'We are not asking for justice, we are demanding justice'
By Richard B. Muhammad and Janiah Muhammad -Final Call Staffers- | Last updated: Aug 4, 2015 - 3:50:25 PM
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Miami turns out for a powerful, inspiring evening with Minister Louis Farrakhan
The Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan speaks to a packed audience inside Mt. Zion Baptist Church in Miami, FL. Photo: Hassan Muhammad
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MIAMI - When the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan stepped before some
1,500 people packed into the historic Mt. Zion Baptist Church the crowd
exploded with applause.
Photos: Andrea Muhammad
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What most in the crowd did not know what the 82-year-old leader had been
infused with boundless energy during this trip South to promote the
“Justice Or Else!” gathering planned for this fall in the Nation’s
Capital. Over several days he met with leaders, youth, activists,
artists and preachers and professionals in private sessions and group
sessions, never tiring, never wavering, never-not-smiling.
That same energy pervaded the church where extra chairs were added to
a full upstairs sanctuary. Downstairs listeners endured a sweltering
heat to hear sound piped in via speaker as event organizers were forced
to find a place for people who had come out and refused to leave
somewhere in the building.
Then outside others gathered around loud speakers placed outside,
sitting on street curbs, on cars in a park across the streets and
seemingly anywhere close enough to hear a clarion call for justice.
Women in line outside of Mt. Zion Baptist Church in Miami Photo: Andrea Muhammad
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The message was well worth the heat, the lines wrapped around the corner and a bright sunny day that turned into a humid night.
“How can we charge others with the crime of killing us without due
process and lying about it when we are killing each other? And we won’t
march on ourselves, nor will we even rise up to condemn ourselves for
what we are doing to ourselves. And in the gangs when we kill we don’t
talk, so nobody is arrested and charged with murder and brought to what
is called justice,” said Min. Farrakhan getting quickly into the subject
of justice and his demand for justice planned for Oct. 10 in
Washington, D.C., as part of the Justice Or Else gathering on the 20th
anniversary of the Million Man March.
The gathering will be no frolic, no picnic, no folly, but a serious
demand for justice placed before a government rife with injustice and a
crisis in police killings of Blacks, Native Americans and others inside
America. Such a demand called for an assessment of conditions and
confronting White oppression on one side and Black fratricidal violence
on the other.
Photo: Richard B. Muhammad, Photo: Andrea Muhammad
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“And the police when they kill us, they put the lie out first and then
back the lie up with the institutions of government of White Supremacy.
And so even though we march and even though we fight against this
injustice it continues unabated. So we have decided on the 20th
anniversary of the Million Man March we want to go to Washington.
“We want to go back to Washington to demand of our government what we
rightly deserve and what we have paid for with our sweat and our
blood,” the Minister declared. “But this time we are not asking for
justice, we are demanding justice and as Frederick Douglass says, ‘power
concedes nothing without a demand.’ And I added to that, power concedes
nothing without a demand that is backed by power.”
“So what is the power that should back our righteous demand for
justice? It is the unequaled power of our unity as a people. We have
never ‘gone united.’ We stay as little tribes and factions, gathering
only for the moment and then scattering after the moment. But when you
and I can go as a people, not Muslim and Christian and Baptists, and
Methodists, and Crips and Bloods, and native tribes, but go as the
original inhabitants of our planet to demand justice and some of this
earth we can call our own,” he said.
Photo Hassan Muhammad
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Between men and women there is a demand from nature that must be
satisfied to bring unity and harmony, the Minister said. The man must
give first as the maintainer, the protector, the provider for the woman
in his life and the woman will respond to an unspoken demand out of the
beauty of her nature, he said. But, the Minister noted, Satan has turned
things upside down with women working, factories closed, and Blacks
left in the lurch, unable to create jobs and unwilling to support Black
entrepreneurs. And Blacks bereft of the knowledge of self beg others to
do what Blacks must do for themselves, he continued. Those who provide
goods and services take money out of an
underdeveloped and disrespected
community without substantial reinvestment.
Such social engineering leaves Uncle Sam ready to recruit fearless
Black youth in the armed forces, and the U.S. government helped foment
the crack cocaine epidemic by placing drugs and weapons in the ‘hood to
promote fratricide and Black discord, he said. The wise of this nation,
and leaders like J. Edgar Hoover, the longtime FBI director, know it is
time for the rise of Black people and are determined to avert the
destruction and fall of White supremacy, the Minister noted.
But like a serpent, Whites are deceptive, trying to keep control of
the once-slaves who are destined to go free by monitoring their
activities, their leaders, their actions and even their social media
posts to cull information, he said.
It was standing room only for a Thursday night message from Min Farrakhan in Miami.
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“They would like to charge us with radicalizing our people by telling
the truth, but every time they kill a Black man or beat up a Black woman
or unjustly stop us for traffic violation and then kill us, we are
being radicalized. They are the ones who are radicalizing us. All we are
doing is telling the truth of what they are doing,” Minister Farrakhan
thundered as the crowd roared back and started to applaud loudly.
But, he said the slaughter of Blacks must cease because “we make it
so difficult for us to go to Washington with the strength which is
necessary to confront the evil of our government in depriving Blacks and
Browns, native people and some of their own poor White people.”
Photos: Richard B. Muhammad
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Later in his message, the Minister called for 10,000 fearless men
willing to make the ultimate sacrifice rather than live under tyranny.
There comes a time in the life of every people who yearn for freedom
where death is sweeter than to continue life under oppression, he said.
Blacks must protect their lives if the federal government refuses to
intervene when Black lives are unjustly and the principle of a life of a
life is laid out in scripture, the Minister explained. “Death is
sweeter than to continue to live and bury our children while White folks
give the killers hamburgers. Death is sweeter than watching us
slaughter each other to the joy of a 400-year-old enemy. Death is
sweeter. The Qur’an teaches persecution is worse than slaughter then it
says, retaliation is prescribed in matters of the slain. Retaliation is a
prescription from God to calm the breasts of those whose children have
been slain. If the federal government will not intercede in our affairs,
then we must rise up and kill those who kill us, stalk them and let
them feel the pain of death that we are feeling,” said Min. Farrakhan.
The crowd rose to its feet and gave another standing ovation.
The Minister again called for a boycott of Xmas holiday spending as a
response to oppression and the disrespect of Black life. He cited the
last public speech of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., in 1968 in Memphis,
where the civil rights leader spoke of inflicting economic pain on those
who have oppressed Black people. Dr. King was more than a dreamer, he
was a freedom fighter who awoke to the American nightmare, the Minister
said. The way to inflict economic pain is by withdrawing money from the
forces of oppression and using our combined economic might create a
reality for ourselves, said Min. Farrakhan. He urged the audience to
reject pagan celebrations in the name of Jesus and to spend time with
loved ones, not exchanging gifts, but heartfelt discussions about the
reality of the man Jesus and his life’s work, the Minister said.
Photos: Andrea Muhammad
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Men, women and children of different backgrounds filled Mt. Zion.
Although doors were supposed to open at 6 p.m., the church was already
halfway full by then. The line extended down the sidewalk and around the
building as men and women entered through separate entrances, but sat
side by side in the historic house of worship.
By 6:30 p.m., the church sanctuary was full and people had to begin filling a steamy overflow room.
Though all came to hear Minister Farrakhan, everyone had different
reasons or paths that ended July 30 for the Thursday evening message.
Since there was a social media campaign to promote Minister
Farrakhan’s visit to Miami, many found out via Facebook and Twitter. “I
saw a post from my friend on Facebook that Minister Farrakhan was going
to be here, and I was like ‘Oh my God,’ ” said 37-year-old Kirsten
Porter, who is from Minneapolis. “I’m hoping to get motivation,
inspiration, and spiritual upliftment.”
Some had a direct connection to the Nation of Islam.
Donna Addy, who is originally from Detroit, but now lives in Boynton
Beach, Fla., grew up in the Nation of Islam. However, she didn’t
continue to attend mosque meetings throughout her life. Over the past
few months, she’s been making the hour long drive from Boynton Beach to
Miami to attend the Sunday meetings at Muhammad Mosque No. 29.
Photo: Andrea Muhammad
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“I’m here to see the Minister and to hear the truth,” she said, her
daughter Joy at her side. “If I had stuck with the Nation of Islam,
imagine how much better I would be. So now, I’m exposing it to my
daughter so she can get it early.”
Asha Starks, a 22-year-old attending Barry University in Miami, felt
since she was part of the student movement, she should hear different
viewpoints. Her grandfather aided Minister Louis Farrakhan during the
Million Man March in 1995, which helped to shape her stance on social
rights today.
“We need organization. There’s a lot of messed up stuff, and if we just stand by, nothing can change,” Ms. Starks said.
One of Minister Farrakhan’s main messages during his Justice Or Else
tour across the country has been unity. Many say unity is needed in the
community.
Patricia Atkinson, a 44-year-old woman born in New York with Jamaican
roots, considers herself to be newly conscious. “Unity,” she said.
“It’s time. So much is going on. When we have knowledge of self, we can
unify. We need to support our own businesses so we can get respect from
others.”
Minister Farrakhan has not only been pushing for unity among Blacks,
but unity among Native Americans, Hispanics and others who have suffered
injustice.
Wayne “Smoke” Snellgrove, a native of Saskatewan, Canada, was a guest
of Minister Farrakhan during a leadership meeting for indigenous people
and Latinos days before his speech at Mt. Zion Baptist Church. Mr.
Snellgrove works for
Indian Voices newspaper, which promotes
education and public awareness about Native Americans and their issues.
He loved what the Minister had to say and wanted more, so he found
himself at the church.
“I want to hear more of the truth,” Mr. Snellgrove said. “Any chance I
can get to be with and grow with my brothers and sisters, and share my
spirituality.”
“I hope to gain motivation to keep fighting for the cause because it
gets tiresome,” she said. “You just need to be in the company of other
like minds,” said Vanessa Gonzalez, a 31-year-old Latina.
Both Mr. Snellgrove and Ms. Gonzalez say it is time to unite.
“I think 10.10.15 is a great way to be with my brothers and sisters,” Mr. Snellgrove said.
“It’s amazing that it’s been 20 years since the last march,” Ms.
Gonzalez said. “I’m grateful I get to participate. It’s sad that we’re
still fighting, but at least we have a voice. We need to unify. We can’t
call for justice and only have it for one people, only have it for
Blacks and Hispanics. I mean, Asians experience injustice, too. We need
to unite to win together.”
Once Minister Farrakhan mounted the podium after a deafening round of
applause, many got what they came for. Minister Farrakhan not only
touched on unity in the community, but he also spoke about unity between
the nature of man and the nature of woman.
“He (God) put in the nature of woman a demand,” Minister Farrakhan
said. “First, the demand is on the man. The man is supposed to be the
maintainer and the provider of the women in his life.”
For a portion of his lecture, Minister Farrakhan focused on the woman and how she should be treated.
“A woman is more than an object of pleasure,” he said. “She is the second self of God and she is a god herself.”
Minister Farrakhan provided all listeners with an empowering and
motivating message, letting them know that they have the power within
themselves to do great things.
“The Bible calls man not a glory of God, but the glory of God,” he
said. “In your best state, you reflect him perfectly. When you look in
the mirror, you don’t see that. But that’s not God’s fault. You are a
caricature of what God intended you to be.”
The Minister also enlightened many on what being a believer in Jesus Christ really means and dealt with the need for justice.
“The more we are denied,” Minister Farrakhan said, “the longer we are denied, the stronger the answer to that cry.”
Minister Farrakhan urged the audience to study the last few years of
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s life before he was assassinated. “They
didn’t assassinate him because he had a dream. He was assassinated
because he woke up,” he said. “Justice is what Dr. King, Malcolm X,
Marcus Garvey and Harriet Tubman wanted.”
In his last public speech, Dr. King talked on the need for land, the
need to spread economic pain to those who practice injustice and
supporting Black banks and institutions, the Minister observed.
Listeners shot to their feet many times to applaud the Minister’s
unique message. After closing out in prayer, several guests left the
church talking about what they had heard. Others crowded around the
church on the sidewalk and across the street, buying DVDs and books of
the Nation of Islam and asking when they could attend the mosque in
Miami.
Minister Farrakhan gave listeners many things to think about when it
came to improving their lives and the state of their communities. After
hearing Minister Farrakhan’s lecture, Britney Stephens left with a
better idea of who he is and what he’s about.
“What stuck out to me was that he was talking about how a lot of
people say they’re with the Lord, but they’re not in Christ,” she said.
“That’s something people have to think about.”
Twenty-seven-year-old Shameka Thomas felt the Minister’s lecture was powerful and intense.
“It’s what we need to wake up, especially about Black men and women
and taking back our land,” she said. “His talk about Jesus and how he
was a revolutionary and how we’re all one and in Christ and that there
is no distinction stood out to me. Christ was about love but also about
war.”
After hearing his message, many people was excited to be in Washington, D.C. on 10-10-15.
Arleen White, an activist originally from Jamaica who lost her
14-year-old son to gun violence, felt Justice Or Else is long overdue.
“We really need to unite,” she said. “It’s time. We’ve been
victimized for too long and we need to fight for the hour and for our
children. Now it’s time for us to really stand up because if we don’t
stand for anything, we’ll die for anything.”
For Michael Lowe, it was just nice to see Minister Farrakhan in person.
“I got more of what I’m used to getting from him,” Mr. Lowe said.
“Him bringing the truth like he does. I hope to follow him in his
footsteps.”
The
Niagara Movement, which at that time, called for radical changes by demanding social,
economic and political equality between Blacks and Whites, subsequently engaged
in a ‘battle royal’ of differing agendas where Black leadership, backed by
white benefactors, newspapers and politicians, vehemently denounced one another
over methods and ideology. Fostering conflicts and divisions, thereby
preventing a unified effort between the northern based Niagara Movement and the
southern based efforts of Booker T. Washington and his associates, the public tearing
down of each other weakened their collective impact and fractured their ability
to fulfill their overall goals independent of white tutelage and control.
As
the Niagara Movement began its dissolution from internal disagreements and
external manipulation, the NAACP was founded shortly thereafter in 1909, after deadly
race riots erupted a year earlier in Springfield, Illinois. Set up and financed
by white liberals and northern Jews, the activism and resources placed behind
the NAACP deemphasized Booker T. Washington’s approach in favor of non-economic
liberalism where concerns centering on social and political inclusion outweighed
the virtues of land ownership, entrepreneurship and economic independence. As Washington’s
philosophy of building an independent and self-sustaining infrastructure gave
way to a civil rights agenda dependent upon white patronage and philanthropy, the
die was set for the next 100 years, and the producing ethos facilitated by
Washington’s efforts eventually transformed into the consuming culture that dominates
Black America today. 
While
many will agree with the aim and purpose of the movement, as always, some will
disagree either through ignorance of its intentions, from the fear of change, or because
of satisfaction with the current state of affairs. Nevertheless, selling out
the legitimate grievances of our people, in the name of backroom deals,
subterfuge and the seeking of favor from the former slave masters and their children,
will no longer be tolerated. Our time is now, and for the sake of our children
and our children’s children, we will not be condemned as the generation that
refused to lay a tangible foundation for their future. The only
question is: Will you watch history unfold from the sidelines or will you
become a part of the change that you seek? 