An Original Man: The Life and Times of Elijah Muhammad [Hardcover]

Claude Andrew Clegg III (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1997

Elijah Muhammad (1897-1975), born Elijah Poole, dreamed of living a better life than his slave ancestors. However, by the time he arrived in Detroit in 1923, the bitter hatred and lynchings of the South had become a part of his consciousness, and the urban poverty and rank discrimination he encountered in the North further ignited his ire and indignation. In An Original Man, historian Claude Clegg reveals the motivations of this charismatic preacher whose life has been ignored for decades by scholars and biographers. With access to previously classified F.B.I. documents and the opportunity to interview two of Elijah Muhammad's surviving sons and members of the Poole clan in Georgia, Clegg demonstrates that Elijah Muhammad was indeed one of the most influential African-Americans of this century. In this illuminating biography, Clegg not only recounts Elijah Muhammad's early years in Detroit as one of the original members of the Nation of Islam, but also tells of Muhammad's decision to bring the movement first to Chicago and then to the East Coast, his decision to resist the draft during World War II (for which he spent time in prison), the growth of the movement after the war, and the historical schism that erupted between Muhammad and Malcolm X, a break that ultimately defined two major directions of black political consciousness. Particularly valuable is Clegg's outstanding and original examination of the philosophical roots of the Nation of Islam, which are heavily influenced by the writings of Marcus Garvey, Noble Drew Ali, the Jehovah's Witnesses, and the Freemasons.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Malcolm X and Louis Farrakhan get more attention, but Elijah Muhammad indelibly defined the Nation of Islam from the time he assumed its leadership in 1934 until his death in 1975. This much-needed book illuminates the impact of Muhammad's personal history on the movement, particularly its stress on economic independence for black Americans. Historian Claude Andrew Clegg's balanced appraisal acknowledges Muhammad's financial and sexual misdeeds but credits him with promoting racial pride and "moral living." Clegg makes a strong case for the Nation of Islam being "as homegrown as the NAACP or the Ku Klux Klan."

From Library Journal

Head of the Nation of Islam for 40 years, Muhammad was a charismatic leader. In this portrait, historian Clegg reveals how this visionary figure relied on religious ideals and political action to shape African American history in this century.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 377 pages
• Publisher: St Martins Press; 1st edition (February 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312151845
• ISBN-13: 978-0312151843
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.4 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #478,359 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A vivid testament to what human oppression can produce, March 27, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: An Original Man: The Life and Times of Elijah Muhammad (Paperback)

I am a naturilzed American citizen, originally from Ghana, West Africa. I have lived in this country for 18 years and currently have a medical practice 25 miles from Sandersville, Georgia, Elijah Muhammad's birthplace. Clegg deserves a 5-star for masterfully telling the story of a man who saw the brutality of racism and then went on to arouse the black consciousness in a way never before seen. After reading the account however, two things bother me. First; the premise upon which the Nation of Islam was founded and the continuing propagation of hate. To be sure, Clegg makes it clear that Elijah himself did not seem to have a coherent conviction on the concept of the "white devil". In the end, despite his strong belief in the the "Yacub experiment" he makes overtures, many of them, financially motivated and statements which Fard Muhammad himself would have obviously disagreed with. Yet, despite these inconsistencies and serious flaws in his character, the masses rally behind him. This is analogous to Hitler who was given such reverance by Germans despite his atrocities to other humans. Perhaps, in the eyes of those who steadfastly followed him and those who subscribe to his teachings today the end justified the means. That Elijah Muhammad raised Black consciousness is not in question. Bothersome though is the rampant apathy among the black youth of today. I have confirmed Clegg's experience in his epilogue (when his students question who this person was) in this area, the birthplace of Elijah Muhammad. I have quizzed 35 blacks, from ages 18 to 67, on the life of Elijah Muhammad. 16 live in Sandersville, his actual birthplace. Of the 35, only 11 had even heard his name before. (9 of the 11 live in Sandersville). All 11 were above 40 years. None below forty knew of this man. What does this mean? I do not know for sure but it gives me an impression of the tenious nature of his legacy at least in this area of the country whose sordid history catapulted Elijah Muhammad to such great heights.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars an original man:elijah muhammad, February 14, 2002

By 

chris (trenton, nj United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: An Original Man: The Life and Times of Elijah Muhammad (Hardcover)

twas a work of art. clegg did a lot of research
i couldn't really tell if he had a pro
or con objective. this is how "un biased"
he came off. the book gives a lot of info
to someone who is thinking about making this sort
of decision(religion) in life. after you read
this book and do more research your mind will
be made up whether for or against.

kudos to clegg ,may god bless him!!!!!!!!!!!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An Original Man, August 4, 2001

By 

Daniel Pipes, Middle East Forum, Philadelphia (Philadelphia, PA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: An Original Man: The Life and Times of Elijah Muhammad (Paperback)

Elijah Muhammad has hitherto been the most obscure of the trio, a quiet, even shadowy figure far less conspicuous to the outside world than either of his spokesmen. Clegg establishes, however, that contrary to the almost universal opinion of outsiders, Muhammad had far more importance and power within the movement than either of the younger men-or anyone else, for that matter. His biography, the best volume ever written on the Nation of Islam, relies on a broad and impressive array of original documents, such as the will bequeathing Muhammad's slave grandfather from a father to his daughter and the extensive FBI records pertaining to the Nation of Islam. Perhaps most fascinating and original is Clegg's argument that no matter how radical Muhammad's rhetoric seemed, he had by 1960 become the captive of his own avarice, and that this imposed an operational conservatism, even a timidity, quite at odds with his fire-breathing talk. Interestingly, Clegg attributes this change in part at least to Muhammad's 1959-60 trip to the Muslim world, where he was appalled by the poverty and filth; henceforth, he stopped portraying the "Holy Land of Islam" as a place infinitely superior to the United States that would save American blacks. This implied a decrease in revolutionary expectations and more stress on the message of economic self-improvement.

Middle East Quarterly, December 1998