Omar Suleiman – The Unlawful Execution of Marcellus Williams
AI: Summary ©
A member of Congress discusses the execution of a murder suspect by a family member named Marcellus Williams. They emphasize the importance of speaking out against the criminal justice system and the need for everyone to be aware of the history of the case. The segment also touches on the acceptance of the criminal justice system and the potential reward for the victim.
AI: Summary ©
You know, obviously, we had our class tonight,
but I wanted to speak to an incident
that happened today, which was the execution of
a Muslim brother by the name of Marcellus
Williams.
May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala have mercy
on him.
Some of you may have followed the news
of this brother who was on death row
and who had all the evidence on his
side, even the prosecution or rather the legal
team of the family that have the murder
victim amongst them did not want this execution
to proceed, but with the governor's order and
then with the Supreme Court's failure to step
in, the brother was executed at six o
'clock today.
May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala have mercy
on him and accept him as a shaheed.
Allahumma ameen.
I was speaking to one of the imams
who was in touch with him in his
last moments, and he told me he was
reciting Surah Al-Baqarah.
Some of you may have seen the last
statement that he put, which was all praise
is due to Allah in every situation.
Alhamdulillah And subhanAllah, it was a painful 24
hours for people that had witnessed that case
and followed it.
Obviously, there's an entire history and there is
a grieving family that has been in the
trenches from the very beginning of this.
But I wanted to remind everyone of this
congregation, everyone obviously that's been following this case.
First and foremost, there is an absolute indictment
of the criminal justice system and how criminal
it actually is, when all of the evidence
points to the innocence of a man and
it still goes ahead and executes a man.
And we should continue to raise our voices
against that.
And we should speak out against that system
when it prosecutes any innocent person.
And there are many innocent people that have
been executed, and many innocent people that are
on death row.
And it's upon us to take this case
seriously beyond just the individual.
Perhaps this is the case that opens up
something to us.
And of course, one of those people that
has been on death row is Imam Jameel
Al-Amin.
May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala free him
from captivity.
And others, of course, we just protested for
Dr. Afia this past weekend.
The second thing is a reminder to you
and to me.
That just like the shuhada in Gaza, just
like the shuhada that we are seeing, who
leave this world in gruesome fashion, we take
comfort in knowing that they are in joy
now, and that they are comfortable now, and
that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is elevating
their rank now and that they would not
want to come back to this world for
any of its pleasure or comfort after what
they are experiencing from the pleasure of Allah
subhanahu wa ta'ala.
And may Allah accept this brother as a
shaheed.
I cannot remember, subhanAllah, in recent memory, a
person who on death row has done so
much da'wah.
His letter, which literally says alhamdulillah as his
last statement, is being spread right and left.
And the testimony of his character and the
person that he was, is right and left.
And I can't help but wonder and hope,
and biidhnillahi ta'ala pray that that's a
sign of Allah's acceptance of him, and that
Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala elevate his rank.
So I just wanted to bring his case
here, for those of you that have been
following, jazakumullahu khayran for trying to raise awareness.
But biidhnillahi ta'ala, our brother is in
peace now, our brother is resting now, biidhnillahi
ta'ala, he is already enjoying what Allah
subhanahu wa ta'ala has promised him.
And what Allah azawajal is giving him is
far greater than what anyone could have given
him here.
And I remind all of us to continue
that connection to the concept of shahada, even
with our brothers and sisters, especially with our
brothers and sisters in Gaza, and now in
Lebanon, where we see the hundreds and the
thousands a day of shuhada.
May Allah azawajal accept them all as shuhada.
Allahumma ameen.
So I know that a lot of people
are feeling the heaviness of the situation, and
we should feel the heaviness of the situation.
But I just wanted us to make a
dua for our brother.
May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala accept him
as a shaheed.
May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala forgive him
for all of his shortcomings.
May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala ease the
pain and suffering of his family.
May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala grant him
a paradise that is as expansive as the
heavens and the earth.
May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala widen his
grave.
May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala fill his
grave with light.
May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala grant the
reward of patience to his family and magnify
the reward.
May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala free all
of those who are innocently behind bars, who
are innocently being prosecuted.
May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala make us
firm for justice.
And may Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala grant
victory and ease to our brothers and sisters
in Gaza, in Lebanon and around the world.
Allahumma ameen.