Estimated reading time: 16 minute(s)
[Source: FinalCall.com]
Response to Sheriff David Clarke’s attack on Minister Louis Farrakhan
Sheriff David Clarke
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Recently Sheriff David Clarke launched an outrageous barrage of attacks and lies against the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan on Fox Business Networks. The Sheriff stated “This guy spews hate, racism, he’s an anti-Semite. He last September called for 10,000 Black men to rise up and kill 10,000 White people.”
The truth is that Minister Farrakhan called for 10,000 fearless men and women to go into our communities and make them decent places to live. He charged us to stand in the midst of the violence and be agents of conflict resolution and peacemakers. Log on to https://media.justiceorelse.com/join-10000 and register to be part of the 10,000 Fearless. When you register you’re saying you’re committed to being one of the 10,000 Fearless, that Minister Farrakhan has called on to help stop the senseless violence in our communities and that you desire to be trained to qualify yourself as one of the 10,000.
Sheriff Clarke went on to say, “He has done nothing to improve Black life in any city of America, and I think that’s a guy who should be shunned, and if you’re a parent out there, you should keep your sons and daughters away from the likes of Louis Farrakhan as a role model.”
Let us briefly review some of the lifesaving, life-giving work the Minister has done in his 60- year labor of love and sacrifice.
In 1988, the Fruit of Islam (FOI) in Washington, D.C., inspired by Minister Louis Farrakhan went into the drug infested Mayfair Mansions apartment complex, which was riddled with gun violence, putting a stop to crime and drug trafficking. This was followed by millions of dollars in reinvestment and development. Women, children and the elderly, who before the presence of the F.O.I lived in constant fear, came out of their homes to enjoy a peaceful and secure environment. Keep in mind the followers of the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan do not carry weapons and patrol the community unarmed.
“We came into the streets, and by the Grace of Allah (God) will stay in the streets out of the love that we have for our people and our desire to serve them.” |
Muslims involved with the effort formed security companies and were granted contracts in public housing projects in different parts of the country. These privately-owned companies, however, were targeted by Jewish groups who pressured the Department of Housing and Urban Development to drop the contracts despite credit given to the Muslims for their work by Republicans such as Jack Kemp and even First Lady Barbara Bush.
All throughout the mid-80’s and the 90’s, Minister Farrakhan toured the cities and towns of America, speaking to tens of thousands of Black people with an inspiring message of self-love, discipline, and self-determination. The Minister convened gang summits and inspired street organizations to form truces and work together to stop the violence in the inner cities. Following a grueling national tour entitled “Stop the Killing,” Minister Farrakhan then went on another national tour speaking to Black men only. This culminated in the greatest demonstration of love and unity that the world has ever witnessed, the Million Man March.
Minister Farrakhan gave instructions at the Million Man March that inspired the adoption of 25,000 Black children, increased Black voter registrations by 1.5 million, grew the membership of the NAACP, churches and organizations, transforming countless individuals who attended and who stayed home. He had the men pledge to strive to improve themselves spiritually, morally, mentally, socially, politically and economically for the benefit of themselves and their family. They pledged to work collectively to build community and not destroy it; and that they would not beat their women or use the “B” word. This is the redemptive, restorative work of the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan. In light of the condition of the Black Community in Milwaukee County, Sheriff Clarke should be praising and supporting the work of the Minister instead of denying it.
In his Fox News interview Sheriff Clarke intentionally misrepresented the Minister Farrakhan’s overture to him, on the eve of the Minister’s August 2015 visit to Milwaukee. Clarke stated, “last fall Farrakhan came to Milwaukee and his staff had the nerve to call my office and ask if we would provide security for him.
I was a part of the staff that met with Sheriff Clarke’s staff, I can say with truth that the Minister never requested security from the Sheriff. The meeting was a courtesy to the Sheriff, following normal protocols letting him know that the Minister would be in the city that he is responsible for. The request was for an escort to facilitate the movements of the motorcade.
The other purpose of the meeting was to make it clear to Sheriff Clarke that Minister Farrakhan never advocated the killing of White people. This lie was reported in the media the week prior to the Minister’s visit to Milwaukee. Sheriff Clarke responded on FOX News saying that if the Minister came to Milwaukee, he would monitor the message to see what action should be taken. Minister Farrakhan offered to have a face- to-face meeting with Sheriff Clarke to clear up any misunderstandings and to give the Sheriff an opportunity to express his concerns in a respectful dialogue. However, it appears that Sheriff Clarke would rather pander to the conservative audience of Fox News than have a respectful dialogue with his brother.
According to the Urban Dictionary, the word “Sheriff” has an etymological connection to the Arabic word “Sharif”, which was a title given to those who serve as the protector of the tribe and all tribal assets, such as property, wells, and land. In Arabic/Persian however, the word Sharif means “honorable”. In so many ways the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan has been a greater Sheriff than Sheriff David Clarke. Sheriff Clarke enforces the law through his authority to arrest. The Minister is a reformer of the thinking and actions of human beings, by means of spiritual inspiration and guidance, making it unnecessary to be at odds with law enforcement.
