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In an article titled "The Blacks in America," in Issue 14 of the English-language Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) magazine Inspire, Abu Abdiliah Al-Moravid discusses recent incidents that have inflamed race relations in the U.S., including the police killing of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri and of Freddie Gray in Baltimore, Maryland, as well as the mass shooting attack on an African-American church in Charleston, South Carolina by white gunman Dylann Roof.
Al-Moravid traces the historical roots of the oppression of blacks in America, drawing parallels between their treatment by U.S. authorities and U.S. treatment of Muslims in the Middle East. He expresses sorrow that African-Americans participate in the oppression of Muslims, and calls on them to rise up against the crimes of their own government.
Following are excerpts from the article:
The writer begins by relaying details on the recent killings of Michael Brown and Freddie Gray, accusing U.S. media, most notably Fox News, of suppressing the truth of these events: "As news [of the Michael Brown shooting] resonated across the global media, in America the media was contradicting [itself] and having different... views regarding this tragedy. At first many channels portrayed the incident as it was, but later on presented the event to the viewer as a mere daily criminal incident. And that the victim was a person who deserved to be stopped and imprisoned. And that the crime of the officer was nothing but a general mistake that had nothing to do with racism or religion. Examples of such a channel is the 'Fox News' [network] that has always been supporting the Anglo-Saxon community, no matter the case. The same channel that supports the existence of a Zionist state in occupied Palestine."
Al-Moravid goes on to talk of the subsequent death of Freddie Gray while in police custody and the resultant widespread protests and state of emergency. He accuses President Obama and other officials of expressing solidarity with the black community "as an attempt to desensitize them from their anger."
After a brief description of the church mass shooting in Charleston, South Carolina, in which nine African-Americans were murdered, Al-Moravid writes: "Many might be surprised as to why we are discussing about this subject matter, and ask why does a Mujahed write about an internal American affair? We answer by saying: Many among the masses fall victim to the western media, which is persistent in portraying a negative image of Islam, with regards to Mujahideen." He explains that Islam forbids racism, and relays a story about the Prophet Muhammad berating one of his companions for addressing another as a 'son of a black woman.'
Al-Moravid then writes: "Thus Islam does not allow even the smallest kind of injustice; be it by words or having contempt for a particular race. We the Mujahideen are a portion of the Muslim Ummah, we do not accept any type of oppression against our Muslim brothers among the Afro-Americans, or even the non-Muslims. And the opposite of oppression is Justice, and this is what we have been commanded by our religion. To be just even to those who oppose us in our religion. Some people may ask, how can we address this community in such a manner, when they have participated in the killing of Muslims in Afghanistan, Iraq and other Muslim countries? This is true, and the article will prove that we are just even towards our enemy. And you shall understand the solutions to the root-cause of the problem, in a perspective that differs from the general mainstream media. A solution to the very core of the problem, not just part of it."
The next segment of the article presents a brief "history" of the injustices suffered by African-Americans from colonial times through the Revolutionary and Civil War eras to the Jim Crow and Civil Rights eras. The slaves, Al-Moravid claims, were freed not due to idealistic reasons but because of the power they had amassed, which made their emancipation a smart strategic political move. He writes: "[The] liberation of Africans from the whites was not because of Lincoln's high morals, but because of the very existence of the Blacks and the power they had established for themselves. This led to their emancipation, which was [due] to 'mutual interests' between the two parties."
Outlining the current state of race relations in America, he states: "If you take a look at the educational opportunities, economic growth, political representation and job opportunities, you will find that most of the Afro-Americans are deprived from these basic benefits; Insufficient healthcare system, discrimination in housing benefits, law-enforcement injustices. The Afro-Americans are the main victims of these injustices. Thus we are not surprised when we see a series of criminal aggression against them occurring frequently in such a pace. But what is surprising is the continual high support of the Black-Africans towards the democrats in elections. The same party in power as before, and the same oppression and injustices towards the black continue to repeat themselves. What is more unfortunate is that the President is of the same race, [but] does not pay any attention to the injustices of his own people: Rather his greatest fear is his political position and his clinging to power.
"The current Anglo-Saxon generation has been raised with this kind of arrogance mentality, arrogance towards all kinds of people – especially the Black Americans. And history will never forget their past sufferings. Therefore, when we read about the killings of [a] Black youth by the police or the white supremacists, we have to examine –as they say in criminology- the objectives and psychological motives to these crimes. From here we can say that the main motives to these crimes is not gun violence, as Obama tries to portray. But the reality is that we cannot separate this violence with the fanatic white racist supremacists, which must be stopped by all means possible.
"The solution to this fanaticism should not only be confined to America: This is because the same American oppression towards the Blacks today, is practiced towards other communities around the world. The same level of oppression is exercised against the Muslims today. Exercised by these racist white politicians, among them are Black politicians who are not real representatives of their community."
Al-Moravid complains that African-Americans take part in the oppression of Muslims, which is carried out by the same country that mistreats them: "And as Michael Brown and Freddie Gray were killed, then we have thousands of Muslims killed in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq and Yemen. And the continuous killing of hundreds of Palestinians using weapons from the racist Americans.
"O Afro-Americans, it is a pity that you play a part in this oppression against Muslims. You are the ones who elect those who promise to continue waging war with us in our lands. You are the ones who elect those who promise to protect Israel, who aggressively and unjustly occupy our lands. This is a historic chance for you to review your actions, and to take a stand against these crimes in the face of these fanatics. As you condemn you will be condemned. And as the say, whoever accepts injustice will be the first to be burnt by its fire."
Al-Moravid ends by praising the morality and responsibility of African-Americans and offering five points in closing: "Whosoever lives in the American society will find that Afro-Americans are much better than the whites in terms of morals and family responsibility. And this gives glad tidings and hope of changing the American reality.
"From here we continue to send important messages, hoping they will change their situation and raise oppression over all:
"Firstly: [Al-Qaeda] and the entire Muslim Ummah are against the oppression and injustices directed towards you. And whosoever is killed among you in our Jihadi operations, is justified according to us. This is because our Jihadi operations are defensive, even though they seem to be offensive as in September 11 – which in context is a general defense on our Ummah, that has been assaulted by the Jews and supported by America.
"Secondly: We want to hear your voices against the crimes committed by your government. We encourage you to form political groups in order to pressurize your government to lift the general oppression against you and to stop aggression towards Muslims. And condemn the support your government gives to Israel. From there we will take practical steps to avoid targeting you in our operations.
"Thirdly: Adding to the second point, we advise you to move out of big cities that represent the economy, politics or military strength of America like New York and Washington.
"Fourthly: Rights cannot be earned except by force, your own history is a witness to this. With that, we advise you to confront this issue in two directions.
"1. The first is a civil open approach, not military. Demanding your total rights, by pressuring your government using a soft approaches like; demonstrations, stage sit-in and civil disobedience.
"2. The second approach is by forming small groups that will be responsible for assassinating, targeting these racist politicians.
"Fifth: we at Inspire bring to you military consultation, one may refer back to the previous issues to find appropriate military ideas."[1]
[1] Inspire, Issue 14. The original English of the article has been lightly edited for clarity and standardization.
