ATLANTA�Westhills Presbyterian Church was jammed to capacity on July 22, as the crowd spilled over and onto the outside lawn. Traffic slowed as motorists and pedestrians stopped to see and hear the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan as he illuminated from a 40-ft. high, closed-circuit screen posted at the front of the street cornered edifice. It was the first public event during his four-day stay in Atlanta and one of the largest audiences in support of October 16, 2000 Million Family March (MFM) tour.

Crowds gathered early, lining both sides of the building as the humidity and temperature continued to climb. Hundreds of chairs were rented to accommodate the lawn guests as well as those in the social hall below the sanctuary. An additional closed circuit screen allowed the basement overflow in the church to see and hear their brother. Atlanta was the eighth city stop for the Minister. As grueling as this schedule has been for the 67-year-old leader, he gets stronger along every stop�preaching the need for unity, justice and the restoration of family.

This night, he challenged clergy, organizations and community to join on to the call for one million families on the Washington, D.C., Mall and to be as the prophets of God and fight injustice wherever found on the earth.

�If singing and shouting would get us into heaven, we�d be there by now,� said Min. Farrakhan. �If saying Al-Hamdulilah would get us into the heaven, we�d be there right now. Unfortunately, some work has to be done.
�There are some challenges that have to be made and those of us who stand for God and stand for His Christ and stand for His servant Muhammad (PBUH), if we stand sincerely, Satan is not going to love us. You�re not going to have a lot of friends in the world. You might be lied on; you might be brought to court. You might be falsely accused. You might even be killed for His namesake, but it�s better to die in faith than to leave the legacy of cowardice to your children,� he said.

The Minister said that the people must know what it is to be honored by God, instead of seeking the honor of men. �I want us not to seek validation from the slavemaster and his children. I�d rather that we seek validation from God by the righteous works we do,� he pleaded.

The evening began with prayer and a hearty welcome from Westhills� pastor, the Reverend Miranda Harris. �Anything that promotes strong family values is a good thing,� Rev. Harris told the audience in her endorsement of the Million Family March.

�I was very comfortable in being a part of the Million Man March and I am very comfortable now in my support of the Million Family March,� said 10th District City Councilman C.T. Martin during his presentation. �Brother Farrakhan talks the truth. We need the truth,� and when he speaks, Mr. Martin said, the people will follow because they are following the truth.

A highlight of the evening occurred when Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) President Martin Luther King, III arrived. To the delight of all, the two embraced and repeated the call for unity.

�On August 26 and in October when the Million Family March occurs we will be there and we will be there in mass numbers,� declared Mr. King. �I do believe that if my father were alive that he would be at the forefront providing leadership for men and women of goodwill to come together. The time has come
for us to stop player hating and come together,� said the son of slain civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

�Satan is so upset because he wants division and we just won�t give it to him,� celebrated Min. Farrakhan after Mr. King�s words. �Martin Luther King, III has accepted the challenge of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference to carry on the work of his illustrious father. There is no way that we could be opposed to the good that this man and this organization will do for us and for all human beings who suffer,� he said.

In the audience and recognized by the Minister were Mississippi publisher of the Jackson Advocate newspaper Charles Tisdale, and the family of NAACP Field Director Earl Shinholster, who died recently in an auto accident.

Slave port beginning

The southern leg of the MFM tour began July 18 in Richmond, Va., a slave port town where family bonds of Black slaves were broken during this nation�s infancy. From Richmond, the tour made stops in Norfolk, Va., and Charlotte, N.C., before arriving here.

�As we look at (America) and the nations of the earth, we are torn apart by tribal, national, ethnic, racial and by religious conflict,� Min. Farrakhan told members of the press gathered at the Richmond Sheraton Hotel. City leaders also were on hand to greet the international leader.

�What has happened to the sense of family?� he asked. Citing a soaring national divorce rate, Min. Farrakhan warned that, �whenever you have a divorce rate of more than 50 percent, that is a sign of the decline of that civilization.� Once marriage is broken, family is broken. And since family is the basic unit of civilization you can�t build strong community and national life unless you have a strong family structure, he said.

During his brief stay in the city, which included a meeting with the city�s leadership, controversy emerged when newspaper headlines and news broadcasts blared that he supports the flying of the Confederate flag.

When asked during the press conference about his thoughts on Black protests against the Confederate flag and a floodwall portrait of Confederate General Robert E. Lee, Min. Farrakhan noted that the problem is not the flag or the portrait. The problem is the mindset of white supremacy that will exist even if the flag is taken down, he said.

�If we�re upset as Black people that they are flying the Confederate flag, then you should be upset about the flying the American flag. All the hell we�ve caught we�ve caught it under that flag. Who�s willing to stand up and talk about that? I am,� Min. Farrakhan said.

�I don�t want to destroy the American flag,� he continued. �These are all symbols of our hurt. The way we correct that is to unify, organize, mobilize and focus on that in the society that we feel is an impediment to our rise.�

In other cities, he reiterated that waving the Confederate flag in the face of Blacks is as offensive as waving the swastika in the face of Jewish people. He called on all to join in fighting white supremacy that makes both the Confederate flag and the American flag symbols of oppression to Black descendents of slaves.

During Min. Farrakhan�s public address to an overflow crowd at Imani Temple church�where he was pleasantly surprised at the attendance of his college classmates Marshall Emery and Thomasina Binga�attorney Sa�ad El-Amin presented the eloquent minister with a proclamation in his honor.

Citing the city�s history as a port of sale for slaves, attorney El-Amin reminded the audience that the buyers weren�t interested in family �so mother was separated from daughter to be taken somewhere for the rest of their lives and the only escape was death.

�So we have a special reason to listen to the wisdom of Louis Farrakhan tonight and organize and do something we�ve never done before. And that is to stick together,� he said.

�This rally for the Million Family March means that we have finally realized that there are more issues that bring us together than there are ones that break us apart,� said Rev. Bill Whitaker, assistant pastor of Imani Temple church. Rather than talking about what�s wrong with Christians fellowshipping with Muslims, let�s talk about resolving the problems of the family, he said.

The rally was simulcast live to thousands more in the city over radio station WCLM-AM.

The Norfolk, Va., stop of the tour July 19 was highlighted by a leadership meeting attended by Norfolk Police Chief Melvin High and members of his staff; City Council members Herbert Collins, Daun Hester and Barkley Wynn; State Delegates William P. Robinson, Lionell Spruill and Jerrauld Jones; members of the NAACP, pastors and activists.

Seated at head positions of a large conference table where some 40 leaders gathered, Min. Farrakhan told Chief High that his (Farrakhan�s) job is to make the jobs of policemen and women easier. Min. Farrakhan challenged the government to ease the burden of police by stopping the flow of guns and drugs into the community. Chief High told The Final Call that he agreed with the Minister�s analysis of the problems and his call for a Million Family March.

The Norfolk stop concluded with a high-spirited night rally at St. Andrews Church of God in Christ pastored by Rev. Loretta Jones. Referring to Min. Farrakhan in opening remarks as �one of God�s greatest prophets who is still with us,� Rev. Milton Reid told the overflow audience of more than 1,000 that pastors must become more involved �in this march or movement for freedom and justice.�

Commenting after the Minister�s speech, St. Andrews member Georgia Taylor searched for words to describe her feelings. �It was awesome, most elegant,� she said of the message. �He didn�t say nothing but the truth for all families, Black and white. It really was awesome. There are so many things said about the man, but we were able to see for ourselves tonight and the man didn�t preach nothing but the true gospel.�

Carlos Howard, a local businessman and former co-chair of the African American/Jewish Coalition who attended both events, told The Final Call that he had sought to pave the way for dialogue between the local Anti-Defamation League of B�nai B�rith (ADL) and the United Jewish Federation, but to no avail.

�They have a national position that until Min. Farrakhan makes some cleansing statements that they will not sit and talk to him,� Mr. Howard said, adding that the local ADL head, attorney Andrew Sachs, seemed willing to initiate discussions but the national policy prohibited movement. �But in my assessment of the situation, I see that Min. Farrakhan has made cleansing statements and is willing to sit and talk.

�The burden is now on the Jewish community to initiate the dialogue so there can be some measure of reconciliation. A man does not do the kind of things that he (Min. Farrakhan) does and touch the masses of people and be an anti-Semite or anti-anything. The impact he�s making on our people is phenomenal. I�m intolerant of anti-Semitism, but I�m also pro-Black and I won�t stand by and let anybody malign anymore our African American men, especially Min. Farrakhan,� he said.

The fact that Min. Farrakhan�s motorcade was delayed July 20 on the way to Charlotte, N.C., causing him to miss the scheduled press conference and leadership meeting, did not dampen the spirit of the more than 30 leaders from the city who had come to the Omni Hotel to greet him. But it also did not prohibit Min. Farrakhan from personally thanking the leaders and the media for attending the press conference and leadership meeting.

Following brief words by Min. Farrakhan via a cell phone held to a microphone by MFM national director Benjamin F. Muhammad, Min. Benjamin informed the media that there is more energy surrounding the MFM than there was during the historic Million Man March in 1995. He also briefed them on the National Agenda action plan for the MFM and beyond.

Min. Benjamin also noted his historic roots in Charlotte. He graduated from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, was arrested and once ran for the city council during his days as a civil rights activist with Southern Christian Leadership Conference.

�America leads the world in crime and alcohol consumption,� Min. Farrakhan told another overflow audience at Walls Memorial AME Church later that night.

�She leads the world in all things that God said thou shall not do. �Can a great nation like this escape the wrath of God if she has exceeded the limits? America is under divine judgment,� he said.