|
B i s m i l l a a h i r R a h m a a n i r R a
h e e m
Assalaamu`Alaykum wa
Rahmatullaahi wa Barakaatuhu
Dear Brothers and Sisters in
Islam,
This Petition created by the members of the Muslim Communities
and written by Sister Shireen Pishdadi call for a postponement of the
ratification of the proposed ISNA* Halal standards until duty-bound, recognized Muslim scholars have
properly addressed the issues of Shariah in an exhaustive way within the
context of the current globalized and industrialized food system so that
comprehensive and germane Shariah rulings can be researched, derived, and
debated."
Fee
Amaanillaah,
Your sister,
K a r i m a
*The Islamic Society of North
America
PETITION
To: ISNA
We, the
undersigned, call for a postponement of the ratification of the proposed ISNA
Halal standards until recognized Muslim scholars have addressed the issues of
Shariah compliance within the context of the global food system, and the
Muslim community has had a chance to weigh in with their own opinions and
questions.
Such an endeavor requires more time for research and
debate, but is essential to ensuring that the standards attain the input of
scholars and are in alignment with the sentiments of the Muslim community in
the United States in conjunction with the realities of the larger Muslim
community.
These standards are highly problematic; they will allow the
same very low quality meat that is now being offered in the Muslim community
to be certified as halal.
Although certification is a very lucrative
business, we are selling ourselves short; for the sake of a share in this
market, we are selling our health, our children's health, and any dignity we
have as Muslims in the eyes of the world when they see what we consider as
'halal': tortured, disease-infested animals raised on farms that employ
modern-day slave laborers - all so that we can have access to a lucrative
market and cheap food.
What is even worse than that is the Baraka of
Allah most High that we will forfeit as a community because of the completely
unwholesome food we are consuming; food raised in the most corrupt and
pernicious ways.
By allowing our community to implicate us in these
issues through this certification program, we are indirectly condoning and
perpetuating the many manifestations of corruption and oppression in the world
today.
The CONTENTS of this document are:
1. The ISNA Halal
Certification Program objectives
2. Brief list of problems with the
standards
3. Our request
4. FAQ
5. Quranic proofs related to food
production and consumption
(1) The
ISNA Halal Certification Program objectives:
i) To
make Halal standards that will become law in the state of Illinois
ii) To
activate Muslim leaders to establish halal as Muslim identity in North America
iii) Unifying National Halal Standards ISNA will propose the National
Halal Standards
(2) The STANDARDS for Halal slaughter being proposed by ISNA are
problematic in many areas. A few examples are described below:
ANIMAL TREATMENT AND FEED:
Animals are raised in the most unimaginably cruel and
inhumane ways, living in fear and pain for most if not all of their lives
Livestock are castrated, dehorned, branded on the face, chickens are
debeaked, all without anesthetic, and these are standard practices
They are raised in completely unnatural and unhygienic environments,
wreaking ecological havoc on the surrounding communities
Even if
animal feed is vegetarian it is made up of grains, among other synthetic
supplements and additives, which is a diet given to ruminants to fatten them
up as fast as possible
This makes the meat high in fat, cholesterol
and Omega 6 Fatty Acids
Grass raised meat, which is not to be found in
the conventional market, is low in fat and cholesterol but high in Omega 3
Fatty Acids
While millions of people die of starvation, 40-50% of the
global grain is fed to animals
OUR HEALTH:
Sick and tumor-plagued animals are not only allowed to be sold as
food, they are the norm
Over 25 million lbs per year of antibiotics
are used for livestock because these corporate farms are sanctuaries for
super-diseases
Pesticides in the meat are a serious health problem for
the consumer
GMOs (genetically modified organism) are in the animal
feed. We do not yet know the effects of eating this meat, but large groups of
specialists and consumers are warning against GMOs in the food and this must
be respected and thoroughly researched
HUMAN
SLAUGHTER:
Most slaughterhouses are not equipped for humane
slaughter of animals, which Islam requires
These standards do not
address the fact that if these animals are not stunned, they have to be
shackled alive, hung upside down by the back leg, which is grossly inhumane
FARMER / WORKER ABUSE:
Agriculture is one of
the most exploitive and hazardous industries today in the US and worldwide
About 5 million U.S. farmers have been forced out of the market in ~60
yrs
About 300,000 acute pesticide poisonings annually in the US and 25
million globally
MNCs VS. LOCAL FOOD:
Many of
ayahs of the Quran speak to the requirement of wholesome food, in addition to
its being lawful. Moreover, the Quran addresses the immorality of aggression
and corruption of the earth in relation to human activities that impact on the
land
We have reached a peak in all recorded human history of
corruption and aggression in the earth, and it is intimately intertwined with
agriculture
One of the large MNCs (Multi-National Corporations) we are
supporting with our buying power is Monsanto, which is taking over the seed
market in many countries like India and now in Iraq thanks to US Order 81 that
illegalizes Iraqi farmers from saving their seeds and requires them to buy
patented seeds from Monsanto.
The answer to the problem is to do as
the Muslims who emigrated to Madinah did, to create our own markets.
(3) IT IS OUR REQUEST:
To postpone the ratification of Halal standards until duty-bound,
recognized Muslim scholars have properly addressed the issues of Shariah in
an exhaustive way within the context of the current globalized and
industrialized food system so that comprehensive and germane Shariah rulings
can be researched, derived, and debated.
This label of halal is a
serious matter of religion, encompassing the health and wellbeing of humanity
and Gods creation
And you shall not sayby way of mere falsehoods
that your tongues represent: Such and such is lawful and such and such is
forbidden! So as to forge a lie against God. Indeed, those who forge lies
against God shall not succeed. Small enjoyment have they in life, and then a
most painful torment awaits them! (Soorat Al-Nahl, 16:116)
Note that
this commandment is stated by Allah, Exalted and Most High, in direct relation
to the commandment of our food consumption, strongly implicating the Muslim
communitys need to be resolute in the social stand they take regarding lawful
and wholesome food consumption.
So [stand firm in faith, O you who
believe, and] eat from what God has provided you, [if it be] lawful and
wholesome. Yet give thanks for the blessing of God, if, indeed, it is He alone
whom you worship. Indeed, He has but forbidden you to [eat] carrion, and
blood, and the flesh of swine, and that over which other than [the name of]
God is invoked [at the time of slaughter]. But whoever is compelled [by
circumstance to eat any of this]without being rebellious and without being a
willful transgressor[will find] then [that] God is, indeed, all-forgiving,
mercy-giving. (Soorat Al-Nahl, 16:114-15)
Any Halal standards should
have the real consensus of the Muslim community
(4) FAQs
IS IT OUR POSITION THAT ALL INDUSTRIAL FOOD IS
HARAM?
No. The issue is that the food is undoubtedly not
tayyib/wholesome
Halal and haram are part of a spectrum of positions:
obligatory, recommended, allowed, disliked, forbidden and we should utilize
the spectrum instead of just the two polar positions
In addition,
halal and tayyib are intertwined as illustrated in the following:
a)
It is haram to corrupt the things that life depends on; so in that respect it
is haram to corrupt water. This does not necessarily mean that the polluted
water is then haram to drink, but one who has any sense would seek out clean
and wholesome water.
b) And so it is with food, the act of corrupting
the food is haram. That does not mean the food itself is haram, or that we
must stamp it haram, but we have to seek out tayyib/wholesome food.
c)
The unwholesome, when it comes to food, is, in fact, questionable as to its
permissibilityand requires Muslim jurists capable of forming independent
positions to opine on it before it can be condoned.
We may not be
responsible for the haram acts of corrupting the food, but we are responsible
for leading Muslims to believe this food is tayyib. Moreover, leading Muslims
and others to believe that corrupted food is halal raises serious concerns
about the Shariah legitimacy of such a position, for it places Muslims in the
position of supporting the corrupting entities with their purchases.
As Muslims, we are responsible for enjoining righteousness and
prohibiting corruption accepting food from and giving our money to some of
the most corrupt organizations on the face of this earth (which is NO
exaggeration) is enjoining corruption!
IF THE FOOD IS NOT
TAYYIB THEN WHAT WILL WE EAT?
There are local farmers who are
being squeezed out of their livelihood by the MNCs; it would serve both our
interests to create cooperative relationships with them
The organic
market is the fastest growing market right now, at 20% per year. There is
already a great demand and the supply is growing we have no excuses.
One model could catalyze the formation of other models around the
nation and the globe for Muslim and non-Muslim communities.
There is
already a growing local food movement. All we have to do is join forces with
them and offer the invaluable solutions we have access to in the Quran so that
our solutions are divinely inspired and not trial and error!
IS THIS UNREALISTIC AND IDEALISTIC?
Organic
standards that were fought for are now being compromised by the corporate
interests because it has become a profitable market
Local Food
movements are now growing because this is a far more effective solution that
hits the root of the problem. But they are struggling with, among other
things, policies that favor the large, highly subsidized corporate farms
That the laws exempt religious food standards from federal and state
policies puts us in a most advantageous position
We are not using the
situation to the full benefit we can achieve from it; we have a great
opportunity to become the real leaders in the increasingly critical issue of
food consumption
(5) AYAHS of the
Quran related to food [that are not given due attention]:
(Soorat Al-Nisaa 4:119) And I shall, most surely, lead them astray.
Moreover, I shall, most surely, fill them with fancies. Thus, I shall command
them: And they shall slit the ears of cattle [in false ritual]. And I shall
command them: And they shall [seek unnatural] change [to] the creation of God.
But whoever takes Satan as a patron, apart from God, has most surely suffered
a manifest loss.
a) GMOs maybe the most significant and obvious way
that humans are now changing creation.
b) Raising animals in unnatural
environments with unnatural feed is changing the creation of God
(Soorat Al-Baqarah 2:204-06) Now, there is among humanity, [the like
of] one whose words about the life of this world please you. And he [openly]
calls upon God to bear witness as to what is in his heart, though truly, he is
most relentlessly contentious. For when he turns away [from you], he strives
in the land to spread corruption therein and to destroy tillage and livestock
and God does not love corruption. Thus when it is said to him: Be [truly]
God-fearing! arrogant pride carries him into [yet more] sin. Thus sufficient
for him is Hell and a most woeful cradle [it is]!
a) MNCs, which are
defined by law as a person, use media to create demand for their products,
by using words and images about the life of this world that will please
youbut what they are really doing is spreading corruption in the earth and
destroying crops and livestock!
(Soorat Al-Nisaa 4:29) O you who
believe! You shall not consume one anothers wealth by false means. But,
rather, let there be [free] trade with consent among yourselves. And you shall
not kill one another. Indeed, God is ever merciful to you.
Soorat Hood
11:85) And, O my people! You shall fill the measure and the balance with
justice. And you shall not defraud the people of their [rightful] things. Nor
shall you make mischief in the earth, sowing corruption [in it]. (
a)
The Quran is telling us that we should not be supporting practiceseven (or,
perhaps, especially) if those practices are that of an entire industrythat
are destroying millions of people globally even if it goes by the nice name
of Free Trade or the official-sounding acronyms of GATT, NAFTA, CAFTA and so
on. The fact of the matter is that we are consuming others possessions
wrongfully!
Sincerely,
The Undersigned
***************************************************************************
{Invite (mankind, O Muhammad ) to the Way of your Lord (i.e. Islam) with wisdom (i.e. with the Divine Inspiration and the Qur'an) and fair preaching, and argue with them in a way that is better. Truly, your Lord knows best who has gone astray from His Path, and He is the Best Aware of those who are guided.}
(Holy Quran-16:125)
{And who is better in speech than he who [says: "My Lord is Allah (believes in His Oneness)," and then stands straight (acts upon His Order), and] invites (men) to Allah's (Islamic Monotheism), and does righteous deeds, and says: "I am one of the Muslims."} (Holy Quran-41:33)
The prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: "By Allah, if Allah guides one person by you, it is better for you than the best types of camels." [al-Bukhaaree, Muslim]
The prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) also said, "Whoever calls to guidance will have a reward similar to the reward of the one who follows him, without the reward of either of them being lessened at all."
[Muslim, Ahmad, Aboo Daawood, an-Nasaa'ee, at-Tirmidhee, Ibn Maajah]
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
All views expressed herein belong to the individuals concerned and do not in any way reflect the official views of IslamCity unless sanctioned or approved otherwise.
If your mailbox clogged with mails from IslamCity, you may wish to get a daily digest of emails by logging-on to http://www.yahoogroups.com to change your mail delivery settings or email the moderators at [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the title "change to daily digest".
YAHOO! GROUPS LINKS
|
