Mr. Muhammad was born in Hampton, Virginia, and raised in New York City.  It was in New York that he joined the Nation of Islam (NOI) under the leadership of the Honorable Elijah Muhammad in 1960, and served as a Student Minister under the NOI’s Harlem Minister, Malcolm X.  From 1965 to 1975, he served as Minister Louis Farrakhan’s assistant, orchestrating the publication of Minister Farrakhan’s book, 7 Speeches (1973); and he was a key organizer of “Black Family Day” which drew over 70,000 people to Randall’s Island in New York City in 1974.  When the Honorable Elijah Muhammad’s son Imam W. D. Mohammed assumed leadership of the NOI in 1975, Akbar continued to serve the Muslim community, first as head of its mosque in St. Louis, Missouri, and then as Special Assistant to Imam Mohammed in Chicago.  During that time, he made his first trip to Europe, Africa, and Asia.  

In 1978 Akbar accepted the responsibility to assist Minister Farrakhan to rebuild the Nation of Islam and in 1984 gained his stature at home and abroad as the International Representative of the NOI.  Akbar has been one of the key organizers of many of the NOI’s Saviours’ Day conventions; in October 1994, he organized the NOI’s first International Saviours’ Day Convention in Accra, Ghana, bringing over nineteen hundred travelers from America to Africa.  In addition, he planned and organized Minister Farrakhan’s international tours to Africa, Europe, Asia, and the Caribbean while building relationships with presidents, heads of state, and leaders of many of the countries they visited.  

Akbar has traveled to one hundred and twenty-eight countries around the world—including thirty-eight African nations—and has lived in Ghana, Africa for over a decade.  Through the Africa and Middle East Literacy Foundation, he continues to consult with African and African-American leaders to promote humanitarian efforts in many parts of the world, including galvanizing African-American physicians to work in remote clinics and hospitals in parts of Africa.  He recently organized an historic trip for an African-American press delegation to travel to the Sudan for a visit to Darfur on a fact-finding mission, and through his efforts secured exclusive one-on-one interviews with Sudan’s President Omar El-Bashir for Black Entertainment Television (BET) and the TV-One Network.  

His work also focuses on youth education and development.  He is the founder of Youth4Africa Foundation, a non-profit organization geared toward providing Black youth in America a personal journey “back to Africa” in order to gain a historical perspective that connects past lost cultural traditions to their present life choices.  He believes, “Taking young people to Africa can make a difference.  The African experience will aid our youth in understanding their purpose, inspiring fundamental discussions, and shaping positive self-images.”  

His extensive work and travel in Africa are reflected in his column, “Africa and the World,” published in African-American newspapers nationally and internationally, and he is a sought-after as a speaker on the history of Islam in America, Malcolm X, the life and work of Minister Farrakhan, and issues affecting the African continent.  

To schedule Akbar Muhammad to speak at your event, seminar, school, or university, you may contact him at Akbar@friendsofakbar.com or 202-986-3863.