Kanoya Ali (00:03):
Welcome to License to Operate, a podcast that takes you inside the work happening on Chicago streets to reduce gun violence and transform lives. I'm Kanoya Ali.

Peter Cunningham (00:14):
And I'm Peter Cunningham.

Kanoya Ali (00:18):
On this episode of LTO Licensed to Operate, we're interviewing my brother, our friend, Sadiq Ali, the co-founder of Muslimatic University, owner of Baahir Imports.

Peter Cunningham (00:30):
We'll talk with sad Ali about Islam and Chicago today. Is it a trend or is it part of the solution? If you haven't already, hit subscribe. Let's get started.

Kanoya Ali (00:40):
Let's get started.

Sadiq Ali (00:47):
Ali, how you today man, [arabic]. I'm really good. [arabic] How you doing?.

Kanoya Ali (00:54):
When you in the building man, we all right man. We starting off good today man.

Sadiq Ali (00:59):
Yeah, I was on time.

Kanoya Ali (01:01):
Yeah, I definitely counted you to be late and you wasn't. That was crazy. [arabic].

(01:11):
So Peter's like, what is all that you said? [arabic] God is the greatest Peter.

Sadiq Ali (01:15):
Yeah, [arabic] all praises to God. Allah God is the greatest. You might hear me say inshallah, God willing, but inshallah I'll try to talk without saying most of those

Kanoya Ali (01:29):
Things. Too much translation where you

Peter Cunningham (01:31):
No, I traveled in the Middle East, Lebanon and Morocco. This ain't your first rodeo. Well I know some of the words so anyway. No, I have some exposure to Muslim culture but not a lot. I was raised Catholic and I'm kind of not very religious at the moment to be perfectly honest. But yeah man. Tell us how things going and tell us about the Muslim university. Tell us what that is. First of all,

Sadiq Ali (01:59):
Muslimatic University is something that me and Ali. We have together where we Muslims automatically, that's the number one thing. We are here pushing peace for the people with the people and Muslimatic University stands for all people just not Muslims, you know what I mean? No matter what religious base that you is, as long as you stay on the right side of everything that you're doing and that's what Muslimatic University represent. But we are here to bring peace to the people are not just here in Chicago but all over the world. That's where our goal is to just to spread peace

Kanoya Ali (02:29):
For me to interview you it is a little different because yeah, I know him so well. But we talk about the work as far as gun violence and trying to decrease violence in the city of Chicago and throughout. This is what this license to operate is really about people having the ability to operate in the space that they claim to be in. So you operate in a space where a lot of young people gravitate towards the movement. People saying right now becoming a Muslim is a trend in Chicago and you are the face Muslimatic University, they look at that as the vehicle and they look at you as the face of this movement, [arabic]

Sadiq Ali (03:19):
All praise to be to God. Yeah. Well I came from a background of gang life and a lot of drugs and going to jail as a lot of these kids done. So now I just want to be out here trying to block them and guide them to a better way I've lived that it is not going to end well. You know what I mean? So if I can just be a guard that's the guide may point go this way and not that way and then that's what I'm thankful to my Lord for that, for giving me that job.

Peter Cunningham (03:49):
What are you saying to these young guys who you see at risk

Sadiq Ali (03:52):
to do right and forbid what's wrong, to think about your children, to think about your mother, to think about your sister because if you dead you can't ever tell them anything no more. Right? So you got to be really in reality with 'em, put 'em back into reality because death is real for sure. We all know that we got to die. So if you knowing that you got to die, you knowing one day that you got to die, that God gave you a birthday, right Peter, you got a birthday right? I do. So God gave you a birthday and he also gave you a death day and I can literally say probably like a hundred years ago, nobody in his room probably was a thought, right? But now you are a thought. So if God gave you a ability to give you a birthday and he gave you ability to give you a death date, don't you believe that anybody that got that much power over your life, don't you think they need to be worship alone? Don't you think they need to be worshiped when he can send you and then make you leave whenever he choose the time to leave and all he's asking you to worship him, who's the controller of that Who gave you that God? God is in control of all of those things.

Peter Cunningham (04:50):
And what did the young guys say? When you talk to 'em about

Sadiq Ali (04:53):
It, you are absolutely right. Yeah, I didn't look at it that, know what I mean? That's only from the power of God what he's put the vessel in me to do for these young people mean. So when the day of judgment come and people be like, man, I didn't know. Oh that's not true. I had a servant there named Sadiq Ali that was telling y'all and pointing y'all to God that I had Ali and Muslimatic right there based in Chicago and I allowed it to spread all over the United States and all over the world that people can hear about Muslimatic. God done that.

Peter Cunningham (05:19):
You said that you converted in like 2005, is that what you said?

Sadiq Ali (05:22):
Yeah.

Peter Cunningham (05:23):
Talk a little bit about sort what was happening to you that got you to do that. Where were you before that and what happened?

Sadiq Ali (05:32):
Even as a younger boy, I always used to always think about God. My mom then was Christians and I used to always believe in God, just God alone, even as a little boy I used to and my mom then was Christians, Jesus Christ and this things that. But every time I did something in the name of Jesus Christ, it really didn't function for me. But when I did it for if I just say God directly and leave him alone as a little boy, without defining it, without defining it, I would be successful. So God had already gave me vision as a little boy and then I came up in the urban community where a lot of cars that's dealt to us is not a the white, the white guys, your cars is probably dealt different than mine. I mean we had drugs and crack cocaine hit our era back when I was coming up in gangs and peer pressure

Peter Cunningham (06:26):
Is that 1990s and 1980s?

Sadiq Ali (06:28):
Yeah, 1990s, 1980s. So the streets was going right, was real slim but doing wrong was looking fun and everybody was happy with that. So yeah, I embraced it or doing wrong, but I still give God all the praise for me even embracing that so I could be able to still be out here to guide those little brothers that got those same cards that I was dealt and I could show them how to play that hand.

Kanoya Ali (06:48):
You often get credited for being the person that was able to go into O block and talk to those brothers and not only many of them ended up becoming Muslim, but even the ones that didn't become Muslim, they still show you the utmost respect.

Sadiq Ali (07:10):
That O Block thing was a blessing because people would say O Block is one of the dangerous places that's in the United States of America. I see 'em all as good kids and maybe it was dangerous at one point but now even with the kids that's not Muslim. Even before I came here I got four or five brothers from O block calling me talking, they ready to take their shahadah. You know what I mean? So it's still working because they're still seeing good when you coming from a dark place and O Block was a dark place and when you coming from a place like that and you see somebody that's shining the light, they're going to want to run to it And then like a brother, little brother, well here brother asked me today, I swear to God he asked me today, he said, man, how do you get to be so humble?

(07:50):
And I looked at him and like humble. He said, man, you just the most humblest person I know this was a young kid. I said, because I fear God. That's probably why I'm humble like that. But he was like, man, you're so humble and me being humble and staying content on being humble and they not seeing me act of fool or doing anything that I don't smoke to do. They never seen me smoke drugs. They have never seen me play with guns or act a fool out here encouraging 'em to do wrong. All I do is say do right. We laugh and joke. Ollie knows we laugh and joke and talk about everything. We always have fun. It's not no strict thing. We have fun, we enjoy life but we still worship God and that's the main part of Allah is to worship Allah.

Kanoya Ali (08:31):
Unfortunately a couple weeks ago we lost the young Munna Duke.

Sadiq Ali (08:40):
Yeah.

Kanoya Ali (08:41):
How did that affect you?

Sadiq Ali (08:43):
It affected me very much so it still affected me to this second because those young brothers was at the heart of the grind of me trying to turn things around. But it's decree of God, God decree. Like I said, don't nobody know the time that death will approaches and their time have came and I have enough knowledge and enough wisdom to understand that it was decree of God. So yeah, it will affect me. Yeah, I get it. I get emotional a little bit, but I try not to deal with my emotions with the job that God has gave me so I can't stop. I got to keep on moving. I got other lives that I got to be able to, now it's like I'm on full alert, not just now I'm at full alert now I'm really on top of it. I don't want nobody else to die.

Peter Cunningham (09:24):
Now they were two young men from O Block and guys you knew?

Sadiq Ali (09:29):
Yes, they were guys that was involved with the Muslim and Muslimatic university. Those little brothers was hands on with me trying to help me. They helped me convert a lot of the brothers from O Block. Those brothers were stars at Muslimatic University. They were always remembered stars. I could never forget them, you know what I mean? I'm even me and Ali and the rest of the staff at Muslimatic University, we even talking about putting something type of foundation for Duke and Young inshallah, we assume that we could be able to take care of their children. This is how much important they was to this movement and we're going to allow their names to live on. But again, it's the decree of Allah, prophet Muhammad made peace be upon him. Say that's good in everything. And I know a lot of people trying to say Sadiq, what's good until these two young brothers getting murdered. But it got me at full blast. So I know it put some good in me to make me get back on top of me, really make me focus on what plans we got to do and it's no more, it's no time to be wasted. We got to get it on and get it. Now

Peter Cunningham (10:22):
You've been saying to me that a lot of people, it's like taking off

Kanoya Ali (10:27):
And the last 18 months has been about 600,

Sadiq Ali (10:30):
Like 700 new Muslims that came in that study constantly coming in.

Kanoya Ali (10:34):
You

Peter Cunningham (10:34):
Mean just like on the south side and south

Kanoya Ali (10:38):
Side

Peter Cunningham (10:38):
All

Sadiq Ali (10:38):
Over the

Peter Cunningham (10:39):
United States.

Kanoya Ali (10:39):
And that's just like our book. But we know people, some people actually going into other locations. These are just the numbers that we have as far as that directly connect to Muslimatic University that we gave shahadah. We talking about 700, which is a significant amount. And the thing about it is most of our population is at risk the at at-risk population. So they coming from the street. So one thing that I noticed and you correct me, let me know what you think. One thing I noticed about these guys, some of them, what they know is that death is real. They have 10 plus friends, close friends that were killed, not died by cancer, heart attack

Sadiq Ali (11:29):
That Was murdered.

Kanoya Ali (11:30):
That were murdered. So because of that, they know that they want, I believe that they're saying to themselves like man, I got to be on the righteous side of something and regardless of what people want to say about the Muslims, because we get some flack, but the reality is when they come around us, the people that we connected to, they see a certain kind of person. We not womanizing, we not using drugs, we're not drinking alcohol. We promoting peace. We pushing peace and prayer on purpose in every neighborhood. We don't care where it's at and we just, we not going in with pizza, we not going in with books, we just praying for the people. We not asking 'em to become Muslim. We not doing the whole campaign.

Sadiq Ali (12:20):
Right

Kanoya Ali (12:20):
We just praying for the people and they see that and say man, I want to become Muslim and this happens so often. I'm meant tell you. Romy called me and told me man,

(12:31):
He called me and said, man, I was on an airplane man. A woman was talking to her daughter and she was basically saying how she was a new Muslim and she had came to Muslimatic University. So then he said this morning he went to Dunking Donuts and these guys were saying they want to take Shahada. He was like, man, yeah, going to Muslimatic University, I'm going over there with Sadiq, this type of thing. He told him, I know Sadiq, so they gave him all these free donuts because of that.

(13:44):
In our inbox, I can show you the inbox man. We got, I'm talking about a hundred plus people asking become Muslim

Sadiq Ali (13:51):
Every day. So that's why I say we all over the United States because we do zooms once a week where we talk to the people about Islam and being righteous. Of course we're Muslims so we're going to talk a lot about Islam for sure. They come to us, we don't, like I said, we not comp campaign. I didn't wave no flag [arabic]. I was out with a brother a couple weeks ago and he was out spreading Islam and the way he was doing things, I was like, man, that's cool, but that's not the way that I'm going to ever do things. If they come won't be Muslim. Allah makes Muslim. I'm not going to force nobody to be a Muslim or none of that.

Peter Cunningham (14:24):
Not going to be a missionary here.

Sadiq Ali (14:25):
No, I'm going to just sit back and hey, if you want to come to me like the brother say, hey Sadiq this and Sadiq Ali, this Muslimatic 39th, this no, we want to come over. Hey, that's Allah putting that in their heart. What are we doing? We staying pure and on the righteous side of everything. Me and this brother started off and we still in the same bucket but we are growing. People have seen us, but we ain't nobody gave us nothing. I mean we ain't got no finance where we got a million dollars somewhere and these people are really just coming to us because this is the way God is guiding them to. We still standing strong, we still standing strong. We haven't gave up none of that. We have all type of adversities come towards us. People want to knock us down for trying to do right and forbid what's wrong and they ain't doing nothing. This I don't understand how the people, can you talk about somebody that's trying and then you sitting in the house watching tv, not doing nothing.

Peter Cunningham (15:12):
Right? People have to take some initiative.

Kanoya Ali (15:15):
You really, I'm going to say this Peter, because we do this work, I want people to understand this. The population that we serve as far as with Chicago CRED and other violence prevention organization, this is the population that's coming that's becoming Muslim. Many of them Now, this is not like a tit for tat. I think some people take it like that. It's almost a tit for tat type of thing. If they not Muslim and they Jewish or Christian, we supposed to be I at odds when reality is in life, we not all going to see things the same way. But that don't mean we have to be enemies.

Sadiq Ali (15:59):
Right

Kanoya Ali (15:59):
Don't think we want anybody want somebody to be like, if something is making you better, a better person and that's your way, that's what you choose. That's on you.

Peter Cunningham (16:10):
Well, we've talked a lot about how people make a judgment about someone. Oh, you're a black man, you got a criminal record. I know your whole story, there's nothing else I need to know about you. I got your whole picture. I don't need to read the book. I could see the cover. You know what I'm saying? And similarly, the crisis in the Middle East, the wars in the Middle East, the history of Islam and Israel and everything, it kind of overshadows everything. And so to most people in America, you ask them what's the Muslim life? What is Islam? What are these folks? They're drawing on what they see, what they see is a war over there. Or maybe they see some incident like 911 or something like that or they see something and they say, I guess that's what it's about. And they don't know that it's about living the way you're living. They don't see it as part of the solution to the issues that we are dealing with here. But we should do a study how many guys convert to Islam and then revert to crime?

Kanoya Ali (17:10):
I would love

Peter Cunningham (17:11):
Would love for that. We should do that study. Right?

Kanoya Ali (17:13):
I would love for that study. I would love, let's add this to the podcast

Peter Cunningham (17:19):
Because Sadiq, we're just spending so much time, energy, effort, money, trying to stop gun violence, right? Yeah. But given programs, we're hiring guys like Ali and many, many more like 'em who have lived experience, who have LTO to go out and talk to the community and talk to people. Do you think there's anything unique about Chicago that has contributed to the gun violence here?

Sadiq Ali (17:45):
That contributed to the gun violence going on? Yes. There's a lot of unique things at Chicago. Number one, Chicago got hit in the eighties with crack cocaine and it hit the African-American community hard. It just hit us hard and it took a lot of people that was men and now them to be less than men. They chasing drugs. They destroyed us a race. And I think that's one of the things that we're going through right now because once they left, now you got the crack babies and now the crack babies making new babies, they don't really know how to even raise kids. So now you got kids raising kids again and now this is what we got going on. The senseless murders. They don't even know why they shooting Grand Theft Auto and video games and raise them. So they bring that to the streets. You know what I mean? Now it's just all mayhem. Now what all the kids are in the house playing video games.

Kanoya Ali (18:32):
I definitely wanted to say this though. This movement has been growing and growing and growing. And ironically we spoke about the violence going down before we seen the numbers only because we seen these young brothers coming into the Maji that was ops of each other. The mediation was, man y'all Muslim. Now it's no y'all not ops y'all not ops So. Right? Can you speak to that? Some of those things that you seen inside the mass as far as people that may have been, that was an amazing situation that occurred, but somebody viewed someone as an enemy and then no longer views them that way. Can you speak to that?

Sadiq Ali (19:21):
Our brother Ibrahim and

Kanoya Ali (19:23):
Jason.

Sadiq Ali (19:23):
Yeah. So man, that was amazing. We have a situation where one brother went to jail. I think he had got 30 years for murder. For murder. And the brother that he murdered, his younger brother saw us doing some things and even I think we saw the brother was leading prayer in O Block and he saw him. So he contacted me because I knew him and he was like, man, I really like the movement that y'all got going on. I do, man, I love the movement, this guy I want to be a part of. But I got one problem. I said, what's the problem? He said, man, one of the brothers that you with murdered my brother. I said, whoa, murder your brother. Who you talking about? So he said the brother name, I knew who he said when he said name, but I was like, I don't really, I'm trying to figure him out. What is this going because you're not Muslim. So he was like, man, I really want to join. I said, well man, I can set up something. Maybe y'all two can talk. So I set up a zoom with him. I not in person at first. I set up a zoom with him and they was able to talk and through that talk that the brother was ready to be Muslim and the brother that murdered his brother is the one that made him Muslim, gave him Shahada and made him become Muslim.

Peter Cunningham (20:29):
Wow.

Sadiq Ali (20:30):
He and they came together. Ali did an interview with him inside the store and they was sitting side by side and they forgave each other. This is what Islam will do. I mean if you can look over the person that murdered your brother, man this imagine the award that God going to give you for that. That's one of the things that we got to get. I want to push on the youngsters man. We got to be able to look for God, the reward from God. I know it's hard sometimes. I know it is hard and we're not asking you to sing Kumbaya with 'em, shake their hands, but to you be your way and to me be my way. Definitely. If we are Muslims, we can pray together and we can ask Allah to soften our hearts and Allah will soften your heart.

Peter Cunningham (21:08):
Yeah. We Talk a lot about how hard it is to forgive, but how necessary it is for us to break the cycle. I mean so much of the shootings are retaliation for number one, something from a year ago, five years ago, 10 years ago. And it's like somebody has to break the cycle.

Sadiq Ali (21:28):
I think that's one of the things that happened with my two young brothers that was murdered. I think this was just something from old times ago and you got some people that's just, they hold on to certain things. So it really hurts me to the core because it's like me, I could have done so much more to just even try to help them and get them off this location, but I don't have no resources. I'm really just doing everything with me and a brother. We really just pulling pennies, I mean out of our pockets to try to make trips come together and show them a different way. And they don't want sell drugs. All they know how to do is sell drugs. They can't go with a job because they go get a job. This type of thing is going to happen. These dudes that I used to be into or five years ago going to come up to my job and try to kill. I'm trying to straighten my life out. Know what I mean? So we get a program where we probably can send 'em out of town or start a whole new life. There's nothing wrong with just moving out of town and just starting a whole new life. Take your wife and your kid and live.

Peter Cunningham (22:27):
Yeah. Everybody who is part of this world, whether it's police or whether it's violence prevention workers or others are all trying to show that the work they're doing is making a difference. And it's hard to prove that a shooting that doesn't happen is because of me. This shooting didn't happen because I called the guy and I told him not to do it and he didn't do it. And so that's one for me. And some people say, well, okay, whatever the police officer thinks, I drive down the street and I stopped it. I stopped the

Sadiq Ali (23:01):
Shooting.

Peter Cunningham (23:02):
I drive that street. See that? The same thing with us.

Sadiq Ali (23:04):
That's the thing about Muslimatic university. We not here to show nobody, nothing that we're not. My brother just said we're not going tick for tack. You know what I mean? We here trying to do this for the sake of God know. I mean, and that's why we're spreading in the bed because we not out here saying, oh look, hey, look at what we're doing. Look at what we're doing. Oh, we doing this strictly for our Lord to be able to guide people to do right and forbid wrong. We are not looking. Everybody got their hand. Oh, I did it. I told him if he didn't go there, that's why the murder, they didn't shoot this place. No man, listen, God is going.

Peter Cunningham (23:35):
I know that's not your nature to stand up there and take credit for Things like that.

Sadiq Ali (23:38):
No, I don't want to take credit for none of that. But if the violences went down in O block, it hasn't been a shooting in O block since we prayed in O Block. It might been a stabbing from a girlfriend to stab the boyfriend or some girls fighting. There hasn't been a shooting in O Block since 2023, since 2023, since 2023 since we prayed in O Block has not been a shooting now. Know what I mean? It is been a little ruckus with girls and little guy fights. You know what I mean? And right before we went in O Block, it was a really big shooting. When one brother got killed, I think the following month we went over there and prayed over those brothers. And now I'm happy to say for the sake of life, 80% of those young men over there and maybe 50% of the women are Muslim now.

Peter Cunningham (24:21):
So tell 'em what I do for Chicago CRED. What do I do? What's my job

Kanoya Ali (24:26):
Peter full of? No, I'm joking. No. So Peter is the PR guy heavy with the research and he does a lot of research and reports and connects us with the political world. Politicians put events together and

Peter Cunningham (24:44):
Media especially. And I'm always looking to tell a story about the people who are saving lives outside the traditional law enforcement. Community law enforcement. Not to diminish them, they do their job

Sadiq Ali (24:59):
With law enforcement. They're doing their job, but they not in the mud with it.

Peter Cunningham (25:04):
Most of them realize they're not able to stop a lot

Sadiq Ali (25:06):
Of this stuff because a lot of them, the people don't trust the law enforcement no more. They don't trust them.

(25:11):
That's the number one point you they've to really appreciate. They've been putting drugs and giving us murder cases and you got so many people coming home right now from wrongfully conviction, murders and drug cases and shootings and the people don't trust law enforcement no more. Don't trust the government. You know what I mean? People just really trying to find something they can look forward to with themselves right now. You know what I mean? If it ain't about hurting them, then it's about them out their money. So it's like man here we come up with just saying, Hey man, just be peaceful. We don't want no money from you. We don't want to hurt you. We just want you to be peaceful man and just stop doing bad and forbid what's bad and do what's right.

Kanoya Ali (25:53):
So it is a tagline we use and we even tell each other this. Also, stay on the righteous side of things.

Sadiq Ali (26:00):
Stay on the right side's. The thing that you're doing, even when you're thinking bad, when you think of bad of something, oh man, this guy did this and that. What's the righteous side of that? Just walk it off, man. I'm just leave it alone. Just even if you arguing with your wife or something, she going this and that.

Peter Cunningham (26:15):
How many guys, You Know how to walk it off right now. I'm just saying

(26:19):
Honestly, plenty of guys who don't know how to walk it off.

Sadiq Ali (26:21):
I know plenty of guys that don't know how to walk it off, but right now it's a lot.

Peter Cunningham (26:25):
I'm not talking about in your Muslim community. I'm saying in the world at

Sadiq Ali (26:28):
Large. Yeah, a lot of people don't know, but that's where you don't walk it off. Then you find yourself into a situation that you don't want to be in. But if you remember that and you remember this too, Peter, even any situation, even if you arguing with a guy on the street in the car and road rage, I'm just going to stay on the right side of things. Let that nut go that way. Walk away and I'm going to go that way so much. We're walking away. It's just so easier to walk away.

Peter Cunningham (26:51):
It's so easy, it's so powerful. It's so

Sadiq Ali (26:52):
Easy to walk away, but the devil going to whisper to you and say this and go back and forth with 'em. But what's the benefit? There's no benefit and nothing, none of this, there's no benefit. The benefit is you walked away. Now you get to go home. That's a big benefit. I get to see my children, I get to see my wife again. But the benefit of doing something and taking action on something that don't is senseless. Especially murdering, killing somebody or hurting somebody. When you could really just walk it off. You could call me any name that you want to be. And I listen, I was probably one of the toughest people that Chicago ever seen, but right now I'm going to stay on the right side of it. You can say whatever you want about me. I'm going home, play a game with my son. So you probably go bump into another nut that I used to be and you might not go home, but I'm going to be at home.

Peter Cunningham (27:32):
Well, that sounds good. Well listen, this is so important and I mean we need every tool in the tool belt to make this city safer. I mean, I'll tell you the statistics, we haven't had under 400 homicides in Chicago since 1965. A lot crime. Okay? We had 803 years ago in 2021 we had 4,400 shootings. I mean that's 10 12 a day,

Kanoya Ali (27:59):
Right? And then where we at right now? What's the statistics right now?

Peter Cunningham (28:03):
Well, we went down three years in a row, 22, 23, 24 went down, citywide and in neighborhoods, all the neighborhoods. And then it's down now about 25% this year so far and down 36% in total shootings, which I think is more important because a fatal shooting is bad. But a non-fatal shooting is really bad too, right? Absolutely. You got an injury, you got someone whose life has changed. You got someone who's bent on revenge, you got all kinds of things going. Absolutely. With a non-fatal shooting. Now

Sadiq Ali (28:33):
Fatal shooting is the bur ones now it's like I got to get back. I got to get my lip

Peter Cunningham (28:38):
Back. We are seeing one of the biggest drops in recent decades this year.

Kanoya Ali (28:43):
What's up? So

Peter Cunningham (28:44):
Something's going on, something's going on,

Kanoya Ali (28:46):
Something's going on. I'm telling you, something's going on. So what we say, and I'll talks the community of CVI Community violence intervention. I don't know what specifically they did to increase or different than what they did from the beginning. Like Chicago CRED, we got bigger, we added F, this, that another. But even with flip last year, two years ago, it didn't decrease, right? And I know everybody was trying. The police didn't decrease or increase more police officers or you get what I'm saying? Nothing really changed from the perspective of the ponds that were already on the board. A new pond that got put on the board was the religious aspect was the Muslim, and you could identify the violence going down the O block in that area. 40% were to the point where the police were asking what happened, what took place, and then they found out that the Casby had became Muslim. But then also then different neighborhoods had a lot of young brothers from different neighborhoods. Roseland, Inglewood, Austin, north London. They had started to become Muslim too. So now you got to imagine if guys that were once enemies, I could sit in each other, brothers, not just like, I ain't going to mess with no, that's my brother. Not only can I shoot him, but you can't shoot him either now. He ain't going to shoot us either now.

(30:29):
Now when that takes place, then that happened since that happened since 2023. That happened since 2023. The movement actually took Liz, we not waving the flag saying us, but

Peter Cunningham (30:45):
Understand. I know you guys are too humble about it. That's good. But it reminds me of sort of this analysis that you often hear from about how, why do these young guys join gangs, right? They join gangs. The sense of belonging. Maybe some of them feel safe. Maybe it's very specifically feel safe, but maybe it's also a sense of belonging. Suddenly these are my brothers, right? I'm in the gang. And then we ask him to leave. We ask him to quit that thing you've been in now for 10 years that your father was in, maybe quit that thing. And they very rationally say, and for what? Quit it for what? And so you guys are saying, well, we got something. We got something you can quit it for. So more power to you,

Kanoya Ali (31:31):
Right? I want to shoot out some names to you and you tell what you think. Names. Names,

Sadiq Ali (31:37):
Okay.

Kanoya Ali (31:37):
Larry Hoover, he's been pardoned. What's your thoughts?

Sadiq Ali (31:43):
I think that's a beautiful thing. You know what I mean? I think that's a blessing from God that they pardon the brother, but I don't, if you pardon him for him to go back and do 200 years in the state, then what was the benefit of Pardon him? What was the benefit of Pardon him. I mean, let's not play with people. Man, you going to pardon him? Pardon him. Let him out and see, see what he can do to help the situation. Where here in Chicago with this gun violence, I think his voice would be really big. And he understand that it's no joke going to jail. He's did 50 something years. I mean, so I think that it's a good thing. But let's just let him

Kanoya Ali (32:18):
Imam Malik, Jeff Ford.

Sadiq Ali (32:20):
I feel like Iman Maleek, Jeff Ford was very wrongfully convicted. A lot of on the whole case. I mean the brother was never even there. He was never even on the scene of the situation when they got him on. You know what I mean? And again, another brother that been wrongful, convicted, but the power that he has that can scare us people, that he can bring people together and try to bring peace. So keep 'em locked up.

Kanoya Ali (32:44):
I want y'all to keep the camera on him when I ask him this question. Two names Tay Savage. Oh five one kiddo. What's your thoughts?

Sadiq Ali (32:57):
Tay Savage is Muslim brother. I love Tay. That's my guy. I just heard Kiddo was Muslim too. So I love Kiddo too because he's Muslim. My thoughts is that those are two Muslim brothers and pray kin, allow them to both to be at peace. Those are my thoughts with that. You know what I mean? I work a lot with Muslims, all Muslims and I love all Muslims. You know what I mean? I have no say so. Nothing wrong about no Muslim la Dirk. Love him Muslim. I love led Dirk. I pray that Allah allow him to come out. It's crazy that you see people trying to bring peace to Chicago. Then they get snatched up off the street. You saying if this guy, y'all had a two year investigation on him and he was hiring people to do stuff, but y'all going to let him walk around for two years to hire people to do stuff to other people that don't really make sense. That's not me real. That's not policing. I love Big Dirk too. I've do a hawk. I love about do a hawk too as well. I do. Hawk is a very beautiful brother. We have a really, really good relationship together. This an amazing guy, man.

Peter Cunningham (33:59):
Alright brother. Well, we should probably wrap it up, but thank you so much for your time. Thank you for what you're doing every day. Appreciate you for

Sadiq Ali (34:06):
Having me, man.

Peter Cunningham (34:07):
Thank you for the lives you're saving. Even if you don't want to take credit for it, you're too humble to take credit for it. That's okay.

Sadiq Ali (34:15):
Yeah, I just want to give it all the praise to Allah. If any lives that's been saved, I want to give it to Allah. Not me. I'm good with that.

Kanoya Ali (34:23):
Appreciate you, man. Can people make a donation to us? Absolutely. They can

Sadiq Ali (34:27):
Donate to Muslimatic. We need you to come donate to Muslimatic for sure. You know what I mean? I think we got the donation thing at muslimatic.com. We got gear at muslimatic.com. We got a store at bar here, imports 3 23 East Spurgeon Road. Come check us out. Chicago, Illinois, 6 0 6 5 3. Me and Ali, we got some Ballin coming up. We fixing be moving around doing some trips to Philly and Haw. Try to get the kids to go over here to Mecca and a lot of other things that we're trying to do. So yeah, we definitely need the support of the people, man. So in Charla you see that. You think that I'm saving lives or you think that we saving lives and help us continue to doing what we're doing by supporting. Let

Kanoya Ali (35:04):
Me ask one question before we leave wrap up. Why is it important to move some of these young brothers around to get 'em out of Chicago? Why

Sadiq Ali (35:14):
Is it important? Because it's a new beginning of a start of a new life. It's a reset button. You know what I mean? They've been here all this time playing this game that they playing now. Time to restart and start a new life somewhere else. Allow them to be men. They've been kids and they made some mistakes. You know what I mean? So change is better. You know what I mean? No man condition will ever change unless he changes his cells. So let's our little brothers try to change and make a difference in their life.

Kanoya Ali (35:43):
That's all for this episode of License Operate. Please subscribe wherever you get your podcast and share this episode with your friends and family.

Peter Cunningham (35:52):
This podcast is a co-production of The Chi Podcast and Cunningham Creative. Until next time, I'm Peter Cunningham.

Kanoya Ali (35:59):
And I'm Kanoya Ali.