The Eighties in America - Salem Press (2009)

See also Closing of the American Mind, The; Educa-
tion in the United States; Mainstreaming in educa-
tion; Multiculturalism in education; National Edu-
cation Summit of 1989; Reagan, Ronald; School
vouchers debate; Standards and accountability in
education.

Nation of Yahweh

Identification African American religious
organization

The Nation of Yahweh combined black supremacist
mantras with Judeo-Christian beliefs. The group gained
both popularity and scrutiny throughout the 1980’s, as it
was praised for its community service efforts but criticized
for its message of racial separatism. The organization’s rep-
utation also suffered as a result of alleged connections to
more than a dozen murders in the decade.

The Nation of Yahweh was formed in the 1970’s and
proclaimed its belief system to fall under the Judeo-
Christian umbrella, more specifically as a splinter of
the Black Hebrew Israelites line of thought. The
founder of the Nation of Yahweh was Hulon Mitchell,
Jr., who came to call himself Yahweh ben Yahweh,
which is Hebrew for “God son of God.” Prior to the
group’s legal troubles in the late 1980’s, the most
widespread criticism of the organization had to do
with the accusation that Yahweh ben Yahweh’s teach-
ings were racist and promoted violent separatism.
Yahweh ben Yahweh emphasized black suprem-
acy. His followers believed that God was black, and
therefore blacks were the chosen people in the eyes
of God. Yahweh ben Yahweh also taught his follow-
ers anti-white beliefs, as he considered white people
to be oppressors. In addition to promoting racial dis-
trust, he taught the importance of loyalty to himself
as the son of God. Nation of Yahweh adherents came
to believe so fervently in black empowerment, racial
hatred, and the divine nature of their leader that
they began to compete for Yahweh ben Yahweh’s fa-
vor by violently attacking their perceived enemies.
Eventually, in order to become a trusted member
of the Nation of Yahweh, initiates were required to
murder white people. Yahweh ben Yahweh also be-
gan to order that group members who hesitated to
follow his orders be beaten. Despite public suspicions
that such horrific events occurred behind closed
doors, the Nation of Yahweh was able to gain some fa-

vor in its Florida community by contributing large

sums to Floridian businesses and charities. At the end

of the decade, the organization remained controver-

sial but no allegations of violence against it had yet

been proven. This would change in the early 1990’s.

Impact In the 1980’s, the Nation of Yahweh had a

large following and owned a great deal of real estate

in the Miami area, including the group’s headquar-

ters, which it called the Temple of Love. However,

murders in which group members were involved,

along with the subsequent convictions for those

crimes, all but extinguished the group. The extrem-

ity of the group’s message and its coverage in the

press added to the national conversation about race

in a decade when race relations and prejudice were

often at the center of media representations and the

cultural imagination.

Further Reading

Boyle, James J.Killer Cults: Shocking True Stories of the

Most Dangerous Cults in Histor y. New York: St. Mar-

tin’s Paperbacks, 1995.

Jenkins, Philip.Mystics and Messiahs: Cults and New

Religions in American Histor y. Oxford, England:

Oxford University Press, 2001.

Snow, Robert L.Deadly Cults: The Crimes of True Be-

lievers. Westport, Conn.: Praeger, 2003.

Jennifer L. Titanski

See also African Americans; Religion and spiritu-

ality in the United States.

National Anthem Act of 1980

Identification Canadian federal legislation

Date Passed by Parliament on June 27, 1980

As a result of the National Anthem Act of 1980, “O Can-

ada” became the official national anthem of Canada, one

hundred years after it was first sung.

Calixa Lavallée (1842-1891) was a choirmaster at St.

James Church, in Quebec City, when he was invited

by the Saint Jean-Baptiste Association to write the

music for a French Canadian national anthem.

Adolphe-Basile Routhier, a prominent Quebec City

lawyer and judge, was invited to write the words for

the anthem, in French. The resulting composition,

“Chant National,” received the official approval of

Lieutenant Governor Théodore Robitaille. It was

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Nation of Yahweh The Eighties in America