Islam and U.S. Declaration of Independence Proclaim Equality

Source: http://www.duluthnewstribune.com/event/article/id/259779/group/homepage/
By: Waqas Khalid, for the News Tribune

Actor Denzel Washington uttered some pretty famous words in “Remember the Titans,” one of the best sports movies of our era. “I don’t care whether you’re black, white, green, or purple, I want my offensive players on this bus,” he said, pointing in one direction before pointing the other way, “and the boys trying out for the defense on that bus.” The movie is about a newly appointed African-American coach and his high school team during their first season after racial integration.

If I turn the wheel of time 1,400 years back, a person in Arabia talked about racial equality and racial justice much the same way. He laid the foundation for human rights. The words he said, “All mankind is from Adam and Eve; an Arab has no superiority over a non-Arab nor a non-Arab has any superiority over an Arab. Also, a white has no superiority over black nor a black has any superiority over white except by piety and good action. You are all equal.” These were the famous words said by Prophet Muhammad (may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) at his last sermon, a short time before his death.

The world of today associates Islam with terrorism, violence and human-rights abuse. But Islam talks about justice, peace, harmony and

– See more at: http://www.duluthnewstribune.com/event/article/id/259779/group/homepage/#sthash.Xhn9cYlW.dpuf

Waqas Khalid is a Muslim, a native of Pakistan and a graduate student at the University of Minnesota Duluth, pursuing master’s degrees in electrical and computer engineering and engineering management. He wrote this because February is Black History Month.

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