CHICAGO (Mosque Maryam)—The Nation of Islam celebrated the birth of founder Master Fard Muhammad during its annual Saviours’ Day commemoration here as Black History Month came to a close.
It had been two years since Muslims, supporters and the public had been able to meet in person because of the worldwide pandemic. Saviours’ Day was held at the NOI headquarters house of worship named after the mother of Jesus, Mosque Maryam.
Some 4,000 people gathered in the mosque, school and huge, modern tent in the parking lot as the National Representative of the Hon. Elijah Muhammad, Minister Louis Farrakhan, delivered “The Swan Song,” his highly anticipated Feb. 27 keynote address.
“As an alderman in the city of St. Louis, I serve as an elected official in Louis Missouri. I absolutely loved The Swan Song. I have never heard a message so thought provoking, and no one presents it better than the Minister today,” said John Muhammad, a second term Muslim politician.
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“Through his example, he demonstrated why he is the Christ and why we should follow him. He gives us a choice. It’s up to us whether we follow him or are led astray.”
“I want people to know that I’m a real follower of Farrakhan. He helped me better understand the Teachings. And I worship the ground he walks on. I’m just like everyone else,” declared Rakim, the God of Hip Hop hailing from the art form’s cultural Mecca of New York.
“I thought it was his last speech, you know? It made me feel better that he explained what he meant because no one wants him to leave. At the same time, he must worry about himself and no one wants to see him go,” Rakim continued. “Find out who you really are, Minister Farrakhan said today, and you will be able to navigate around the world more easily. Understanding yourself is crucial to understanding many things in life. Once you humble yourself and understand, you’ll be able to see things a little more clearly.”
Father Michael Louis Pfleger, longtime friend and comrade of Min. Farrakhan, was in the audience as the Minister spoke for nearly five hours.
The Chicago-based Roman Catholic priest and social activist said, “It was helpful to hear the Minister explain his teaching is a continuation of Brother Elijah Muhammad’s commitment to his people, his ministry, his love, and his understanding that he will always stand up for his people and fight for them. He doesn’t fear anything ahead of him.
“Also the understanding that, if he has succeeded in his job, it’s us who must carry on. It’s time to put your courage to the test.
“People of faith, such as Christians, Muslims, and Jews have lost their own moral conscience and need to regain it. It is our responsibility as people of faith to help this country and this world regain its identity. Then be a moral conscience for the rest of the world because the country and world have lost their souls,” added Father Pfleger.
London on daTrack, popular and award-winning rapper from Atlanta, said, “For me the Swan Song was a strong moral warning. You need to make sure your moral compass is straight.”
“Man! This is one of the best speeches I’ve heard in my life. The speech was so personal. The speech was so real. It was very honest. It was raw and very powerful. Swan Song is your song, and it’s the song that’s meant for you. In my opinion, at least,” commented Doug E. Fresh, legendary rapper and hip hop icon.
“What I took from what he said is that you can write a terrible song or you can write a great one that’s righteous. As he explained how he grew from the calypso music he was writing to the songs he wrote when he met Elijah Muhammad to the songs he grew to write and the things that have happened in his life through those songs.
“Every one of us has that same power to create our own song. The Swan Song is a beautiful song and you always enjoy listening to it because you can change the notes. But with all that he said, there were notes that hit each of us specifically; he hit me at least four times. The notes were chords, trumpets, and everything in between.
“It was such a powerful speech; I thought it was unbelievable. 2Chainz was sitting next to me at the time, and it shook him to the floor. He felt every bit of it too. At the end, when he talked about the council and passing the baton, I thought it was beautiful.”
Rizza Islam of the Nation of Islam has been battling mightily against the Covid- 19 vaccine push and the depopulation plot against Black people. “I am truly grateful to Allah for another level of mercy where we could meet the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan and receive guidance in this last moment per his words, so that now we can get to work and take charge of our post,” said Mr. Islam. “To confront the Satan outside of ourselves, we must first defeat the demons within.”
Rev. Alfreddie Johnson, based in Los Angeles, described a swan song as “transitional.” “In a sense, it’s a personal song. In other words, he’s telling me what I need to do. Even though he isn’t going anywhere, the spirit of him lives on in each of us.”
“The Minister said we are the strongest of the strong. Basically, it means that all of us are strong people. Yet there are still those of us who haven’t been tampered with so-called vaccinations such as vaccinations of falsehood or vaccinations of untruth. Therefore, of those strong people, we are the strongest, since all our people are strong. But there are some who are stronger because they have not fallen victim to the temptations of false data, enemies, and the lives that have been lost.”
Sultan Rahman Muhammad is student National Imam of the Nation of Islam and a great-grandson of the Hon. Elijah Muhammad.
“Allah in the Person of Master Fard Muhammad has raised the Hon. Elijah Muhammad and taught the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan, in their essence, to be an example for us, a champion for us. And Allah has proven, proven that He has risen a star that is greater than Satan and Satan’s world and all of his men—as the Hon. Elijah Muhammad has stated in the Table Talk of his chief minister, his greatest teacher,” said the imam.
Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah plays linebacker for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League. “Man! What did I get out of The Swan Song? He showed courage in such a profound way,” observed Mr. Owusu-Koramoah, who was at Mosque Maryam.
“What I got out of it, I would say to not compromise, to be true to yourself, to be authentic, to understand that you also have a Messiah inside you. Each and every teacher that has come before you and the most profound ones that have come before you also live inside you. That’s exactly what I got from today. The Minister told us not to bow down to this world. Do not bow down to oppression. Bow down not to those things that oppose God, that oppose nature, that oppose God’s creation. Those things that go against the script to which the most high has given us, don’t bow down to them.
“In addition to my love of football, I also love the truth. My studies concern subjects that pertain to the most high and to justice, love and peace,” he said.
Edgerrin James, Hall of Fame running back for the Indianapolis Colts, felt “it’s historical to me. The opportunity to come here and experience the opportunity to witness. This is what you want most. And to get a chance to see the Minister speak, that’s always a big thing. To me, it’s important. I had never had a chance to see him in person.
“This was my first time. So it was a great experience. The Minister gave us some nice principles today you can take with you. He was constantly spitting the nuggets, constantly giving out nuggets. And it seems that everyone here received them with a lot of good information, a lot of good takeaways that they could utilize in their own lives.”
The Minister shared how following his example of obedience to a servant of God, the Hon. Elijah Muhammad, would chart a safe path through difficult times ahead.
Contrary to what many believed from the title, it was not the Minister’s Swan Song, but that of those in the audience, those listening over the internet, the U.S. government and governments of the world, depending on their response to the Feb. 27 message.
“You came to hear me sing a swan song. I hate to disabuse you,” the Minister said. “I’m singing a swan song because God is on the scene today and He is the God of righteousness.”
He warned Black people to clean up their lives to survive the judgement, saying a war is on the horizon that will bring America down.
The war started by Russian President Vladamir Putin with Ukraine will spill over into Europe and America will be drawn in, he warned, at times reading from the Hon. Elijah Muhammad’s monumental book “Fall of America.”
“America doesn’t have a future. Did you think you could kill off millions of Native Americans … take a nation out of Africa and do what America continues to do … that Mexicans who once owned (much of the west) that she doesn’t have to pay for that?” the Minister asked.
The vibrant 88-year-old said Elijah Muhammad warned that America will send soldiers off to war by the tens of thousands, but they will return by the fives and tens.
Once America is drawn in, the U.S. government will come to arrest me as they arrested the Hon. Elijah Muhammad to prevent him from speaking out against World War II, the Minister said.
“All White power has to end. The Kingdom of God has to be established,” he said.
Since 2020, with the emergence of the Covid-19 virus, he has warned against taking the vaccine designed by pharmaceutical companies, which he called “a death plot” that stems from a National Security Memorandum of the U.S. Government to reduce the earth’s population by two to three billion people.
Min. Farrakhan said the government never talked to Black doctors about comorbidities in the Black community or tell Black people about the perils of too much salted or sugary foods, which cause some pre-existing conditions.
Instead, they went to Black doctors who wrote a letter—not to curb obesity or high blood pressure—but to encourage you to take the shot, he said.
“You are being betrayed by those who love you, but their love is not deep enough,” he said.
The Minister noted that communities like the Amish never took the vaccine and developed herd immunity. He told the audience he and his wife Mother Khadijah contracted the disease and therapies like Ivermectin and monoclonal antibodies were effective.
He prayed that Allah (God) would bless and protect all who were in the mosque seated next to one another, but masked up, temperature checked and hands sanitized. If you get sick, let us know, we have treatments, the Minister said.
There were complaints by many who viewed the broadcast via the internet, that platforms had technical problems and blackouts when Min. Farrakhan spoke.
The Minister pointed out how the enemy talks about Elijah Muhammad’s students, but never mentions the teacher. He reflected on how Malcolm X and Muhammad Ali didn’t stay in the Messenger’s class, and how Imam W.D. Mohamed didn’t attend the class.
“I really want Jewish people to hear me,” Min. Farrakhan also said. “I want you to understand that prophets of God aren’t your enemies. They are your correctors. Don’t tell me you are so arrogant that God can’t send somebody to correct you.”
He warned Muslims, family and friends to reject con games, con men, the lust for money and evil driven by desire. The devil will use your transgression of the law to disgrace you, but it’s really me that he’s after, the Minister warned.
He has been seeking one more thing to do to meet again with the Honorable Elijah Muhammad for a prophetic rendezvous before a triumphant return.
Min. Farrakhan said he realizes the “one more thing” is betrayal that leads to cruci-fixion.
“I know now who I am. That I’m about to be taken,” he said. “But don’t worry. I have to fulfill what is written.”
High spirited 9-year-old Abraham Muhammad from Los Angeles eagerly told The Final Call, “Being here at Saviours’ Day means happiness and joy and a little bit of sadness too. Because the Minister is going to transition to the Mother Plane, but when he comes back he will punish the people that have been bad.”
“This is my first time actually hearing him live, although I have heard little snippets and things on YouTube. It was an amazing overall experience, from the pulling up to see how everybody was in order and uniformed. Like when the word says, do things decently and in order, they took it to that next level for certain and it make you kind of want to get your life together,” said Chicago resident Isaac Bobo.
Asa Worth, 19, from St. Louis, persuaded his father to drive him and his brother 300 miles to see Min. Farrakhan. “I was inspired to come to Chicago because the Minister inspires me with his messages.”
“Minister Farrakhan is the example we really need as a male role model in the Black community. Because he’s the last voice we have to stand up for truth, and if he is leaving, after teaching us for a very long time, he has given us everything we need to look back on,” the teenager said.
“My grandparents, Ruby and Earnest Nawad accepted the teachings under Master Fard Muhammad. He gave my family the name Nawad. This Saviours’ Day is a testament to what my grandparents committed to under the teachings of Master Fard Muhammad and the Honorable Elijah Muhammad. I thank Allah for the Minister and what Allah has made him to become,” added Jethro Nawad Muhammad, who came to Chicago from Pensacola, Fla.
(James G. Muhammad and Naba’a Muhammad contributed to this report.)
