Author: Umme Danyaal Bilal
Our beloved Prophet SAW sent His followers to the 4 corners of the world and over the centuries there were high points for Muslims and low points, Muslims were Kings and slaves, but Muslims who practiced their faith were able to come to the surface as followers of the greatest Prophet to have ever lived.
European slavery
It is reported in the European slavery that went across from the Atlantic that as many as thirty percent of the slaves from Africa that went to America as political prisoners were Muslims. Many of these people are still visiting their roots and this is making Islam the fastest growing religion in the West. This is a very important topic and we need to go deep into what happened to the slaves to try and understand this phenomenon as it still influences American society today, it still has a powerful impact on the shaping of the minds of the younger generation.
Originally when slavery was practiced in America the first slaves were whites but because they could identify with the masters or the upper class they refused to stay within a state of slavery. Slavery was then changed to the Red Indians the native people of America but because it was their land they also refused to remain in slavery, either they would sit down and refuse to move or fight till they died or managed to escape.
So the European colonists at that time needed to have people who could easily be identified and who were also familiar with the growing of cotton and sugar cane and who could live in semi-tropical climates, hence they turned to the west coast of Africa to find slaves who would fit this role and propel the culture to provide products for the industrial revolution that was about to happen.
The first slaves were brought to the New World around 1518 by the Portuguese and the Spanish who gave out licenses, thereafter we find the Dutch, the British, the French and all colonial masters at the time were selling people as one would sell chattel, like this slavery continued and increased until millions of people were affected by it. Therefore we can say through the slave trade and what we call the middle passage between Africa and the Americas, millions of people met their death and destruction, and Africa up until today has not been able to recover from this terrible genocide that went on.
West Africa
All tribes, religions, cultures, and languages in West Africa were put onto the slave boats and almost 1 in every 3 were Muslim. In early America, it was also reported that the African people who were living in America and owned property also had slaves but in 1685 the Code Noir the black law was written, every person of black descent became a slave and now with no hope of freedom resistance became a powerful message amongst the African slaves. Through this, we find the Muslims especially amongst other nations were leading the forces against the slave masters and colonial regimes.
In 1833, we find a female plantation owner Gertrude Carmichael who was living in St Vincent in her writings that many negro nations are not idolatrous but rather Muhammedians which is a middle-age terminology used for Muslims. Byron Edward in his famous history of the West Indies in 1794, speaks of an old faithful Madingo (an African tribe) servant who never forgot his morning and evening prayer and also used to chant in a very shrill voice Lailaha illalah.
Jamaica
Robert Madden a British magistrate who went to Jamaica during a time when slavery was being abolished discovered a society of Muslims living in Jamaica, he conversed with them in Arabic and reported that had he not asked them to be quiet they would have recited the entire Qur’aan for him, he also discovered an Arabic document from them which became a very important document as it spoke about jihad and this became a basis for a great slave rebellion which happened in 1821 to 1822.
Slavery in Brazil
It is of recent times we find documentation coming to the surface, we are seeing that Muslims maintained their culture of writing Arabic and their ability to express the Qur’aan even though they were in a state of slavery. One of the most well-documented resistances that happened in the West was the case of Brazil, which was a Portuguese colony that was developed in the early stages of slavery and was known for its high production of sugarcane, the Red Indians were made to work but could not handle the pressure and like this the Africans of West Africa were brought in, from amongst them were tribes who had very strong Islamic traditions and were great Mujahideen.
They were described by the Portuguese as exceedingly spirited and resolute and also reported as the most intelligent element amongst the imported Africans because many of them could read and write, a phenomenon that stands out from the slaves of Brazil which we don’t find anywhere else in America’s is the number of Imams and teachers called Malums, they were able to unite the tribes and concentrate into Islamic communities.
The main Muslim population of Brazil was in a province called Bahia, where the Muslims were well known for their personalities and the way they conducted themselves. It is said that Muslims would get up early in the morning and sleep early, they would live a quiet life. They were reserved in their conversations, lowered their gaze, they didn’t lie or drink alcohol. From this, we understand there was full adherence to sunnah which allowed them to develop an individual sense of thinking which translated into a collective leadership. This leadership had the concept of Ameer, where the masses would turn to the head of the leadership and follow his orders and were prepared to do anything if it was commanded by their leader in the name of Allah SWT.
On the 27th of May 1807, the first powerful revolt took place in Bahia intending to kill the masters, poison the water system, and return to Africa but unfortunately, spies gave the information over to the authorities, the government killed the Muslim leaders, and send a number of the slaves back to Africa. The second major revolt was between 1814 and 1816 which was a spontaneous one and was not organized like the first, however, they were able to kill many of the masters and capture parts of the land but eventually, they were put down and many of their leaders were killed or sent back to Africa.
The largest revolt took place in 1835, known as Malis, which was led by Muslim scholars who wrote different documents and would send them to other people, we find from this a powerful Muslim force emerging, they developed masjids in which they gathered to special meetings to discuss the revolt. Through these secret meetings and their connections with their Ameer, using the Arabic language to communicate, they were able to plan strategies without the authorities finding out. They chose Ramadhaan as the date of the revolt, however there were still spies amongst them who let the word out to the authorities. Even so, a strong fight continued and the Muslims were able to conquer certain sections within Salvador, but eventually, due to the strength of the Portuguese and the advantages they had, the revolt was put down and a mass deportation happened whereby many of the slaves were sent back to Africa instead of being killed.
A major lesson learned from this revolt was even under the most difficult circumstances Islam was able to unite different tribal groupings, it also showed the spirit of struggle that Muslims were maintaining especially those who were reading the Qur’aan and following the sunnah of Nabi SAW.
The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official stance of Halaal Travels. While we encourage diverse perspectives, these views are solely the author’s and are not intended to represent the position of Halaal Travels.