Malik Zulu Shabazz
Encyclopedia
Malik Zulu Shabazz is an American
attorney
and the National Chairman of the New Black Panther Party. He is a frequent guest on television talk show
s, such as Face the Nation
, Meet the Press
, The O'Reilly Factor
, and Hannity
.
, California
. His father, James Lewis, was a Muslim who was killed under mysterious circumstances when Shabazz was a child. He credits his mother, who became a successful businesswoman, and his grandfather, who introduced him to the Nation of Islam
, as strong influences.
Shabazz graduated from Howard University
and the Howard University School of Law
. In 1995, while he was a law student, Shabazz ran an unsuccessful campaign for a seat on the Washington, D.C.
, City Council
. In 1996, Shabazz founded Black Lawyers for Justice.
In 1998, he was recognized by the National Bar Association
with its "Young Lawyer of the Year" award. Later that year, he again ran without success for a seat on the D.C. Council.
, chairman of the New Black Panther Party, to speak. Introducing the speaker, Shabazz engaged in a call and response
with the audience:
A year later, Shabazz told an interviewer that everything he said was true, with the possible exception of the assertion concerning Nat Turner.
The Anti-Defamation League
describes Shabazz as "anti-Semitic and racist".
The principles promoted by Shabazz include:
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
attorney
Attorney at law
An attorney at law in the United States is a practitioner in a court of law who is legally qualified to prosecute and defend actions in such court on the retainer of clients. Alternative terms include counselor and lawyer...
and the National Chairman of the New Black Panther Party. He is a frequent guest on television talk show
Talk show
A talk show or chat show is a television program or radio program where one person discuss various topics put forth by a talk show host....
s, such as Face the Nation
Face the Nation
Face the Nation with Bob Schieffer is an American Sunday-morning political interview show which premiered on the CBS television network on November 7, 1954. It is one of the longest-running news programs in the history of television...
, Meet the Press
Meet the Press
Meet the Press is a weekly American television news/interview program produced by NBC. It is the longest-running television series in American broadcasting history, despite bearing little resemblance to the original format of the program seen in its television debut on November 6, 1947. It has been...
, The O'Reilly Factor
The O'Reilly Factor
The O'Reilly Factor, originally titled The O'Reilly Report from 1996 to 1998 and often called The Factor, is an American talk show on the Fox News Channel hosted by commentator Bill O'Reilly, who often discusses current controversial political issues with guests.The program was the most watched...
, and Hannity
Hannity
Hannity is a television show on the Fox News network, a replacement to the long-running show Hannity & Colmes. It is hosted by conservative political pundit Sean Hannity....
.
Early life and legal career
Shabazz was born and raised in Los AngelesLos Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. His father, James Lewis, was a Muslim who was killed under mysterious circumstances when Shabazz was a child. He credits his mother, who became a successful businesswoman, and his grandfather, who introduced him to the Nation of Islam
Nation of Islam
The Nation of Islam is a mainly African-American new religious movement founded in Detroit, Michigan by Wallace D. Fard Muhammad in July 1930 to improve the spiritual, mental, social, and economic condition of African-Americans in the United States of America. The movement teaches black pride and...
, as strong influences.
Shabazz graduated from Howard University
Howard University
Howard University is a federally chartered, non-profit, private, coeducational, nonsectarian, historically black university located in Washington, D.C., United States...
and the Howard University School of Law
Howard University School of Law
Howard University School of Law is one of the professional graduate schools of Howard University. Located in Washington, D.C., it is one the oldest law schools in the country and the oldest historically black college or university law school in the United States...
. In 1995, while he was a law student, Shabazz ran an unsuccessful campaign for a seat on the Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, City Council
Council of the District of Columbia
The Council of the District of Columbia is the legislative branch of the local government of the District of Columbia. As permitted in the United States Constitution, the District is not part of any U.S. state and is instead overseen directly by the federal government...
. In 1996, Shabazz founded Black Lawyers for Justice.
In 1998, he was recognized by the National Bar Association
National Bar Association
The National Bar Association was established in 1925 as the "Negro Bar Association" after Gertrude Rush, George H. Woodson, S. Joe Brown, James B. Morris, and Charles P. Howard, Sr. were denied membership in the American Bar Association. It represents the interests of African-American attorneys in...
with its "Young Lawyer of the Year" award. Later that year, he again ran without success for a seat on the D.C. Council.
Controversy
Shabazz first came to widespread public attention in 1994, when Unity Nation, a student group he founded at Howard University, invited Khalid Abdul MuhammadKhalid Abdul Muhammad
Khalid Abdul Muhammad was an African American activist who came to prominence as the National Assistant to Louis Farrakhan of the Nation of Islam . After a 1993 speech at Kean College Khalid was condemned and removed from his position in the Nation of Islam by Louis Farrakhan...
, chairman of the New Black Panther Party, to speak. Introducing the speaker, Shabazz engaged in a call and response
Call and response
Call and response is a form of "spontaneous verbal and non-verbal interaction between speaker and listener in which all of the statements are punctuated by expressions from the listener."...
with the audience:
- "Who is it that caught and killed Nat TurnerNat TurnerNathaniel "Nat" Turner was an American slave who led a slave rebellion in Virginia on August 21, 1831 that resulted in 60 white deaths and at least 100 black deaths, the largest number of fatalities to occur in one uprising prior to the American Civil War in the southern United States. He gathered...
?" - "The Jews!"
- "Who is it that controls the Federal Reserve?"
- "The Jews!"
- "Who is it that has our entertainers... and our athletes in a vise grip?"
- "The Jews!"
A year later, Shabazz told an interviewer that everything he said was true, with the possible exception of the assertion concerning Nat Turner.
The Anti-Defamation League
Anti-Defamation League
The Anti-Defamation League is an international non-governmental organization based in the United States. Describing itself as "the nation's premier civil rights/human relations agency", the ADL states that it "fights anti-Semitism and all forms of bigotry, defends democratic ideals and protects...
describes Shabazz as "anti-Semitic and racist".
New Black Panther Party
Shabazz followed Muhammad's lead and joined the New Black Panther Party about 1997. When Muhammad—who greatly expanded the organization and rose to its chairmanship—died in 2001, Shabazz took over as National Chairman. The group is described by the Anti-Defamation League as "the largest organized anti-Semitic and racist black militant group in America".The principles promoted by Shabazz include:
- Black nationalismBlack nationalismBlack nationalism advocates a racial definition of indigenous national identity, as opposed to multiculturalism. There are different indigenous nationalist philosophies but the principles of all African nationalist ideologies are unity, and self-determination or independence from European society...
- Black PowerBlack PowerBlack Power is a political slogan and a name for various associated ideologies. It is used in the movement among people of Black African descent throughout the world, though primarily by African Americans in the United States...
- Support for reparations for slaveryReparations for slaveryReparations for slavery is a proposal that some type of compensation should be provided to the descendants of enslaved people in the United States, in consideration of the coerced and uncompensated labor their ancestors performed over several centuries...
- Conspiracy theories about Jewish involvement in the September 11 attacks
- The view that Jews dominated the Atlantic slave tradeAtlantic slave tradeThe Atlantic slave trade, also known as the trans-atlantic slave trade, refers to the trade in slaves that took place across the Atlantic ocean from the sixteenth through to the nineteenth centuries...
- Anti-ZionismAnti-ZionismAnti-Zionism is opposition to Zionistic views or opposition to the state of Israel. The term is used to describe various religious, moral and political points of view in opposition to these, but their diversity of motivation and expression is sufficiently different that "anti-Zionism" cannot be...