The Nation of Islam and its Significance to the Black.
For a long time, the African-American population in the United States has struggled to establish an identity in terms of the society as well as nation in which it must continue living. Blacks have always had a problem with an answer to the question of who they really are in respect to their past. This identity process has not only been challenging but very painful as well. African Americans are undeniably tied to Africa but such identity is very vague and their American ancestry is so much rooted in the oppression of slavery that not much of it is left to be desired. An answer to the identity question has been very necessary and to the black people of America, this has been the only hope of achieving the political freedom that was denied them by the institution of slavery. Religion has been one avenue of examining the possibility of political freedom because a belief in God has for a long time provided human beings with answers to questions about their origin or the meaning of their existence. Religious communities have been providing the best environment to experience the truth about origin and existence. Although orthodox religious faith has been sufficient ground for many Black Americans, many others have felt that such faith does not have enough effect on the political realm and as a result, there has been emergence of other religio-political groups in the U.S the most successful of which has been the Nation of Islam.
Long after the abolition of slavery in America, many African Americans felt that Christianity was still a religion for those who still upheld racial pride and allowed white Christians to remain dominant and superior both in church and in society. African Americans continued to suffer racial discrimination in every aspect of their lives. Although America celebrated freedom, equality and democracy, most African Americans could still not cast the vote or even serve in the U.S military on an equal basis with their white counterparts. Black people were continuously ridiculed through radio shows, movies, popular sayings and postcards, besides being subjected to job discrimination, poor housing, poor access to education and lynch mobs. The American society continued to be highly anti-black and white supremacy became the daily norm of the United States society. Black Americans felt that they needed a religion that they would fully identify with and one which did not promote racial prejudice. During the era of the Civil Rights movement, African Americans generally became aware of the Nation of Islam, a religious group for Black Muslims. Under Elijah Muhammads leadership, black supremacy and racial separatism became the dominant ideologies governing the Nation of Islam. Whites were viewed as agents of Christianity which was out to destroy Africanism and the Nation of Islam called upon blacks to limit their contact with the whites and work towards establishing self-sufficient black communities. This religious movement encouraged its members to abstain from certain foods, tobacco and alcohol as some of the ways that would help them achieve their social goals. Marital fidelity was also encouraged as well as a work-ethic that would help the Africa-Americans to establish an economic system that was independent from white influence.
The Nation of Islam is an African-American religious movement that came into the national limelight during the 1930s. Its roots can however be traced as far back as 1913 when Alis Moorish Science Temple of America was established in the United States. In 1930, this temple movement split into two groups and one of the groups led by Wallace D. Fard adopted the name Nation of Islam. American blacks had developed a desire to identify themselves with the Muslim religion and the founded the Nation of Islam movement based on the desire to belong to a lost Islamic tribe. Wallace Fard introduced an awakening among the Black Americans that they were Allahs chosen people and that their suffering under the American institution of slavery had considerable meaning. He made blacks believe that that they had a special relationship with the Muslin God, Allah and that theirs was a worldwide struggle as a majority group. He organized the black people in challenging white supremacy and made them believe that a black nation-state was possible. While Fard became the movements savior or Mahdi, it was Elijah Muhammad who took over the Nation of Islams leadership after Fard who became its source of strength. In 1935, the movement had only a few hundred members but the membership had risen to over 10,000 by the year 1960. By 1975, when Elijah Muhammad died, approximately five hundred thousand members and active sympathizers identified themselves with the Nation of Islam. Certain factors contributed to the movements appeal and solidity namely tight discipline, educational programs, large monetary contributions form members, annual conventions, business enterprises as well as a newspaper entitled Muhammad Speaks. Two large temples or mosques have since been established in the U.S namely N0. 7 located in New York and N0. 27, which is located in the city of Los Angeles. Other small mosques are to be found in other parts of the U.S.
The doctrine of the Fall of America has been a major driver for the Nation of Islam as a movement. Africa-Americans had suffered under white oppression for a long time and the Great Depression of the 1930s intensified this trauma. Blacks had migrated in large numbers to the industrial North and whites had begun to feel threatened and really stressed the myth about the founding of the American nation. Most African Americans were uneducated and lived in slums or ghettos as the white society continued to grow in wealth and power. As America recovered from the Great Depression, the gap socio-economic gap between the blacks and whites was growing wider. Until the 1950s, the Nation of Islam continued operating as a small cult but the emergence and popularity of the Civil Rights movement combined with the organizational skills of its leader Elijah Muhammad as well as the popularity of Malcolm X who was the organizations spokesman turned it into the fastest growing organization in the U.S.A. For many blacks searching for an escape route out of racism, the Nation of Islam provided the kind of ideal support to identify with. Between the late 1950s and the early 1960s, Malcolm X rose to a prominent position within the movement and brought to it exceptional national visibility. Such visibility was however followed by a clash with the orthodox leadership and in February 1965, Malcolm was assassinated, a tragedy that marked a very low point in the Nation of Islam as a movement.
In 1975, Elijah Muhammad died and his son Wallace Muhammad replaced him as the Nation of Islam leader, ending an era that had prohibited the movements participation in active politics. The younger Muhammad encouraged the Black Muslims participation in politics and strengthened the Nation of Islams ties with other blacks in the Caribbean and Africa by establishing mosques in such places. He also allowed the first white person into the movement and modified the movements rituals and practices to resemble those of orthodox Islam. Wallace Muhammad also changed the movements name from Nation of Islam to American Muslim Mission in the early 1980s and by 1985, the Muslim Mission announced that it was breaking up but encouraged its members to join the mainstream Islamic faith. The Nation of Islam successfully survived this transition under the leadership of Louis Farrakhan and as the decade came to a close the movements active participation in anti-drug wars in black neighborhoods as well as its adoption of the Islamic causes that were taking place on the international arena helped it to regain much national attention. The anti-Semitic language used by Farrakhan also helped to thrust the movement into the national spotlight. By the early 1990s, tremendous growth of Islam in America as well as the movements growing popularity among the blacks had made the Nation of Islam a popular movement. Louis Farrakhan has led the Nation of Islam since 1977 and his prowess in public speaking as well as dynamic messages has popularized the movement especially among young African American men. A well advertised public lecture by Farrakhan can attract as many as 60,000 people. The movement has experienced tremendous economic growth through sale of their newspaper, donations from wealthy members, agricultural production (owns 1,600 acres of farmland in Georgia among other places), and income from various restaurants, bookstores as well as security firms that are owned by the organization. The movement has also been involved in AIDS research as it advances its efforts to look for a cure for the syndrome.
The Nation of Islam was founded within the background of racial oppression in the United States. Currently led by Minister Louis Farrakhan, the movement continues with its famous doctrine of black separation and a strong dedication to service among its African-American members. The Nation of Islams doctrine contains unorthodox and also more extreme Islamic teachings. It differs from traditional Islam through the belief of a black God and most of the other Islamic sects consider the movement to be heretical and also blasphemous to Prophet Muhammad through this claim as well as the popular ideology among its members that Wallace D. Fard was the last prophet. Mainstream Islamists and other religions have criticized the Nation of Islam for its racially prejudiced ideologies as well as anti-Semitism. Yet, among its active followers and popular sympathizers, the Nation of Islam may have succeeded in raising an awakening among the down-trodden people of the black community who were in desperate need of a cultural, religious and political awakening.
Nation of Islam followers mainly constitute those people who are in search of a new identity such as fatherless men, former gang members and drug addicts among others in search of a place to identify with and call home. Unlike other religious movements, Nation of Islam membership is eighty percent male and the organization supports them by offering religious and economic solutions. By establishing businesses and owning properties worth millions of U.S dollars, the movement displays it commitment towards the betterment of the social and economic status of its members.
Long after the abolition of slavery in America, many African Americans felt that Christianity was still a religion for those who still upheld racial pride and allowed white Christians to remain dominant and superior both in church and in society. African Americans continued to suffer racial discrimination in every aspect of their lives. Although America celebrated freedom, equality and democracy, most African Americans could still not cast the vote or even serve in the U.S military on an equal basis with their white counterparts. Black people were continuously ridiculed through radio shows, movies, popular sayings and postcards, besides being subjected to job discrimination, poor housing, poor access to education and lynch mobs. The American society continued to be highly anti-black and white supremacy became the daily norm of the United States society. Black Americans felt that they needed a religion that they would fully identify with and one which did not promote racial prejudice. During the era of the Civil Rights movement, African Americans generally became aware of the Nation of Islam, a religious group for Black Muslims. Under Elijah Muhammads leadership, black supremacy and racial separatism became the dominant ideologies governing the Nation of Islam. Whites were viewed as agents of Christianity which was out to destroy Africanism and the Nation of Islam called upon blacks to limit their contact with the whites and work towards establishing self-sufficient black communities. This religious movement encouraged its members to abstain from certain foods, tobacco and alcohol as some of the ways that would help them achieve their social goals. Marital fidelity was also encouraged as well as a work-ethic that would help the Africa-Americans to establish an economic system that was independent from white influence.
The Nation of Islam is an African-American religious movement that came into the national limelight during the 1930s. Its roots can however be traced as far back as 1913 when Alis Moorish Science Temple of America was established in the United States. In 1930, this temple movement split into two groups and one of the groups led by Wallace D. Fard adopted the name Nation of Islam. American blacks had developed a desire to identify themselves with the Muslim religion and the founded the Nation of Islam movement based on the desire to belong to a lost Islamic tribe. Wallace Fard introduced an awakening among the Black Americans that they were Allahs chosen people and that their suffering under the American institution of slavery had considerable meaning. He made blacks believe that that they had a special relationship with the Muslin God, Allah and that theirs was a worldwide struggle as a majority group. He organized the black people in challenging white supremacy and made them believe that a black nation-state was possible. While Fard became the movements savior or Mahdi, it was Elijah Muhammad who took over the Nation of Islams leadership after Fard who became its source of strength. In 1935, the movement had only a few hundred members but the membership had risen to over 10,000 by the year 1960. By 1975, when Elijah Muhammad died, approximately five hundred thousand members and active sympathizers identified themselves with the Nation of Islam. Certain factors contributed to the movements appeal and solidity namely tight discipline, educational programs, large monetary contributions form members, annual conventions, business enterprises as well as a newspaper entitled Muhammad Speaks. Two large temples or mosques have since been established in the U.S namely N0. 7 located in New York and N0. 27, which is located in the city of Los Angeles. Other small mosques are to be found in other parts of the U.S.
The doctrine of the Fall of America has been a major driver for the Nation of Islam as a movement. Africa-Americans had suffered under white oppression for a long time and the Great Depression of the 1930s intensified this trauma. Blacks had migrated in large numbers to the industrial North and whites had begun to feel threatened and really stressed the myth about the founding of the American nation. Most African Americans were uneducated and lived in slums or ghettos as the white society continued to grow in wealth and power. As America recovered from the Great Depression, the gap socio-economic gap between the blacks and whites was growing wider. Until the 1950s, the Nation of Islam continued operating as a small cult but the emergence and popularity of the Civil Rights movement combined with the organizational skills of its leader Elijah Muhammad as well as the popularity of Malcolm X who was the organizations spokesman turned it into the fastest growing organization in the U.S.A. For many blacks searching for an escape route out of racism, the Nation of Islam provided the kind of ideal support to identify with. Between the late 1950s and the early 1960s, Malcolm X rose to a prominent position within the movement and brought to it exceptional national visibility. Such visibility was however followed by a clash with the orthodox leadership and in February 1965, Malcolm was assassinated, a tragedy that marked a very low point in the Nation of Islam as a movement.
In 1975, Elijah Muhammad died and his son Wallace Muhammad replaced him as the Nation of Islam leader, ending an era that had prohibited the movements participation in active politics. The younger Muhammad encouraged the Black Muslims participation in politics and strengthened the Nation of Islams ties with other blacks in the Caribbean and Africa by establishing mosques in such places. He also allowed the first white person into the movement and modified the movements rituals and practices to resemble those of orthodox Islam. Wallace Muhammad also changed the movements name from Nation of Islam to American Muslim Mission in the early 1980s and by 1985, the Muslim Mission announced that it was breaking up but encouraged its members to join the mainstream Islamic faith. The Nation of Islam successfully survived this transition under the leadership of Louis Farrakhan and as the decade came to a close the movements active participation in anti-drug wars in black neighborhoods as well as its adoption of the Islamic causes that were taking place on the international arena helped it to regain much national attention. The anti-Semitic language used by Farrakhan also helped to thrust the movement into the national spotlight. By the early 1990s, tremendous growth of Islam in America as well as the movements growing popularity among the blacks had made the Nation of Islam a popular movement. Louis Farrakhan has led the Nation of Islam since 1977 and his prowess in public speaking as well as dynamic messages has popularized the movement especially among young African American men. A well advertised public lecture by Farrakhan can attract as many as 60,000 people. The movement has experienced tremendous economic growth through sale of their newspaper, donations from wealthy members, agricultural production (owns 1,600 acres of farmland in Georgia among other places), and income from various restaurants, bookstores as well as security firms that are owned by the organization. The movement has also been involved in AIDS research as it advances its efforts to look for a cure for the syndrome.
The Nation of Islam was founded within the background of racial oppression in the United States. Currently led by Minister Louis Farrakhan, the movement continues with its famous doctrine of black separation and a strong dedication to service among its African-American members. The Nation of Islams doctrine contains unorthodox and also more extreme Islamic teachings. It differs from traditional Islam through the belief of a black God and most of the other Islamic sects consider the movement to be heretical and also blasphemous to Prophet Muhammad through this claim as well as the popular ideology among its members that Wallace D. Fard was the last prophet. Mainstream Islamists and other religions have criticized the Nation of Islam for its racially prejudiced ideologies as well as anti-Semitism. Yet, among its active followers and popular sympathizers, the Nation of Islam may have succeeded in raising an awakening among the down-trodden people of the black community who were in desperate need of a cultural, religious and political awakening.
Nation of Islam followers mainly constitute those people who are in search of a new identity such as fatherless men, former gang members and drug addicts among others in search of a place to identify with and call home. Unlike other religious movements, Nation of Islam membership is eighty percent male and the organization supports them by offering religious and economic solutions. By establishing businesses and owning properties worth millions of U.S dollars, the movement displays it commitment towards the betterment of the social and economic status of its members.
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