Islam and Prison Converts (Whats the issues?)

  Islam and Prison Converts

I for one am tired of opening my email or turning on the TV and seeing a Muslim Convert from Prison has been arrested for or has committed Murder or planned to do just that. We are falling victim to Ignorance at random, and in most cases it is a Convert from Prison..... So why?

 A subject that I am all too familiar with. The fear is that, as an x-gang members, drug dealers, criminal, career criminals or whatever your nich was, you will focus that criminal energy through your Islamic beliefs. The reality is that many converts are not blessed enough to have acquired the correct knowledge and understanding, and they end up being the fall guys for some deviant extremist group or a victim of FBI ENTRAPMENT.... directly or indirectly.

Yes, its true that many Muslim Converts that have found Islam in Prison have been perpetrators of inexcusable acts of Murder or quote / unquote "terrorist plots". Unfortunately, it is to hard and near impossible to know which of the numerous incidents are Entrapment and Trickery perpetrated by our Alphabet Groups such as the FBI or CIA and which are real cases of a Muslim Convert plotting, planning and implementing a plan to Murder or Terrorize in the name of Islam. Having had my own near miss with the FBI and an Entrapment plot, I have a rare understanding and pure perspective on the reality of this epidemic, and it is an epidemic. And having accepted Islam in Prison and being an x-gang member, I have a rare understanding and pure perspective on the reality of the situation.

Many may not know, but their are record numbers of individuals accepting Islam through the prison systems and a high percentage of them are "gang related" or "affiliated", as we often term those individuals. A very notorious gang called the Vice Lords do not allow their members to eat pork, and they have to go to Friday Muslim Services, while incarcerated. Therefore, you will find a high number of those converts are members of this gang or "organization", as they prefer to be called. The "leader" or founder of the Gangster Deciples is also said to be a convert to Islam. This is leading many of the GD's to research and look into Islam. 

Also, in the prisons, Muslims are feared and revered as a powerful group able to provide protection, supply contraband and aid in legal cases. This brings in others, arouses curiosities and  increases the likelihood of others learning about or hearing about Islamic beliefs.

Islam offers its followers a peace of mind that can be found no where else. Its religious requirements, such as the 5 daily prayers keep an individuals mind calm and allows one to deal with high levels of stress, stresses that are sure to present their selves in a prison environment. Core teachings like Charity, Kindness and Worship of God and God Alone are just a few of the beautiful teachings that draw one in and cause them to take a longer and more in-depth look at the religion. When you couple these teaching with a lack of qualified teachers, authenticate knowledge and wide range of corrupt teaching found in books that float around the penal systems and introduce a criminal to this way of life, and you then introduce them to a concept such as physical jihad, you get what you get.

One of the things that happens, in the long-run, is that this person never truly leaves behind all elements of his or her former life, and some things, emotions or ideals in them begin to surface. The mixture of un-sound knowledge and this crazy past life creates a breed of people that are susceptible to suggestions, ideas or commands from those who are aware of these weaknesses in these individuals or individuals or groups like their self. (this is one type)

Another type of person is the one that really really loves this new religion. They are willing to do anything and everything to be a righteous person in the eyes of the Creator. They come across the concept of Jihad; they see no hope of success in this life and think that killing others, Muslims and or Non-Muslims, will give them eternal bliss. They do not have in-depth knowledge of this concept in Islam and fall victim to this lack of knowledge in some way, shape or form.

The list of reasons and types is very long. The core element this is found in all of them is a lack of correct and sound knowlege concerning the concept of Jihad, and this is for many reasons as well. It now becomes incumbent upon us as Muslims to do what we can to curve this trend. This duty becomes obligatory upon the communities that accept these individuals into there folds.

My experiences as a New Muslim in my own community has been very rich and wide in variety. I was accepted with open arms and embarrassed like never before, but when others found out that I had accepted Islam in prison, they began to distance themselves and shun me. Others wanted to help but did not know how. Often they just paid my bills and sent me on my way. Many others talked about me behind my back and my mistakes were broadcast like Breaking News Reports. My criminal record made it hard for me to do what my new religion had compelled me to do; be a productive member of society and a provider for my family, get married and enjoy life. There was no-one to coach me and aid me in these types of struggles. Although we are taught to have patience and trust in God, we are also taught to aid and assist our brothers in their righteous attempts to do what is good for them and others. I found myself learning the true essence and meaning of "when it is all said and done, we only have God (allah)". I found myself coming to term with this fact, that no-one cared for me like the One Who Created me, and I had to love Him more than anything or anyone else. After many slips and a few falls on my face, some by my own choices and others not, I finally got up and dusted off. I called on my Creator and He answered with a beautiful wife and a new family. 

I went through many phases, but what has saved me is my fervor to learn and understand (in-depth) the concepts that we whole heartedly believe in in Islam. Understanding that Murder is the second biggest sin that a Muslim can commit. Understanding concepts like al-wal'a / al-bar'a (association and dis-association / love and hate). These things allowed me to filter out the Extremist Calls to Jihad and to see with clarity what is and what is not fighting for a righteous cause. Others have not been so fortunate.

If we do not do something about this problem and do not find a way to help our brothers and sisters who have these type of past and backgrounds and or accept Islam in Prison, then we will continue to be stigmatized by them. The media and the haters of Islam are loving the fact that these brothers and sisters are killing in the name of Isalm and they are winning the minds and hearts of the average American, to the point that anyone with a beard is called a terrorist.....

That is my thoughts for today... May God guide us all to that which is right and correct concerning how we are to believe in Him and how we are to conduct our acts of devotion and worship, amen.

Sincerely,

Yusuf Sneed