WHY ARE MULSIMS IN JAIL TODAY THAN EVER BEFORE???????? Muslims in jail: we have drafted a few ideas and suggestions maybe you could disseminate amongst your colleagues. These are basic ideas and are no means holistic solutions to tackle this issue outright. I think that can only occur with the cross collaboration of all stakeholders within the locality. There are a number of issues and interventions which potentially can be considered to tackle the issue of concern. Early Age Intervention We believe if there is a generic framework and curriculum introduced within the Masjids locally this will help streamline supplementary education which is provided by Masjids i.e. Quranic learning. Therefore an Islamic curriculum can be developed by engaging local Islamic institutions. Of course this need to exceed what is currently offered in many Masjid particularly of an Indian Sub Continent diaspora. Some of the elements could include learning Arabic as a language in order to understand what the Quran actually means which will impact the heart to a greater extent and quite possibly connect with people at an early age. Sports can be used an integrated within the curriculum as many young people tend to be energetic and need to express this. You can include Sunnah sports such as swimming and archery for example. Hopefully this kind of framework will help people from a young age respond to informal education as long as it meets the needs of the community. As you are aware with 1 million young people unemployed in the UK and throughout Europe, young people and unemployment have in contemporary times become a core issue in campaigning and advocacy work for many organisations. Traditionally youth may have been seen as people aged between 18-25 but this we believe has changed with austerity and the current context of the economy and now increasing youth can be seen from 18-35. There is a large amount of young people who are over 25 and are not able to access opportunities such as apprenticeships and may be in menial employment or low paid jobs which do not match their aspirations or potential unfortunately i.e. unemployed graduates. These are realisations and realities we must face up to and tackle as mental health, depression, stress, suicidal tendencies are low wellness are ever increasing particularly in Muslim communities without being addressed. One intervention may be for institutions such as Mosques to begin to rethink their strategies and engagement methods if any. A simple idea would be to raise £30k possibly during a period such as Ramadan. This then can be subsequently invested into creating 6 part time jobs at £5k annual salary and can be part of a pilot initiative. These jobs can be in a variety of field i.e. Youth Workers, Community Development, Community Organisers, Female Empowerment, Outreach Workers, Substance Misuse Workers etc. This is a simple concept known as economies of scale. Recent reports have highlighted Islamaphobic practices amongst some companies which have been shown to discriminate against Muslim job seekers. Therefore it makes sense to create jobs within the community as Masjids are often the recipients of donations from the community and are well positioned to carry such a pilot out. When people live and work in a local community they will send their children to local schools, buy halal meat from local butchers, use local amenities, and then donate to the local Masjids. This then keeps the money rotating in a circular fashion within the demograph of a local community and helps self sustain and create long term sustainability. It is a suggestion which can be further explored we believe. If there are jobs within the local communities it may help bring down the rate of crime. There are other issues such as poverty, lack of role models, societal discrimination, Islamaphobia, ‘glass ceiling effect’, media and common urban culture. Varying aspects of these elements may assist in criminality in various ways. It might be more research and practical action needs to be undertaken to delve deeper into these issues. Another idea or construct to divert the attention of young Muslims away from negative influences and crime maybe to revive the glorious age of Islam in particular focussing on the Spanish Moorish period. There may be more than two dozen Masjid in this town yet e must ask ourselves how much impact are they having on the lives of young people using positive enquiry and critique techniques. We believe if there is space or a facility somewhere where Islamic Science, History and Heritage can be taught this will maximise and divert young people attention creating innovation, creativity and exploration as the earlier Muslims did when they were excelling in all these fields. This type of pursuit can help create social entrepreneurs, discoveries and contribute to the development of technology and enhance knowledge exchange. Please view the documentaries below for a taste of what has been described above. youtube/watch?v=G_N27wqbdlI youtube/watch?v=QlfQvzh21V4 Another intervention possibility is to look at reducing reoffending. It might be that leading organisations in the community consider developing partnerships with HMC prisons and training organisations. Working with universities and colleges they can help create short courses to assist prisoners and help create aspirations for them. All of the above suggestions are not infinite by any means and just ideas. The Rochdale Council of mosques have done a great job thus far and we support their work. Please pass these suggestions on to whom it concerns and we hope it will spark off debate in order to build an overall strategy to create transformative social change and enhance the lives of young Muslims in particular and let them reach out, broaden their horizons and create positive aspirations. JZK
Posted on: Sat, 16 Nov 2013 17:29:32 +0000
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