Fard first appeared in Detroit in 1930; his followers cite July 4, 1930, as the date of his arrival. A
door-to-door salesman, Fard spread his religious teachings throughout Detroit, and within three years grew the movement to a reported 25,000 members in Detroit, Chicago, and other cities.
Clothing peddler Fard began by selling
Oriental silks door-to-door in Detroit's black section. Fard visited the homes of black families who had recently
migrated to Detroit from the rural South. Fard told black residents that his silks were the same kind that their ancestors in Mecca used and claimed to be a traveler from that land. When offered food, Fard reportedly ate what was provided but would advise residents to avoid certain foods, promising health benefits would follow. At his suggestion, he came back to teach the residents, along with guests.
Bible study leader at house churches In the early stage of his ministry, Fard used the
Bible as his textbook, since it was the only religious book with which the majority of his audience were familiar. Patrick D. Bowen writes that in the early Nation of Islam, "ministers regularly referenced passages from the Bible to prove their claims". Fard's successor Elijah Muhammad would later claim Fard "knew the Bible better than any of the Christian-bred Negroes". Lomax wrote that Fard was "well-versed" in the Bible, used it as a textbook and taught in the style of a Southern
Baptist preacher. Beynon writes that "With growing prestige over a constantly increasing group, [Fard] became bolder in his denunciation of
white people and began to attack the teachings of the Bible in such a way as to shock his audience and bring them to an emotional crisis." eat healthy, raise families, and refrain from drugs and alcohol. In 1938, sociologist Erdmann Doane Beynon published in the
American Journal of Sociology a firsthand account of several interviews he conducted with followers of Fard in Michigan. From those interviews, Beynon wrote that Fard lived and taught in Detroit from 1930 to 1934. Such names included Muhammad, Ali, Karriem, and Fardan. Scholars note that new names had previously been given by
Noble Drew Ali of the
Moorish Science Temple of America, who assigned surnames El and Bey; the term "slave name" was used by the MSTA. After Fard's disappearance, Elijah Muhammad continued the practice of giving new Muslim names to converts to the Nation of Islam and added the letter X, symbolizing the unknown, instead of a name.
Leader of the Allah Temple of Islam Beynon's interviewees told him that reports of Fard's message spread throughout the black community. Attendance at the house meetings grew until the listeners were divided into groups and taught in shifts. Finally, the community contributed money and rented a hall to serve as a temple where meetings were conducted. The
Quran was soon introduced as the most authoritative of all texts for the study of the faith. Fard prepared texts that served as authoritative manuals of the faith and were memorized verbatim by his followers. During this time, Clara Poole, later renamed Clara Muhammad, was introduced to Fard and his teachings through her
in-laws. His teachings gave Poole hope and presented her life with new possibilities and new memories. She further reflected on Fard's theology, "He taught us that the Black people were the God, so when I would say my prayers, I'd shut my eyes and envision that great mass of people as God."
Smith killing drives Fard from Detroit (1932) On November 20, 1932, Robert Harris (who had received the name Robert Karriem from Fard) escorted James J. Smith into a room with a makeshift altar. In the audience were twelve adult witnesses and Harris's wife and children. Smith, who believed he was being inducted into the Allah Temple of Islam, was asked if he would sacrifice his life for Islam, and Smith nodded his assent. Harris then stabbed Smith in the chest, and proceeded to bludgeon him to death with an
axle rod. After neighbors called the police, Harris was arrested. Under questioning, he confessed to the murder: "I had to kill somebody, I could not forsake my gods". Police initiated a
manhunt for Fard and another leader, Ugan Ali, who were arrested and questioned. Harris was deemed insane and committed to a
mental hospital. "The society cannot be blamed for anything he did," Ali was quoted as saying in the
Detroit News, which falsely suggested the murder was tied to the practice of Voodoo. Fard and Ugan Ali, who acknowledged leadership of the Allah Temple of Islam but vehemently denied any teaching of
human sacrifice, were examined by
psychiatrist David Clark, who recommended they be
committed for further
observation. A judge agreed, and both Fard and Ugan Ali were placed in
straitjackets and confined in
padded cells. With Fard and Ugan Ali still in custody five days after the murder, Elijah Muhammad, at the time known as Elijah Karriem, led over two hundred members into the court building and staged a protest on the main floor. The police spent a full day expelling the protesters. On November 25, Harris was
arraigned on charges of
first-degree murder; he pleaded guilty, but his bizarre courtroom behavior convinced witnesses of his
insanity. On December 6, three psychiatrists testified that Harris was
legally insane, and he was committed to the Ionia State Hospital for the Criminal Insane; he died there on June 19, 1935. Faced with criminal charges, Ugan Ali was released after promising to help disband the Allah Temple of Islam, while Fard agreed to forever leave Detroit as a condition of release. On December 7, 1932, police put Fard on a train bound for Chicago. The Allah Temple of Islam was officially disbanded, though soon replaced by a new organization called the Nation of Islam. Former leader Ugan Ali was replaced by Elijah Muhammad.
Fard in exile and the Nation of Islam (1932–1934) In January 1933, Fard snuck back into Detroit and held secret meetings with followers. Fard left Detroit for a few weeks but returned to Detroit and resumed preaching on street corners. Recognized by police, he was arrested on May 25, booked, and
photographed. He was again released and ordered to depart the city. Fard renamed his community the "Nation of Islam". Following the rapid increase in membership, he instituted a formal organizational structure. He established the
Muslim Girls' Training and General Civilization Class, where women were taught how to keep their houses, clean, and cook. The men of the organization were drilled by captains and referred to as the
Fruit of Islam. The entire movement was placed under a Minister of Islam. Fard made a third surreptitious visit to Detroit, this time preaching that the
white man would soon be destroyed by poison bombs. Fard established the
University of Islam, where school-aged children were taught, as an alternative to Detroit public schools. The school was raided by police, and Elijah Muhammad was arrested. Press reported that at trial, fifteen-year-old Sally Ali, who had attended the University of Islam, testified that she had been taught "in the Islamic New Deal that if she cut off the heads of four devils—devils being unrighteous people—she would win a free trip to Mecca and a button of some sort." She further testified that she had been taught that
Caucasians would be destroyed in the year 1934 by poison gas and fighting. Elijah Muhammad was found guilty for his role in establishing an unlicensed school, but he was released on probation. Amid rumors that police wanted both Fard and his chief aide dead, Elijah Muhammad fled for Chicago, and Fard was never again seen by most residents of Detroit. ==Final years==