Thursday, February 27, 2003
Copyright © Las Vegas Mercury

'Freak nation'

Las Vegas audience hears Farrakhan muse on war and everything else

By Newt Briggs

Considering how much Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan talks, it's almost surprising that he doesn't say a whole lot more controversial stuff. At least that's how it felt Sunday at Charles West Middle School when Farrakhan droned on for almost three hours during a live, closed-circuit broadcast of his "America at the Crossroads: War Is Not the Answer" address from Chicago's UIC Pavilion. Attended by more than 400 Las Vegans (who each paid $10 for the privilege), the speech purported to be about the impending war in Iraq, but the voluble Farrakhan ranged over topics that included homeland security, Mike Tyson, the genealogy of Puerto Ricans, homosexuality, anti-Semitism, domestic policy, the sinking of the Lusitania in 1915, thong underwear and Michael Jackson.

"C'mon, now, we gonna have school today," Farrakhan said as he entered to a standing ovation in Chicago (and Las Vegas). Still, the main focus of his rhetoric was President Bush--the so-called "arch-deceiver"--and he had a stern warning for Americans intent on the course of war.

"I am telling you that though Iraq looks easy to America, Iraq is a trigger," said Farrakhan, who recently underwent treatment for prostate cancer. "The real thing will happen after Iraq. America will start rolling down the hill, I promise you, to total destruction. And the America that you think you know now you will never know again as a world power. Mark my humble words."

The 69-year-old Farrakhan also weighed in on Israel and the corruption of traditional Judaism. "I don't want to lay on that because I don't want my audience to think I'm racist," he said as he smirked at the stifled chuckles scattered among the crowd. "But no man can say he's a Jew and promote homosexuality. No man can claim he's a Jew and promote that which is against the commandments of God. No man can claim he's a Jew and run the despicable, degenerate movies."

Yet Farrakhan's most colorful comments were reserved for the domestic front--particularly his musings on the urban nightclub scene. "All you women going out dancing in a thong and a see-through dress, and a man got his hands on your backside and you're putting your mouth in his crotch. This is all going on on the dance floor. What the heck is this? We've turned into freak nation!"

Although it inspired laughter, this part of his speech seemed to resonate particularly strongly with the local audience.

"The Honorable Minister Farrakhan is right on," said an elderly man who identified himself as Brother Leon. "All these young people running 'round with the boobs and the butts--it's getting downright out of hand. Especially here, where we live. We got the strippers and the prostitutes and the escorts, and they all got their own billboards. Isn't it enough already?"

Not everyone was so taken by Farrakhan's perspective, though. "I agree with his stance on the war, but some of his social programs get a little crazy for me," said 32-year-old Las Vegan Tracy Thomas after witnessing Farrakhan's lengthy broodings on the problems plaguing American society. "He's definitely a strong spokesperson for black people, but--please--we all need to make our own decisions about the issues that affect our lives."

Which, according to Farrakhan's speech, is exactly what he would want. Criticizing President Bush's policy on the Middle East, he told his audience, "You can't just follow your leaders blindly."

And, apparently, at least half of his Vegas audience took him quite literally, trickling out before their long-winded leader could finish his lecture. Which begs the question: If a Farrakhan speaks in a pavilion but no one's there to hear it, does he make a sound?