From Karbala to the Caribbean: Black Muslim Devotion to a Shiʿi Imam

Abstract In the southern Caribbean island of Trinidad, members of the Imam-e-Zaman Mission (IZM) gather each year to mournfully commemorate the martyrdom of Husayn ibn Ali, the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad and the third Imam in the Shiʿi Islamic tradition. The martyrdom of Imam Husayn at the Battle of Karbala in 680 CE catalyzed a rich constellation of ritual traditions across time and space, extending from the Middle East through Central Asia to the Indian subcontinent. These ritual traditions have also taken root in the Caribbean, where South Asian and Afrodescendant Muslims have adapted them to local landscapes. Based on fieldwork conducted over the past decade, this article explores the historical, cultural and political dimensions of Afro-Trinidadian Muslim devotion to Imam Husayn. I argue that these devotional traditions provide IZM members with discursive and affective space to meaningfully engage with their collective past while also reinforcing their political solidarities and cultural identities.