Assisting the Muslim and non-Muslim communities of KW

Muslim Social Services

An Imam’s Guide to Deal with Domestic Violence: Abdul Malik Mujahid

1. Listening to the Community

As an Imam, you are the listening post of the community. But are you listening? Are you accessible to women in your masjids? Do women know your phone number? Do you have a set time available exclusively for women when they can talk to you and discuss issues of concern directly with you?

2. Learning About the Problem

There are different types of abuse: physical, sexual, verbal, emotional and others. Know what types of abuse there are and familiarize yourself with their telltale signs. There is plenty of material on this subject which can be found on many web sites. You can start by reading from Sound Vision’s page on domestic violence. You can also acquire this information at police stations, women’s centers and libraries.

It will also help if you read a few books about domestic violence, and added some good books on this topic in your Islamic center’s library as well. As you are learning, please share this information with other leaders in your community.

3. Be proactive about domestic violence

Domestic violence can lead to the sister murdered and the brother being put in jail. Children would be separated from parents and most likely put in non-Muslim foster homes if this happened. It will also create another cycle of bad news for your community as has already happened in Chicago, Dallas, and Toronto. You can prevent all of that by being pro-active about domestic violence. If something still happens, God knows that you tried to prevent these things.

4. Understand that this is not a personal matter

Domestic violence is not a private matter between a husband and a wife that should be ignored. Domestic violence can lead to the destruction of a Muslim family, which is already so fragile in the current Islamophobic environment. The destruction of one family is the destruction of one unit of the Ummah. As leaders, Imams have a duty to help those suffering in this crisis.

Remember that Muslims must help their brothers and sisters, whether they are the oppressed or the oppressor as the Prophet has asked us to do, God’s peace and blessings be upon him. Not only must we help the sister who is being abused, we must also help the brother who is abusing by stopping him from this wrong.

5. Approach domestic violence as you would any social problem

Provide solutions, not just threats of Hellfire to men who abuse. Remember that a person who has this problem can change Insha Allah (if Allah wills) if there is help and support from the community and leaders like the Imam.

6. Know the services available

If your town has a Muslim-run battered women shelter, you are very blessed. Please do the following:

             * keep their contact information handy
             * put their info in the Masjid, Islamic center or community newsletter
             * ask your board to support them financially
             * help them raise funds for their shelter. A Muslim-run shelter in Chicago had to turn away 647 women              and children in 2007 since they did not have enough space available.

However, the reality is that Muslim-run shelters don’t exist in most American cities. If no such shelter is available, please do the following:

             * Learn where the nearest battered women’s shelter is.
             * Keep the crisis hotline numbers available.
             * Learn about safe houses, where women can stay if they are trying to escape from a violent husband.
             * Develop a relationship with the shelters so they can provide culturally sensitive service to abused              Muslim women.
             * Support them financially. I personally know of a Masjid in Chicago which for years used Zakat funds to              support a non-Muslim run shelter for abused women.
             * Most shelters are run by professionals, so referring a victim to a shelter could be life-saving decision,              instead of sending her back to home.
             * Give your contact information to a local women’s shelter or a crisis line. Please don’t give them a              number which no one picks up at masjids. This is important because when there is an emergency              involving a Muslim woman who wants to contact Muslims, shelters and crisis lines can refer the woman              to the mosque or Islamic center and the Imam or another Muslim representative.

            

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