Khadijah Farrakhan (born Betsy Ross) is the wife of

Louis Farrakhan Louis Farrakhan (; born Louis Eugene Walcott, May 11, 1933) is an American religious leader, Black supremacy, black supremacist, Racism, anti-white and Antisemitism, antisemitic Conspiracy theory, conspiracy theorist, and former singer who hea ...

, the Supreme Leader of 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 ...

. She is known as the "First Lady of the Nation of Islam".

Biography

Khadijah Farrakhan converted to Nation of Islam with her husband Louis Farrakhan, then Louis Eugene Wolcott, in 1955, when they had been married for two years. As Supreme Minister, Farrakhan enrolled in the

Fruit of Islam The Fruit of Islam (FOI) is the security and disciplinary wing of the Nation of Islam (NOI). It has also been described as its paramilitary wing. The Fruit of Islam wear distinctive blue, brown or white uniforms and caps and have units at all NOI ...

while his wife also enrolled in the

Muslim Girls Training (MGT) Muslim Girls Training & General Civilization Class (MGT & GCC) is the all-female training program of the Nation of Islam. It is often considered to be the counterpart for girls and women to the Fruit of Islam. History The Muslim Girls Training & ...

and General Civilization Class (GCC) under the direction of Sister Captain Anna Lois Muhammad in New York City. The Muslim sisters in Mother Khadijah's class would include many important figures such as Dr.

Betty Shabazz Betty Shabazz (born Betty Dean Sanders; May 28, 1934/1936 – June 23, 1997), also known as Betty X, was an American educator and civil rights advocate. She was married to Malcolm X. Shabazz grew up in Detroit, Michigan, where her foste ...

, the late wife 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 I ...

. Mother Khadijah, as she is often called, was an eager student and quickly rose to the top of her class. She was trained by

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 dea ...

. Minister Farrakhan was subsequently promoted to be the minister of Boston's Temple No. 11. Since both husband and wife had Boston backgrounds, they were right at home with the new posting and worked tirelessly, eventually building the New England area into one of the Nation of Islam's key developments between 1956 and 1965. In 1965, after Minister Farrakhan was promoted to the National Representative of the Hon. Elijah Muhammad and relocated to Mosque No. 7 in New York City, this husband and wife team began working to convert followers and extend the Nation of Islam's influence throughout New York City from Harlem to New Rochelle. By 1975, Farrakhan and her family had relocated to Chicago. After Minister Farrakhan decided to rebuild the Nation of Islam under the teachings of Elijah Muhammad in 1977, she became the “new” Nation's first treasurer and secretary when the couple opened their Chicago home to host “study group” meetings. She shared her skills in office systems and communications, particularly in developing the secretarial department that helped launch many of the Nation of Islam's programs and thrusts that have become popular in mosques across the globe. As Minister Farrakhan's popularity grew, her responsibilities expanded to fund-raising, converting new members, humanitarian aid for the flood victims in the south, heading Nation of Islam delegations overseas at the opening of mosques, schools, foreign policy missions in Africa, addressing the Million Woman March in 1997, receiving and hosting visiting First Ladies of African countries, and directly helping one of the century's most important figures in Nation of Islam, her husband, Minister Louis Farrakhan. At a Saviour's Day Believer's meeting, the Minister described her as “his best friend.” On 2 June 2018 Minister Louis Farrakhan and his wife Khadijah announced the passing of their eldest son Louis Farrakhan Jr. He was 60 years old.

References

External links

Final Call article
{{DEFAULTSORT:Farrakhan, Khadijah Living people Louis Farrakhan family African-American Muslims Year of birth missing (living people) Members of the Nation of Islam People from Chicago