Oral History Interview with Shaykh AbdulKarim Yayha on April 10, 2021
Oral history interview with Shaykh AbdulKarim Yayha conducted by Zayd Walid on April 10, 2021. Interview written by Dr. Alisa Perkins (Research Director) and Zayd Walid. Shaykh AbdulKarim Yayha was born and raised in Berkeley, California, graduating from Berkeley High School in 1990. Shaykh Yayha embraced Islam when he was seventeen years old, after reading “The Autobiography of Malcolm X.” Shaykh Yayha studied Islamic sciences in Syria and Yemen. At Dar al-Mustafa in Tarim, Yemen, he learned directly from Habib Umar bin Hafiz and later served as a translator for this prominent scholar. Shaykh Yayha is the founder of Dar Al-Rahma (DAR), a center for Islamic worship, study, and service in Detroit. At DAR, Shaykh Yayha teaches classes and leads community organization efforts. Dar Al-Rahma supports the surrounding community by providing food and services for those in need and engaging in neighborhood revitalization. Shaykh Yayha is also an active membership in the Ansar Collective, a coalition of African American Muslim men who coordinate community service efforts in and around Detroit. In the interview, Shaykh Yayha details how he came to embrace Islam and his journeys seeking knowledge over the course of his life. He also discusses the importance of strengthening interracial and inter-ethnic ties among members of the Muslim community in Detroit, and key roles played by charity and service in religious devotion.
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