NCJ Number
169852
Journal
Journal of Gang Research Volume: 5 Issue: 2 Dated: (Winter 1998) Pages: 61-73
Date Published
1998
Length
13 pages
Annotation
This article examines the history of the Five-Percent Nation of Islam, its beliefs, and where it may be heading.
Abstract
The Five-Percent Nation of Islam hides behind an aura of religious protection, but its only real religion is the worship of money and power. The Five-Percent Nation, also known as the Gods, the New Nation of Islam, and various other names, is a loosely organized gang more often at war with other factions of itself than with competitive gangs. The group has its roots in the early 1930s with the first stirrings of a movement which became popularly known as the Black Muslims in the 1960s and the Nation of Islam today. The Nation of Islam's tenet that the White Man is a blue-eyed evil is well known. Less well known is another tenet taught by the Nation, that the Black Man is god. The article includes a detailed history of the Five-Percenters and the major personalities associated with the gang over the years and discusses current trends in the group's activities, its criminal pursuits, its symbols, women of the group, and whether the group is a religion or a cult. Notes, figure