There’s something about a man of God that draws people in. Whether it’s the illuminating light radiating from every cell in his body or the sheer magnetism of his aura and presence, one cannot help but desire to touch the hem of his garment or to simply share the same space.
From people in the boardrooms to brothers and sisters in the streets, from the rappers, activists and athletes, the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan, National Representative of the Most Honorable Elijah Muhammad, is one such man who has impacted the world.
Turning 93 on May 11, he has, through his immeasurable love, reached the hearts of Black youth far and wide, calling young Black people to embrace a destiny of fulfillment. And when God calls, the youth answer.
“Unalike attracts and like repels. The Minister is so unalike. He’s so unalike this world, and he’s like a torchlight. He’s the light of the world,” Brother Aidan X from Mosque No. 75 in Las Vegas, Nevada, said to The Final Call. “When you see Minister Farrakhan, you don’t see a man who is in his 90s, but you see a man who’s so full of light, so full of energy and so full of life that his age doesn’t really strike your mind. And when you do recall his age, you’re like, ‘wow!’”
On May 11, 1933, in the Bronx, New York, Mother Sumayyah Farrakhan, then Sarah Mae Manning, gave birth to a son who would change the world. Minister Farrakhan joined the Nation of Islam at age 22, under his teacher, the Most Honorable Elijah Muhammad, and dedicated his entire being to the upliftment of Black and oppressed people. Since standing up to rebuild the Nation and the work of the Most Honorable Elijah Muhammad in 1977, he has influenced young people throughout every decade. He has delivered soul-stirring messages to young people all over the world.
“When you go back to the 70s, he was attracting the youth then. You go back to the 80s, … they were listening to the tapes of the Minister and he was attracting the youth then. In the 90s, he was attracting the youth. You have (hip hop group) Public Enemy, and you have all of these groups who were attracted to the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan. In the 2000s, in the 2010s and even now, he still attracts the youth,” Bro. Aidan said.
He was a sophomore in high school when he first heard the Teachings of the Most Honorable Elijah Muhammad. Now, at 23 years old, he is a student assistant minister at Mosque No. 75 and a husband with two children.
“I was suicidal before the Teachings. I even planned to commit suicide. And I remember I was in tears,” he said. “I was raised in an atheist household. I was in tears, and I said, ‘God, if You’re real, please reveal Yourself to me, and please help me.’ And not so long after, I came across the Teachings of the Honorable Elijah Muhammad, and I came across the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan.”
The light from Minister Farrakhan’s words is the reason Bro. Aidan says he is alive today. “I felt like I was in such a dark place that nothing could get me out of this dark place, but I came across a word that was like light from the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan,” he said. “Those words literally saved my life. And when he was teaching about our origin and teaching us the knowledge, he was teaching the knowledge of self, and I was learning about myself and a knowledge of God, it just gave me so much hope and it gave me so much life and it gave me energy to the point where I was getting up and now I had purpose in my life. The way I used to walk with my head down and have such a dark spirit around me, now I was starting to get more upright and starting to clean myself up.”
He described Minister Farrakhan’s lectures as ageless. Today, he posts short clips of the Minister to social media, sometimes garnering more than one million views. “He’s an online and a viral sensation, and it’s just because of his light and his knowledge and his wisdom and his love,” he said. “What attracts me and attracts the youth is his love. You can feel his love, his sincere love; his life itself is attractive to the youth because he lives a life that’s so genuine and he’s such a beautiful example to us all that no matter what your age is, you have to bear witness that, ‘Oh, he’s different,’ and it’s really because he’s anointed with the Spirit of God.”
Sis. AnNura Muhammad, 26, from Mosque No. 2 in Chicago, is a member of the Nation of Islam today because of Minister Farrakhan’s work in the 90s. Her father was one of nearly two million men who answered Minister Farrakhan’s call to gather on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., on Oct. 16, 1995, in the spirit of atonement, reconciliation and responsibility. Her father joined the Nation in 1999, one month before Sis. AnNura was born.
“He (Minister Farrakhan) is a literal walking, talking representative of God, and he just shows me that if he can do it, I can do it, too,” Sis. AnNura said to The Final Call. “He is an example of what it looks like to be obedient, what it looks like to be a soldier, what it looks like to be resilient.”
When she hears the voice of Minister Farrakhan, she feels a moment of peace and contentment. “I know I’m listening to someone who is telling the truth. I am listening to someone who has conviction. And there’s just something about truth that I resonate with heavily, and there’s something about the spirit of God in people that I’m able to hold on to and attach to,” she said. “The God essence in him is what draws me in. … He’s literally a light.”
As an avid social media user, she has noticed more people flocking to Minister Farrakhan. “I’m seeing it all the time on social media. I’m seeing it all the time in my personal life. That just goes to show that when you are with truth, when you are with God, it doesn’t matter how old you are, people are going to listen to you,” she said. “He is with God, and God is ageless.”
Bro. Jibril Yusef from Mosque No. 12 in Philadelphia was not born into the Nation of Islam, but his father attended mosque meetings regularly while he was growing up. Now 24, he joined the Nation in 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, and later founded a nonprofit that promotes unity among Black men.
Whenever he’s going through something, he looks to Minister Farrakhan’s older lectures and messages for guidance. “Anything about my lower nature, there are certain lectures that are my personal favorites that I like to listen to and just study and study over and over again,” he said. “It just feels like a medicine cabinet for whatever I’m going through.”
The Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan has always seen the potential in young people and has encouraged them to realize their God-given gifts and talents. For Bro. Jibril, young people are attracted to Minister Farrakhan because he reminds them that they have the ability to do of good what society tells them they cannot.
“He makes it intimate by always reminding people that the change you’re looking for is right in yourself. It always starts with yourself. Make yourself a better person if you want to see the world change,” he said. “You don’t have to have a Ph.D. to care for your people and go out and try to make a change. That’s why I think young people like him so much, because he keeps it real with them, and he lets them know their potential.”
“That’s what I love about him,” he added. “He always lets you know that the sky isn’t even a limit.”
This article’s writer, Sis. Anisah Muhammad asked young people on social media about Minister Farrakhan’s impact.
Sis. Kenetta Muhammad, from Mosque No. 15 in Atlanta, said Minister Farrakhan’s words about the value of women changed her life. She said she is attracted to the Minister’s “unwavering faith that everything happens only by the permission of Allah.”
Bro. Nazeeh Muhammad, 22, from Mosque 15, was born in the Nation. He expressed that he would never have been born if the Minister had not brought the Nation back, as his parents met in the mosque. What attracts him to the Minister? “His ability to be firm while also showing grace and patience,” he said.
When Minister Farrakhan was banned from Facebook and Instagram in 2019, the hashtag #WeAreFarrakhan circulated across social media. Now, it is less a hashtag and more a mindset that young people are embracing. “‘We are Farrakhan.’ I really love that quote,” Bro. Jibril said.
“The Minister is a human like myself. He still had to do everything I had to do.”
Minister Farrakhan joined the Nation in 1955 and rose through the ranks of the F.O.I. “He still had to go to F.O.I. (Fruit of Islam) Class.
“He had to study. He had to make his word bond. And just knowing that each and every one of us has the ability to get on to this level of overcoming the lower nature within yourself to become a force of power,” he said. “The more I see his growth and his age and his health and his aura that he has, and just knowing that we all have the ability to get that if we just force ourselves to obey God and submit to His will. That’s one of the main things that pushes me, and the more I do that, the more I feel like I’ve grown to have a more intimate relationship with Allah (God).”