Voices of Masjid An-Nur

Imam Makram El-Amin

Imam Makram El-Amin is the resident Imam at Masjid An-Nur. He was born in Chicago but has lived in Minneapolis since 1976. His father, Charles El-Amin was also an Imam at Masjid An-Nur. Imam Makram El-Amin became the youngest resident imam at Masjid An-Nur in 1996. Since that time, he has continued to be seen as a progressive religious leader. He is often in the media spotlight for his interfaith work—he was the first Imam invited to sit on the Minneapolis Downtown Council—and he gained a national reputation when politican Keith Ellison was elected to as the first Muslim in Congress.¹

In the video below, Imam El-Amin reflects on his understanding about the reasons he believes Islam teaches that Masjid An-Nur needs to be active in the community.

Samuel G. Freedman, "Congressman's Imam Is Taking a Lead in Interfaith Efforts," New York Times, February 10, 2007, https://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/10/washington/10religion.html.↩

Muhammad, the prophet of Islam, he said, when you see something that is wrong or hurtful, He said, you first look to change it with your hand and if you are unable to do that then you change it with your tongue. You speak out against it. Your hand meaning action, your tongue meaning to speak. And thirdly, if you are unable to do that, then at least you hate it within your heart. You detest that, you resist it, even if there’s nothing I can do, it’s beyond my control, that I at least [must] resist it in my own being….So we use that saying of his as a motivation to do something about the things that we see, to voice the advocacy, that organizing around what we want to do, and then just having that rest within us, to say, “You know what, this is not right, we don’t support that, we’re not in a position to do anything about it, but we’re united all in our resistance of something.” I think that is [what]…we take as our catalyst for a lot of the work that you might see us do.

Valerie Shirley

Valerie Shirley is a mother of five, a teacher for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, an activist, and a member of Masjid An-Nur. She is the co-founder of Global Deaf Muslims-Minnesota Chapter (GDM-MN) and a national board member of GDM. She reflects on her relationship to the masjid, community service, work with the Hard or Hearing community, and her experience of covering.

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In actuality, I was dissuaded from coming to Masjid An-Nur. I was a very new Muslim and people were trying to teach me information about Islam, and telling me where to go to learn it, and one individual said, “You know, I wouldn’t go to Masjid An-Nur, you probably want to stay away from there,” and I was like, “really, why?” and he used a term that I was unfamiliar with, often Muslims throw out a lot of Arabic terms that for a new Muslim can be confusing, and he was like, “their aqidah is off.” And I was like, “Oh, their aqidah is off,” I was like, “I don’t want my aqidah to be off.” Whatever that was. As I learned more about Islam, I learned that your aqidah is the way you practice this way of life. It’s the way you practice Islam. It’s the way you understand it, the way it’s taught to you, you know, it’s this whole, and now that I understand more about Islam and the world as I’ve matured, everybody’s aqidah is off, you know, everybody has their level of practice and there are some good in the way they do it, and some bad in they way they do it. There’s some right in the way they do it, and there’s some that they’re mistaken about. So eventually I started to learn all the good things they were doing here, they were doing a lot of things that mosques were not, like other mosques were very closed to the community surrounding them, they were not open to the non-Muslim community that surrounded them, just because I don’t know if it was the language barrier or cultural barriers, or what. But this was. They had a food shelf. They had volunteer activities. They had field trips for the youth, they had a youth program. It was just so many things, and they welcomed those who were Muslim and those who were not. And so eventually I just migrated here and I felt more comfortable here than I felt at any other mosque that I went to in the Twin Cities. And so I just kind of eventually - this is where I’ve been ever since then.

What brought you to Masjid An-Nur?

I started to learn all the good things they were doing here, they were doing a lot of things that mosques were not, like other mosques were very closed to the community surrounding them, they were not open to the non-Muslim community that surrounded them, just because I don’t know if it was the language barrier or cultural barriers, or what. But this was. They had a food shelf. They had volunteer activities...It was just so many things, and they welcomed those who were Muslim and those who were not. And so eventually I just migrated here and I felt more comfortable here than I felt at any other mosque that I went to in the Twin Cities.

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Because I grew up in the inner city in Chicago and I saw such a need for social services, and individual needs and family needs and there was like no money or resources for it. So I was inspired to do community service ’cause I felt that that was really the only way to help uplift the community. [Interviewer: And so, do you find that to be a big part of your work here at Masjid An-Nur?] Yeah, I noticed that they just need helpers. Social services and community services need helpers, need workers. So I just try to offer my physical body to be that helper in whatever area is needed. Because there’s so many areas that need covering. So, I just find myself - ‘cause I’m an activist and I’m just like a lifelong volunteer. Anywhere where there’s work needed, that’s where I go. [Interviewer: What do you mean by an activist?] I think an activist - I’ve always been an advocate for social justice, I noticed the disparities in different areas, racial disparities, just discrimination in every area. Sexism, whatever there is. And so I’ve always been one for change. I just want things to be equal and fair. Balance the playing field for those who are the underdog.

Why do you do community service?

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My son is deaf with additional disabilities. I do know a number of deaf Muslims cause I work with a small non-profit organization called Global Deaf Muslim. So, I’m connected with a lot of deaf Muslims in the community through my son, this just kind of opened up a whole new world for me that I didn’t even know existed. And basically, they follow what they see. And as they get older and more mature and understand, you know, someone who can communicate with them fluently can explain to them why. But, basically they follow what they see. It’s just taught visually. Deaf people learn everything visually, through pictures, through modelling, through of course, sign language. Masjid An-Nur is the first masjid in Minnesota to have sign language and interpreted sermons.

How are Islamic teachings made accessible for Deaf Muslims?

Masjid An-Nur is the first masjid in Minnesota to have sign language and interpreted sermons.

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I almost covered kind of, right away. I learned about Islam a lot. My ex-husband, my children’s father, we grew up together in Chicago and we married and had kids, and we moved to Minnesota. He embraced Islam about a year before I did, so I learned a lot from the literature that he had. Of course, he didn’t know a whole lot because he was a very new Muslim, he had people that would embrace and teach you. I had women in the community who basically embraced me and taught me a lot. And almost right away, I learned what it meant to cover. And I cried, honestly, the first day when I found out I had to wear a scarf every day. I was like, “are you kidding me?” And I mean, it didn’t deter me from Islam but it took me about six months. I started - I wore a turban, I had started dressing more modestly. Honestly, I feel like before I embraced Islam, God was always moving me towards that point. From the time that I was sixteen years old, I remember wanting to be more spiritual. And I read the Bible, from cover to cover. And I was like, I remember the adults around me saying, “you need Jesus in your life,” and you know, I was a wayward kid, and so whenever I was in trouble they were like, “You need Jesus, that’s what’s wrong with you.” And I was like, “Okay, let me get Jesus in my life, you know?” And so when I read the Bible from cover to cover and I would go to church and what I read and understood would not be the way the pastor was explaining it, and I was trying to be respectful of those who were more knowledgeable than me, so I would ask questions, but they would get upset with me. And now I realize that it was because they didn’t really have the answers. It was not because I was doing anything devilish as they told me - “we’re taught not to question the Bible,” and I was like, “aw, man, really? I just need to understand it.” So I always felt like I was being moved towards a more modest way of dress, a more modest way of living, a more generous way of living.

And so by the time I actually embraced Islam, from sixteen years old when I was in mini skirts and then by the time I was twenty six years old I was just wearing blazers and slacks and long sleeved things and not showing cleavage. It was easier to transition into it, but at first I was like, “oh my God, I’m going to be discriminated against.” And I remember my husband telling me, “It’s not that big of a deal,” and I remember telling him, “What? As you stand there in your t-shirt and jeans? You tell me it’s not - you put on a scarf...” And I just remember having a fit about it. But then when I actually covered and covered properly, it commanded more respect. People outside of me didn’t shun me as I thought I would be shunned but I actually got a lot more respect, especially from the African American community. Then I turned to love the hijab, which is the full dress, not just the scarf. But at first it was a little bit scary. But I had women around me who embraced it, so it was easier for me to embrace it. [Interviewer: Do you find working as a covering Muslim woman to be difficult in any kind of way?] Not at all. I know many women do, and I know some women encounter things that even leads them to want to take their scarves off and they don’t want to go in public like that, but honestly, hijab has been empowering for me. I actually really love wearing it, it has never been a test for me like it has been for some other women. I mean I see people look at me weird, or ...covering has always been easy for me, of course I get funny looks sometimes or I can tell people are looking at me weird, but it’s no different than the looks I got just for being black and being somewhere where black people weren’t welcome. So I was used to it, so it didn’t make me uncomfortable or want to take my scarf off.

What has been your experience with covering?

When I actually covered and covered properly, it commanded more respect. People outside of me didn’t shun me as I thought I would be shunned but I actually got a lot more respect, especially from the African American community. Then I turned to love the hijab, which is the full dress, not just the scarf. But at first it was a little bit scary. But I had women around me who embraced it, so it was easier for me to embrace it...honestly, hijab has been empowering for me. I actually really love wearing it...

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I remember feeling like I had joined a family of millions. And growing up in Chicago, in the inner city, where it was a little bit dog eat dog, and you better bite or get bitten, it was really different for me to see people doing things for you, just for the sake of God. They don’t want anything in return. They’re doing it so they can get blessings from a higher power. That was pretty profound for me, to understand that. I mean I was on guard when I first became Muslim, because people - I mean, even just moving to Minnesota, ‘cause Minnesota Nice is a different kind of understanding the world, people come up to me and just start talking, and I remember throwing my purse across my shoulder, like, “what are they up to?” And I’d get in my ready stance, then they’d walk away and say “oh, have a nice day.” I’m like, “really? They just wanted to greet me?” It was hard for me to accept help sometimes - it’s like “oh, sister, you need money? Oh, you need food? Oh, you need me to babysit? Oh, you need us to help clean your house and fold your clothes?” And I’m like, “Um, you’re not touching my clothes, don’t you see how messy my house is. People come see your messy house, they talk about you.” It wasn’t like that at all, it was just like, “Okay, we want to help you.” That’s it? That was pretty amazing. So, having - and being a single mom now, being divorced, it’s really nice because it’s a social system that works. It’s such a wonderful support system. And I’m sure not everybody has had my experience, but I’m a very social person, so I get really connected, so people would know if I was in need, because I’m social, I’m not isolated, I don’t generally isolate myself. Raising kids in this community has been a wonderful thing cause it’s easy to try to keep them away from a lot of, um… social decay, that affects the world. So it’s really - it’s nice.

What has raising children in the Islamic faith been like for you?

I remember feeling like I had joined a family of millions. it’s really nice because it’s a social system that works. It’s such a wonderful support system. Raising kids in this community has been a wonderful thing cause it’s easy to try to keep them away from a lot of, um… the social decay, that affects the world. So it’s really—it’s nice.