Evanzz detailed the experience of several other authors who also based their accounts of Fard's life on the FBI file. During our colored and Negro days, he was Black. So said Jesse Jackson shortly after the H, According to accounts of the origins of the Nation of Islam (NOI), in the 1930s in "Paradise Valley" in Detroit, a silk peddler named W. D. Fard bega, The expansion of Islam historically embraces two phenomena. "[49], The Nation of Islam refutes the claim that Fard and Ford are one and the same in an article posted on the NOI website by Dr. Wesley Muhammad. In his 1965 book Message to the Blackman in America, which is a compilation of articles written by Elijah Muhammad for newspapers throughout the early part of his Ministry, he summarized what Fard taught him as follows: "He began teaching us the knowledge of ourselves, of God and the devil, of the measurement of the earth, of other planets, and of the civilization of some of the planets other than earth. [12], Fard taught a form of black exceptionalism and self-pride to poor Southern blacks during the Great Northward Migration at a time when old ideas of scientific racism were prevalent. He was described as of medium height and build with brown eyes and black hair. 2 as its headquarters. So they sent a Messenger to them of their own. His most trusted lieutenant and chief minister of Islam, Elijah Karriem Muhammad, the former Robert Elijah Poole of Sandersville, Georgia, eventually won control and reestablished the Nation of Islam in Chicago, with Temple No. His original name was Wallace D. Fard, but he was also known by other aliases, such as Farad Muhammad, F. Muhammad Ali, Wali Farrad, and Professor Fard. Wallace Fard Muhammad was the founder of the Nation of Islam. In 1933, Fard disappeared and a power struggle within the NOI emerged. Who was Wallace Fard and what happened to him? ." Therefore, its best to use Encyclopedia.com citations as a starting point before checking the style against your school or publications requirements and the most-recent information available at these sites: http://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide.html. [56] In his 1962 book Black Nationalism: The Search for an Identity, Essien-Udom wrote: "Noble Drew Ali was shot and stabbed in his offices at the Unity Club in Chicago on the night of March 15, 1929 He was eventually released on bond, but a few weeks later, he died under mysterious circumstances. The NOI teaches that Wallace Fard Muhammad was an avatar of Allah, who came to America to educate on this forgotten history. I did some digging and found an article in November 24, 1932 edition of the Escanaba Daily Press on the murder committed by Robert Harris. [30] Evanzz based his account of Fard's life on the declassified portion of the FBI file that he received about a decade after his request. Jeffrey Eugenides novel Middlesex, which could justly be called a Detroit epic, includes a fascinating chapter in which the matriarch of the Stephanides family, Desdemona, takes a job as a silk worker at the Nation of Islams headquarters on Hastings Street. But both Zared and Beatrice were said to have been born in Hawaii. Fard disappeared in 1934. "[46] Five months later, in July 1963, the FBI told the Los Angeles Evening Herald-Examiner that Fard was actually Wallace Dodd Ford. Ugh, I've been going back and forth for the past ten minutes trying to decide if I think the pictures in link 1 and link 2 are of the same person. [20], With regard to Elijah Muhammad, Beynon's article stated: "From among the larger group of Muslims there has sprung recently an even more militant branch than the Nation of Islam itself. "[45] After the story was published, Elijah Muhammad and Malcolm X subsequently charged black media outlets, which reprinted the accusation in large numbers, with running the story without requesting a response from the Nation of Islam. On their marriage record, Ford gave his race as Spanish, his birthplace as Oregon, and his age as 26. Fard immigrated to the United States sometime before 1930. $95 night. But I am not the same person who taught Elijah Muhammad and I am not God. "Fard, W. D. (c. 1877-1934), Religious and Political Leader His parents were Zared Fard (a New Zealander whose parents were from an area of East India that eventually became Pakistan) and Beatrice (of New Zealands minority British population). Officially, the NOI believes Fard departed Earth via supernatural means. Via e-mail, I asked Claude Andrew Clegg III, author of another Elijah Muhammad biography, An Original Man, to give me his take on the controversy. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. He claimed his father was a black Arab and his mother from the Caucasus mountains. The Noble Drew Ali, the prophet of the Moorish-Americans, proclaimed that these people were 'descendants of Morrocans [Moroccans]'. There is No God but ALLAH. What seems most remarkable is that Fard seems to have utterly disappeared from the governments (especially the FBIs) radar after leaving Detroit in 1933. . Contemporary American Religion. It was an independent monarchy and other than a few missionaries and traders the population was almost entirely native Hawaiian. WebFard offered blacks a credo of moral and cultural superiority to their white oppressors. He was drawn to return to the United States in order to liberate the African-Americans from their half-slave and half-free condition. He bases this theory on several indications:[30], The 2019 book Finding W.D. This new movement, known as the Temple People, identifies the prophet, Mr. W. D. Fard, with the God, Allah. The entire movement was placed under a Minister of Islam. At the bottom of the card, he signed his name as "Wallie Dodd Ford". The FBI were confident that Wallace Dodd Ford was, in fact, Wallace Fard Muhammad. The organizations humble origins in the Hastings Street Temple of Detroits Paradise Valley are little known, as is the story of the enigmatic Wallace D. Fard. Tracing Ford's link to Portland, the FBI determined he had married an 18-year-old Native American girl in 1914 called Pearl Allen. Hijrah Magazine (MarchApril 1985). Corrections? The FBI maintained an open file on Fard Muhammad up until as late as 1960, according to documents published through the Freedom of Information Act. Modern Nation of Islam theology is based upon the belief that Fard's teaching of Elijah Muhammad was fulfillment of scripture regarding God's teaching of an Apostle, where Fard is described as "God in Person", the "Messiah", and the "Mahdi". The religion that God set forth for Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and muammad proclaimed by the latter in Arabia in the 7th century, which enjoys the, Pan-Islam Powered by - Designed with theHueman theme. A variety of other claims emerged; that he went to Hawaii, New Zealand, and even to the Middle East. In devouring his autobiography, I learned of the Nation of Islams charismatic and influential leader, the Honorable Elijah Muhammad, and of the large fissure that eventually split the organization over different interpretations of their tenets and goals. To this day, nobody knows. WebIn late 1933 or in 1934 Fardmysteriously disappeared from public record. Fard appears in the novel Middlesex, by Jeffrey Eugenides, in which Fard's Detroit Temple No. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); (function() { His fathers name is listed as Zaradodd Ford, his mothers name as Babbjie, and their birthplace as Madrid, Spain. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. rcel.async = true; Islam in the African AmericanExperience. A 1920 birth record for a boy named Wallace Max Ford born in Los Angeles lists his father as Wallace Ford, who was born in New Zealand, and his mother as Hazel Barton. Evanzz believes that Fard immigrated to the United States via Canada in 1913. Encyclopedia.com gives you the ability to cite reference entries and articles according to common styles from the Modern Language Association (MLA), The Chicago Manual of Style, and the American Psychological Association (APA). One member of the group, later declared mentally insane, allegedly participated in "human sacrifice" in 1932 in an effort to follow lessons regarding the sacrifice of devils. Today, the Nation of Islam teaches that he boarded the Mother Plane and is still alive. They say that he shall soon return in a spaceship and that then the existence of the wicked Yakubians and their rule will end, with a new utopia forged. Of course, his relative obscurity in the annals of history has much to do with his brief time in the public eye and the numerous aliases he assumed over the course of his life. [18] He began by selling silks door to door, telling his listeners that the silks came from their ancestral homeland. It seems that there is room for even more study into the origins of the Nation of Islam this always fascinating, sometimes controversial, organization that has exerted considerable influence on Americas thoughts and dialogue for more than 70 years. He was known usually as Mr. Wali Farrad or Mr. W. D. Fard, though he used also the following names: Professor Ford, Mr. Farrad Mohammed, Mr. F. Mohammed Ali. They must learn that they are the original people, noblest of the nations of the earth. Elijah Muhammad, who took the position of leader of the Nation of Islam after Fard's disappearance, railed agaist the media claims that Ford was Fard. Then, copy and paste the text into your bibliography or works cited list. [19], In the early stage of his ministry, Fard "used the Bible as his textbook, since it was the only religious book with which the majority of his hearers were familiar. Fard, facing possible charges, confessed that his teachings were dangerous and that he would use his influence to disband the ATI. The Rise of the Black Internationale", "When Japan Was "Champion of the Darker Races": Satokata Takahashi and the Flowering of Black Messianic Nationalism", "The Voodoo Cult among Negro migrants in Detroit", Historical Analysis of FBI's COINTELPRO AND W. Fard Muhammad, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wallace_Fard_Muhammad&oldid=1141937668, Members of the Moorish Science Temple of America, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles with unsourced statements from December 2021, Articles with unsourced statements from January 2021, Articles lacking reliable references from May 2022, Articles with disputed statements from July 2019, Articles with trivia sections from June 2020, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, The name Fard is a common surname in Pakistan as are other names he bestowed upon his followers such as Shabazz, Ghulam, and Kallatt, Interviews with long-time Nation figures who met him or saw original photos of him such as, Early teachings from Fard indicated a distrust and disdain for Hinduism, This page was last edited on 27 February 2023, at 17:20. [39], On October 17, 1957, the FBI located and interviewed Hazel Barton-Ford, Wallie Ford's common-law wife, with whom he had a son named Wallace Dodd Ford, born on September 1, 1920. Fard snuck back into Detroit in January 1933, but was identified by authorities, arrested in May and again ordered to leave the city. Contemporary American Religion. Within the Cite this article tool, pick a style to see how all available information looks when formatted according to that style. April 15, 2022. After Fard Muhammad disappeared in 1934, the leadership of the NOI was assumed by Elijah Muhammad. "[58], Beynon also wrote: "The prophets message was characterized by his ability to utilize to the fullest measure the environment of his followers. And that she is number one to be destroyed. There is no doubt Fard had many enemies - even within his own organization. The marriage did not last even a year; Ford accused his wife of being an alcoholic and a bad spender. He appeared in Detroit in 1930 and had an obscure background and used several aliases. "[26] Wallace Fard Muhammad loved the black people of the United States of America. Encyclopedia.com. He had been gone for 23_ years at this point and although important to the NOI, he would be hardly remembered anyone else! Fards First Temple of Islam included the Fruit of Islam, a military-like organization of black male converts, a Muslim Girls Training Corps Class and a University of Islam which, despite its name, was mainly focused on elementary and high-school level education. Essien-Udom, E. U. A fully equipped kitchen is available with all of the cooking essentials including a Keurig coffee maker w/coffee and hot cocoa. 2019Encyclopedia.com | All rights reserved. var referer="";try{if(referer=document.referrer,"undefined"==typeof referer||""==referer)throw"undefined"}catch(exception){referer=document.location.href,(""==referer||"undefined"==typeof referer)&&(referer=document.URL)}referer=referer.substr(0,700); A 1957 FBI report stated that Muhammad previously lived in Portland, Oregon, under the alias Fred Dodd, and in Los Angeles and Chicago as Wallie/Wallace Dodd Ford. Updates? WebThe FBIs FOIA Library contains many files of public interest and historical value. [23] "Within three years the prophet not only began the movement but organized it so well that he himself was able to recede into the background, appearing almost never to his followers during the final months of his residence in Detroit."[24]. 22 Feb. 2023 . After Desdemona is hired and settles into a familiar routine of caring for the delicate silkworms the Nation of Islam breeds to make cloth, she discovers that she can hear the speeches of Master W.D. WebWallace D. Fard aka Wallace Fard Muhammad / f . Another story described Fard as Palestinian. Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography. Some have suggested that he was a member of the Moorish Science Temple of America or the Ahmadiyyah Movement. "[48][dubious discuss] An FBI memorandum dated August 1963 states that the FBI had not been able to verify his birthdate or birthplace, and "he was last heard from in 1934. He declared that he would heal us and set us in heaven at once, if we would submit to Him. [28] Additionally, Fard is alleged to have used up to 58 different aliases during his life. 1997. Their physical and economic difficulties alike were used to illustrate the new teaching. He is always referred to reverently as the 'Prophet Elijah in Chicago. "Black Muslims," a name coined by C. Eric Lincoln in 1960, refers to the members of one of the most militant and separati, Muhammad, Elijah 18971975 What would he have thought of it? Both provided their race as "Spanish"; Ford claimed that his parents, "Zaradodd" and "Babbjie", were natives of Madrid, Spain. Others have suggested that he was a Druze or a Shiite."[51]. She also said she still kept in contact with Ford via letters she sent to his uncle in New Zealand. The Nation of Islam list Muhammads birthday as February 26, 1877, celebrated as a holiday called Saviours Day. He advocated community members to establish and own their own businesses,[13] eat healthy, raise families, and refrain from drugs and alcohol. Master W. D. Fard founded the Nation of Islam, or the "Black Muslim" movement, in a Detroit ghetto called Paradise Valley in July 1930. A subreddit dedicated to the unresolved mysteries of the world. In compliance with the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) requirements, some of these records are no longer in the physical possession of the FBI, eliminating the FBIs capability to re-review and/or re-process this material. I have no idea who Fard was but I doubt he was black, which is ironic. In 2007, the Nation of Islam had an estimated membership of 20,00050,000. On the question of a connection between the Nation of Islam and the Moorish Science Temple of America, Beynon wrote: "Awakened already to a consciousness of race discrimination, these migrants from the South came into contact with militant movements among northern Negroes. They must give up completely the use of stimulants, especially liquor. Fard encouraged his followers not to drink alcohol or eat pork, which is standard practice for Muslims. According to Patrick D. 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