I love Islam and cream soda

In 1800 there were less than a million slaves in the United States. In 1808 United States banned the import of slaves, effectively stopping the Atlantic slave trade to the US. However, by 1860 the slave population quadrupled to 4 million. The United States was not about to give up its ascension to world power status on the backs of its slave economy, so she, especially in the South, hit on the effective strategy of increasing the number of slaves already within her borders. The primary methodology was by taking Black women and breeding them to produce more slaves. To do this effectively, the family unit would have to be dismantled, so the men especially could not be allowed to be husbands or fathers, and they were especially discouraged from this by having to witness women being raped and sold.  John Tubman, who was actually not a slave, threatened to snitch on his wife Harriet when she confided in him her desire to escape to the North to freedom. I never saw past the irony or unde...

I'm writing a series of posts/blogs that will ultimately frame the events of my last marriage, frame -up/incarceration, and shooting with historical events contextual to slavery in this country... Let me pause here and give some recommended reading: one of the most harrowing and insightful novels I've read in a long time...

Today I returned to Limon Correctional Facility after I first entered there as a convict 29 years ago. It was there that I converted to Islam and forged ties with people  like my brother who became family, and more importantly,  it's where I began the mental and spiritual evolution and elevation  away from the young hoodlum I was then toward the man that is "Taj Ashaheed"  Today we took the first steps towards continuing/restarting our Second Chance Center  programs and presence inside of the Department of Corrections, an effort I will be spearheading under the direction of the Executive and Deputy Directors. I walked in with security clearance, got my visitors badge and was taken on a tour by correctional staff. We stopped to talk to several inmates including brothers who were here when I left and I've been here ever since. As I walk through I was struck with flashes of nostalgia and sadness- not much has changed about the way the facility looks, smells, and fe...

It is often reported that the "Al Aqsa" (arabic: "the farthest") mosque in Jerusalem is the "third holiest shrine" in Islam, due to its mention in the Quran and prophetic tradition. There's a bit of historical confusion here, which also gives fodder to islamophobic arguments about the Quran having a questionable origin, since the present mosque at the Jewish holy site was built AFTER Muhammad's death and not completed until 705 CE. Technically the "Al Aqsa" mosque - the third holiest Islamic site - is the actual site of the Jewish Temple II. The Quran itself mentions the mystical trip Muhammad took to the "farthest mosque", a reference to the temple site, in 621, which had no structure there since 70 CE. (In Islam, a mosque does not have to have a specific structure, and is technically any place a Muslim regularly prays/prostrates). One night, Muhammad was transported there by a mystical horse-like creature. There, he p...

Had an interesting talk with the DAs office re: The Harpy's case. One thing that has happened because of covid19 is the courts are straight jacked. In Colorado, the supreme court rulings have scaled back how current cases will be handled. The ex was initially supposed to go to trial last week; the case was delayed to the end of this month, at which time the best case scenario for her will be to get a mistrial because jurors cannot be seated due to social distancing. Looks li ke once again, ol' girl will get away with being a predator. At least in part... Ironically, sis Shamma, whose house she stole, filed and won the lawsuit that not only got her house back but she also won a $120k judgement against the Harpy which has resulted in a lien against the house she owns (which is next door). Talk about karma...  🏠 💰 In an attempt to gain sympathy and avoid charges, the Harpy basically framed me using evidence doctored so horribly, it eventually embarrassed the police/DAs ...

إِنَّ مِنْ أَزْوَجِكُمْ وَأَوْلـدِكُمْ عَدُوّاً لَّكُمْ Verily, among your wives and your children are enemies for you - Quran 64:14 Lemme, tell you a story. First a prologue:   My mom and I had a horrible relationship as I grew up. One day, I made the resentful comment that she "wasn't even my real mother".  I really had no idea how asinine that comment was until my father sat me down and deconstructed my pseudo-intellectual assessment of my mother. I will save the details for my book - but I learned that children are hardly able to give a just estimate of their parents - even into adulthood. It is always up to parents to bear that cross - and bear the witness where kids can't see. ***** Once upon a time: A man went to jail facing charges for crimes that he did not commit, He sadly realized he was fighting a case that everyone but a handful of people thought he was actually guilty of.  That realization made him even more determined to fight and beat...

Most states give money to people leaving prison. But some formerly incarcerated people say it's often not enough to meet their basic needs. EXCERPT: When Taj Ashaheed was released from prison and dropped off in downtown Denver with $100 of gate money on a debit card, he used it to buy a cheap cell phone. Then he went to Subway and ordered a meatball sub. Ashaheed was able to stay with a family member for the first month or so after prison. But for people who aren’t so lucky, housing is an expensive and immediate need, said Sean Taylor, the deputy executive director of the Second Chance Center, a reentry organization in Colorado.Taylor, who himself was released from prison and received $100 in gate money about eight years ago, said the shelters his center can refer people to cost around $60 a week, and a bad motel might cost about $350. For Ashaheed, $100 felt like a “token gesture” on the part of the state, not like a real attempt to help people get on their feet. “It fel...