Louis Farrakhan

Louis Farrakhan Sr. (; born Louis Eugene Walcott; May 11, 1933), formerly known as Louis X, is an American minister who is the leader of the religious group Nation of Islam (NOI), which the Southern Poverty Law Center describes as a black nationalist and black supremacist group. Previously, he served as the minister of mosques in Boston and Harlem and had been appointed National Representative of the Nation of Islam by former NOI leader Elijah Muhammad. After Warith Deen Muhammad reorganized the original NOI into the orthodox Sunni Islamic group American Society of Muslims, Farrakhan started rebuilding the NOI as "Final Call". In 1981 he officially adopted the name "Nation of Islam", reviving the group and establishing its headquarters at Mosque Maryam. Farrakhan has been described as antisemitic by the Anti-Defamation League, the SPLC and others. The NOI promotes an anti-white theology, also according to the SPLC. Some of his remarks have also been considered homophobic. Farrakhan has disputed these characterizations.In October 1995, he organized and led the Million Man March in Washington, D.C. Due to health issues, he reduced his responsibilities with the NOI in 2007. However, Farrakhan has continued to deliver sermons and speak at NOI events. In 2015, he led the 20th Anniversary of the Million Man March: Justice or Else.