about are you bald do you have hair why
is this around your head why do you wear
skirts why are you covered up
disrespectful things like that and
that's not okay that first of all does
not concern them on what we wear they if
they have questions they should at least
ask more respectful and not to be rude
about it in Minneapolis there was no
racism at all I had all friends that
were all different white black Mexican
when I came to St Cloud I have never
felt like this my whole life like
they are so rude and disrespectful to
Somali I all my friends used to be all
white all white and when I came here I
have no white friends they're all Somali
the Minneapolis Community they accept
everything cuz it's a big city they
accept everything there yeah it's all
diverse and here when they see Somali
they'll like talk about them like we
know English we know what you're saying
you know us as Somali students we've all
encountered some sort of racist act and
you know what we're fed up with it white
students who are racist never actually
talk to a Somali student if they did I
feel like they will get to know us much
better and appreciate who we really are
this is
the alhamdulillah greetings of Peace
welcome to the show The Dean show I'm
with shik Muhammad Hassan peace be with
youum askam muslim.com you're involved
with this beautiful organization and the
work that you guys are doing is
wonderful people have so many queries so
many questions and they can come to a
Muslim who's out there qualified as you
guys to
answer many of these questions how long
you've been involved with this
project nice being with
you for coming uh I have been with aska
Muslim for almost two years now
alhamdulillah
and uh we are just working with the da
and facilitating the da to those who
need what's the most important thing
that you see now like uh you're you're
originally from where Somalia no I'm
from Somalia are you related to shik s
from Ab because you're mid here is Abu
Herrera I think he was over there Abu
hrera you know shik you play ball with
him I know him I
know he's running the mid used to be now
he's I think running Sakina yeah another
Center so we came from Somalia both of
us and he came from north side and I
came from the south side but there's no
other relationship okay no you when you
play ball you're on opposite teams at
the same
team I'm just joking how about you know
Imam you know shik fasel from Chicago
Imam fael I know fael and uh when we was
in refug Camp yeah uh he was there also
ining IM f n he was
there yeah you want to give him Salam
he's from Chicago right uh I also went
to school with his brother Abdul rif wow
uh we were in same class his older
brother so I know
him what advice now do you have for the
imams for the people out there you know
to be able to make that human connection
and what are what are the things that
are needed now because you can bring
some of this back home culture here
doesn't fit with the culture here so
that you don't again there are things
that are fixed in the dean you can't
compromise them you follow me but that
you've seen with your experience that
people need to be equipped to be able to
answer some of these tough
questions the DA has a principles and no
one can just give a fatwa no one can
just answer a questions but you have to
have a knowledge you have to have
knowledge because what you saying it
goes back that you are like you are
saying oh Allah said
thisam this saying this so you have to
have the knowledge when you're saying
and it's not going to be enough to only
know the Hadith and the Ayah coding and
ay but sometimes you have to know the
and you have to know also something
called which means that
the uh the the BST that the religion
also sometimes you know goes and was the
was you
know called and also so you have to know
also you have to equip yourself
knowledge that way knowing that also the
Bible and uh sometimes you know it's
very tough questions and if you don't
know all these things and you're trying
to help this person it is good always to
say that I don't know that's also of
yeah have you had any experience with
the media people asking you as an Imam
saying what are you doing to combat any
extremism you have you know in Somalia
they have what is this the bah Haram and
what and people's mind are confused they
think Islam anyone who's Muslim
practicing he's a radical how do you
deal with this now and we hear that all
the time
misconceptions and also we answer what
what we know what we don't know we don't
know it but Islam is always clear and
you know nice and what Allah subhah wa
tala said in the book is clear if anyone
is following whatam has mentioned is
clear also and the way the Muslims are
acting but when when the media
approaches us and asks us questions
which are sometimes very complicated you
know they are just fishing little award
word that you said but it is better you
know to clearly answer whatever you know
what you don't know that means you don't
know it yeah so what do you say in this
case when they try to uh instantiate
when they try to put Islam next to
terrorism
right and alhamdulillah Islam is not
terrorizing anybody and Islam Isam is
the is the mercy that Allah subhanahu wa
ta'ala sent to the mankind when Prophet
Muhammad was sent to the people Allah
said you will send to the mankind so
Islam is just the way of life Islam is a
beast Islam comes all the backage that
the human needs so when you only see
that uh little you know somebody who did
some extreme thing did it we cannot
attach that one into the Islam it's like
the way this is what they say sometimes
I heard that a very nice analogy which
is that uh if you're driving a nice car
you know if that car you know get his
accident so is the car the reason the
responsibility is the car or the driver
yeah the driver the fault is a driver so
those who are just uh uh you know uh
acting and claiming that they are
Muslims if they do something that which
out of Islam that means we cannot attach
that action into the Islamic Islam is a
beautiful religion Islam is the religion
of the man uh Mankind and you will
receive by practicing Islam and believ
in it a peace and prosperity beautiful
what what other advice do you have for
those who are really motivated I mean
this is a responsibility to share this
message with love with understanding
with kindness and many people they're
not heeding the call they're not
realizing that this is indeed a
responsibility on on every Muslim to his
or her capability is that correct now
every Muslim is ambassador to represent
this beautiful religion and uh some of
uh the
scholars they are coding in their their
books are saying that uh when Islam
reaches into Indonesia and some of the
Far East uh countries which now a lot of
Muslims are practicing Islam
so Islam never went there by force but
it went by those who are Muslims those
who are representing Islam the way it is
those who are carrying The Message of
Islam and then when they went there
people see it and then by seeing them
and the way they are behaving and
they're you know good maners they became
a Muslims so each and everyone who is a
Muslim especially those who are in the
Western countries they need to represent
Islam as it is when Allah subhah wa tala
revealed into Prophet Muhammad and also
Prophet Muhammad is saying
that just reach those who are
non-muslims give the dawa even one verse
so that we have to equip ourself by the
the the proper eate proper knowledge and
uh good representing Islam and became
ambassadors of Islam so that we can
share our neighbors we can share our
co-workers we can share our uh
classmates into the beautiful religion
of Islam I'm here with the brothers here
in Columbus Ohio ask a Muslim if you
have any fears apprehensions anything
you want to know about Islam ask a
Muslim and get those things cleared up
in your mind and we'll see you next time
until then peace be with you asalam
alikum