NMLSA.org

Towards A Brighter Tomorrow:
Why Muslim Students Should Consider A Career In Law
 
By
Saleem Safdar
Former President of NMLSA, 2004-2005
 
 
The Muslim Ummah is experiencing one of the worst periods in its history in
terms of a lack of scholarship, leadership, and unity. As a result,
Muslims have been the target of systematic oppression throughout the world.
For many Muslims residing in the West, the precariousness of their
predicament lies in their "otherness". With characteristics symptomatic of
a diaspora, Western Muslims reside neither in their mother land, nor are
they able to fully assimilate into secular American society, as that would
translate into an abandonment of their traditional values. In what W.E.B
DuBois coined "dual-consciousness," the minority has the unique ability to
understand things from two distinct identities - that of the oppressed
minority and that of the oppressor majority. Today, the majority of young
Muslims residing in the West experience dual consciousness in two ways.
Firstly, for immigrants and their children, they see from the perspective
of their native country as well as from the perspective of an American.
Secondly, thoughtful Muslims are able to see from the perspective of the
oppressed Muslim as well as from the vantage of the oppressor majority,
whether it be in America or elsewhere.
 
While this dual consciousness may serve as an advantage to younger Muslims
in the West in terms of conveying the message of Islam and the Muslim
perspective to their curious neighbor, classmate, or co-worker, many of the
elder generation who immigrated to America, the U.K., or elsewhere are
handicapped by inferiority complexes coupled with an unqualified fear of
exclusion. To the extent that many of our parents' generation came to the
West with the sole objective of seeking greater financial security while
the younger generation of Western born and bred Muslims are more concerned
with recapturing their identity and enhancing Muslim causes of morality and
social welfare, priorities have shifted. Although many of the younger
generation still follow the age old formula of becoming a doctor or
engineer, a growing number of youth are looking to alternate careers that
offer more relevance to the issues that are of importance to them.
 
Despite the overwhelming number of Muslim doctors in the health care
profession in the West, there has been virtually no change in the plight of
Muslims politically and in terms of their rights. Although a sad indicator
of the political apathy of the Muslim medical community in the West, it is
not to be unexpected. The goal of most individuals entering the medical
profession is not to effect social and political change.
 
A shared trait by many individuals who served as an impetus for social
change and justice is that they had legal training. Two such examples of
recent memory for those of the Indian subcontinent are Muhammad Ali Jinnah
and Mohandas "Mahatma" Gandhi. A legal education may also lead itself to a
life in the political arena, in which getting the Muslim voice heard is
imperative for the safeguarding of future Muslim generations in Western
countries and elsewhere. It is the Muslim lawyers of the West that will
translate Islam and the Muslim interest into fair laws for its
practitioners.
 
Law is empowerment. It is the social contract every citizen has agreed to
in being a part of civil society. It provides guidelines so that
individuals may carry out their livelihoods with relative peace of mind, so
they may travel uninhibited by the fear of highway bandits, and so they
might live a happy and fulfilling life. The law, however, is an ever
evolving entity. Norms change with the social climate, which in turn are
translated everyday into new legislation. When any group fails to
participate in the daily evolution of law, whether it be in a federal
courthouse or on the steps of the U.S. Congress, it relinquishes itself to
a position of the oppressed. No one else will champion the Muslim voice.
It must be carried by the strong, trial tested, and morally grounded voices
of Muslims who realize that their sphere of influence is not limited to the
American legal world, but is reverberated throughout the world in how the
Muslim is seen and ultimately treated. The young generation of Western
raised Muslims have the ability to communicate effectively with their peers
and society at large using the same lingo and jargon, whereas many of the
generation preceding them were hampered linguistically. The young
generation also has a greater responsibility to voice the Muslim cause and
communal concerns, both domestic and international, in light of many
mistreatments of recent date of Muslims in the law. From the attack on
Muslim charitable organizations and Muslim immigrants through the use of
"secret evidence," the illegal treatment of Guantanamo Bay prisoners as
"detainees" in contravention of the Geneva Accords, and attempts to outlaw
the wearing of hijab as attempted in Alabama and realized in France (to
name just a few) Muslims are increasingly finding themselves the victims of
unjust laws. For Muslims considering law school, the aforementioned should
be inspiration enough to further explore the opportunities and benefits a
law degree might provide to oneself, one's family, and one's community.
 
Allah (SWT) says in the Quran, Surah IV, verse 135: "O ye who believe!
Stand out firmly for justice, as witnesses to God, even as against
yourselves, or your parents, or your kin, and whether it be (against) rich
or poor: For God can best protect both. Follow not the lusts (of your
hearts), lest ye swerve, and if ye distort (justice) or decline to do
justice, verily Allah is well-acquainted with all that ye do." The Western
way of life, blemished with its many excesses and luxuries, barters some
and beguiles others into a servitude of passivity and the maintenance of
the status quo. The Muslim way of life requires that one not accept the
status quo - but rather that one speak out for truth and justice.
 
Muslim college and university students who have a desire to help the cause
of justice and truth should consider a legal education. In America, it is
suggested that students take their LSAT (Law School Aptitude Test) in their
third year of college. A helpful website with information on the law
school application process is http://www.lsac.org. There are no
specifically required classes for entrance into law school, but classes
that increase one's comprehension and analytical abilities are encouraged.
Lastly, young Muslim students who are considering law school should
remember the latin maxim that says: "The laws aid the vigilant, not the
negligent." Let us hope that from among today's youth will emerge a group
of intelligent and motivated Muslim lawyers whose vigilance will benefitthe Muslim community in the West and rest of the world.