Muslim Rage.(Aki Nawaz)(Brief Article)(Interview)

Before September 11, the British group Fundamental was just another rap outfit. But ever since, its radical message urging Muslims to fight a racist West has taken on new meaning. On albums like "Erotic Terrorism" and "Seize the Time," Fundamental praises jihad and predicts the downfall of the West. One of its first albums was titled "Why America Will Go to Hell," a reference to Martin Luther King Jr.'s speech "Why America May Go to Hell." Founding member Aki Nawaz, the 39-year-old son of Pakistani immigrants to Britain, insists he's a peace-loving man, and, in a recent interview in London with NEWSWEEK's Leila Moseley, talked about the war in Afghanistan and "misinformation" about Muslims. Excerpts:

MOSELEY: Your lyrics aim to challenge the prejudice that immigrants still suffer in this country.

NAWAZ: We are also trying to challenge the bigger picture both historically and politically. The band is our only platform. [It] has always been about going one step further, deeper, even if it challenges stereotypical images. I think we're entitled to our reactionism because we've been assaulted continuously, whether it's religiously, politically or personally.

You have often been compared to the American rap group Public Enemy.

We have something in common politically. The pain of the black man, historically, is so deep. I find it so repulsive how history has treated them, and as an Asian it troubles me how history has treated us. White folks are so misinformed, but I think they have their own struggle. I'd love to see a white Public Enemy talk about how they feel. It would be great to see the Sex Pistols come back and destroy all these [stereotypical] images. There's a cause for young white people, but where is it? I want to see it happening.

What do you see as the fundamental problem for Muslims in the West?

The biggest problem is the amount of poison that's been spread about Islam. Here in the West there's a big absence of spirit. People have been taught to be independent and the way they run their lives is quite free, but it lacks the human element. Islam has a consciousness about it, a spiritual aspect. Living here doesn't feed my soul. Islam is not against materialism and capitalism--it encourages business--but it says that you have to have a moral obligation and some form of morality.