The purpose of this book is to shed light on a very pressing issue in the Islamic community, specifically amongst African American Muslims who comprise of mostly new converts to the religion of Islam. As new Muslims, many are faced with the challenge of not having a family structure that reflects the one outlined in books of Islamic law. Written from a completely different familial paradigm than the one that many of us identify with in the west, Islamic jusriprudence (fiqh), in a modern context, is forcing us to rethink how we approach and apply Islamic teachings to our particular circumstance.
The family structure outlined in the Qur’an and Sunnah of the Prophet was designed to ensure the preservation of our legacy through marital longevity within a community setting. Many of us are first- and second-generation Muslims who continue to put our lineages at risk of extinction through acts of fornication, adultery and serial marriages that serve no greater purpose than the fulfillment of one's desires within a pseudo framework of halal sex. The information in this book seeks to provide a blueprint that details how the system of guardianship works in Islam, which gives us an opportunity to correct the way we approach the institution of marriage with sound knowledge.