Muhammad Amin embraced Islam in prison. Having served in the British Army, he found himself in prison after ‘making the wrong choices in life.’

Since his release, Muhammad offers his support to convert prisoners who are currently serving in prisons across the UK or to help their transitional period after their release.

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Muhammad reveals what served as the catalyst to trigger his conversion.

“I was in prison for a long time. It was my own fault, not my parents, not society’s, it was all mine.

“Whilst in prison, a friend of mine called ‘Daz’ embraced Islam and we all began to see a massive change in him. 

“He usually had a fiery character and he was always up to stuff. 
“However, this all began to stop after he accepted Islam.

“He tried to get me to attend Friday prayers with him, but at the time I said no.

“Eventually after weeks of nagging, I agreed to go with him to prayers in order to see what all the fuss was about. 

“I remember going into the little room at the back of the prison library that was a designated prayer room. 

“There were not that many Muslims in prison at that time, but I still felt as though I was coming home when I stepped into the room.”

Muhammad said that at that point other Muslim prisoners embraced him asking him if he was going to accept Islam.
“I felt as though I had always belonged there, it felt right.

“When the call to prayer began, the hairs on my neck stood to attention.

“During the prayer, by the time the brother got to ‘hayya as salah,’ I was sure this was right for me.”

He said the imam led the prayers and he listened to his words, not knowing what he was saying, but somehow ‘feeling’ what he was saying.

“It’s strange but true. 

“I knew I was going to walk away a different man as the experience was too intense.

“Allah reached out to me in that room behind the wire and walls of that high security prison and for the first time in a long time, I was free.”

After Muhammad took his shahada (the profession of Muslim faith) he was taught how to wash and perform the prayers.

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“That evening, alone in my cell, I performed my first solo prayer to Allah and I’ve never looked back.”

After his release from prison, Muhammad was introduced to the New Muslim Hub and Dewsbury New Muslims who he says became a valuable support network in his transition from prison to the outside world. 

“The New Muslim Hub is a unique place of learning and solace where I feel accepted without prejudice or compulsion. 
“This is a safe and neutral environment, where everyone is really welcoming and supportive to my needs.

“I can socialise and relax with converts to Islam like myself and also create friendships with others members of the community
Muhammad, who is now married and has a baby, launched the Prison Project in a bid to provide support to those who convert to Islam in prison.

“To become a Muslim in prison today is to invoke racism. You are more likely to be the victim of a racist assault as a Muslim in one of Her Majesty’s prisons than any other faith.

“That is because of the stigma attached to Islam in this day and age.

“I set up the Prison Project along with a fellow convert, Dawud, with a goal to try and assist those who have reverted to Islam within prison.

“Those of us who are outside are aware that Islam has become headline news for all the wrong reasons in the last decade or so.
“Yet Islam is still the fastest growing religion on the planet.
“More and more people are embracing Islam.

“Prison is no different.

“Behind the walls, people still want to believe.

“It’s a good place for people to reflect on what they have done and to try and find that redemption.

“Islam has become such a fast growing faith within prisons, but often these brothers and sisters are neglected by us.

“We’re not saying we agree with what they did to go into prison, but what we are saying is that they have accepted Islam.

“Now, when I was in prison, there were two choices; abandon Islam or become radicalised. They’re not great choices.

“The project aims to link up with these guys who have reverted to Islam, make sure that we can try and assist them, guide them, even just exchange a kind word or send them a letter.

“If Allah has accepted them in the deen, we should accept them too.”