The 2024 General Election had Muslims driven from pillar to post. Those who opposed both the Dems and the Reps understood in their guts that choosing between either was a Zero-Sum Game - a No-Win Situation.

Then there are others who leaned to either of the two major parties. Even now, they continue to look for an operational space between the two. Today, Muslims are as much politically homeless as ever and as much as the masses of disenfranchised vocal TikTokers.

That’s why we begin by looking beyond how to get breadcrumbs thrown at us from the establishment. For more than two generations, and I remember the UK in 1967 – pre and post Six-Day War - when I was a middle-schooler, Muslims have not owned even a slice of the media.

Without an afterthought, we have been served tokenism on both sides of the Atlantic at every critical bend of history. 

Option

First, we locate an agreeable home among decent neighbors. Only then do we plan. Not identifying that necessary mass will make all our plans DOA! Then, who are our principled fellow travelers?

These are those who value Justice, those who have grown up learning about human fellowship, being inclusive, caring for the world around, aggrieved by suffering, searching for Truth, willing to learn, questioning programmed narrative, moved by courage, fiercely protective of their sovereignty, daring to stand up and stand out, and who are resourceful and tech-savvy. And if such people are plentiful, then we have a home and a safe neighborhood.

These form a large segment of the TikTok and Instagram generation. Even if they constitute 20% of the 170 m registered US members of TikTok, we have a force projection capacity should we decide to integrate with them as we look forward.

When neither our messages nor our protest finds any space in the vast Western Media, here is a group of people with whom for the first time we can have a meaningful dialogue. Neither the Internet nor such a mass has arisen because of our actions but our relentless du’as. Indeed, Allahu Khairul makireen – Allah is the Best of planners. 

If we fail to connect with these individuals, we do ourselves and the world a great disservice! Now, the bulk of Western Muslims did not participate in TikTok or Instagram messaging. Without having been on top of the events unfolding round the clock in Falastin, we would be unaware of how people’s perception and response went through a sea-change about Falastin and Islam.

When, after about 12 months of the break-out of Genocide, a certain Lily Jay came on YouTube and presented her Chat GPT responses, then a big segment of Muslims acknowledged her impact. Again, the Chat GPT was not a Muslim contribution nor was the smart to use it the way Lily Jay did. However, it had come after a lot of water had passed under the bridge in terms of the discovery process about Islam achieved by users of TikTok and Instagram.

The question is whether traditional Western Muslims will seize the opportunity to recognize and integrate with these fiercely resourceful, uncompromisingly independent individuals or whether we will continue to try to eke out some token recognition from the Left or the Right of the political establishment?

Many of us did not take the Third-Party option and may have opted not to vote at all for the top of the ticket. But what is being suggested here is for the long haul, and it is not about toting the Third-Party line. It could be about creating a new alternative in a new direction.

Directional

For those Muslims, arrested in place by the savage battering at home and abroad yet not convinced about letting go of the Red or the Blue, or for finding a new coalition of the willing and able, let us momentarily consider the following examples to reevaluate old positions.

In Suratul Abasa, Allah (swt) determined that, for the Rasul (sm)’s long term endeavor, the blind man-al a’ma - was more valuable than all the rich and powerful men of Makkah.

The futile trekking to Ta’if as well as the eventual Hijrah to Medinah, the tri-partite Compact therein, and the call to come to common terms with the People of the Book were first to create a bulwark of people - a defensible community - to reach a critical mass before any program outside of the immediate and earliest community of believers could make any headway.

For Hajar (asm), her race between Safa and Marwah was for finding companionship in the form of a caravan, and also for finding water. Before any trace of a caravan, Zamzam happened to be a divine answer to her unimaginable angst.

For us, is it not like Robinson Crusoe’s problem when he got washed up onto a beach and realized he was all alone and without any support system?

When the mighty flood was over, the relentless downpour and the gushing of water from underground ceased, Nuh (asm) was finally able and ready to rebuild with the humans and animals on board – his capital!

The FEMA only works if it survives the Level 5 Hurricane. [In the case of Ad, people of Hud (asm) after seven days and eight nights of storm nothing remained except the believers.] In the meantime, the mayors, the police, the EMT, the Fire Department, the Gas and Electricity, the Public Works Departments, and the Hospitals have to do their thing. If everything goes, the FEMA has nothing to do.

After Hurricane Katrina, I was in New Orleans with a team of youths led by my wife, the-then ISNA Youth Director. Parts of the City were completely wiped out and FEMA could do didley little to rebuild.

It just doled out compensation and left the people to do with it what they thought best. At this stage programmatic strategy and tactics will go over the top as it should. As for myself, in the last 15 months, being a 24 x 7 attached to TikTok and Instagram, I knew and felt viscerally the brutal exodus back and forth from Northern Gaza to Rafah and other ‘safe’ places.

After day in day out, hour by hour live witness, it became an incredible reality check! Who was I fooling, wanting to be mainstreamed here in the Mid-West? Here, in the USA, that we did not belong to Blue or the Red political apparatii became amply clear when a ‘balanced senator’ Amy Klobuchar whose father, Jim Klobuchar of Star Tribune, was a celebrated journalist did not let out nary a peep when 200 journalists were summarily slaughtered in Gaza and the West Bank.

A high-school teacher, presumably conscientious and organically empathetic, turned Minnesota’s Governor exuded arrogance of epic proportions heightened by his 15 minutes of fame as a VP nominee! In their guts, those truly in the know knew on which side their toast was buttered!

Without proper Human Resources and a belonging in place, any forethought and planning while necessary will have to wait for their turn. One cannot skip this bit of self-evaluation.

The head must wrap around the matter of existential reality before a corporate style strategy will take hold. The long term can only begin to be visualized when one has the sense of security that one will stick around to get anything started at all, let alone see it to its maturity.

What strategy were the Gazans supposed to visualize in the maelstrom that descended on them?

It’s like Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs - bottom-up triangle.

1. Satisfy Physiological Needs – Survival
2. Safety
3. Love and Belonging
4. Esteem
5. Self-Actualization Fulfillment

Personally, many of us are at level 5, but our community is at Level 3. When we are overlooked in promotion or dismissed in political circles, we realize our station is at Level 3. The African Americans, Hispanics and Native Americans are at Level 3 at best.

What makes us think we are better than them? The way Islam and Muslims have been targeted here and worldwide, what makes us think we are on an inside track? We have to flock together as concerned westerners in each of our countries so that as a group we attain Level 5 and stake out our future in a determined manner.

Did we note during COVID, how many Indian doctors were on talk show and how few Muslim doctors? Why? What was happening? Who was promoting who? That there is a symbiotic existence between Indians and Israelis is not a far-fetched conclusion!

The unusual presence of Indians at the Federal Government Cabinet, barring Muslims, is telling us to mingle with those who understand us and are empathetic toward us.

So, like any putative entrepreneur before launching our business, we first must build our capital and secure our resources. Those are our building blocks. Ignoring that, absent that, any business planning will be a vacuous exercise.

A Plan

So, if one is comfortable thinking strategically, let me, if I may, submit the following Action Plan. It includes a possible timeframe in years at the end.

1. Build or fortify bridges with Christians, Jews, Agnostics and Atheists, Hindus, Buddhists and others who have seen through the frayed mask of mainstream academia, entertainment and politics, those who have been vocal and have sacrificed with their time, resources and selves on campuses, street corners, medical institutions, select media and entertainment pockets and in other places. [0]
2. Know that this is like a nation building exercise in league with that of the Founding Fathers, if not with that of the Prophet (sm). [0]
3. The Prophet (sm) came to build character/manner. We must shield ourselves, at all ages, and do istighfar/repent to get back on track. [0]
4. Justice and Goodness (Adl and Ihsaan) will be the main mantras. Repeat and it will sell. It will stick. If evil repeated sticks, then good word repeated will leave its mark especially if we live it. Properly pursued JG/AI will act as a backstop to Evil (Munkar) and Disorderliness (Baghyi). [1-2]
5. Flood the school and local councils with Muslim candidates. [1-2]
6. Make all young people aware that in the past recruitment to ‘the far side’ happened at the start of one’s career. If one wants to be a stellar personality - career wise and as a family person, and not be sidetracked like Bill Clinton or Bill Gates, Prince Andrew, Puff Diddy, one must stay far, far away from Fahsha/Lewdness and the likes of Jeffrey Epstein and not accept ‘free’ trip to the Holy Land nor accept to be trained there. Nothing is free! Honey-trapping has long been a reality. It starts by supporting Israel and then it is gradually made to morph into support for Zionism. Young women Beware. Inculcating you in the name of love and personal freedom against male domination and patriarchy is a well proven standard fare meant to weaken the community. We should correct our errors, but we should take care not to throw the baby out with the bath water. There is no unfavored gender in Islam. If over cautious parents, even those resource short, favor the male gender, then it must be rectified openly and firmly bur gently. [>0]
7. The massive information that is coming out about 9-11, etc. cannot be ignored. We don’t have to say anything about it, but we can suggest to our acquaintances, ‘Have you seen this? I’m stunned!’ [0]
8. Live Islam openly, with courage and splendor. This is what Imam Siraj Wahhaj of Brooklyn, NY recently called upon Muslims to do: Come out of shadow and silence and speak up as an act of d’awah thereby relenting to the categorical admonition of Suratul ‘Asr (Q-103:1-3). [0]
9. We can start Grameen Bank style microfinance among African-Americans, Hispanics and Native Americans, and even some Muslims. [>1-2]
10. For community economic rejuvenation, we could mimic other social groups who self-finance each other through group effort. [>1-2]
11. Assist suicidal Vets to find forgiveness with the One True Merciful God. Boldly and openly suggest for gaining speaking engagements with VFWs across the country using standardized content-based speech at every event. Again, as per Imam Siraj Wahhaj. [0.5]
12. Assist Addicts, Lonely, Depressed, Suicidal people to pursue an alternative, spiritually non-denominational life-style. As many as 30% of westerners suffer from these drawbacks. We can help. We can matter. When the Quran instructs Muslims to do Good or take care of near or far strangers, it does not limit it to Muslims. On this matter, I suggest we turn to www.tptChoice.org. [1]

Finally, to square away, not all of us who are eagerly engaged in discussions are able to grasp certain subtle elements immediately and clearly.  Thus, while Bill Clinton and Barack Obama took the nation by storm, their surrogates – equally trained - HC or KH failed miserably. Why?

The latter were basically practicing attorneys whereas the former two though trained as lawyers saw themselves cut out for politics and possessed differentiating gut level instinct for being at the top of national ticket. So, open and thorough clarifications are unavoidable as well as a responsibility.

Also, apology is due for the long piece. We don’t know each other personally nor do we have opportunities for regular conversations so that bit by bit a mutual understanding could develop on this critical issue.

But a long run strategy has to be motivated. So, contextualizing became unavoidable, especially as I felt we don’t see each other eye to eye on the Western young people’s gravitation towards the audacity of faith and trust of the Falastinis, and why and how we should build on that.

Shafi A. Khaled is a Labor and Development Economist with theoretical contribution to Islamic Finance. He is a regular essayist on various Social Science and Spiritual topics as well as a poet. He is the author of www.tptChoice.org.