The Valley of the Shadow of Death

[Section Editor’s note: The following article contains excerpts from Part 1 of an Exclusive New Year’s interview with the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan by Final Call Staff. Originally published in January 2004, the information continues to be relevant in this hour.] 

 FC: Recent news reports have revealed a relationship among drug manufacturers, agricultural firms and the Food and Drug Administration. This has allowed substandard, chemically riddled food to be approved that will undoubtedly lead to illness, more illness, for which the pharmaceutical companies produce so-called medicine to alleviate.

What are your views on this and how can an unsuspecting public protect themselves from the danger to their health created by this link? How does the struggle for survival of Black farmers against discriminatory practices and regulations fit into this picture and perhaps a solution?

HMLF: I have read recently of this unholy alliance between pharmaceutical companies, agricultural conglomerates, chemical firms that produce pesticides and the Food and Drug Administration. There is no doubt in my mind that we live in The Valley of the Shadow of Death.

The Bible teaches that we are destroyed for the lack of knowledge. The unsuspecting American people have put their trust in those who feed and medicate us. Those who feed and medicate us are more interested in the bottom line of profit than they are in delivering health and well-being to the American people.

The Honorable Elijah Muhammad said to me that the medical profession is really not a profession of true healing; it is a profession of drugs. He said these drugs are created to stimulate a natural process. However, stimulation of the natural process by the use of these drugs creates another problem—harmful side effects. This gives the pharmaceutical companies more leeway to make more drugs, to make more money, to cause more death.

How can this unsuspecting public protect itself? In reality, it cannot, unless the public is made aware and the public’s will is to take control of the earth and what goes in it that produces our food.

Unless we are watchful of the chemicals that are sold to the agricultural conglomerates and unless we are watchful of the pharmaceutical companies and their desire to make money from the illnesses that are created by this unholy alliance, then we are locked in The Valley of the Shadow of Death.

This is why the Honorable Elijah Muhammad wanted us to buy or lease millions of acres of land, so that we could be responsible for providing the food, which we need to maintain our lives. How our food is prepared and how we live our lives are important to help us to survive.

The poor Black farmer is in deep trouble and the small White farmer, as well. The farmers are in debt incurred for equipment, pesticides, seeds, water and the many things that they need to make their farms successful. Many farms are in foreclosure. As the banks take over these farms, the conglomerates buy these farms and expand their unhealthy way of food production for the American people and for the people of the world. All of this is to the detriment of the masses of the people.

The greed of these companies is monumental and only our unity under the Guidance of Allah (God) will allow us to come up out of The Valley of the Shadow of Death and come to life. That is why the scripture teaches “to those who overcame, He gave them of the Tree of Life.” 

That overcoming is what we have to be involved in and it starts with a knowledge of Allah (God); a knowledge of self; a knowledge of the time and what must be done; a knowledge of the enemy of God and the true religion of Allah (God). This kind of knowledge will lift us up out of this horrible Valley of the Shadow of Death.

In my Saviours’ Day speech, I will go deeper into this aspect of what I’m now writing in a capsule form, be it the Will of Allah (God).