At The Barbershop
An article from the Chicago Tribune that - once again - shows that Muslims are not a bunch of foaming at the mouth maniacs and that when people get to know them, they see that they are human beings. Several other types of Muslim businesses are like this. After clicking on the link, watch the video
As he turns on his electric clippers and tends to the cut, the free flow of conversation begins, ranging from intellectual topics in religion and politics to “Who’s hogging the Cheese Nips?” and “What’s for lunch today?” But at specific moments, the buzz of the clippers and the loud banter all stop for one thing: Muslim prayers
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“It’s amazing how the neighborhood has really embraced our business,” said Shakir, 39, owner of the shop. “These are people that come to us and are comfortable with us. That’s a positive aspect about Muslims you don’t see. People have gotten used to the fact that we take breaks to pray, and they respect that.
“So, you come in here and hang with us and we just smash all these stereotypes that people have,” he said. “Stereotypes about black men, about Muslims and about barbershops.”
On Saturday, the shop will hold an event called “Conversations in the Barber Shop” to welcome customers to the new location at 1431 E. Hyde Park Blvd. Two paintings donated by a local artist will be unveiled.
Despite the disruption caused by the move, the barbers’ client list still reads like a Who’s Who of local black luminaries, including professors, politicians, writers and artists.
Mothers from the neighborhood often drop their sons off for haircuts, feeling secure that their boys are in a safe place. Many black women who prefer close-cropped cuts also use the shop.
“The conversation has a certain level of intellect here,” said client James Kinard, a mathematician. “And the prayer aspect is positive. I’m Christian and it doesn’t matter to me.”
The Hyde Park barbers say many customers mistakenly assume all African-American Muslims are members of the Nation of Islam. For that reason, haircuts often include a quickie religion course.
“That’s a big misconception,” Shakir said. “People come in here all the time asking about that. They don’t understand that African-Americans embraced Islam way before the Nation existed.”
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In contrast to the view of Islam as a possible road to terrorism, the barbers say their conversion provided a path away from urban temptations of drugs, alcohol and gangs. For them, Islam laid out a blueprint for living a holy life in a rough neighborhood.
Is this not the same thing that I said here, but was criticized by some for saying it? The Islam (the only one) we embraced is one of solutions to problems and not creating chaos and destruction and I stick by that. If the previous comments are any indication, some of you will hate this article and feel that these barbers are doing something wrong by being friendly to their customers and neighbors. I disagree and feel that this is a good thing.
Read the entire article.
Filed under: Black American Muslims | Tagged: Barbershop, Islam, Muslims
[...] is a nice article in the Chicago Tribune on a group of Muslim Barbers (h/t to Tariq) that is a microcosm of Muslims living in [...]
Thats a wonderful article… “regular, normal, everyday” Muslims… getting on with life. I almost want to go to Chicago just to get the haircut at their shop!
This article doesn’t surprise me at all. Because the general African-American community in cities like Chicago and Detroit have been exposed to Islam for so long, the primarily Muslim barbershop wouldn’t be treated as a foreign entity in the neighborhood.
And although there were people on the “Sunnah” prior to and after the NOI, the major cause of this acceptance came from the political stances and social activism of the NOI.
I know that many of us have mixed feelings about this, and Imy mentioning this may provoke anti-NOI responses. However, I’m aware that the acceptance of Muslims in my “hood” DIDN’T COME FROM BROTHERS LIKE MYSELF, who were never in the NOI and currently wear kufis and beards.
We should accept the good things and the groundwork that the NOI did in the “hood” for us to make correct da’wah without being so quick to totatlly distance ourselves from what they accomplished.
I only mention this because one of the brothers in the article that was interviewed made mention of the NOI. It’s hard to tell the tone of his statement in print but it sounded a little dismissive.
MashaAllah! Good stuff!
Salaam Alaikum,
Jazak Allahu Khayran for printing this. It’s so nice to read something positive.
As salaamu alaikum,
Awesome post.