Sayed Jumaa Salam surely could NOT have done the book on his own, alone, because he is a very poor writer and his command of English is not of a high enough quality to do a proper manuscript in English. -SaLee Amina
Yes, I do know Sayed Jumaa Salam, but I prefer NOT to associate with him because he damaged me very much: I was requested by him to write the interpretation of the Holy Quran (Noor Al-Bayan), which he stated would be a JOINT project TOGETHER, to be printed under BOTH of our names, his and mine, and that we would also do other books together. He additionally promised that we would share any income from the project.
Believing Sayed Jumaa Salam to be a person of his word, since he is the Imam at the Islamic Center of Reseda (ICR) where the Director, Aref Abedi, has known me for decades, I dedicated my time, around the clock, even abandoning my own important commitments, including to my adult children, who are STILL angry with me over this – choosing my commitment to this “Islamic” project above them, my own family.
Unfortunately, it is now obvious that Sayed Jumaa Salam was only deceiving me, USING and abusing me. To date, I have been informed that he and the ICR have raised hundreds of thousands of dollars, especially each Ramadan and through donations from other mosques and Islamic organizations, as well as from staff of embassies and consulates.
As regards my work on “Noor Al-Bayan”, not only did he never give me one cent for my work, contrary to his promise, but also, he removed my name completely from any mention in the work. Sayed Jumaa Salam surely could NOT have done the book on his own, alone, because he is a very poor writer and his command of English is not of a high enough quality to do a proper manuscript in English. He needed ME for that, and he stabbed me in the back. It hurt me deeply. It was a complete betrayal of my trust.
I want to make it clear that at no time whatsoever had Sayed Jumaa Salam asked me to DONATE my work, or do it for free; nor did he ever state his intention to take ALL of the credit for HIMSELF only. In fact, his only reference to such ideas was AFTER the entire project was completed and ready for the printers. I NEVER agreed to sacrifice my time from my own duties and from my own responsibilities to my family to receive no compensation, no credit for my work, no co-authorship, no participation on other projects. IF I knew the treason that Sayed Jumaa Salam was planning, I might have given a token portion of my time, as a kindness, but the fact is that one of my sons, who is now an attorney with four university degrees, is still very angry with me, because he lost a major scholarship when I withdrew my help from him, in lieu of dedicating all my time to complete my commitment to Noor Al-Bayan, under a deadline, imposed by Sayed Jumaa Salam.
It was a scam. He lied. I was crushed to find such LACK of integrity in a person who holds himself up as an Islamic Leader.
I reported the aforementioned wrongdoing to the Director, Aref Abedi, who not only did nothing to correct the wrong, but he even had the audacity to ask me to do yet more work, despite knowing I was owed for past work and had been undermined and deceived. I have been told that the fruits of my labor, Noor Al-Bayan, has been such a money maker for the mosque that it has solidified the relationship between Aref Abedi and Sayed Jumaa Salam, which previously was one of repeated criticism and mutual slander. Funny how MONEY often makes all the difference!
I believe it is his ego and love of power, attention, position, success and being in the spotlight that feeds his actions, with little or no attention to what Islam teaches about correct conduct. Even when I had completed my work on Noor Al-Bayan, Sayed Jumaa Salam, having to exert his own control over everything, changed several things that I wrote, and strangely enough, the changes he made were actually incorrect. But, some people need to be right, even when they are totally wrong. When LEADERS have that trait, we are in deep water as a community!
It is abundantly clear that the Quran and Sunnah teach us to give full measure and weight in justice and to not deprive people of what they deserve; but, this Imam seems to follow the beat of a DIFFERENT drummer, and it obviously is NOT the beat of the mutual HEART of all of our nearly 2 million Muslim brothers and sisters, worldwide, who yearn for a society that operates according to the ethical and honorable principles taught by our beloved Prophet, Mohammed (PBUH), and which is clearly delineated by Allah (SWA), through our Quran (Al-Kareem.)
I find it absurdly hypocritical that a man, such as Sayed Jumaa Salam, can teach facts about Islam, as a leader of the ICR, yet apparently can be so absent of some of those traits in his own life and business dealings. Some people seek positions of leadership solely for the applause, the power and the fringe benefits. The Quran warns us that societies will go in the direction of its leaders (thus, it is important for us to have Imams that LIVE and portray Islam in their thoughts, words and actions, not simply as an academic study). This type of corruption makes us realize the warnings of the Quran about the ‘Last Days,” in which leaders will be oppressors.
I have heard many ugly things about Sayed Jumaa Salam, but I previously repeatedly forgave and encouraged him to curtail certain practices, such as meeting with young women alone in his private office on Reseda Boulevard, instead of meeting openly, inside the mosque office, under supervision; since it seemed improper, and it violated the instructions of Prophet Mohammed (PBUH) to not only NOT DO wrongful things, but to also not do anything that could be interpreted or perceived as wrong.
I wanted to believe that the ICR Imam was not corrupt, but as time passed, too many reports came to me about alleged misconduct, and I saw with my own eyes too many things that were unpalatable, as well as my own experience of being outright cheated by him. Therefore, I could no longer give my support to this Imam Sayed Jumaa Salam or to this Islamic Center of Reseda (ICR) mosque.
Also, concurrently, while Sayed Jumaa Salam was deceiving me into writing for the Noor Al-Bayan project, for which he later falsely took sole credit, plagiarizing the work of others, he also influenced me to develop a property on Reseda Boulevard, near to the mosque, which was supposed to become a Middle Eastern cafe and cultural center, supposedly with joint participation from him and others from that mosque. But, I was the ONLY one who kept my word, and NO ONE else participated, so the project collapsed, and I took a loss. Perhaps this lack of keeping one’s commitment is considered ‘normal behavior’ for some people. But, Muslims SHOULD be honorable, ethical and trustworthy.
As a convert to Islam, since 37 years now, I am so often disappointed in the conduct of Muslims. This man, Sayed Jumaa Salam, is an Imam of Islamic Center of Reseda (ICR) mosque. If HE can NOT be trusted, then we are in a DILEMMA.
These are the days when Muslims hide their heads in the sand. People complain, but DO nothing to CORRECT wrongdoing and reverse or punish corruption. It is unfortunate and sad. When I was a whistle blower, personally putting myself and my family at risk to uproot corruption from the judiciary, prosecutor’s office and law enforcement, it was as dangerous as standing in front of a loaded firing squad; yet, I proceeded, simply because it was the RIGHT thing to do.
As a result of me taking seriously my Islamic pledge of honor to doing what is right, at all costs, several corrupt leaders, including one Judge, one Deputy District Attorney, one Sheriff, one Senior Deputy Sheriff and 23 law enforcement and correctional officers are no longer in the positions they previously held, and thus, no longer can oppress and harm other innocent people. It is a comfort to realize that due to my own personal allegiance to the true principles of Islam, I was able to make a significant difference for so many people. Eighteen of those I had reported were CRIMINALLY PROSECUTED, convicted and sentenced to prisons and Federal penitentiaries. Eight of them are still serving those sentences, the retribution for oppressing innocent victims of their corruption.
But, throughout those dangerous years of my exposing corruption and instituting fair justice, no one stood with me. Not one Muslim came forward. I was very disappointed, and I pray that In sh’Allah the COURAGE will be found among those who truly love Islam to STAND UP, SPEAK OUT and TAKE ACTION! And, never stop, until ethics and justice prevails.
Allah is the ultimate power. All Muslims should wrap themselves in faith, giving them the courage to stand for what is right, no matter the difficulty or consequences. We must roar like lions in the face of corruption, not run like mice, hiding in rat-holes; or like ostriches, burying our heads in the sand.
We are Muslims, gosh darn it! Let’s act like it ! It is NOT enough to TALK the talk. We MUST walk the walk! There is NO BETTER TIME THAN NOW to correct injustice and implement the true integrity of ISLAM !
Salaam Alaikum.
Dr. SaLee’ Amina Mohammed
YouTube: Salee Amina
Web: www.saleeamina.com
Email: saleeamina@gmail.com