Nation of Islam Research Group

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Articles

The Youth of the Movement: Messianic Confirmation

By Ilia Rashad Muhammad

One of the primary objectives of the U.S. Government against the progress of Black people involves preventing any movements from reaching Black youth. This is shown in the FBI’s Counter Intelligence Program (COINTELPRO) objectives, which clearly state the following:

A final goal should be to prevent the long-range GROWTH of militant black organizations, especially among youth. Specific tactics to prevent these groups from converting young people must be developed.”

The success of the 10-10-15 gathering in Washington DC for the Justice Or Else movement was yet another display of the unifying and influential voice of the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan. One of the interesting aspects about this movement is the fact that it came without the help of corporate sponsors, mainstream media, or traditional leaders. Instead, this movement was spearheaded by the same man who drew nearly two million Black men to the nation’s capital twenty years ago for what became the largest, most peaceful demonstration of Black unity in the history of the world—the Million Man March.justice_or_else_600x436-600x403

His influence is largely what prompted powerful whites to place a mainstream media “blackout” on him and ban him from speaking at college campuses for nearly 20 years. This resulted in today’s youth barely knowing anything about the man who has dedicated his life to fighting for them. These strategies seemed to satisfy the U.S. Government’s objective to prevent the youth from forwarding the movement. However, this past year changed all that. Farrakhan’s nationwide Justice Or Else tour coupled with the efforts of social media, known as the Farrakhan Twitter Army, rekindled the Minister’s appeal among the youth.

For the first time in nearly 20 years young people were able to freely hear and see Minister Farrakhan for themselves without the misinterpretations of mainstream media. Obviously the youth found in Farrakhan the voice they had longed for.

Much to the dismay of America’s powers, it was the youth and the youthful (non-traditional thinkers) who responded to the divine call on 10-10-15, and it is the youth who are the primary supporters of the Justice Or Else movement and the Boycott Christmas campaign. This too has its prophetic significance.

Realizing the youth’s gravitation toward Jesus, the Jewish leaders questioned whether or not he was aware that the children (youth) were shouting “Hosanna to the Son of David” (Matthew 21:14–16). In Judaic prophecies, the title “Son of David” is more than a sign of physical genealogy—it signifies a messianic title. Jesus then responded to them by saying “Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings thou hast perfected praise.” Jesus’ response (from the Psalm 8:2 prophecy) further alerted the leaders to his messianic role. This too would be another reason why the Jewish leaders sought to target Jesus in order to stop his movement.

The Biblical David was a charismatic musician and warrior who was chosen by God to lead His people against oppressive powers. David was also distinguished as being the only one bold enough to fight against Goliath (the enemy’s strength). This grew his popularity, which enraged the enemies of God against him. Hence, the “Son of David” is a title reserved for the Messiah, who acts and speaks in a similarly divine function. There’s a man on scene today who “reminds me of David.”

How the youth should receive wisdom & guidance from HLFToday’s leaders (who know the prophecies) view with the same concern Minister Farrakhan’s ability to appeal to the youth. This is evident in the Anti-Defamation League’s (ADL) concern with the number of rappers who’ve met with Minister Farrakhan during his multi-city tour. In its report titled “Farrakhan Receives Support From Rappers On Social Media,” the ADL stated that Farrakhan “is placing a priority on identifying and energizing youth leadership with support from members of the Hip-Hop community.”

Like the Jewish leaders against Jesus, the ADL expressed its dismay over the youth’s exponential gravitation toward the Minister. It further warned, “Instagram and Twitter posts from rappers posing with Farrakhan or promoting his recent visits have reached a combined 10.9 million followers so far, and many more people through reposts and retweets.” It was shortly after these Hip Hop artists met with Farrakhan, that certain leaders came against them. Rick Ross, Young Jeezy, Young Thug, and Puff Daddy are just a few that fell into “sudden legal trouble” shortly after being seen with Farrakhan.

The Jewish leaders of the ADL and other groups were sending a message to threaten the youth from standing with the man most willing to give his life for them. Perhaps this explains why Jesus prayed for those young ones who had to face all manner of opposition for standing with the truth when he said “Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 19:14).

Jesus’ conflict with unscrupulous Jewish leaders, the growing support of his movement—particularly among the youth—and the Jews’ efforts to stop his movement all serve as prophetic confirmation that today’s Justice Or Else movement is divinely messianic in nature.

Youth Movements & Long-Range Growth

That spirit of protest, demonstrated in the recent University of Missouri student boycott, was also evident in 2015’s Black Friday protests, where thousands of protestors rallied amidst Chicago’s shopping district, boycotting several major retailers. This comes after police finally released footage of a white police officer killing Laquan McDonald, shooting him 16 times. The spirit to protest and boycott against corporate America is gaining far-reaching and widespread appeal. Those in power understand that this is not by happenstance; rather, they trace the spirit of such movements to its source of inspiration.

Chicago-Protesters block a street during a protest for 17-year-old Laquan McDonald

There is a reason that the world’s most powerful government has made it a primary objective to prevent long-range growth of Black Liberation movements. They know the value the youth bring to such movements, so it fits their interests to distract Black youth in order to destabilize Black movements.

Students of the Honorable Elijah Muhammad under the guidance of the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan are required to study History—especially the rise and fall of nations. The history of the Ottoman Empire, for example, demonstrates that one of the primary reasons for the empire’s successful growth and expansion was its focus on the youth.

The empire had well-trained scouts who were sent throughout that region of the world to find promising youth who were recruited to be a part of the Palace School, where they were taught, trained, and groomed to be the leaders of the empire. The Palace School served as the headquarters for such training of the youth known as the Devshirme.Devshirme - book illustration from Topkapı Palace Museum.

Although the Ottoman Empire was primarily Islamic, the men and boys who were recruited were of different faiths and ethnicities and were trained by Muslims. While some of the boys were made to join (being prisoners of war) in earlier centuries, many became nobles of the empire. The brightest among the Devshirme would often reside with Muslim families to further their process of education and training.

Minister Farrakhan’s call for 10,000 Fearless to “stand between the gangs and the guns” served as a filter to weed out the cowardly traditional African-American leadership—or, as Student Minister Nuri Muhammad said, it “separated the soldiers from the suckers!” It was painfully obvious that this call for “justice or else” frightened those who desire nearness to the white establishment above sufficing the needs of their suffering people. This was evident on 10-10-15: It was not the traditional African American leadership that responded to the call; instead, it was largely the youth and the “youthful” who responded to this movement.

Knowing their value, the Minister continues to do all that he can to revive youth activism and leadership. He recently tweeted, “Young people: You are the leaders. You are the ones who are going to take responsibility to make the movement successful.” Again, the spirit of the Minister and the spirit among the youth for justice give further confirmation of this movement’s messianic nature.