PHILADELPHIA—Nation of Islam Student National Prison Reform Minister Abdullah Muhammad’s impactful presentation, titled “The Government is Trappin Too,” captivated the audience at Mosque No. 12 in Philadelphia during a message earlier this summer.
Shedding light on the concept of “trappin” commonly associated with drug dealing, he argued that the Black community had been “trapped” since their arrival on the ship named Jesus in 1555. With conviction, he advocated for separation as the only solution to this perpetual trap.
During his July 24 presentation he encouraged the audience to go back and listen to “The Time and What Must be Done” by the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan, parts 23 and 24. “It’s the time of the presence of God,” explained Student Minister Abdullah.
“Abram (in the Bible) falls into a deep sleep and is overcome by a terrifying vision,” he pointed out. “In this revealed dream, he sees a great darkness descending upon him, and his descendants are enslaved for 400 years.”
Student Minister Abdullah then pivoted to point out that during the Most Honorable Elijah Muhammad’s 1974 Saviour’s Day address, the Messenger said the sun is setting, but that it will rise again. “Five thousand years ago, when Abram envisioned the darkness, he knew it was a sign of the Black man and woman in the wilderness of North America.
Allah showed him our condition as chattel enslaved people in America, which was terrifying,” he added. “Lincoln freed the enslaved people; you then faced the racism of Black Codes and segregation. The plantation was your first prison.”
“What is the power of one brain cell?” he asked. “You can discover the brain’s true power when you submit your will to God’s Will. Brothers in prison think they need a lawyer first, but you need God to turn your brain on first,” explained Student Minister Abdullah. Slavery robbed Black people of their knowledge of self and culture and made them other than themselves, he continued.
“Now you are here suffering and believing a lie. Told you were free but had to deal with Jim Crow, Black Codes, don’t have land ownership. The government then makes up vagrancy laws that put you in jail where you are rented back to the plantation,” he said.
“The government is trapping us too,” he passionately exclaimed. He drew parallels between the historical injustices beset upon Black people including the infamous Iran-Contra affair. This scandal, which occurred during the presidencies of Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush, involved the smuggling of drugs to fund an illegal war in Nicaragua.
By highlighting the devastating impact of crack cocaine on the Black community, Student Minister Abdullah shed light on the multifaceted consequences that set the stage for the ongoing war on drugs.
“As a result, Black people have become trapped in a web of mass incarceration, reminiscent of slavery, where free labor is once again forced upon us,” he told the audience. He also argued that law enforcement agencies including the FBI, state police, ATF and others are involved in setting many of these traps.
Quoting the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan, Student Minister Abdullah stated, “These people are so wicked they keep you ignorant while dropping you down a barrel of filth. You are trapped and don’t even know you are trapped. They plan laws to ensure we have felony convictions with consequences. They trap us in the halls of Congress where they write these bills. We take deals never realizing the collateral consequences.”
In his conclusion, Student Minister Abdullah referenced Isaiah 61 from the Bible and declared, “‘Arise and shine, for your light has arrived, and the greatness of the Lord is illuminating you.’ Our guiding light is Minister Louis Farrakhan. God has arrived to purify your garments, leaving them as white as snow.”
