The Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan Celebrates His 68th Birthday

Jet, June 4, 2001

Well over 300 guests from across the country recently helped Nation of Islam leader, the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan, celebrate his 68th birthday at the Salaam restaurant in Chicago.

The Nation of Islam formally calls the event his 68th year birth anniversary.

The affair, hosted by The Believers of Mosque Maryam, the headquarters mosque in Chicago, was the opening night for a three-day celebration in honor of the Minister as a show of love and gratitude to celebrate him and his life. The event included dinner, an art auction and entertainment provided by calypso music greats the Mighty Sparrow and Calypso Rose.

The art auction sold photographs of Minister Farrakhan that were made to look like canvas paintings. The artwork consisted of various framed pieces of the Minister speaking in the church and at the Million Man March, meeting with African leaders, and posing with his wife Mother Khadijah Farrakhan.

Among the guests at the celebration were hip-hop music mogul Russell Simmons and his wife, Kimora Lee, recording artist Tank, Detroit Lions football star Desmond Howard, recording execs Barry Hankerson and Abdul Haqq Islam, the Revs. T.L. Barrett, Mitty Collier and Maxine Walker, Bishop Pak, Rev. Michael Jenkins, family, Muslims and friends.

The Honorable Minister expressed a great deal of gratitude and joy to the people who threw the celebration for him. Once a calypso singer himself over 40 years ago, the Honorable Minister found the entertainment especially enjoyable.

While making a speech to his guests he talked about the need to be grateful for life and the need to properly deal with whatever circumstances come into your life.

Late last year, Minister Farrakhan was hospitalized to repair damage done by treatment for an earlier diagnosis of prostate cancer (JET, Nov. 20, 2000). The Minister has been teaching at the mosque on a consistent basis. His cancer is in remission.