The Nation of Islam list Muhammads birthday as February 26, 1877, celebrated as a holiday called Saviours Day. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. Others have suggested that he was a Druze or a Shiite."[51]. Evanzz detailed the experience of several other authors who also based their accounts of Fard's life on the FBI file. Members of the Nation of Islam believe that he was a light-skinned black man or mulatto who knew both the white and the black world and who was born on February 26, 1877. [36][bettersourceneeded], A declassified Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) memorandum dated May 16, 1957, states: "From a review of instant file it does not appear that there has been a concerted effort to locate and fully identify W. D. Fard. "Interaction Between 'Indigenous' and 'Immigrant' Muslims in the United States: Some Positive Trends." Hazel claimed he briefly returned to LA and lived with her before returning to New Zealand, from where she says he came. [8][9], Fard Muhammad, acting as a door-to-door travelling salesman, spread his religious teachings throughout Detroit, and within three years grew the movement to a reported 8,0009,000 members in Detroit, Chicago, and other cities. [20], Beynon described disputes and tension that arose between the new community and the police over the group's refusal to send their children to public schools. https://www.encyclopedia.com/religion/legal-and-political-magazines/fard-w-d-c-1877-1934-religious-and-political-leader, "Fard, W. D. (c. 1877-1934), Religious and Political Leader I did some digging and found an article in November 24, 1932 edition of the Escanaba Daily Press on the murder committed by Robert Harris. [19], In the early stage of his ministry, Fard "used the Bible as his textbook, since it was the only religious book with which the majority of his hearers were familiar. The FBI officially claims this: Fard got into hot water when in May 1933, one of his followers performed a ritual murder as a sacrifice to God. Excellent write-up! ", so I don't know. He advocated community members to establish and own their own businesses,[13] eat healthy, raise families, and refrain from drugs and alcohol. A son born to Allen during their marriage, Donald Campagna, is believed to be the result of an extramarital affair. [47] The paper published the story in an article titled "Black Muslim Founder Exposed As White. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. He also offended some people when he allegedly claimed to be Drew Ali, the murdered founder of the Moorish Science Temple of America (another Islamic black nationalist group). Because each style has its own formatting nuances that evolve over time and not all information is available for every reference entry or article, Encyclopedia.com cannot guarantee each citation it generates. This fits with Ford's former professions. His original name was Wallace D. Fard, but he was also known by other aliases, such as Farad Muhammad, F. Muhammad Ali, Wali Farrad, and Professor Fard. He founded the religious movement in Detroit, Michigan, U.S., in 1930, and was its leader until 1934, his disappearance. He is always referred to reverently as the 'Prophet Elijah in Chicago. Powered by - Designed with theHueman theme. ." What seems most remarkable is that Fard seems to have utterly disappeared from the governments (especially the FBIs) radar after leaving Detroit in 1933. He arrived in Detroits Paradise Valley on July 4, 1930, in order to achieve this goal. The NOI teaches that Wallace Fard Muhammad was an avatar of Allah, who came to America to educate on this forgotten history. Alternate titles: F. Mohammed Ali, Wallace Fard Muhammad, Walli Farrad. The marriage did not last even a year; Ford accused his wife of being an alcoholic and a bad spender. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors. Within the Cite this article tool, pick a style to see how all available information looks when formatted according to that style. In 1933, Fard disappeared and a power struggle within the NOI emerged. No further birth, marriage, or death records appear to exist for individuals matching Dodd or Muhammad. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Despite a lack of fame, Mr. Fards legacy lives on to this day whether most of us know it or not. This is my own personal theory and it is out there so this is a fair warning: I believe that Ford was a FBI plant sent in as a cointel agent to gather intelligence on the civil rights movement that would getting traction in many inner city's and southern States. He was an adviser of Elijah Muhammad since the late 1950s and was the tutor of his son and successor Warith Deen Mohammed. From then onwards, he is untraceable. In contrast to Fards story, Karl Evanzz, noted NOI authority and author of The Messenger: The Rise and Fall of Elijah Muhammad, has argued that Fard was born Wali Dodd Fard in New Zealand in 1893. But he's certainly not black like he claimed. He stated that he was born in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, to a Black African father and a Russian Jewish mother, from the Caucasus. Therefore, that information is unavailable for most Encyclopedia.com content. There is No God but ALLAH. According to his successor, Elijah Muhammad, Fard was an incarnation of God. Fred gave his age as 23 and his birthplace as Europe. Reddit and its partners use cookies and similar technologies to provide you with a better experience. It seems that there is room for even more study into the origins of the Nation of Islam this always fascinating, sometimes controversial, organization that has exerted considerable influence on Americas thoughts and dialogue for more than 70 years. WebWallace Fard, also known as Master Wali Farrad Muhammad, founded the Lost and Found Nation of Islam and served as its leader until his mysterious disappearance in the early 1930s. They also have a similar receding hairline that poofs out along the side. [22], Fard named his community the "Nation of Islam". She claimed Ford was a New Zealander who had lived in Portland prior to coming to LA, and that she had one son by him, Wallace Dodd Ford Jr., who had died during World War II. Who was Wallace Fard and what happened to him? How did the founder of a group that recruited men like Malcolm X and Muhammed Ali slip under the radar so easily? From here on, his teachings became increasingly venomous. 9 Mysterious Disappearances of People Other Than Amelia Earhart, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Wallace-D-Fard, Wallace D. Fard - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up). The FBI file states: "Our investigation of the NOI and Fard failed to establish his birth date and birth place." Contemporary American Religion. In compliance with the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) requirements, some of these records are no longer in the physical possession of the FBI, eliminating the FBIs capability to re-review and/or re-process this material. After Wallace had renamed the group the World Community of Al-Islam (one of many name changes to follow), Farrakhan was able to reconstitute the NOI under his own auspices in 1979. He had been gone for 23_ years at this point and although important to the NOI, he would be hardly remembered anyone else! This is the story that stuck. [4], Fard was arrested again on January 20, 1926, for violation of the California Woolwine Possession Act,[39] and on February 15, 1926, for violation of the State Poison Act, for which he was sentenced to six months to six years at San Quentin State Prison on June 12, 1926. ", Read more about this topic: Wallace Muhammad. Wallace Fard, also known as Wallace Fard Muhammad or Master Fard Muhammad[3] (/frd/; reportedly born February 26, c.1877[4][7] disappeared c.1934), was the founder of the Nation of Islam. Fard worked the streets as silk peddler, but his real sales pitches were religious beliefs and dietary restrictions. Subscribe now to get the latest news delivered right to your inbox. The ATI was disbanded as ordered, though in name only; as the Nation of Islam, it continued to grow. At his suggestion, he came back to teach the residents, along with guests. If he indeed became Fard that would tie in with his advocacy of Islam. How that ALLAH would separate us from the Devils and, then destroy them; and Change us into a New and Perfect People; and Fill the Earth with FREEDOM, JUSTICE and EQUALITY as it was filled with wickedness; and Making we, the Poor Lost-Founds, the Perfect RULERS."[25]. Fard had an East Indian appearance, and was a dapper dresser with perfect white teeth and dark eyes. Their tainted, weakened blood was to blame for the white races immorality, which they frequently used to keep the black race in a perpetual state of half-freedom. $95 night. [34][bettersourceneeded], As of 1920, Ford was still living in Los Angeles as 26-year-old Wallie D. Ford, with his 25-year-old wife, Hazel E. Ford. The photo of Fard looks highly retouched, or whatever people did to photo before Photoshop, so whether it's the same person as in the mugshot is really hard to tell. Both provided their race as "Spanish"; Ford claimed that his parents, "Zaradodd" and "Babbjie", were natives of Madrid, Spain. He appeared in Detroit in 1930 and had an obscure background and used several aliases. rcel.id = 'rc_' + Math.floor(Math.random() * 1000); There are two popular theories regarding Ford/Fard's background - that he was the child of a South Asian/Arabic man and a white woman, or the child of a Maori man and a white woman. Here in America they were living other than themselves. "[58], Beynon also wrote: "The prophets message was characterized by his ability to utilize to the fullest measure the environment of his followers. ." All written records and documents that he or other people filled out on his behalf list him as white or caucasian. Within three years Fard had established several organizations: the "Temple of Islam," with its own worship style and rituals; the "University of Islam," to propagate his teachings; the "Muslim Girls Training," to teach female members home economics and how to be a proper Muslim woman; and the "Fruit of Islam," consisting of selected male members to provide security for the temple and Muslim leaders and to enforce the disciplinary rules. Pan-Islam is the ideology that calls for the unity and cooperation of Muslims worldwide on the basis of their shared Islamic identity. [31], From the FBI's response to the Freedom of Information Act request, Evanzz claimed that Fard, using the name Fred Dodd, married Pearl Allen in Multnomah County, Oregon, on May 9, 1914, with their first child, a son, born the next year. On his 1917 draft card, under the name "Wallie Dodd Fard", he listed his place of birth as "Shinka" in Afghanistan. [68][bettersourceneeded]. Others asserted that he had returned to Mecca to prepare for his eventual return. Others asserted that he had returned to Mecca to prepare for his eventual return. On a 1926 San Quentin State Prison file, a Wallie D. Ford of Los Angeles gave his birthplace as Oregon, and his age as 31. Did Shakespeare actually author the work attributed to his name? Fard appears in the novel Middlesex, by Jeffrey Eugenides, in which Fard's Detroit Temple No. He founded the religious movement in Detroit, Michigan, U.S., in 1930, and was its leader until 1934, his disappearance. Essien-Udom, E. U. Another story described Fard as Palestinian. Four years later, in 1963, they issued another story to a Los Angeles-based newspaper that claimed Ford and Fard were, in fact, the same person. His very name is uncertain. I worked with a devout follower of the noi. Fard, W. D. (c. 1877-1934), Religious and Political Leader The onset of the Great Depression in 1929 added to the crushing poverty and racial discrimination felt by many black people and made some of them receptive to Fard's new religious message. Thats not to say that anyone so amorphous is not capable of producing very absolute effects on history. Contemporary American Religion. Ford looks Middle Eastern in the mugshot. [10], The annual Saviour's Day event is held in honor of Master Fard's birth. I don't know what to think. "[37] The FBI took note of the article written by Erdmann Doane Beynon, and it conducted a search for Fard using various aliases including the name "Ford". Similarly, biblical prophecies and the teachings of Marcus Garvey and Noble Drew Ali were cited as foretelling the coming of the new prophet". They must give up completely the use of stimulants, especially liquor. He was drawn to return to the United States in order to liberate the African-Americans from their half-slave and half-free condition. During our colored and Negro days, he was Black. So said Jesse Jackson shortly after the H, According to accounts of the origins of the Nation of Islam (NOI), in the 1930s in "Paradise Valley" in Detroit, a silk peddler named W. D. Fard bega, The expansion of Islam historically embraces two phenomena. The 2 smear campaigns that were released also have me wondering what the agency hoped to accomplish. [24], According to Beynon, Fard's followers grew to approximately eight thousand. WebIn late 1933 or in 1934 Fardmysteriously disappeared from public record. 1. An interesting piece of information that emerged from Elijah Muhammad's son is that Fard was an excellent cook and dietitian. You have not yet seen me in my royal robes.' In devouring his autobiography, I learned of the Nation of Islams charismatic and influential leader, the Honorable Elijah Muhammad, and of the large fissure that eventually split the organization over different interpretations of their tenets and goals. He told his followers that they were not Americans and therefore owed no allegiance to the American flag and could refuse to serve in its military. Either way, most people who have investigated his life have come to the conclusion that he was probably mixed race and may have emigrated from New Zealand or the Middle East. Fard encouraged his followers not to drink alcohol or eat pork, which is standard practice for Muslims. After Desdemona is hired and settles into a familiar routine of caring for the delicate silkworms the Nation of Islam breeds to make cloth, she discovers that she can hear the speeches of Master W.D. Encyclopedia.com. 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