ABOUT
ILYASAH SHABAZZ-continued
Ilyasah’s
mother, Al-Shaheedah Dr. Betty Shabazz was
a nurse, educator, activist and an international advocate
for women’s rights. A
widowed, penniless, homeless, terrified, badgered and harassed
young woman in her twenties, Betty Shabazz refused to accept
defeat or limitations; and she would never accept, “no” or “I
can’t” as an answer. With faith in God
and the true knowledge of her history, she raised her six
girls, became a role model for single mothers, and zealously
appropriated the legacy of her husband, Malcolm X. After
receiving her PhD, Dr. Betty Shabazz accepted the professorship
at Medgar Evers College because, in her words, “[she]
was concerned about the plight of her people and could empathize
with those struggling to take care of their families and
to make ends meet.” She could have gone anywhere,
but she chose a position where she could best serve others. Dr.
Shabazz often said to Ilyasah, “Just as one must
drink water, one must give back.”
BIOGRAPHY
ILYASAH
SHABAZZ is committed to developing educational programs
that foster self-empowerment; expanding the role of government
to teach individual responsibility for improving society;
and capitalizing on the arts & entertainment to encourage
the understanding of history, culture, and self- expression.
Ms. Shabazz produces The
WAKE-UP Tour™, her exclusive youth empowerment
program designed to inspire young people to think and act
critically to safeguard their futures. She is also
corporation president and trustee of The Malcolm
X & Dr. Betty Shabazz Memorial, Educational, and Cultural
Center, Inc. at The Audubon, the place of her father’s
martyrdom in 1965.
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