"To each is a goal to which Allah turns him. Then strive together (as in a race) towards all that is good. Wheresoever ye are, Allah will bring you together. For Allah hath power over all things."

(Qur'an, 2:148)

Islam recognizes and celebrates the great diversity in society. There are more than one billion Muslims in the world, and there are, according to some estimates, approximately eight million Muslims in the U.S., with at least 2.5 million of them being African Americans (AA). Muslims have immigrated to the U.S. from Africa, Asia, Saudi Arabia, Russia, China, Latin America, Australia, India, and many other countries. The ancestors of today's AA were among the first Muslims brought to the U.S. during the seventeenth century as captured slaves. Other Muslims are descendants of the Moors, who were driven out of Spain in the eighteenth century and settled in South Carolina and Florida.

The Nation of Islam
Elijah Muhammad founded the Nation of Islam (NOI) in the 1930s under the direction of Fard Muhammad. Upon the death of Elijah Muhammad, the Nation of Islam came under the leadership of his son, Imam W. Deen Mohammed. Imam Mohammed replaced the old teachings of his father with the true teachings of orthodox Islam. He changed the name of the Nation of Islam to the Muslim American Society (MAS). In the late 1970s, Minister Louis Farrakhan adopted the name "Nation of Islam" for a smaller group of African Americans continuing the original teachings of Elijah Muhammad. They estimate a following between 50,000 and 100,000 members. Meanwhile, the MAS became the gateway into Islam for AA and other indigenous Muslims.

The goal of the original Nation of Islam—the precursor to MAS—was to clean up AA and prepare them to live according to the true Islam. The NOI developed during a very difficult time in our nation, when Blacks were subjected to racist attacks, discrimination, and extreme prejudice. Slavery had already robbed AA of their identity and left them with a self-destructive slave mentality. Their habits after slavery included drinking, poor eating habits, sexual promiscuity, and male irresponsibility.

The original NOI uplifted former slaves and taught them the importance of controlling their appetites and disciplining themselves. Imam W. Deen Mohammed resurrected the identity and dignity of the former slave with the Qur'an and the sunnah or teachings of prophet Muhammad.

Islam and Health
Islam emphasizes preventive medicine by abstaining from harmful substances and purging the body of toxins through fasting. It teaches Muslims that they must care for their bodies. Harmful substances—such as tobacco, alcohol, and drugs—are forbidden. Islam established healthy rituals, such as the pilgrimage, fasting, and the hygienic practices of ablution or washing for the five daily prayers. The sunnah of prophet Muhammad emphasizes the importance of a healthy diet in that "the stomach is the house of every disease, and abstinence is the head of every remedy, so make this your custom." The prophet Muhammad said, "For every malady Allah created, He also created a cure."

When Imam Mohammed began teaching his followers the Qur'an and the sunnah, they were already familiar with dietary restraints, fasting, and self-discipline. The African-American experience had caused suspicion of Western biomedical health care and spurred interest in herbal health alternatives.

African-American Health
African-American Muslims share the same history, political climate, socioeconomic environment, and health outcomes as other AA, who have the worst health outcomes in the U.S. According to the Department of Health and Human Services, in the year 2000, the entire U.S. population reached record-high estimates for life expectancy at birth. But the life expectancy for AA males, at 68.3 years, continued to lag behind that of white Americans' 74.8 years. Similar disparities persisted for AA females at 75 years compared to 80 years for white females.

Heart disease is the leading cause of death for all racial and ethnic groups, but in 1999 (taking into account differences in age distributions) AA were 30 percent more likely to die of heart disease than Whites. AA women are less likely to receive health care and, when they do receive it, are more likely to receive it late.

Obesity, which is a risk factor for heart disease, diabetes, and stroke, was prevalent in 69 percent of AA women between the ages of 20 and 74 during the period of 1988–1994.

In the year 2000, 47 percent of all HIV/AIDS cases reported in the U.S. were among African Americans, an incidence ten times higher than among non-Hispanic Whites. In AIDS cases among African-American females, 55 percent were due to intravenous (IV) drug use or sex with an IV drug user.

African Americans are more likely to use the emergency room for mental health problems and are less likely to receive treatment for anxiety or depression.

In addition, African Americans are:

• 30 percent more likely to die from cancer;
• 40 percent more likely to die from stroke;
• twice as likely to die from diabetes;
• 5.4 times as likely as Whites to die of homicide.

Moreover, suicide rates for 10- to 14-year-old African-American youth are increasing at a rate twice that of Whites.

These disparities in the burden of death and illness for AA have persisted, and in many cases widened, for as long as the U.S. has been tracking health statistics.

The African-American community has limited access to adequate health care. High crime areas limit physical activities for adults and youth. Local grocery stores tend to provide poorer quality meats and produce, and few healthful foods.

There are large numbers of liquor stores, drug stores, and billboards encouraging cigarette smoking and alcohol consumption. Racism, crime, and discrimination create high stress levels with limited opportunities for relief.

Muslim American Society
Both the African-American church and the MAS have been stable and viable institutions in the community, charged with processing, interpreting, and redefining the AA experience. They both address the political, economic, social, intellectual, physical, and religious needs of African Americans.

The MAS utilizes the principles of self-reliance and self-discipline taught by the NOI founder Elijah Muhammad with the firm foundation of the Qur'an and the sunnah to build a community of "thriving, feeling, giving and repentant" Muslims, serving as examples to the world of the power of Islam to rejuvenate the human spirit and maximize human potential.

Imam Mohammed developed the Collective Purchasing Conference (CPC)/ComTrust LLC as a business entity to address the global demand for health foods that are handled and processed in a manner approved by Islamic law. The company produces health foods for Muslims as well as non-Muslims. Several restaurants purchase fish, poultry, and other products from CPC/ComTrust, which also distributes soaps, lotions, and deodorants that lack the unhealthful animal products and additives of regular toiletries. The MAS has developed numerous public and private businesses, organizations, and institutions throughout the nation to address the health gap for African Americans.

Muslim American Society Health Alliance
The Muslim American Society Health Alliance (MASHA) is a body of health practitioners committed to addressing the health needs and concerns of humanity and the MAS. Members develop and coordinate programs that emphasize prevention, holistic health, and health awareness. MASHA believes that it is their divinely given responsibility to improve public health and create an environment that is conducive to wellness. It works cooperatively with others who are similarly committed, believing that good health is Allah's desire for mankind. MASHA has developed health screening and education workshops held at various Islamic Centers and community events throughout the year. The MAS, the NOI, and the African-American church share the challenges of racism, prejudice, poverty, disenfranchisement, and health disparities for African Americans. Though they may choose different pathways for addressing these concerns, they often work together because their goals are the same—closing the gaps for African Americans and building healthy, viable citizens and communities.