Nashid Rushdan

Nashid Adib Rushdan was born on February 6th, 1951 in Mobile, Alabama. Alongside his nine siblings, he grew up in a community that held on firmly to the belief that ‘it takes a village to raise a child.’ Rushdan attended Central High School in Africatown before enlisting in the military in March 1970, where he served until March 1974 and then continued on to attend Sanford D. Bishop State Community College in 1978, and Carver State Technical School in 1984. In his oral history interview, Rushdan speaks about his personal journey with and his relationship to the religion of Al-Islam, as well as lessons he learnt from Nation of Islam Leaders, Elijah Muhammad and Imam Warith Deen Muhammad. Rushdan also speaks on the historic presence of Islam on the African continent and the religion’s long-standing connection to Black people in his oral history.