Title

An original man : the life and times of Elijah Muhammad

Description

Elijah Muhammad (1897-1975), born Elijah Poole, dreamed of living a better life than his slave ancestors. However, by the time he arrived in Detroit in 1923, the bitter hatred and lynchings of the South had become a part of his consciousness, and the urban poverty and rank discrimination he encountered in the North further ignited his ire and indignation. In An Original Man, historian Claude Clegg reveals the motivations of this charismatic preacher whose life has been ignored for decades by scholars and biographers. With access to previously classified F.B.I. documents and the opportunity to interview two of Elijah Muhammad's surviving sons and members of the Poole clan in Georgia, Clegg demonstrates that Elijah Muhammad was indeed one of the most influential African-Americans of this century. In this illuminating biography, Clegg not only recounts Elijah Muhammad's early years in Detroit as one of the original members of the Nation of Islam, but also tells of Muhammad's decision to bring the movement first to Chicago and then to the East Coast, his decision to resist the draft during World War II (for which he spent time in prison), the growth of the movement after the war, and the historical schism that erupted between Muhammad and Malcolm X, a break that ultimately defined two major directions of black political consciousness. Particularly valuable is Clegg's outstanding and original examination of the philosophical roots of the Nation of Islam, which are heavily influenced by the writings of Marcus Garvey, Noble Drew Ali, the Jehovah's Witnesses, and the Freemasons.

Identifier

619367

312151845

Creator

Clegg, Claude Andrew

Format

1st ed.

Source

Brian Lamb Booknotes Collection

Gift of Brian Lamb, 2011.

Catalog record

Language

eng

Date

1997

Program air date: March 30, 1997

Publisher

St. Martin's Press

George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections & Archives

Text

Transcription of Annotations

Notes on front endpapers: Georgian Whites, Detroit policemen. Chicago 1935-42, 7 year absence. 9000 membership 1942 inflated. E.M. tour of Islamic world 1960. 1. debilitating asthma; 2. out of wedlock babies 7 sec. had 13 children (p. 184); 3. materialism. Malcolm Little--1949-77 months sentenced for breaking and entering. M X killed Feb. 21, 1965 p. 228. Lynchings-age 10. W.D. Fard p. 20 (Far-rod) 1926 3 years in San Quentin. Black Separation--aim of Nation of I. Mother Plane p, 65. White man's trickology on the so-called Negros p. 107. Fruit of Islam, Arabic name, X, jack-leg Christianity, anti-catholic, Jehovah's Witness, Free Masonry, Hypocrites, Moorish Science Temple of America (MSTA). b. Elijah 1897 (44 year ministry) age 33 married Clara Evans Mar 17, 1919. 1923 migrated to Detroit arrived Chicago 1934. d. died 1975. Irwin, William--Poole. Middleton Pool slave master. Father Devine. Marcus Garvey 1916. July 23, 1943 Fei Milan, MI left Aug 24, 1946. [verso] What is a lost-found. Notes on front fly paper: Muhammad speaks. FBI transcript of telephone conversations. Sunni Islam. Evelyn Williams, Lucille Rosary--paternity suit p. 220, didn't show up for hearing. E.M.--Wash, D.C. 1935-42, Library of Congress-104 books of Fard M. Cassius Clay beats Sonny Liston joins Muslims. Feb 1955--Louis Gene Wolcott attends Savior's Day in Chicago. Clara-dies Aug '72--53 marriage p. 264. Underlinings/Notes: Underlinings: Details on family, background, religion, money, jobs, lynchings, moves, health, influence of Fard, NOI, investigations, tumult, indiscretions, influence. Notes: "Materialism," "22 slaves," "Irwin Pool," "Elijah," "age 14 joined church," "lunching," "age 10," "1919," "Detroit," "3 more children," "firewood," "drunk," "Fard," "Muslim arrive," "Punjab," "W.D. Fard 1930," "b. Feb 25, 1891, crime," "You are Jesus," "Truth," "Clara the call!," "hair color changes," "lessons of Islam," "1932 Harris kills James Smith," "kill 4 whites," "Elijah Muhammad," "a racket from the start," "money," "Fard leaving Detroit," "7th child," "Elijah arrested," "Final Call," "Chicago Police confrontation," "March 5, 1935, police chief dies of heart attack," "ouster," "fled Chicago," "Marcus Garvey," "anti-Catholic," "appeal=presentation instead of message," "8th child," "7 yrs., Library of Congress," "1942 FBI," "sedition," "Dec 18 D.C.," "1943 25 B/9 W lives," "assigned to draft board 10," "1945 140 acre farn," "1952 income," "women," "flag," "Oct 1954 51 yrs old," "Malcolm Little," "parole 1952," "Phillie Mar 54," "1956," "black separatism," "secretaries baby," "nation paid for children," "no white men," "Malcolm visited Secs," "Malcolm went thru emotional crises," "1962 Clara goes to Egypt w/ Herbert to visit Akbar," "Phoenix," "X visits," "The Bible for sexual deviances," "8 women," "1993 Louis Farrakhan," "James Meredith," "April 1963," "Adam Powell," "Hoover," "Fard was 'white'," "Flint no more white people," "JFK," "Dec 1 '63," "plane crash," "punishment for Malcolm," "hospitality for Malcolm," "FBI involved," "private affairs," "Malcolm divested of all authority," "Malcolm life taking by M.E.," "Cassius Clay wins," "Wallace opposes his father," "Akbar follows his brother Wallace," "Malcolm to Mecca," "X killed Feb 21," "E.M. supported assassination," "assassins," "Wilfred X his brother," "Muhammad's speech," "hypocrite," "Louis called Malcolm a hypocrite," "Nixon," "Hoover," "E.M. 70 Oct '67," "bronchial asthma," "1973," "murders," "Hanafi Muslims," "Raid," "murders," "Kareem," "Clara dies Aug 72," "26 local mosques," "the hospital," "Mayor Daley," "takeover from father," "1975 congestive heart failure," "died 77," "500 cars, coffin," "Wallace M command," "5 member board," "Farrakhan," "whiteness," "assets 40 mil., debt 4.6 mil.," "taxes in arrears," "advancing insolvency," "13 illegitimate children," "21 children," "open to all races," "E.M. body exhumed," "the break, Farrakhan," "thoroughly conservative," "racial separation," "land ownership," "60 yr. male relative," "white clerk Chicago Probate Court."

Subject

"Elijah Muhammad, 1897-1975."

"Black Muslims--Biography."

"African Americans--Biography."

Relation

Original Booknotes interview

Rights

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