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The Philadelphia Masjid, Inc.: Reclaiming a bastion for Black Muslims

THE PHILADELPHIA TRIBUNE — As one of the nation’s most historic Islamic sites, The Philadelphia Masjid, Inc. has a deep and textured history that’s seen highs and lows — from the building of a thriving religious community to having its very existence threatened. The Masjid was established in 1976 as a congregation of eight temples that were formerly apart of the Nation of Islam, and is known for fostering a robust Black Muslim community that produced devout followers, operated businesses and maintained an independent school.

Published

6 years ago

May 20, 2019

Staff Writer

By Samaria Bailey

As one of the nation’s most historic Islamic sites, The Philadelphia Masjid, Inc. has a deep and textured history that’s seen highs and lows — from the building of a thriving religious community to having its very existence threatened.

The Masjid was established in 1976 as a congregation of eight temples that were formerly apart of the Nation of Islam, and is known for fostering a robust Black Muslim community that produced devout followers, operated businesses and maintained an independent school.

Imam Kenneth Nuriddin addresses the congregation (Photo by: Abdul R. Sulayman | Tribune Chief Photographer)

Now rebuilding from a series of leadership and legal challenges nearly 10 years ago, their vision is to reclaim their position as a bastion for Black Muslims and the surrounding community.

“We grew out of a movement or a community that was known as the Nation of Islam, and it was a community that was independent in the sense that we relied on ourselves,” said Resident Imam Kenneth Nurridin. “We didn’t look to the East for direction, we really didn’t even look to America for direction, but we sort of looked at the need we had and our needs as a people.”

The Philadelphia Masjid has roots in the Nation of Islam’s Temple No. 12, formerly located at 13th and Susquehanna streets.

Following changes in the Nation, brothers and sisters left the main Temple No. 12 and other Temple No. 12 locations around the city to join the the World Community of Islam in the West under the leadership of Imam Warith Deen Muhammad. These brothers and sisters established the Philadelphia Masjid in 1976.

“Imam Warith Deen Muhammad … brought us the religion, the traditional standards that are lived by Muslims all over the world, but the unique thing is we didn’t have to depend on them for interpretation or application of it. It was based on what we as a people needed,” said Nurridin. “We began to look at the things that the Nation of Islam espoused — the white man is the devil. This was also like a shock treatment for our people and for the greater society and it was almost like a chemotherapy because white supremacy was a cancer. If you got cancer, you need a strong drug. The treatments of Elijah Muhammad were like a chemotherapy that cured us of inferiority complexes and it freed us to now be in a position where we can take responsibility for our own community.”

The practice of this do-for-self philosophy resulted in the Philadelphia Masjid becoming a house of prayer that empowered its people socially just as much as it did spiritually.

“We [had] a school here … We had businesses. We had a supermarket, we had bakeries. We had a fish program where we were bringing in fish from Peru,” said Nurridin. “So, all of the economic necessities were brought into perspective and among our people. We had more economic strength when we were isolated or segregated because we had to do for self.”

The Sister Clara Muhammad School was a special point of pride. For nearly 30 years, it educated thousands of Black Muslim students in academics and the tenets of Islam.

By the early 2000s, the Masjid was embroiled in legal troubles and leadership issues, which hurt the development and economic progress made in their early years. The school, facing competition from charter schools, closed in 2005 amid the legal battles.

“It did slow down because everything we did was centered around the children,” said Aazim Muhammad, executive director of the Masjid’s Community Development Corporation. “There became a period when we were not as visible to the broader community because we were always associated with education. Now that we are going through a rebirth process, we are placing an emphasis back on education and education programming.”

Muhammad has been a member of the Philadelphia Masjid for more than 35 years. He was married and raised three children there but he moved to California in 2008 and was away for almost 10 years. Upon his return, he began working in the CDC, leading efforts to build programs to empower the community.

“We have new leadership. The CDC existed as a seed but we have new leadership and he has a very extensive background in running CDCs, so his expertise, his zeal, his commitment has enabled the CDC to grow in leaps and bounds in just a year,” said Nurridin.

The Philadelphia Masjid still owns its property — 44,000 square feet, including the building and land. As the surrounding community develops, Muhammad said, the Masjid has a vision to develop as well, even as they receive countless offers.

“We get inquiries in the mail almost on a daily basis,” he said. “But nobody is bold enough to knock on the door.”

Muhammad emphasized that the Masjid is not interested in selling the property. Instead, they’ve designed a vision that calls for the Black independence and do-for-self mentality that distinguished them in their early history.

The development plans include multigenerational, affordable housing for seniors and first-time homebuyers, an early-childhood training center and a vocational training or building trades program.

One piece of the development that will be piloted this year is a culinary training program for high-school dropouts and ex-offenders, in partnership with YouthBuild.

“No one came from another city and started the [Philadelphia Masjid]. It’s African-American started. We own this building. That’s what made it special. And it’s the biggest one in Philadelphia,” said Khadijah Hameen, a member of the Masjid for 44 years.

Hameen remembered coming up as a Muslim girl in training when she joined the Masjid as a teenager. She wasn’t raised in the religion but she was inspired by the Muslim women in her community.

“I lived down the block from Muslims. They were in the Nation of Islam. I always liked the way they carried themselves, the way they dressed,” said Hameen.

She joined the Philadelphia Masjid when she was 18 and is still there, an active sister who distributes free food for members and the community.

But what’s been just as important to her as the family-like environment of the Philadelphia Masjid is the sense of empowerment that’s come from being a part of it.

“It made you love yourself more. You were able to have self-love, self-preservation,” she said. “We’ve always been here for each other. We know this is something we have built and it’s something that belongs to us and we are not giving it up. This is our establishment.”

Tauheedah Jihad, a member who joined the Philadelphia Masjid as a teenager and also came up as a Muslim girl in training, agreed.

“This is my home. This is where I started. We used to cook. I was selling [the publication] “Muhammad Speaks,” she said. “Since they first opened this Masjid, through thick and thin, we’ve been together. We will fight to the bitter end to hold this institution up.”

This article originally appeared in The Philadelphia Tribune.

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Chavis and Bryant Lead Charge as Target Boycott Grows

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — Surrounded by civil rights leaders, economists, educators, and activists, Bryant declared the Black community’s power to hold corporations accountable for broken promises.

Published

13 hours ago

April 23, 2025

Stacy M. Brown

By Stacy M. Brown
BlackPressUSA.com Senior National Correspondent

Calling for continued economic action and community solidarity, Dr. Jamal H. Bryant launched the second phase of the national boycott against retail giant Target this week at New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Atlanta. Surrounded by civil rights leaders, economists, educators, and activists, Bryant declared the Black community’s power to hold corporations accountable for broken promises. “They said they were going to invest in Black communities. They said it — not us,” Bryant told the packed sanctuary. “Now they want to break those promises quietly. That ends tonight.” The town hall marked the conclusion of Bryant’s 40-day “Target fast,” initiated on March 3 after Target pulled back its Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) commitments. Among those was a public pledge to spend $2 billion with Black-owned businesses by 2025—a pledge Bryant said was made voluntarily in the wake of George Floyd’s murder in 2020.“No company would dare do to the Jewish or Asian communities what they’ve done to us,” Bryant said. “They think they can get away with it. But not this time.”

The evening featured voices from national movements, including civil rights icon and National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) President & CEO Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis Jr., who reinforced the need for sustained consciousness and collective media engagement. The NNPA is the trade association of the 250 African American newspapers and media companies known as The Black Press of America. “On the front page of all of our papers this week will be the announcement that the boycott continues all over the United States,” said Chavis. “I would hope that everyone would subscribe to a Black newspaper, a Black-owned newspaper, subscribe to an economic development program — because the consciousness that we need has to be constantly fed.” Chavis warned against the bombardment of negativity and urged the community to stay engaged beyond single events. “You can come to an event and get that consciousness and then lose it tomorrow,” he said. “We’re bombarded with all of the disgust and hopelessness. But I believe that starting tonight, going forward, we should be more conscious about how we help one another.”

He added, “We can attain and gain a lot more ground even during this period if we turn to each other rather than turning on each other.” Other speakers included Tamika Mallory, Dr. David Johns, Dr. Rashad Richey, educator Dr. Karri Bryant, and U.S. Black Chambers President Ron Busby. Each speaker echoed Bryant’s demand that economic protests be paired with reinvestment in Black businesses and communities. “We are the moral consciousness of this country,” Bryant said. “When we move, the whole nation moves.” Sixteen-year-old William Moore Jr., the youngest attendee, captured the crowd with a challenge to reach younger generations through social media and direct engagement. “If we want to grow this movement, we have to push this narrative in a way that connects,” he said.

Dr. Johns stressed reclaiming cultural identity and resisting systems designed to keep communities uninformed and divided. “We don’t need validation from corporations. We need to teach our children who they are and support each other with love,” he said. Busby directed attendees to platforms like ByBlack.us, a digital directory of over 150,000 Black-owned businesses, encouraging them to shift their dollars from corporations like Target to Black enterprises. Bryant closed by urging the audience to register at targetfast.org, which will soon be renamed to reflect the expanding boycott movement. “They played on our sympathies in 2020. But now we know better,” Bryant said. “And now, we move.”

Stacy M. Brown

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The Department of Education is Collecting Delinquent Student Loan Debt

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — the Department of Education will withhold money from tax refunds and Social Security benefits, garnish federal employee wages, and withhold federal pensions from people who have defaulted on their student loan debt.

Published

15 hours ago

April 23, 2025

Oakland Post

By April Ryan

Trump Targets Wages for Forgiven Student Debt

The Department of Education, which the Trump administration is working to abolish, will now serve as the collection agency for delinquent student loan debt for 5.3 million people who the administration says are delinquent and owe at least a year’s worth of student loan payments. “It is a liability to taxpayers,” says White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt at Tuesday’s White House Press briefing. She also emphasized the student loan federal government portfolio is “worth nearly $1.6 trillion.” The Trump administration says borrowers must repay their loans, and those in “default will face involuntary collections.” Next month, the Department of Education will withhold money from tax refunds and Social Security benefits, garnish federal employee wages, and withhold federal pensions from people who have defaulted on their student loan debt. Leavitt says “we can not “kick the can down the road” any longer.”

Much of this delinquent debt is said to have resulted from the grace period the Biden administration gave for student loan repayment. The grace period initially was set for 12 months but extended into three years, ending September 30, 2024. The Trump administration will begin collecting the delinquent payments starting May 5. Dr. Walter M. Kimbrough, president of Talladega College, told Black Press USA, “We can have that conversation about people paying their loans as long as we talk about the broader income inequality. Put everything on the table, put it on the table, and we can have a conversation.” Kimbrough asserts, “The big picture is that Black people have a fraction of wealth of white so you’re… already starting with a gap and then when you look at higher education, for example, no one talks about Black G.I.’s that didn’t get the G.I. Bill. A lot of people go to school and build wealth for their family…Black people have a fraction of wealth, so you already start with a wide gap.”

According to the Education Data Initiative, https://educationdata.org/average-time-to-repay-student-loans It takes the average borrower 20 years to pay their student loan debt. It also highlights how some professional graduates take over 45 years to repay student loans. A high-profile example of the timeline of student loan repayment is the former president and former First Lady Barack and Michelle Obama, who paid off their student loans by 2005 while in their 40s. On a related note, then-president Joe Biden spent much time haggling with progressives and Democratic leaders like Senators Elizabeth Warren and Chuck Schumer on Capitol Hill about whether and how student loan forgiveness would even happen.

Oakland Post

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VIDEO: The Rev. Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr. at United Nations Permanent Forum on People of African Descent

https://youtu.be/Uy_BMKVtRVQ Excellencies: With all protocol noted and respected, I am speaking today on behalf of the Black Press of America and on behalf of the Press of People of African Descent throughout the world. I thank the Proctor Conference that helped to ensure our presence here at the Fourth Session of the […]

Published

16 hours ago

April 23, 2025

Oakland Post

https://youtu.be/Uy_BMKVtRVQ

Excellencies:

With all protocol noted and respected, I am speaking today on behalf of the Black Press of America and on behalf of the Press of People of African Descent throughout the world. I thank the Proctor Conference that helped to ensure our presence here at the Fourth Session of the UN Permanent Forum on People of African Descent.

The focus on AI and digital equity is urgent within the real time realities today where there continues to be what is referred to as the so called mainstream national and international media companies that systematically undergird racism and imperialism against the interests of People of African Descent.

We therefore call on this distinguished gathering of leaders and experts to challenge member states to cite and to prevent the institutionalization of racism in all forms of media including social media, AI and any form of digital bias and algorithmic discrimination.

We cannot trust nor entertains the notion that former and contemporary enslavers will now use AI and digital transformation to respect our humanity and fundamental rights.

Lastly we recommend that a priority should be given to the convening of an international collective of multimedia organizations and digital associations that are owned and developed by Africans and People of African Descent.

Basta the crimes against our humanity!

Basta Racism!

Basta Imperialism!

A Luta Continua!

Victory is certain!