Annually, tens of 1000’s of inmates within the U.S. are changing to Islam whereas incarcerated. The most recent installment of the “CBS Mornings” series “The State of Spirituality with Lisa Ling” explores why the religion is connecting with so many behind bars.
Changing to Islam in jail
Most days, Rami Nsour heads to his native submit workplace to seek out his mailbox filled with letters from incarcerated folks from all around the nation in search of his non secular steerage and Islamic schooling sources. Nsour is the founding director of the Tayba Basis, the primary group within the U.S. to supply a distance-learning program in Islamic schooling to inmates.
“After we began about 15 years in the past, that was the principle want that we heard from Muslim prisoners,” Nsour mentioned. “So, we developed this group to fill that hole and that want.”
Islam is the quickest rising faith in U.S. prisons. Nsour mentioned his group has served over 13,000 people and he estimates that round 90% of them transformed to Islam and most whereas behind bars. Nsour believes many are changing whereas incarcerated as a result of there’s a lot bodily and non secular confinement in jail and folks discover non secular freedom inside the religion.
“As a result of it has a stage of submission, so that you undergo a sure regiment, there’s 5 day by day prayers, there is a technique,” Nsour defined. “They see that these partitions cannot confine them anymore.”
Amin’s story
Muhammad Amin Anderson was interested in Islam for a lot of causes, together with the non secular freedom it offers him. He transformed to Islam about two years right into a 30-year sentence for a gang-related homicide.
“Once I got here to jail, I did not have my humanity … however after getting into jail, I recovered my humanity,” he mentioned, crediting Islam for serving to him get better it.
Born Christopher Anderson in Philadelphia, he was the son of a preacher, however as a teen, Anderson answered the calls of the streets.
“I really fell into drug habit for a few 12 months and a half,” he mentioned. “I obtained concerned with a gaggle of men they usually had been promoting medicine in our metropolis.”
In his 20s, Anderson ended up taking part in a gang-related homicide. As soon as he was confined to a jail cell, Anderson started reflecting on his life, religion and private spirituality.
“I spent my years in jail studying about different faiths,” he mentioned. “Islam was the one one which made sense for me.”
As Anderson’s spirituality grew deeper, he turned related with the Tayba Basis and Nsour, who started instructing Anderson in jail by cellphone.
“There’s solely a lot that you are able to do with self-learning,” Nsour defined. “So, I began taking his cellphone calls, began sending him materials, answering his questions, and actually taught him over the course of about 17 years to the purpose that then he was capable of train within the prisons.”
Misconceptions about changing
There are nonetheless widespread misconceptions about why persons are changing to Islam in jail. For some, there’s a notion that inmates have gotten radicalized by the religion, which Nsour mentioned couldn’t be farther from the reality.
“The numbers do not present that,” he mentioned. “Does it exist? Sure. However it’s a uncommon occasion in the identical manner are there people who find themselves Christian extremists, who’re radicalized in jail, who may go on to do a terrorism act? Sure.”
In keeping with the Nationwide Institute of Corrections (NIC), violence attributable to jail radicalization by Muslims within the U.S. is a uncommon occasion and there is little to no proof it is occurring. Actually, Nsour mentioned, many converts are interested in the religion by observing how Muslims inmates carry themselves.
“They’re going to discover that particular person is completely different. He isn’t falling into the identical ruts of how different folks may behave in jail,” Nsour mentioned. “So, they ask them after which he’ll say, ‘nicely, it is my Islam and my Islam teaches me about my character.'”
Getting a second likelihood
Anderson was launched from jail in July after serving his full sentence. At his parole listening to, he mentioned the chairman referred to as him an distinctive inmate. Anderson credit Islam for him being portrayed that manner and for having the ability to flip round his life. Now exterior of prisons partitions, Anderson feels his work is simply starting and he’s grateful he’s being given a second likelihood.
“I imagine God gave me a second likelihood to come back out right here to serve humanity,” he mentioned. “As a result of the particular person’s life I took, he does not have a second likelihood. So, I feel I owe it to him. I owe it to his household. I owe it to his kids to do one thing with my life.”
Anderson now now has a job with the Tayba Basis and is having fun with a quiet and prayerful life. Nsour instructed CBS News in his 15 years of doing this, it is uncommon for an inmate to denounce Islam as soon as they go away jail, which he says is proof it is not only a section behind bars.
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