course, we had the Bible and had pictures of Jesus on the wall and crosses. But again, the practice was not there. Especially, I left my mother home at around 14. So it's like a tradition. Absolutely. Wanting to not really have an understanding and not really seeing his practice as as of teaching us.

You know, I guess you would say, so the pictures and some of the customs that people grew up to even among Muslims. Absolutely. I mean, and this is a state of ignorance that people get into, it doesn't matter if you're what what either you're Muslim or, or Christian if you don't have the proper education about your Creator, and you're not living according to these guidelines. Right. And you live in an ignorance absolute. Okay. So now, you what's from there? You started to live,

stream life or life? I don't know. I never met my father. My biological father knew my stepfather didn't get along. Yeah. So I left my mother home at 14. And actually, from that time, I didn't make it to school, play sports. I was on the streets and excuse race, and the images in the streets that I looked at me

Who took from the streets to strong?

The hustlers brothers who was making money and I emulated the behaviors of my son. And I fit well to the environment. adapted to my survival of the fittest. Only the strong survive. Absolutely. Yes. So you got to be tougher. You got to be meaner. Your heart gets cold on merciless, cold. Yeah, cold. And this is the opposite of Islam. Absolutely. Islam makes you into like a baby. I can't tell you.

How can you fresh? Yeah, you you understand things and you understand that this is not a serendipitous universe that you can do something over and over again. Yeah. That's the beautiful thing about it. Yeah, it humbles you. Absolutely. But the opposite extreme makes you arrogant. No doubt, right. Because you have to be like that to survive. Yeah. So you went out now and you ended up in jail? Yeah. So what happened now in jail briefly. Did you did you find? Did you learn about Islam in the prison? Absolutely. I converted in Islam in 94. But I met a brother,

Mohammed, Mohammed,

the brother, he was just such a light to me and nor to me, I couldn't understand how he could be in that environment to be as peaceful as he was. Yeah. And that's corruption. That's a different world. Completely. Man may work. It's another word of madness in the sense. If you think you gotta be strong to survive in the streets. How are you going to be in the jail? The prison system? Do you have to have a knock can know how to to No, no, no, no, you don't need to care about that. It's all about your heart and your dignity right now, in your honors, like your pride as takes over your life. Yes. So

tell us now you you met this Muslim? And you saw the piece that how he was living and whatnot. But when you took this out, we go a little further and then you end up when you said you took your Shahada? Yes, sir. Okay, meaning that you accept that you found out who your Creator This is very important. We're going to cover there's no Shahada. What does that mean? That means that testimony of faith, absolutely. That you found out who your Creator was? Absolutely. It wasn't the picture on the wall. when when when man we've seen a lot of homes, Caucasian male with long hair, yeah, sitting at the table with the other 12 white men and no blacks involved in the middle level. You know, one

of the things was I understood I did get my dad taught me and the brother that breathed on me about Islam taught me to start thinking rationally, rationally, and I did a comparative study. It was not on the emotional, it is logical, logical. And then once you submit now, once you find with the tools that your Creator gave you logically, now this emotion is coming. Now there you go once so is that Shahada now meaning that testimony of faith that God wasn't anything created, he was in his creation? He wasn't something that you can limit, putting him on a wall a picture, draw him make a statue, whatnot, you found a true constantly God. He has no beginning knowing absolutely, that he

wasn't born of anyone needed. Does he give birth to anything absolute right for him to MIT will something he says Be and it is. That's it? And that's that moment. Now, that changed your life, declaring that there's nothing worthy of worship, except Allah God. And Muhammad is His Messenger. Okay, we'll take a break with this. This is a like, you just rebuild now? Yes, yeah, this is incredible. We're gonna take a break and we're gonna actually take a look around the manof is what they do and we back on the T shirt.

Love

the sound.

office space.

Welcome back to the deen show. We left off talking to our friend Rafi villa. Rafi. Yes, sir. All right. So now we left off with the Shahada, declaring that nun has the right to be worshipped or something crazy.

Simple as rationally, there's nothing now that can keep you away from that simple. Now, you also you went through life, hard life, street life. Now, you accepted Islam, and now the change started happening in your life, but you wanted it to affect others else. Absolutely. So let's talk about this now, some of these programs and how you're how you're benefiting from this meaning that that good feeling we all get doing a good deeds with our assets to do when I came into the consequences,

that I was responsible for my behaviors, not only to myself, but others around me, and my responsibility to them. And so from that point on, I decided consciously to be try to do right deeds, because we know we got to meet our Lord one day, now you knew that, look, you're going to be responsible for your actions. Yes, sir. And this also has accountability. And there's good news and bad news. And that we're gonna be degrading. So when do we start with yours, unconsciously, maybe, you're doing wrong now you're trying to consciously do right. So I came home in 97, I got involved with the man and the city Muslim Action Network in 98. And I've been on that program since. And

Allah has blessed us because I also work with Operation ceasefire, which is a non violent program, which you take somebody with me by, I haven't got a ticket for 10 years, you know,

nothing from our past life, left it completely alone. And then for me to work for the various state that was locking me up and said that I should never be considered for early release early parole, what other than Islam can do? Nothing. I also work with gang members after them actually opposite. Like opposition people that know they get together in the same room and they put them together Saturday night, the whole movie night, heavy night of the week, we do a mile beach work with a staff of seven outreach workers, all bubbles come from different backgrounds, different organizations through the organization, we all have the same mission, for whatever

personal reasons, but the mission is to try to make a change in the community in the society at all of us who have put in work in the streets. Now, me Islam is my guiding force. As a member of the mind, we use the resources we have here, which is we have free clinic here we have a free computer classes here we have God we had free food pantry and use all of that, CS five, we try to come up with resources within the community within the neighborhood we work with, to help these young brothers get their lives together, and come from what we want was to where we are today. And they respect his mom, they respect us, they come here every Saturday night, we do movies, it's free, we

have pieces, and they they love it. And once you and once these people really get to know that Islam, that from the source is nothing like the media or the people out of ignorance or trying to represent it, nothing. They see the help that we have when they see the programs is you see well earlier today.

computer labs, jam pack, those are not Muslim, those are people from the community and those are not on people. These are people who are just like the Prophet smartlabel Islam helped him people who are downtrodden, helped wayfair help the people. And we help people that take away from the negative things that they say about this thing. And that's not the real deal. We're trying to live and practice the real thing. This is a beautiful thing. And people understand now. You just one you helped yourself. And now you're helping the people in the community and even the people that aren't here. Now keeping these these young adults off the street, helping them change their life. Now they

don't have to worry about these guys robbing them or shooting at them or

going out in the streets and and being actively involved with. I mean, we have these young men, it's life changing thing they often ask, how is it that's all changed from where you was to where you are today? And I'll tell him what was his name? Nothing else. Where else can you bring brothers from different organizational games, as some people call them? Who was actually trying to actively kill each other. And now today, they sit and they pray together, and they work in the community together. What else can do that with Dean Islam? That's a wonderful thing you see. So through education, the deen show is trying to build tolerance, introducing you to another Muslim. So the people out there

can see that all Muslims out there trying to to hurt the society we're trying to help the society. Exactly. So once again, we brought you another guest and we look forward to you tuning in again. Islam simply means surrender and submission to the will of the Creator and a Muslim is one who surrenders and submits to the will of the Creator. So if one is surrendering and submitting to the will of the Creator

He's not doing any form of terrorism. He's not harming a human being. This is something that is for everybody. It's calling people to worship the Creator, not the creation. Once again, if you have any questions, please feel free to contact us or visit our videos page, visit our library, educate yourself on this beautiful way of life. That's the fastest growing way of life in the world today with over 1.5 billion Muslims around the world. Sunday called Peace be up to you. We'll see you again on the deen show.

Nana Allah, Mohammed he opposes Islamic Illa Maduro, Allah Mui Mohammed na ki Suh

dynata Allah Muhammad pensa Santa Tuco. ilaha illAllah Muhammad Rasool Allah there is no god