Top 10 cities I visited

Just like most large metropolitan cities in North America, the best thing about Chicago is its many faces. If you don’t like one part of it, move and you’re practically in another city with its own subculture and atmosphere. Chicago is definitely quite clean compared to her bigger cousins (NY and LA) and yet boasts a city life just as renowned throughout the world. When I first moved there in 1996, the Sears tower was still the world’s tallest skycraper and along with its neighboring buildings, boasts one of the best skylines. Similar to Toronto in many respects, it even has a similar waterfront named Lakeshore Drive, which is one of my favorite drives.

Similarly, the Muslim population and the face of Islam in the city was quite varied. For the first time I was exposed to a very tight knitted and thriving neighborhood community in south Chicago where I lived and worked. A mosque, two Muslim high schools, a youth centre and hundreds of Muslims lived within walking distance of one another. It was nice to see Muslims doing well, as most residents had education and wealth which they didn’t hesitate to part with when it came to supporting various worldwide and local causes. They also had excellent relations with the greater non-Muslim community and the mayor. Following the week after 9/11, fearing there would be a backlash against Muslims by angry and non-sensical mobs, the mayor ordered the mosque protected by police snipers in case things got out of hand.

Nowhere did Muslims command more respect and compassion than the inner city of Chicago. Marginalized and compartmentalized by the larger community, the residents of the inner city had Muslims as one of their strongest supporters and helpers. Led by a large group of African-American converts and student activists, Muslims played a strong role in restoring some of the law and order corroded by gang-bangers, drug addicts, prostitution and corrupt authorities which plague most inner cities in North America. I was fortunate to work with this group of dedicated Muslims, and my experiences with the inner city residents – comprising of African-Americans, Latinos, native Americans, immigrants, Muslims and non-Muslims alike – is itself a book I could write about. Taking a stroll through the neighborhoods, it was very common to get nods of greetings and appreciation from non-Muslim residents with their exhuberant “Salamsalaykum brother!”

One experience that stands out is when Muslims and other faith groups outside the neighborhood collaborated with local residents to revitalize the community by turning a crackhouse into a mosque and community center for everyone – including non-Muslims – and building an income-generating grocery store adjacent to it. For as Muslims it isn’t enough to build just mosques and basketball courts, we need to bring self-sufficiency and hence self-worth, to a people.

Of course my favorite memory of Chicago was the reason I moved there in the first place – to work for a Muslim charity organization. My six years in the organization led me to visit communities throughout North America, crisis-ridden areas worldwide, be an active participant in the development of Muslim activism, organizations and youth, and of course reach out to the poor and oppressed in a way I doubt I will ever be able to do in my life again. I guess being single, with lots of time and not having a financial burden allowed me to utilize those years well. To this day I value the friendships and mentoring I received from the brothers who made it their lifelong struggle to work for the poor and oppressed, and I gained valuable lessons about Muslims and activism which I continue to utilize to this day.