Muslim Mosque, Inc. (MMI) was an

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

ic organization formed by Malcolm X after he left the

Nation of Islam The Nation of Islam (NOI) is a religious organization founded in the United States by Wallace Fard Muhammad in 1930. A centralized and hierarchical organization, the NOI is committed to black nationalism and focuses its attention on the Afr ...

. MMI was a relatively small group that collapsed after its founder was assassinated.

History

Malcolm X announced the establishment of Muslim Mosque, Inc. on March 12, 1964, four days after his departure from the Nation of Islam. The group's membership consisted primarily of former Nation of Islam members. In a 2003 interview, one of its former leaders recalled that MMI started with a core of about 50 dedicated

activists Activism consists of efforts to promote, impede, direct or intervene in social, political, economic or environmental reform with the desire to make changes in society toward a perceived common good. Forms of activism range from mandate build ...

. Malcolm X spent much of the time between March 1964 and February 1965 overseas. In his absence, James 67X Shabazz served as the '' de facto'' leader of Muslim Mosque, Inc. Between March 1964, when he left the Nation of Islam, and February 1965, when he was assassinated, Malcolm X's philosophy evolved as he traveled through Africa and the Middle East. Those changes confused many members of Muslim Mosque, Inc. Initially, the teachings of Muslim Mosque, Inc. were similar to those of the Nation of Islam. When Malcolm X became a

Sunni Muslim Sunni Islam is the largest branch of Islam and the largest religious denomination in the world. It holds that Muhammad did not appoint any successor and that his closest companion Abu Bakr () rightfully succeeded him as the caliph of the Musli ...

, made the ''

hajj Hajj (; ; also spelled Hadj, Haj or Haji) is an annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, the holiest city for Muslims. Hajj is a mandatory religious duty for capable Muslims that must be carried out at least once in their lifetim ...

'', and wrote to the members of MMI from

Mecca Mecca, officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, is the capital of Mecca Province in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia; it is the Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea, in a narrow valley above ...

about his pilgrimage and how it had forced him to reject the

racism Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and can be divided based on the superiority of one Race (human categorization), race or ethnicity over another. It may also me ...

that had previously characterized his views of white people, many members could not believe what they were hearing. The Nation of Islam had taught that no white people were permitted in the holy city of Mecca. Some MMI members refused to believe that Malcolm X had become a Sunni, and others thought he was being misquoted when he wrote about white people. By May 1964, membership in Muslim Mosque, Inc. had grown to 125, and the group was attracting people who were not former Nation of Islam members. Malcolm X sought acceptance of Muslim Mosque, Inc. by mainstream Islamic organizations. In August 1964, the Supreme Council on Islamic Affairs awarded 20 scholarships to permit young MMI members to study at

Al-Azhar University The Al-Azhar University ( ; , , ) is a public university in Cairo, Egypt. Associated with Al-Azhar Al-Sharif in Islamic Cairo, it is Egypt's oldest degree-granting university and is known as one of the most prestigious universities for Islamic ...

tuition-free.DeCaro, p. 233. Also in August, MMI was admitted to the Islamic Federation of the United States and Canada. The following month the World Islamic League offered 15 scholarships through MMI for study at the

Islamic University of Madinah The Islamic University of Madinah () is a public Islamic university in Medina, Saudi Arabia. Established by King Saud bin Abdulaziz in 1961, Sayy’id Abul Ala Maududi had played a significant role of establishing and running of Islamic Univers ...

. Following the assassination of Malcolm X in February 1965, Muslim Mosque, Inc. foundered and was disbanded. The Mosque of Islamic Brotherhood, located at 130 West 113th Street in

Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and Central Park North on the south. The greater ...

, is a successor to Muslim Mosque, Inc.

References

Footnotes

Works cited

* * * {{Authority control 1965 disestablishments in the United States Defunct Islamic organizations based in the United States Malcolm X Islamic organizations established in 1964 1964 establishments in New York (state) Former religious buildings and structures in New York City

History

See also

References

Footnotes

Works cited