The poor righteous teacher does not teach for money, fame or fortune. His message is truth and truth alone. Marvin X told Jet Magazine, "I don't want the Christian truth, Muslim truth, Communist Truth, I want the whole truth, so help me God!"
No matter how the political correct consider him, i.e., some say he is not a Muslim--although there are those who consider him the father of Muslim American literature (Dr. Mohja Kahf), though there are those who know he is one of the fathers of the Black Arts Movement, precursor of Rap or the Hip Hop movement (See the anthology Black Fire and the Black Arts Movement Reader SOS.
Amiri Baraka said, "Marvin X, aka El Muhajir, is one of the outstanding...African writers and teachers in America. He has always been in the forefront of Pan African writing. Indeed, he is one of the innovators and foudners of the new revolutionary schools of African writing."--Amiri Baraka
"When you listen to Tupac Shakur, E-40, Too Short, Master P or any other rappers out of the Bay Area of Cali, think of Marvin X. He laid the foundation and gave us the language to express Black male urban experiences in a lyrical way."
--James G. Spady, Philadelphia New Observer
Many don't know where to place Marvin X, for sure he transcends the American and European literary tradition.
Bob Holman called him, "The USA's Rumi. Then added he was Saddi and Hafiz."
Ishmael Reed said, "He is Plato teaching on the streets of Oakland." For sure, Marvin X teachers at 14th and Broadway, downtown Oakland. But his mission is far beyond teaching, he is a mental health counselor for the many suffering trauma and grief."
My teaching is thus about literacy, literature, consciousness, partner relations, parent/child relations and more. --Marvin X, August 28, 2015
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