CHICAGO—The Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan delivered his Saviours’ Day 2023 keynote address to a sold-out arena. Many of his longtime friends and supporters sat behind him on the stage. Later that evening, they dined on the second floor of the Salaam Restaurant.
Student Minister Ishmael Muhammad, National Assistant to the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan, explained to The Final Call that the Minister ended his message where he started: on truth.
“We are born and live in a house of truth. He called us to the acceptance of truth to stand on truth, and he called for us to live by that truth,” he said. “He used the most beautiful of scriptures, ‘All ye that are heavy laden, come to me. I will give you rest,’” said Student Minister Ishmael Muhammad.
“It resonated in everyone, and I could see in the faces of our people, they are ready,” he added. “They were ready to accept the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan and the Honorable Elijah Muhammad and the Nation of Islam.”
Gene Kilroy, who was the business manager for the late boxer Muhammad Ali, described Minister Farrakhan as the most “articulate and brightest man on the planet earth.”
“I love the way he brings everything right out. I’ve been a follower of him since over 50 years. I’ve been blessed to be here, and I’m honored to call him my friend, and he allowed me to be his friend,” he said to The Final Call.
The Minister’s words on truth stuck in his mind. “It’s all about the truth. He speaks the truth. People don’t like that. He speaks the truth. That’s what it’s about. What I like about him, the Chinese have a proverb saying we’re never dead as long as we remember. He keeps the Honorable Elijah (Muhammad’s) name alive,” he said.
Black and Native activist YoNasDa Lonewolf felt rejuvenated after hearing Minister Farrakhan’s message. “There were so many mentions of White and Black people, but there are also many Indigenous people that also have been attacked for anti-Semitism, which was Russell Means, of the American Indian Movement,” she said to The Final Call. “We are all under attack right now, and it’s the fight against good and evil, at the end of the day.”
She noted the importance of more young people gaining the wisdom of the elders and studying the Minister’s words with a notepad and dictionary. “The fact that we still have a great leader amongst us is a testament that he’s standing, that we need to be able to continue,” she said.
Aesha El-Amin’s takeaway from the Saviours’ Day keynote was “that God is truly with us, and He supported this community and this Nation from day one.”
“Nothing can come against us as long as God is on our side,” she added. “And it’s beautiful for all of us to come together as believers, loving and supporting each other, knowing that Allah is with us.”
Atlanta resident Kim Wingat reflected on the many years of service Minister Louis Farrakhan has put in. “As long as I could remember, he’s been fighting for us, and he’s still fighting. He’s still putting himself on the front line,” she said to The Final Call. “He’s about to be 90. He still looks beautiful, and his skin is flawless.”
Kaleem Belle is from the United States Virgin Islands and stated he listed intently as the Minister spoke about his fight with certain members of the Jewish community. “His insight and articulate approach resonated deeply for me. He made a powerful point that courage and conviction are essential when it comes to speaking truth. We shouldn’t be scared or shy away from standing firmly behind our beliefs, even if our view is not the popular one. No matter what the setting or circumstance, having conviction and a determined spirit will give us the strength needed to pursue concepts of justice while staying true to ourselves. Minister Farrakhan emphasized this lesson in such a clear and deliberate way; it will undoubtedly stay with me,” said Kaleem Belle.
Gretta Williams of Chicago said she learned something about the Minister. “Today, I learned of the struggles he has faced, especially as it concerns his fight with the ADL. Despite criticism from numerous sources, Minister Farrakhan continues to fight for what he believes in and has successfully passed on knowledge and valuable insight to the community,” she explained.
“His courage and strength is simply incredible; even someone as celebrated as (Rev.) Billy Graham couldn’t stand up against the Jewish powers that be. It is impressive that despite being attacked by such powerful entities, Minister Farrakhan manages to keep standing for the benefit of the community.”
Leonard F. Muhammad, who is on the Nation of Islam’s Executive Shura Council, described Minister Farrakhan’s message as a historic event, “because he gave us new instructions to go into a new dispensation of time and to do something different from what we’ve been doing with respect to the controversy with the Synagogue of Satan.” He said he would like to see more Black people accept Minister Farrakhan’s invitation to join him without fear.
Student Minister Abdul Haqq Muhammad of Mosque No. 25 in Newark, New Jersey, echoed his sentiments. “His invitation to our people to come follow him and the Honorable Elijah Muhammad, our God and Saviour Master Fard Muhammad. How he said I definitely want you all to come be a part of the Nation, but you’re going to have to change. I think you can’t get a more direct and a more open invitation for our people to be better and to live better,” he said.
The young student minister expressed his appreciation for the strength of Minister Farrakhan. “When he said that we were being bondaged in sin, that’s what really stood out to me. That we had to be free from the bondage of sin, not just the oppression of White supremacy and the Synagogue of Satan, but the sin that has been imposed on us by the Synagogue of Satan,” he said.
Memphis-based author, researcher and Student Minister Demetric Muhammad recounted to The Final Call how Minister Farrakhan brought together history, prophecy and current events to explain why the War of Armageddon has begun.
“And now we understand that the War of Armageddon begins with the attack on the truth and the preacher of truth,” he said. “For the past 40-plus years, there has been no greater preacher of the truth than the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan. So the attack of the ADL, the Southern Poverty Law Center, the Simon Wiesenthal Center against the ministry and the message of the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan is that which is giving rise to the War of Armageddon because, ultimately, the War of Armageddon is the fight between truth and lies, righteousness and wickedness,” he added.
Student Minister and Imam Abdul Salaam Muhammad of Mosque No. 6 in Baltimore described the consistency of Minister Farrakhan as impeccable.
“What he did for us today was bring into focus the world and the time that we’re in and how God and the Honorable Elijah Muhammad and himself play an important role in our survival. And if we refuse that guidance, it could give us an untimely death,” he said to The Final Call. “Our beloved Minister, we are happy and thankful to Allah and the Honorable Elijah Muhammad for him, that they blessed him to get here strongly and give us a happy, happy Saviours’ Day 2023.”
Student National Imam Sultan Rahman Muhammad described Minister Farrakhan’s message as a message of warning to Satan and a message of hope to the righteous.
“The Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan extended an olive branch to the righteous Jews, and he extended the warning of God to the Satanic Jews. He mentioned the mindset of those that have been in places of power that have attempted to control the lives of our people and enslave us through their gateways of power,” he said.
“In giving us that picture, he has awakened a sense of awareness for us to begin to find our way to the Kingdom of God, which is within,” he said. “Yet we must manifest through courage, through faith and through conviction that Kingdom, so that we may be absolutely free and stand on truth.”
For those without tickets to the sold-out Wintrust Arena to hear the Saviours’ Day address by the Minister, social media became their means to comment on what they heard and experienced as they tuned into the message which was streamed online. People could post, get a response and engage with others in the audience in real-time as they listened. Social media became a living record of what happened, how people responded to the Minister’s words and what they felt.
While many think the Minister’s appeal is just relegated the members of the Nation of Islam, the responses on social media document his worldwide reach.
@ModestyQueen19 asked her followers to share their thoughts about the Minister’s message.
“I thoroughly enjoyed” wrote ThatsNobie @Zenobiia_777 in response.
Lee @ayomarleejay wrote, “If one is honest with self, THMLF (The Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan) forces you to see yourself for who you truly are and who you need to strive to become. #Farrakhan #SD2023”
By the time Minister Farrakhan concluded, his message was trending on Twitter with nearly 1,500 tweets and that number continued to grow. People watching live and responding in real time were encouraged by Abdul Qiyam Muhammad, who leads the Nation of Islam Twitter Army, to use the hashtags #Farrakhan and #SD2023 so their comments could be tracked. There were so many comments from around the world that were mentioned at a greater rate than other comments about other things that the Minister’s speech became a “trending topic.”
Tee Dominique @TD_4Truth wrote “Powerful speech as usual.”
Slugadon Born @Slugadon wrote, “Allahu Akbar, Peace be unto the Honorable Minister Farrakhan.”
Many responders were moved by certain things the Minister said. They posted his quotes as a reminder to some and news for others.
Braddio Vlogs wrote, “The bankers, the international bankers are a heavy class of people from Europe; the Rothschilds they run European economy and political destiny. They stay behind the scene.”
Kenetta @iamkenetta wrote, “We don’t need no weak Jesus, we need a powerful Jesus.” #SD2023 #Farrakhan
Others expressed their thoughts about the Minister’s message. King Cam @brotherkingcam wrote, “I really enjoyed the lecture today from The Honorable Minister @LouisFarrakhan where he set the stage letting the enemy know the Nation of Islam is here to oppose the synagogue of Satan. And will overcome them with the will of Allah #BrotherKingCam #Farrakhan #SD2023.”
Nisa Islam Muhammad and Michael Z. Muhammad contributed to this report.
