Even with the age of Obama dawning, for too many black Americans life is still fraught with the same old “us against them” sort of thinking. Where once militant blacks paraded in pseudo military garb claiming the mantle of “black power” and patterning themselves as “panthers” thrusting an angry fist into the air, now they cling to the separatist ideals of militant Islam.
Early last week in an FBI raid in Michigan Luqman Ameen Abdullah was killed in a gunfight with officials. This weekend local African American Muslims attended his funeral vowing to get “justice.”
These local black Americans claimed that this terror cell leader “constantly strived for righteous deeds,” and that he was a dedicated man of God.
For their part officials say this Imam, the head of a separatist Mosque of local African Americans, was a violent extremist who urged attacks on police and called for jihad.
Naturally, as far as his supporters are concerned, it’s the evil white establishment against the innocent militant once again. Instead of seeing the hate-spreading Imam for what he is these local homegrown apologists for radical Islam find themselves in support of Abdullah and against America.
It doesn’t seem much different than past support of murderous criminals like Fred Hampton or Huey Newton, does it?
So, it seems that the old black power meme has been replaced with militant Islam. And like with black power, prisons have become a place of recruitment for this militant brand of Islam. Many have worried that our prison system is serving as a pool of dangerous recruits for domestic terrorism.
Where this all will end up is anyone’s guess. But one thing is sure, militant Islam is a replacement for the militant racebaiting of “”black power” yet it is unlikely to appeal to nearly as many people as black power did. The black power movement was at least born of a particularly American impulse. Militant Islam is something altogether foreign.
Unfortunately militant Islam can tap into a vein of support from outside this country that is already involved in killing many thousands in acts of terror and criminality that makes the criminal actions of the old Black Panther movement seem tame in comparison.
Small in numbers or no, militant Islam amongst separatist American blacks could be far more dangerous than black power ever was.
Warner Todd Huston’s thoughtful commentary, sometimes irreverent often historically based, is featured on many websites such as Breitbart.com, among many, many others. He has also written for several history magazines, has appeared on numerous TV and radio shows.
