Do you know who a zombie is?
When we first hear the word “zombie”, we immediately think of Hollywood horror movies. Scary faces, cannibals, creatures that have lost their minds and are after human flesh… Zombies are portrayed as a threat that must be killed in the modern world. However, behind this image lies another reality: The West has used the name to distort a hero, a Muslim leader, and hide the truth from view.
Zombie was a great leader who founded the first Muslim state in Brazil. After the Europeans landed in the Americas, the new lands were divided between them. North America was divided between the British and the French, while South America fell under the rule of Portugal and Spain. Portugal conquered the rich and vast lands of Brazil, slaughtering the indigenous population, plundering resources and creating a need for more labor. In response, attacks were launched on the coastal villages of West Africa, Muslim villages were raided in the dark of night and people were enslaved. The first Muslim slaves were brought to Brazil in 1538 and the first Muslims to set foot on this land faced oppression and persecution.
After 40 years, there were more than 14,000 Muslim slaves in Brazil. Historical documents in Brazil confirm that most of these slaves were of Islamic origin and that they read the Koran in Arabic. When the West thought that Islam had extinguished its presence in Brazil, a hero named Zombi rose from the ashes. Together with Islamic scholars, Zombi reached out to this oppressed people, teaching them the Quran and the justice of Islam. Walking shoulder to shoulder with the oppressed, Zombi founded the “Islamic State of Brazil” in 1643 and declared freedom as the fundamental principle of this state.
Portugal waged war against this new state, but Zombi’s armies were repeatedly victorious. Zombi conquered more than twenty districts in the Brazilian state of Bahía, expanding his state and striking fear into the hearts of the West. Muslims fought for independence in this state for 50 years. Black Muslims put up an epic resistance against slavery and oppression.
However, this resistance ended with the intervention of the Portuguese Emperor. In 1916, the Portuguese navy surrounded the Muslims with its state-of-the-art weapons. Zombi’s soldiers were martyred one by one and the state was destroyed. However, Zombi’s struggle remained in the memory of history as an unforgettable resistance. He was a leader who stood against slavery, colonialism and injustice.
In Brazil today, Zombi’s struggle continues to remind us of the resistance of Muslim slaves and the role of Islam in Brazil. While the West has made Zombi’s name the subject of horror movies, the real Zombi deserves to be remembered in history as a defender of freedom and justice. He is a hero who fought for freedom on Brazilian soil and a voice for oppressed peoples.
Unfortunately, this Muslim liberation movement in Brazil was ended by biological, chemical and massive attacks by the Portuguese. Zombi and the Muslims who fought with him put up an epic resistance against slavery and oppression while remaining true to their faith. However, this resistance could not be sustained for long in the face of the modern war machines and technological superiority of the Portuguese. The Islamic state established under Zombi’s leadership existed for almost half a century, defending freedom and the principles of Islam. But in 1916, in the last major offensive, this state collapsed and Zombi’s soldiers were martyred.
This heroic epic consigned the resistance and struggle for freedom of the African Muslim slaves in Brazil to the forgotten pages of history. Zombi and his Islamic state are remembered as an important symbol of the fight against slavery and colonialism. Although the West distorted Zombi’s name and story, associating him with the myth of the living dead, Zombi was in fact a Muslim leader, a freedom fighter and a protector of oppressed peoples.
