Khalid Abdul Muhammad, former aide to Louis Farrakhan, says he plans to hold a “million youth march” in Harlem on September 5 despite being denied a permit for the march on that date or in Harlem. Muhammad has rejected offers by New York City to hold the march on September 19 on Randalls Island or in Van Cortlandt Park.
In November 1993, Muhammad gave a speech at Kean College in New Jersey that was laden with anti-Catholic and anti-Semitic rhetoric. As a result of his disparaging remarks, Muhammad was denounced by the U.S. black Catholic bishops, the U.S. Civil Rights Commission, the Catholic League, ADL and other civil rights organizations.
William Donohue voiced his concerns over the march today:
“Mayor Rudolph Giuliani is right to condemn the bigoted comments made by Khalid Abdul Muhammad. An equal opportunity bigot, Muhammad does not discriminate between Catholics and Jews in launching his attacks: he hates both groups.
“Hate mongers have a right to march, but no one has a right to inform the authorities of the time, place and manner of the march. If the authorities decide that another time and place is in the best interest of public safety, that is their call. For Muhammad to say that he will march anyway is to show contempt for the law.
“In 1994, Mayor Giuliani allowed radical gays to march naked past St. Patrick’s Cathedral without a permit. It will be interesting to see whether he allows Muhammad to march without a permit on September 5 in Harlem.”
