FARRAKHAN, LOUIS


Meaning of FARRAKHAN, LOUIS in English

orig. Louis Eugene Walcott

born May 11, 1933, Bronx, New York, N.Y., U.S.

U.S. religious leader.

He joined the Nation of Islam in 1955, and for a time he assisted Malcolm X in Boston. After the latter converted to Sunnite Islam, the two became enemies, and Farrakhan replaced Malcolm as minister of Mosque No. 7 in Harlem. He has repeatedly denied involvement in Malcolm's assassination, suspicions of which were based in part on an article he had published in a Muslim newspaper some months earlier. When W. Deen Muhammad, Islam , gradually began integrating the organization into the orthodox Muslim community, Farrakhan broke away and formed his own organization, also called Nation of Islam (1978). A compelling orator whose rhetoric often fell into overt anti-Semitism, Farrakhan was nonetheless effective in encouraging African American self-reliance and unity. He was the main organizer of the Million Man March on Washington in 1995.

Britannica English dictionary.      Английский словарь Британика.