Interview of Minister Rodney Muhammad

Minister Rodney Muhammad (born Rodney Ellis) was born in 1952 in Chicago, Illinois, where he grew up in the South Shore neighborhood. His father, Jim Ellis, played football for Michigan State University, graduated from there with a degree in sociology, played for the Chicago Bears, and was a social worker. His mother, Kathryn Ellis, attended Roosevelt University, was the first black model for Ford in Detroit, Michigan, and achieved a Ph.D. in Public Administration. Rodney Muhammad majored in business administration at DePaul University and worked as an estate planner before he entered the Nation of Islam. At the time of the interview, he had been serving as the Minister of Muslim Mosque No. 12 in Philadelphia since 1991. In this interview, Rodney Muhammad discusses his upbringing, education, exposure to black consciousness movements and ideas, his introduction to the Nation of Islam, his religious beliefs, Nation of Islam programs, and specific events such as the Million Man March and the March on Grays Ferry