I found the film very enlightening as to the experience of a Muslim raised in a non-Muslim household. I grew up around a very large city (Paterson), and I saw firsthand people deviate away from their families in favor of the streets and drugs/gangs, and what that kind of life can do to people. For someone to move from such a life into Islam and live their life with a focus on piety and good actions, and even for them to be able to speak against their former selves, is very interesting.
I am very familiar with the arab-Muslim community as I was raised in such, but to see the Hispanic and black muslim communities mix their respective cultures with Islamic ideals was incredible and something I never really thought much about; It was known to me that Hispanic and black muslims existed of course, but to see their take on certain religious practices emphasized to me the universal nature of the faith.
The FBI raid was also something I thought was interesting, as my Masjid in NJ was surveilled for many years by the FBI, and if you looked close enough, you’d see their vans parked across the street. Police and federal authorities would raise concerns over nothing. When the young men who grew up in the masjid became lawyers and doctors, and the community became well-educated and wealthy enough to fight back legally, these issues mysteriously ended. Hamza’s community will feel the same thing I hope and the kids who remember their masjid being raided today will be it’s greatest ally tomorrow.
