CHICAGO—On February 24, the Grand Ballroom at the McCor- mick Place Convention Center Chicago was flooded with young people ages 13-35. They were attending the Nation of Islam’s Saviours’ Day 2023Youth Summit, themed “WeAreAt War,” called forth by the Hon- orable Minister Louis Farrakhan.
The summit included a panel discussion followed by an address by Minister Farrakhan.
Duringhismessage,MinisterFarrakhanrecalledarestlessnightwhen God told him to talk to the young people about their level of conversation. “Ifyou’reasavage,it’sreflectedinyourconversation.Ifyoudon’tlike being around Muslims who are trying to live the Teachings and you got your set of savages that you hang out with, then your talk on social media reflects who you’re becoming,” he said. He described negative conversa-
tion as a “sick level of expression.”
“The electrical energy in the word of Allah is the highest energy of any word. So, if you don’tread His word, if you don’tconverse about His word, then your conversations bring you down instead of bringing you up,” he shared. Panelists graced the stage for the question-and-answer discussion and youth were the catalyst of coordinating the event. Panelists and coordina- tors included Student Minister Ishmael Muhammad, NationalAssistant to the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan; Student Minister Sultan Z. Mu- hammadofthenewlyreestablished Muhammad Mosque No. 61in Grand Rapids; Bro. Ishmael Muhammad Jr. and his wife Sis.Alia Farrakhan-Mu- hammad, Sis. Tairah Muhammad, Saffiyah Muhammad, Bro. Ishaaq Muhammad, Sis. Jadayah Muhammad, Bro. Sultan Sadeeq Muhammad, Sis.KenyaMuhammad,Bro.SalihMuhammad,Bro.MatinMuhammad, Bro. Yasin Farrakhan Muhammad, Sis. Jaleela Farrakhan-Muhammad, Bro.HakeemFarrakhan-MuhammadandBro.MuddathirFarrakhan-Mu- hammad.
“We have gathered here today and have invited all of our young mem- bers of the Nation of Islam from ages 13 to 35. It is very important that you as children of believing and faithful parents know that your life is purposed and know that when you were in the womb of your believing and faithful mother, your mother and father came to help the Honorable Elijah Mu- hammad and the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan and their desire to aid the Honorable Elijah Muhammad and the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan in this mission went all the way down to the womb,” Student Minister Ishmael Muhammad opened up. “You’re Muhammad babies.You’re Messiah babies,” he said. “Your father, our father, is Elijah Muhammad.”
Sis. Jaleela Farrakhan-Muhammad served as the co-host of the sum- mit, along with Student Minister Ishmael Muhammad. “I pray you all walk away fearless, strong, knowing who you are,” said Sis. Jaleela.
The youth panelists answered questions related to their role in the mis- sion of the Honorable Elijah Muhammad and the Nation of Islam and how young people can be actively involved without an official title and understanding the universal aspect of the mission.
Several panelists voiced the importance of what the Nation of Islam teaches: “accept your own and be yourself.” They also shared why the youth of the Nation should be involved in the mission of the Honorable ElijahMuhammad,whichistoresurrectthedeadBlackmanandwoman of NorthAmerica.
“Black youth, know that the future is safe if you become who you are,” said Sis. Kenya Muhammad, a speaker and student in the ministry from Chicago, quoting Minister Farrakhan.
Sis. Tairah Muhammad, also a student in the ministry from Chicago, emphasized youth leaning on the giants that came before them, in order to go into a better future. “Go and find something that you love doing and masteritforyourNation,”sharedBro.SalihMuhammad,studentdirector of MUI West, said. Several panelists echoed his sentiment. “Allah made each and every one of us unique,” Jadayah Muhammad said. “So long as you do it righteously, all praise is due toAllah. Lean into what God gave you.”
Thehostsofthediscussionposedthequestion:“Whataresomeofthe forcespreventingtheyouthfrombeingactive,andhowcanweovercome them?”
Sis. Alia Farrakhan-Muhammad answered that the “biggest force is ourselves.” She noted that while many youth do not want to be in the “trenches,” Min. Farrakhan stayed in the class with unwavering love. “Let’sfollowhiswaybecausehehassaidhiswaywins.Sowecanmaster the Satan of self and never leave our Nation again,” she said.
Her husband Ishmael Muhammad Jr. agreed with her words. “Are we fighting against the color of someone’s mind and the Satan within us that wants to take over our mind?” he questioned.
The final two questions posed to panelists dealt with the plots of Satan against the youth and the Restrictive Law of Islam.
“We know that the plot is against the youth. We know that they are angry with us, and they are angry with us in particular because God gave ushispromise.HetolduswearethegreatestNationamongmenbecause we enjoin good and forbid evil. We are striving for Islam,” Yasin Farra- khan-Muhammad said. “We’re not going to act righteous today. We’re going to be righteous today.”
In his address, the Minister expressed his love for the young people andhowproudhewasofwhatheheardfromthepanel.InFebruary1955, at the age of 22, Minister Farrakhan heard his first lecture by the Honor- able Elijah Muhammad. He has now been making the great commission of his teacher known for 68 years.
“MyfirstdayintheF.O.I.,whenIhadachancetospeak,Ibrokedown as I was talking, and I told my brothers in the F.O.I.—it was about 60 of them at that time—’I’m going to take the word of the Honorable Elijah MuhammadtoeverynookandcrannyoftheUnitedStatesofAmerica,’” Minister Farrakhan recalled. “Now, I just woke up, but I gave my word.”
He warned the young people that words do not mean “you are what you say until and unless you have been tried.”
Throughout his message, the Minister defined the meaning of love. “Our father Elijah Muhammad showed us the meaning of love. He lived it every day that he was among us,” he said.
Muslim teens and young adults were inspired and moved by what their peers shared on the panel and from the message by Minister Far- rakhan.
“One of the main takeaways that I got is that there’s a role for every- one in the Nation. And even though he was speaking to the youth, that applies to old and young, and that really resonated with me, because I’m still searching for my purpose in life,” said Nadiyah Muhammad from Muhammad Mosque No. 64 inAustin,Texas, toThe Final Call.
Naim Muhammad, 20, from Atlanta stated, “The Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan’s message was very much needed, especially when he talked about the power of words. I also thought the suggestion of reading “Message to the Blackman” really stuck with me, and how he broke down the power of the words we listen to in music.”
Nafisah Muhammad, 25, from Newark, New Jersey, stated, “It was an honor to be in the presence of the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan, that alone speaks volumes. Being a young person on social media, I see a lot of what goes on both good and bad. I think we have so much power within us to really uplift and fish for our Nation. I am so excited to go to work on social media to use that platform to bring people to the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan.”
“I loved how the Minister touched on everything the youth are think- ing in terms of where do we fit in, in the Nation. I feel like his message is always on time. I feel like the Minister is in tuned with the youth, even at being almost 90 years young. When he talks the youth listens, versus when another older person says something, the youth may not listen to what they are saying,” stated Shirae X, 30, from Miami.
Tashan X from Brunswick, New Jersey, 21, noted toThe Final Call the
importance of implementing Minister Farrakhan’s words on conversa- tion into daily life.
“Be kind and loving to each other. The best way to live is with the word … governing your speech, governing how you talk, how you walk, how you live,” the Minister concluded. “Don’t let (Satan) win. He’s a loser.” Stay tuned for additional coverage from the Saviours’ Day Youth Summit in an upcoming edition of The Final Call. Shawntell Muhammad contributed to this report.
