Interview With Bro. Larry Muhammad
Interview with members of the Nation of Islam Research Group
Q: As an educator, what value do you see in knowing the hidden historical relationship between Blacks and Jews?
Bro. Larry Muhammad: It’s amazing how people are now looking at history to try to find its relevance to today. You would think this would be a natural process, but it has been made very unnatural and difficult. The Secret Relationship Between Blacks and Jews, vols. 1 & 2 (TSRv1&2), provides a clear picture of what took place in America to give us an understanding of how we got to where we are today. THE most brutal and criminal institution ever created—Chattel Slavery and the systems developed from it—shaped the current economic and social landscape of today’s modern society. To not study this experience, as a focal point for repairing while educating through study, is a great travesty.
Personally, I never learned anything about slavery until I went to college and took classes to learn about it. I was thirsting to know since the only educational presentation that we had ever received was through the movie “Roots.” A great injustice has been done to all of America and the world in the concerted effort to “hide” this history and truth.
Q: You mentioned the section of TSRv2 titled “40 Acres and the Jews.” What is your take on this term and how is it relevant today?
Bro. Larry Muhammad: Some people may think it’s another black history attention-getter, like Spike Lee’s 40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks or history classes’ use of the phrase. In studying The Secret Relationship Between Blacks and Jews, vol. 2, the chapter titled “40 acres and the Jews” was the most rewarding research that I’ve ever read. In our eyes growing up, the “40 acres and a mule” concept almost seemed like a mythical story or dream that slaves had. I never knew the real story and history behind it or the factual account surrounding the circumstances of America’s broken promise.
Introduced by Gen. O. O. Howard, for whom Howard University was named, this was a legitimate proposal that was “hijacked” and used against our people. This is one of the most significant aspects of The Secret Relationship research, because it was the first real strategic effort to usurp our rise to “true” independence. This was the turning point in the Black–Jewish relationship, because if the Jewish people had any intention of being comrades in the struggle, that was their opportunity at that juncture in history. Instead, they positioned themselves to take full advantage and advance forward without the so-called “American Negroes,” who built “the Jew’s civilization” [Our Savior Has Arrived, pg. 166] through their free labor.
Q: The recent visit by China’s President Hu Jintao to Chicago and other parts of the United States was very significant. Do you see a connection between what the research team is trying to do with TSRv1&2 and what President Hu’s visit accomplished?
Bro. Larry Muhammad: The “Principle of Protectionism” was mentioned in the US–Chinese agreement signed in 2009, wherein the two countries agreed to fight against “protectionism.”
China has practiced this principle over the years, and it has allowed the Chinese to advance without much interference. Well, The Secret Relationship shows how the Jews have practiced protectionism for centuries, enabling their business infrastructure to grow stronger and stronger. I believe the Chinese were protecting themselves from these barons, while practicing the same science, and have now reached a point where they can “come out to play,” so to speak.
The principle of protectionism is important for any society and community to practice, especially developing ones. China has practiced this and, as demonstrated in The Secret Relationship, the Jews mastered these practices centuries ago to become leaders of their and other communities. Now we must educate our people and begin the system of practicing this powerful principle that the Honorable Elijah Muhammad gave us and the Minister has pushed us to implement—the Economic Blueprint as laid out in Message To The Blackman.
Both presidents, Barak Obama and Hu Jintao, spoke to the youth upon visiting China and the US. In delivering the truth and principles of the history presented in TSR, we must respect the importance of the truth of history and connecting the youth to that truth. There is a reason why the education in America is as poor as it is, despite the available resources and expertise present. The modern slave system could only exist by focusing on training—and not truly educating—the worker class and making the history of America a “sensitive subject” for certain groups.
Q: What role did education play in the chattel slave system established and maintained by many Jews?
Bro. Larry Muhammad: A Jewish resident applied to train “Negroes” in the slave religion—Plantation Christianity [see TSRv1, pg. 133]. During the 18th and 19th centuries, the terms training and education were used interchangeably, synonymously. Training the Africans to be slaves and later training Blacks to be submissive members of a permanent underclass were extremely important to the Jews and the naïve gentiles who believed more in white supremacy.