Hamaas Abdul Khaalis (1921 – November 13, 2003), born Ernest Timothy McGhee, also known as Ernest "XX" McGee and Ernest 2X McGee, was leader of the Hanafi Movement, a Black Muslim group based in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

subscribing to the

Hanafi The Hanafi school ( ar, حَنَفِية, translit=Ḥanafiyah; also called Hanafite in English), Hanafism, or the Hanafi fiqh, is the oldest and one of the four traditional major Sunni schools ( maddhab) of Islamic Law (Fiqh). It is named aft ...

school of

Sunni Islam Sunni Islam () is the largest branch of Islam, followed by 85–90% of the world's Muslims. Its name comes from the word '' Sunnah'', referring to the tradition of Muhammad. The differences between Sunni and Shia Muslims arose from a disagre ...

. To draw attention to the 1973 murder of his family he organised a 1977 siege of Washington, D.C. in which two of 149 hostages died. He spent the rest of his life in prison after being found guilty of conspiracy to commit kidnapping while armed, second-degree murder, two counts of assault with intent to kill while armed, one count of assault with a dangerous weapon, and 24 counts of kidnapping while armed.

Early life

Khaalis was born to

Seventh-day Adventist The Seventh-day Adventist Church is an Adventism, Adventist Protestantism, Protestant Christian denomination which is distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the Names of the days of the week#Numbered days of the week, seventh day of the ...

parents in

Gary, Indiana Gary is a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States. The city has been historically dominated by major industrial activity and is home to U.S. Steel's Gary Works, the largest steel mill complex in North America. Gary is located along the ...

as Ernest Timothy McGhee. He graduated 22nd in a class of 135 at Roosevelt High School, and he played percussion instruments and eventually converted to

Roman Catholicism The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwide . It is am ...

. As McGee, he attended

Purdue University Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and money ...

and Mid-Western Conservatory. He was discharged from the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...

on grounds of mental instability. He was a talented jazz drummer and played with

Bud Powell Earl Rudolph "Bud" Powell (September 27, 1924 – July 31, 1966) was an American jazz pianist and composer. Along with Charlie Parker, Thelonious Monk, Kenny Clarke and Dizzy Gillespie, Powell was a leading figure in the development of modern ...

Charlie Parker Charles Parker Jr. (August 29, 1920 – March 12, 1955), nicknamed "Bird" or "Yardbird", was an American jazz saxophonist, band leader and composer. Parker was a highly influential soloist and leading figure in the development of bebop, a form ...

Max Roach Maxwell Lemuel Roach (January 10, 1924 – August 16, 2007) was an American jazz Jazz drumming, drummer and composer. A pioneer of bebop, he worked in many other styles of music, and is generally considered one of the most important drummers in h ...

Billie Holiday Billie Holiday (born Eleanora Fagan; April 7, 1915 – July 17, 1959) was an American jazz and swing music singer. Nicknamed "Lady Day" by her friend and music partner, Lester Young, Holiday had an innovative influence on jazz music and pop si ...

, and

J.J. Johnson J.J. Johnson (January 22, 1924 – February 4, 2001), born James Louis Johnson and also known as Jay Jay Johnson, was an American jazz trombonist, composer and arranger. Johnson was one of the earliest trombonists to embrace bebop. Biography ...

in New York City.

Hanafi Movement

Khaalis met Tasibur Uddein Rahman and converted to

. Upon advice of his instructor, he infiltrated the

Nation of Islam The Nation of Islam (NOI) is a religious and political organization founded in the United States by Wallace Fard Muhammad in 1930. A black nationalist organization, the NOI focuses its attention on the African diaspora, especially on African ...

(NOI). In 1954, at the suggestion of

Malcolm X Malcolm X (born Malcolm Little, later Malik el-Shabazz; May 19, 1925 – February 21, 1965) was an American Muslim minister and human rights activist who was a prominent figure during the civil rights movement. A spokesman for the Nation of Is ...

Elijah Muhammad Elijah Muhammad (born Elijah Robert Poole; October 7, 1897 – February 25, 1975) was an African American religious leader, black separatist, and self-proclaimed Messenger of Allah, who led the Nation of Islam (NOI) from 1934 until his de ...

named Khaalis the National Secretary of the NOI, a position he held until 1957. Muhammad also sent him to Chicago to head the University of Islam. In an interview, Khaalis said, "Elijah once said that I was next in line to him, that it was me, not

." Khaalis split with the Nation of Islam in 1958 to found a rival Islamic organisation, the Hanafi Movement. In 1968, he was arrested for attempted extortion but released on grounds of mental illness. The same year, militant blacks at

Howard University Howard University (Howard) is a private, federally chartered historically black research university in Washington, D.C. It is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity" and accredited by the Middle States Commissi ...

formed a group called the Kokayi family. When that group was disbanded, many of its members became members of Hamaas' Hanafi American Mussulman's Rifle and Pistol Club, which was given a group membership charter by the

National Rifle Association The National Rifle Association of America (NRA) is a gun rights advocacy group based in the United States. Founded in 1871 to advance rifle marksmanship, the modern NRA has become a prominent Gun politics in the United States, gun rights ...

. In 1971, Khaalis converted basketball player

Lew Alcindor Lew or LEW may refer to: People * Lew (given name) * Lew (surname) Places * Lew, Oxfordshire, England * River Lew, in Devon, England Transport * LEW Hennigsdorf, a rail vehicle factory in Hennigsdorf, Germany * Lew (locomotive), a British narro ...

to Islam; after his conversion, Alcindor adopted the name

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Kareem (alternatively spelled Karim or Kerim) ( ar, کریم) is a common given name and surname of Arabic origin that means "generous", "noble", "honorable". It is also one of the Names of God in Islam in the Quran. Given name Karim * Karim A ...

. Abdul-Jabbar donated a fieldstone mansion,

7700 16th Street NW 7700 16th Street NW, a private house in the Shepherd Park neighborhood of Washington, D.C., is the former home of the Hanafi Madh-Hab Center. In 1973 this house was the scene of the massacre of 7 Hanafi Muslims by members of the Nation of Islam. ...

, to serve as the headquarters of Khaalis' organization in Washington, D.C.

Feud with Nation of Islam

In 1972, Khaalis circulated an open letter that referred to

as a "lying deceiver" and asserted that he lured "former dope addicts and prostitutes to monk-like lives of sacrifice" that would "lead them to hell." Khaalis claimed credit for Malcolm X's leaving the Nation of Islam. In a 1973 interview, Khaalis said he was teaching Malcolm X about

. "He used to come to my house on Long Island and we would sit in his car for hours. He would meet me after he left the temple. Never in public because he knew they were after him. He was saying the wrong things."

Murder of his family

On January 18, 1973, Khaalis' family was murdered inside their Washington D.C home, in retaliation for letters that Khaalis had written against the Nation of Islam.

Hanafi Siege

To bring attention to his family's murder, Khaalis planned and led the 1977 Hanafi Siege. He was tried and convicted, receiving a sentence of 21 to 120 years in prison.

Death

Khaalis died at the Federal Correctional Complex Prison in

Butner, North Carolina Butner is a town in Granville County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 8,397 as of the 2020 census. Butner was managed by the state of North Carolina from 1947 through 2007. History A bill passed by the North Carolina General ...

, on November 13, 2003.

Published works

* "Look and See The Key to Knowing and Understanding – Self-Identity, Self-Culture and Self-Heritage" A.S.F.M.I., 1972.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Khaalis, Hamaas Abdul Malcolm X 2003 deaths 1921 births African-American activists African-American former Christians African-American Muslims American former Protestants American Sunni Muslims Former Roman Catholics Former Seventh-day Adventists Former Nation of Islam members Converts to Sunni Islam from Catholicism American pan-Africanists Racism in the United States Sunni Islamists Nation of Islam religious leaders American Muslim activists