Page 7 - Florida Sentinel 5-23-17

Local
International Rep Of Nation Of Islam Talks About His Experiences With Malcolm X At Tampa’s Main Library
BY KENYA WOODARD Sentinel Feature Writer
Akbar Muhammad wasn’t seeking membership in the Nation of Islam when he stepped inside a mosque in New York City in the early 1960s.
The Civil Rights Movement was in full swing and young Black people were wanting to be part of the sweep- ing changes that were coming through the country at the time.
So when a friend invited him to at- tend a service where Malcolm X would be speaking, Muhammad thought this was his chance to get some inspiration to make a differ- ence.
Muhammad watched in awe as the stately minister – by then one of the Nation’s top leaders and a media sensation – packed some 800 people into Mosque No. 7 and preached about the lack of identity among African-Americans.
Not long after, Muhammad found himself studying to be a mem- ber of the Nation under Malcolm X himself.
“I grew up under Malcolm,” he said. “He was my minister.”
On Saturday, Muhammad en- gaged an audience of about 100 cap- tive with his stories about the minister and civil rights icon during a lecture at the John H. Germany li- brary branch.
Muhammad is an international representative of the Nation who has served as an aide to its current leader, Min. Louis Farrakhan. His visit to Tampa, dubbed the “Dedica- tion to Malcolm X”, came just one day after what would have been his 92nd birthday.
Muhammad said he was on Malcolm X’s security detail in De- cember 1963 when the minister of- fered controversial “chickens coming home to roost” remark following the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.
His comments came after the de- livery of “a beautiful speech,”
Jarvis El-Amin, left, of the Tampa-St. Pete Black Chamber of Commerce organized the event. Min. Akbar Muham- mad is standing next to him.
Muhammad said.
After his address, Malcolm
opened the floor for questions and was asked to comment on the presi- dent’s death.
“It was so quiet you could hear a pin drop,” Muhammad said. “He had his head down for a while.”
When Malcolm finally answered, his response – “Being an old farm boy, chickens coming home to roost never made me sad, it made me glad” – made news headlines.
“The rest is history,” Muham- mad said.
Malcolm X was reprimanded by then-Nation leader Elijah Muham- mad and left the religious sect alto- gether the next year.
Muhammad said he was crushed by Malcolm’s departure from the Nation.
“His leaving tore out our hearts,” he said. “I loved him.”
Malcolm X continued his civil rights work with the founding of the Muslim Mosque, Inc., and the Organ- ization of Afro-American Unity.
While no longer a member of the Nation, Malcolm X “realized that it was Islam that gave him the insight” as a leader and he continued to incor- porate its teachings and principles in his work, Muhammad said.
“Malcolm knew that what he was doing was from a spiritual base,” he said. “He wanted Islam involved in the struggle.”
On Feb. 21, 1965, Malcolm X was assassinated at the Audubon Ball- room following his split with the Na- tion the previous year.
Some historical accounts pitted Malcolm X against the Nation and
vice versa, but that’s not true, Muhammad said.
It’s also unlikely that the men ar- rested for Malcolm’s murder were responsible, he said.
Talmade Hayer, Muhammad Abdul Aziz, and Khalil Islam were arrested following Malcolm’s assas- sination.
Hayer has admitted his involve- ment in the planning and execution of the shooting, but said the other two men were not part of the event. He was paroled in 2010. Abdul Aziz was released in 1985, Islam in 1987. Islam died in 2009.
It was unclear to which man Muhammad was referring.
“I knew those brothers,” he said. “I’m telling you they were not there. Those men spent 25 years in prison for something they didn’t do.”
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