We Iranians, Descendants of Slaves, Demand Reparations for Islamic Enslavement

We Iranians, Descendants of Slaves, Demand Reparations for Islamic Enslavement
by Bobby Darvish – darvishintelligence.blogspot.com

The modern conversation about reparations often revolves around the atrocities of Western slavery, but the horrors of Islamic slavery are largely ignored. As an Iranian-American, a former Muslim, and a Christian conservative, I am here to shed light on the vast, complex history of slavery in the Middle East—a history that, for many of us, has left generational scars and continues to impact communities today. This is a history involving Islamic empires that targeted not only Africans but also Christians and others from Central Asia and Southern Russia, including my own ancestors. It is a past from which we, the descendants of these enslaved peoples, are still reeling.

Our Ancestral Plight Under Islamic Enslavement

Many Americans may be surprised to learn that Iranians, along with Turks and other ethnic groups from the Caucasus and Central Asia, were enslaved by Islamic dynasties for hundreds of years. These empires—the Safavids in Iran, the Ottomans in Turkey, and the Mamelukes in Egypt—targeted countless individuals from our regions, often forcing them into military service as "slave soldiers." These dynasties were infamous for their enslaving practices, extending as far as Southern Russia, where Christian communities were especially vulnerable. Between 50 AD and 1500 AD, a period when Christianity was the faith of many in the region, countless Christians were subjugated and taken as slaves by Islamic empires, forcibly converted or coerced into servitude to bolster the armies and administrative ranks of Islamic states.

The Untold Connection Between Islamic and American Slavery

Western academia often overlooks the critical role Arab and Turkish slavery played in global slave trade routes, a history which predates and intersects with the transatlantic slave trade. Arabs and Turks enslaved millions of Africans long before Western powers ever set foot in sub-Saharan Africa. Islamic slavery reached such a scale that it laid the groundwork for the global market that ultimately brought African slaves to America. Without the entrenched slave trade pioneered by Arab and Turkish merchants, the Western slave trade as we know it might not have even existed.

Today, the descendants of those slaves have a right to demand reparations from the Islamic nations that participated in and profited from their suffering. Unlike the West, many Muslim nations never confronted or abolished their legacy of slavery. Even now, one can buy black slaves in Libya for as little as $400. The persistence of this barbaric practice, especially in nations with Islamic rule or influence, speaks to the unbroken chain of human exploitation sanctioned under Islamic empires.

The Need for Reparations for Non-African Descendants of Slaves

The plight of Christian slaves from regions such as Iran, Southern Russia, and the Caucasus must also be acknowledged. As Iranians, we were victims of the same Islamic dynasties that brutalized Africans. The Safavid dynasty in Iran was notorious for recruiting (or rather, abducting) young men from Armenian, Georgian, and Circassian Christian communities, turning them into slave soldiers, a practice also seen with the Mamluks in Egypt and Ottomans in Turkey. Our ancestors were forced into servitude, made to fight in wars that were not their own, and had their cultures erased in the name of Islamic expansion.

In a fair and honest global conversation about reparations, the descendants of these Christian and Iranian slaves deserve a seat at the table. Reparations are not merely a call for financial compensation but an acknowledgment of the suffering and erasure that these Islamic empires inflicted on our people.

The Current Political Landscape

This history of Islamic enslavement has direct implications for how we, as Iranian-Americans and former Muslims, view today’s political landscape. The Democratic Party, represented by candidates like Kamala Harris, has openly allied itself with socialist and Islamist ideologies that oppose the values of freedom and justice. While they champion reparations, they do so with a limited and selective perspective, ignoring the rich, tragic history of other groups who suffered under Islamic rule. As someone who understands the reality of Islamic exploitation and sees the stark contrast in conservative values that prioritize freedom, equality, and truth, I believe that the Republican Party—and especially Donald Trump—offers a path forward that aligns with my values and the interests of my community.

Our vote is not just about policies but about survival and recognition. We refuse to support candidates who align themselves with ideologies that mirror the oppression our ancestors faced. We will vote for Trump, not Harris, because our people, our faith, and our values deserve protection and a voice in America’s future.

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Citations

1. Lewis, Bernard. Race and Slavery in the Middle East: An Historical Enquiry. Oxford University Press, 1990.
2. Gordon, Murray. Slavery in the Arab World. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 1989.
3. Akbar, M. J. The Shade of Swords: Jihad and the Conflict between Islam and Christianity. Routledge, 2002.
4. Toledano, Ehud R. The Ottoman Slave Trade and Its Suppression: 1840-1890. Princeton University Press, 1982.
5. "Libyan Slave Trade: UN Investigates Reports of Africans for Sale." BBC News, 2017. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-42199494.