Muslim members
were reminded that their last names had been imposed upon them by
the white man whom Fard equated with the Devil. It is the
practice among Muslims to drop their Christian name and, until
their true names will be revealed to them, to substitute the
letter X for their last name symbolizing the unknown. Fard
insisted that the first man had been a black man and that whites
were a corruption of humanity. The days of the White Devil, he
said, were numbered. Blacks should deliberately withdraw from
white society in order not to be caught in its final destruction.
The Muslim's life was rigidly disciplined. There were temple
services almost every evening. Individual behavior and dress were
carefully dictated. Besides forbidding the eating of pork, devout
Muslims were not allowed to drink alcohol or smoke tobacco.
Relationships between men and women were extremely puritanical.
Each temple had special groups to prepare young men and women for
manhood and womanhood. The Fruit of Islam was the young men's
group, and it was a semi-military defense corps aimed at
developing a sense of manhood and the ability for self-defense.
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