Minister Farrakhan Reminds Black Detroit to Stick Together

[kwassa]

106. I think many here don't understand Farrakan's historic appeal in parts of the black community.

Much of his message involves conservative messages about being self-supporting, self-reliant, creating businesses by and for black people. The NOI was doing this as their message early in the civil rights movement and owns this message, in a way, for the past 60 years or so. This appeals to black urbanites, particularly those feeling alienated from general society. Farrakhan's brief moment of stardom was the Million Man March, which struck the right message of responsibility and self-reliance at the right moment in history. Overall, though, he does not have great appeal in black America.

Farrakhan is also as wacky as the day is long, and those who like his self-reliance message can also compartmentalize out both his anti-Semitism and the racist science-fiction belief system that has little to do with traditional Islam. Farrakhan is really, really into numerology.