Civil Rights Leader Jamil Abdullah al-Amin Dies at 82

Atlanta, Georgia — Jamil Abdullah al-Amin, known as H. Rap Brown, died at the age of 82. His son, Kairi Al-Amin, announced the news in a poignant video shared on social media.

In the video, Kairi expressed his sorrow, saying, “From Allah we come, surely to Allah is our return. I lost my father today. Ya Allah, please accept my father Imam Jamil Al-Amin as a shaheed, a martyr, a dedicated servant to You.” He also requested privacy for the family during this time of grief.

Born Hubert Gerold Brown in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Al-Amin was a prominent figure in the civil rights movement. He gained recognition for his militant rhetoric and famously stated, “Violence is as American as cherry pie.” In 1967, he became the fifth national chairman of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), a role in which he removed “Nonviolent” from the group’s name.

Al-Amin briefly served as the minister of justice for the Black Panther Party and was later placed on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted list. After his apprehension, he converted to Islam while serving time in the early 1970s and changed his name to Jamil Abdullah al-Amin.

After his release from prison, he became an Imam and community activist in Atlanta. In 2000, Al-Amin was convicted for the shooting of two sheriff’s deputies and received a life sentence.

Imam Omar Suleiman, a well-known Muslim scholar, paid tribute to Al-Amin on Instagram, sharing that he had fought for years to free him. Suleiman wrote, “For years, we fought to free him. Today he is free. From prison to paradise, God willing. He never lost his dignity, his voice never shook. His innocence was proven, but the system didn’t care.”