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We are starting our Youtube event on Islam and prison abolition NOW!
Tune into http://bit.ly/bboyoutube for an important conversation with @DrSuad, @ShaykhAzhar, and Ustadh Ubaydullah Evans!
Tune into http://bit.ly/bboyoutube for an important conversation with @DrSuad, @ShaykhAzhar, and Ustadh Ubaydullah Evans!
"What would you say are the Islamic perspectives on the best way to address social transgressions?" #BBORamadan
"We need to look at the social/economic factors that contributed to the crime. Was this the failure of an individual or was this the failure of a state?" - @ShaykhAzhar
"We need to look at the social/economic factors that contributed to the crime. Was this the failure of an individual or was this the failure of a state?" - @ShaykhAzhar
"In a traditional Islamic territory, most cases are handled at the local level. The Islamic model is inherently restorative because that non-state actor has a wider scope to bring about the redress of wrong." -Ustadh Ubaydullah Evans #BBORamadan
"The 2 things that stand out are the failure of the system and state; we need to rethink what crime is. And Islamically, the ways we respond to social transgressions is on a local level which allows for a wide range of responses." - @DrSuad
Q: Is there an Islamic perspective on the death penalty?
"The Prophet (PBUH) said avoid punishing to the extent possible. If there is any doubt, avoid [it] categorically. The existence of capital punishment is logical, but the application is irresponsible." -Ustadh Ubaydullah
"The Prophet (PBUH) said avoid punishing to the extent possible. If there is any doubt, avoid [it] categorically. The existence of capital punishment is logical, but the application is irresponsible." -Ustadh Ubaydullah
"If you want to enforce Islamic penal law, you better make sure Islamic values are being upheld. Are there policies in place that bridge the gap between rich and poor?" - @ShaykhAzhar #BBORamadan
THIS 
"We need to make a distinction between a bad person and a person who committed a bad act." - @ShaykhAzhar
"We need to make a distinction between a bad person and a person who committed a bad act." - @ShaykhAzhar
"I wonder if the cutting of the hands punishment would have been a deterrent for the banks that have stolen." - @DrSuad 
#BBORamadan
#BBORamadan
"I think we need to make a distinction between the theoretical sentence and the process by which we arrive at the sentence. The harshness of the sentence is there to reflect the abhorrence of the act." - @ShaykhAzhar
"A lot of this is best dealt with conflict resolution. What we need to be is more community-focused and more community-oriented." -Ustadh Ubaydullah Evans
#BBORamadan
#BBORamadan
"There is a certain fetishization of law in this country- that it’s going to solve all of our problems and that we have to make all of our issues legal issues. A lot of our issues can be dealt with conflict resolution." -Ustadh Ubaydullah Evans
Q: What do think may be the biggest challenge to an Islamic worldview when engaging the concept of abolition?
"We believe in the redress of wrong, we believe in justice. Muslims are not making a connection between abolition and reimagining justice." -Ustadh Ubaydullah
"We believe in the redress of wrong, we believe in justice. Muslims are not making a connection between abolition and reimagining justice." -Ustadh Ubaydullah
"The Prophet (PBUH) did not put prisoners in cages. A prisoner in Medina was not someone in a cage, they were part of a community, & were not dehumanized. It is important to define what is a prison. You see a reintegration of the offender back into the community." - @ShaykhAzhar
"We have no concept of imprisonment after one is found guilty of a crime, and CERTAINLY not as a pre-trial detainee.
Pre-trial bond is actually enslavement in our tradition." -Ustadh Ubaydullah Evans #BBORamadan
Pre-trial bond is actually enslavement in our tradition." -Ustadh Ubaydullah Evans #BBORamadan
Q: What does Islam offer to these conceptualizations of abolition that can make them more dynamic?
"Resolving social transgressions on the community level is economically efficient & time efficient. We need to create a movement to abolish privatized prisons." - @ShaykhAzhar
"Resolving social transgressions on the community level is economically efficient & time efficient. We need to create a movement to abolish privatized prisons." - @ShaykhAzhar
"A prisoner has become a customer and the business can only thrive if you have customers. The privatization of prisons in inherently flawed." - @ShaykhAzhar #BBORamadan
"The idea of reintegrating offenders back into the community. They feel that they are part of the community. They are not othered." - @ShaykhAzhar #BBORamadan
"When we find that our tradition is silent about something, that is an intentional silence. WE have to develop how we go about dealing with the situation." -Ustadh Ubaydullah Evans #BBORamadan
Q: What are the things we need to put in place so that these non-punitive/restorative ideas can come to life in our communities?
"Finding the courage to speak truth to pain. Just because you have been done wrong, does not mean that you need to see this person in prison." -UUE
"Finding the courage to speak truth to pain. Just because you have been done wrong, does not mean that you need to see this person in prison." -UUE
"I think an effective solution is that every community needs an arbitration committee (comprised of an Islamic scholar, family counselors, psychologists, therapists). And have this available so that people have access to it. We need to support this as a community." - @ShaykhAzhar
Q: In terms of a "bad person" vs a "good person who does bad," what distinguishes them?
"Ultimately, we can't label a person as a bad person b/c we can't identify the inner working of their heart. The distinction is spiritual; make a distinction bw the action & the actor." -SA
"Ultimately, we can't label a person as a bad person b/c we can't identify the inner working of their heart. The distinction is spiritual; make a distinction bw the action & the actor." -SA
Q: What role should mosques/community leaders take in supporting community rehabilitation in the time of WOT?
"Teaching our community members that you have rights and you do not have to be used as a tool by law enforcement. We need to have a "know your rights" seminar." -SA
"Teaching our community members that you have rights and you do not have to be used as a tool by law enforcement. We need to have a "know your rights" seminar." -SA
"Books are like AK47s - people get enlightened and then they change the world." - @DrSuad
"People that work with law enforcement, you do not think we are capable of pursuing justice within our own community." -Ustadh Ubaydullah Evans #BBORamadan
"When we think about how human bondage and enslavement was an issue at the time of the Prophet (PBUH) and it is still an issue in our time, we see a continuum of his struggle and our struggle. Maybe we can finish what they started!" -Ustadh Ubaydullah Evans #BBORamadan
"Until we can end this system, we WILL free them all!" - @DrSuad #BBORamadan
We want to thank @ShaykhAzhar and Ustadh Ubaydullah Evans for providing an important perspective into Islamic tradition and how it should define our abolition work. And of course, thank you to @DrSuad for moderating and adding additional insight into our work! #BBORamadan
