The Nation of Islam is considered a heretical sect of Islam, started by a man I consider to be a charlatan, Elijah Muhammad, who claimed that white people were demons created 6,000 years ago by a black renegade scientist named Yacob. But Elijah was able to use the anger of people who’d been treated like dirt in their own country to get over and make a pile of $$$ for himself. You always follow the money. And Louis Farrakhan lives in a lovely house on Chicago’s Gold Coast. I wonder where the rank and file live? Anyway.
Just the idea that black people anywhere didn’t have to kowtow to white people or Eurocentric values was a mind-blowing message back in the day, and as you saw, Malcolm was an incredible speaker. His words made Muhammad rich.
Then, when Malcolm X converted to mainstream Islam and started preaching that Elijah Muhammad was a charlatan, that he saw white Muslims during his hajj to Mecca and saw that all men could be brothers even as black people uplifted themselves, that’s when many African-Americans believe Elijah got pissed off, sold Malcolm out to the FBI and let them use his guys for their dirty work. Guys like… Louis Farrakhan.