I've been on a sabbatical of sorts for the last 15 months. I've been taking a break from being a community organizer and activist within the American Muslim community. And now I don't want to go back.
I spent the last 12 to 15 years being an "activist" but when I look back on my efforts I don't see a lot of accomplishments or even much meaningful progress. I joined groups like the Council of American Muslim Professionals (now the Council for the Advancement of Muslim Professionals)(CAMP), I helped create the Muslim Bar Association of Chicago, I worked on the board of the Council of Islamic Organizations of Greater Chicago and I worked for them a bit later as well. I helped organize events, I attended dinners and I occasionally went to rallies or meetings with other activists and organizers. That's a lot of work and a lot of effort, but none of it necessarily means I achieved anything.
This isn't a pity party. It is what it is. I'm just looking back and trying to make sense of some things.
Today I'm very skeptical of invitations to "get involved" with activities. It's a healthy skepticism. I'm not averse to spending my time on a useful project, but I need to understand its goals and objectives and I must have a well defined role in it. And I don't do meetings and I don't do short notice anything.
The net result of these hurdles I've placed between me and community activities is to remove almost all of them from serious consideration. The calls and emails I get are all short notice efforts when there is absolutely no need for a rush job. The projects are still ego-driven efforts by largely the same caste and crew of "leaders". I'm not interested in spinning my wheels in the sand.
I want to do useful and meaningful work that helps others. I believe, more than ever before, that serving humanity is a core value in my Islamic faith and in my Muslim identity. I just don't feel the need to fulfill this duty vis-a-vis Muslim-centric works. In fact, I think I am more useful working outside of the traditional Muslim settings and among my friends within the non-Muslim community (these are people I once had a really strong bond with but whom I've neglected while being an "activist" and "organizer" within the Muslim community).
If anything I think I need to take what I know about the organized American Muslim community and from the traditionally observant American Muslim crowd and use it to help create a community for the majority of American Muslims in our community who simply don't identify with the American Muslim Establishment.
Unfortunately, I don't know how to go about getting this started...
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