Joshua Salaam is the Muslim Chaplain at Duke University and a member of iconic musical group Native Deen. He has a Doctorate of Ministry from Hartford Seminary and has mentored youth throughout his career. He talked to us about becoming Native Deen almost by accident—or perhaps destiny—his years in the army, and how his professional life took shape post-9/11. We tackled the hard questions, like our relationship with the military as American Muslims, and how to deal with anti-Black racism in our communities. In Brother Joshua’s words, we jumped right into the ocean!  

Check out Native Deen's music:

"Small Deeds"

"M.U.S.L.I.M" from Not Afraid to Stand Alone and "Worldly Satisfaction" from MYNA Raps 1999 used with permission.

References:

The Washington Post's 2002 feature on Native Deen

Dr. Jamillah Karim's work on race in the Muslim community

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Hosts and Producers: Anisa Khalifa and Khadija Khalil

Consulting Producer: Paroma Chakravarty