Inspirations and Creative Thoughts

Today's Equivalent Act of Freeing Slaves

Posted: 29 Aug 2011 12:27 PM PDT

Around this time every year during Ramadan, for the last few years, thanks God for His generous servants and Allah is al-Karim, the Most Generous, we are fortunate enough to be able to feed a good number of homeless people. On behalf of all who contribute towards this cause May God accept this small effort out of His bounteous promise "Those who give to charity night and day, secretly and publicly, receive their recompense from their Lord; they will have nothing to fear, nor will they grieve." (The Final Testament, 2:274)

Last night, like past few nights, me and my wife went out at night to distribute food among such people near about where we live. We generally would buy packet food and take a ride and go about different pockets in the surrounding neighborhoods where such homeless people are found. Our goal is to find those who are not inclined to begging and particularly who live on the street and have small children with them. Some time we also come across mentally unstable people who can neither beg nor ask to people and at the same time end up in the street because of the lack of any support system for them (an unfortunate reality of third world countries with mismanaged resources).

In additional to feeding the homeless, this Ramadan and hopefully this will continue even after this month is over, our intention also is to identify individuals / family who are homeless and interview them to figure out what their aspirations and hopes are for and to give them interest free start-up capital so that they could invest in small scale business.

Last week we interviewed a lady Hunafa, whom we found to have started living in a park with four of her small children aged from 5 to 15. It was a heart breaking scene just to imagine let alone seeing them living without any proper shelter with all her children in the naked ground with almost no proper means. Her elderly mother was also with them. There was no drinking water near about, no sanitation, no proper shelter that could save them from heat, rain or dust.

We asked her about her condition and how she became homeless with four children. She informed us that her husband left her sometime back and during the birth of her last child there were complications and the medical bill came out too high. As a result she couldn't pay her rent for few months and was kicked out of her one room housing. Since then she is in the street and here at the part she and her elder children sell bottled water, flower to just to get by. Even that night when we were talking to her she couldn't feed her children at night.

So we asked what she would do if she were given some start-up capital. Her eyes lit up at the news of it and she said she used to be a vegetable seller before and knows that trade. So we offered that we would provide her a small start-up capital of 8,000 taka (approximately US $105 / UK £65) on condition that she must rent a room first (typical basic rent could be 1500 taka / 20 USD) and move to it with her children. We had to give that instruction because often time such less fortunate people get used to their poverty and have very poor money / resource management skill and have a tendency to spend whatever cash they have in hand in no time. But we gave her that condition that in order to get the full money she must provide a safe shelter for her children with proper sanitation, safe drinking water first; which can come only after she rent a place of her own, instead of using up all the money while being on the street. That night money was given to buy food for the next few days and the following night she was handed over the first installment (50%) of the total to start-up.We are hoping and pray that this small help, this small kindness will save her and her four children and elderly mother from being on the street and live with a better humane condition.

We are in the process identifying more of such candidates and wit God's help to help them come out of their extreme poverty and hopeless perpetual cycle of miserable economic hardship by providing them enough start-up capital to invest in small scale business according to their own aspirations. Due to our budget limitation we are keeping the start-up capital amount the minimum to contribute to more beneficiaries.

In our time we feel that helping anyone out of extreme poverty is equivalent to freeing a slave in the past when organized slavery was a norm. As we know that freeing a slave was of great in those time and it remains the same even today, simply the mode of slavery has changed a little bit. It is now the extreme poverty which shackles people the most and utterly degrade basic human dignity as it did in the case of organized slavery in the past.

If you would like to contribute towards this cause, even if this means to free 10 or 20 family, comprising of 40 to 100 people; you could be sure of that through such contribution you've made a real and true difference in the lives of these people.

For donation you may use secure Paypal (accepts Credit / Debit Cards) or can send money via Western Union Money Transfer. For question, suggestion or need help with your donation, feel free to write to me: sadiq.alam@gmail.com or call me at my cell phone: +8801711056474

Even if your donation is of small amount it will carry a lot of baraka, lot of blessings and may mean a lot for these people. Your small amount could free people from their modern day slavery of extreme poverty.

Click here to Donate:

God willing, I will do my best to give you feedback on this venture and you shall know about the differences you've made for the people.

Peace and blessings be with you.
Sadiq M. Alam

By Street Artist Banksy: Do we need emergency treatment for that which defines our humanity: Peace and Love?

Do you know who really rejects the faith? That is the one who mistreats the orphans. And does not advocate the feeding of the poor. And woe to those who observe the prayers - who are totally heedless of their prayers. They only show off. And they forbid charity. - The Quran 107:1-7

You cannot attain righteousness until you give to charity from the possessions you love. Whatever you give to charity, GOD is fully aware thereof. - 3:92

We have blessed you with many a bounty. Therefore, you shall pray to your Lord, and give to charity. - 108:1-2

Any charity you give is for your own good. Any charity you give shall be for the sake of GOD. Any charity you give will be repaid to you, without the least injustice. - 2:272

There's an elephant in the room.
There's a problem we never talk about.

The fact is that life isn't getting any fairer.

- 1.7 Billion people don't have access to clean drinking water.
- 20 Billion people live below the poverty line.
- Every day hundreds of people are made to feel physically sick by morons at art shows telling them how bad the world is but never actually doing something about it.

Anybody want a free glass of wine?

~ Credit: Banksy ~

+ Fu*k No Poverty: a tumblr blog worth checking