What Careers Should Muslims Think About In Order To Empower The Community

Although it is not the exclusive means towards socio-political power, economic influence has a profound effect upon society and political power. The social rise of a large number of deprived or weak minority communities especially in the West, such as various immigrant groups has been directly related to the rise of their economic power. From an economic perspective, the interrelationship between communities both on the international and local levels is one of inter-communal trade. If one community does not sell or provide goods or services to another, then that community becomes impoverished for its net income would be always flowing out of that community to the one whose goods and services it buys. One of the easiest ways of arriving at economic self sufficiency and power is through education for it can equip a community with the skills needed to build an economic base. At the same time it can also provide for the internal needs of the community, e.g. female doctors for Muslim women etc. To say economic power through education is to say that careers are the way to social power. But what careers? This is the crux of the discussion and we would attempt to look at careers that would serve our community internally and in its external relations with the outside world. Furthermore, just having careers is not enough to empower a community; it must be accompanied by wise leadership, a collective self consciousness as sharing a common identity, a sense of destiny and purpose and a knowledge of strategic careers.