A Muslim Sister's Message From Baltimore

At least 20 police were injured and 250 people were arrested since the start of the riots.

Amidst the unrest that Baltimore witnessed during last week, Muslims were in the neighborhood trying to calm down rioters, protect property and people. Below is a first-hand report from Sr. Zakia Amin of Baltimore that she is sharing with us.

As-salaamu Alaikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatu to all the Muslims of the B-more area and the rest of the world. Shukran (Thanks) to everyone who was concerned about the safety and welfare of us at the Islamic Community School and Masjid as-Saffat yesterday.

Yes, we were right in the thick of it, and Allah (SWT) kept us all safe and sound. I also want say shukran (Thanks) to the brothers who came to the masjid/school to kelp keep us safe and prevent the misguided people from vandalizing our property.

As many others have posted, our job as Khalifah tul-Ard (Allah ‘s successor upon the earth) is to call people to Islam. We have to show them what Islam is all about.

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So this morning, my husband and I went to Home Depot and asked them to donate items for the cleanup on North Avenue. Alhamdulillah, they donated over $400 worth of brooms, dustpans, trash bags, gloves, hand sanitizer and water.

They brought the supplies to North and Pennsylvania in a Home Depot truck and we joined the citizens of Baltimore in cleaning up the area at about 7:15 this morning. There were a number of Muslims there, but not enough, in my opinion. Now, we have Muslim and non-Muslim men (300 Men) doing other positive activities around the city, Alhamdulillah.

  So my fellow Muslims, some of the leadership of the Muslims in this area are being productive, calling people to Islam and showing and teaching people what Islam is all about. At least 2 local imams were in the streets on Monday night seeking peace.

So maybe, just maybe, the recent actions in Baltimore have awakened us to our mission that was given to us by Allah (SWT). We have to establish Islam in the land, or at least give it our best effort. That means we have to come out of the comfort of the masjid.