National NAACP takes over Philadelphia chapter after president’s anti-Semitic Facebook post

In the meantime, Muhammad appears to remain the titular head of the local branch, albeit with no power.

Muhammad, whose given surname name is Carpenter, is the minster at North Philadelphia’s Mosque Number 12 of the Nation of Islam. He has a history of sharing anti-Semitic and questionable posts on his own and the mosque’s social media accounts.

He shared the meme that raised the ire of many in the community on July 23. It showed photos of Eagles wide receiver DeSean Jackson, rapper Ice Cube and TV host Nick Cannon, all of whom have made anti-Semitic statements recently and faced criticism.

Below those photos appeared a caricature of a Jewish man with a large nose and black beard who was wearing a yarmulke. The Jewish man’s image was imposed on the sleeve of an unseen person whose hand, which has a large jeweled ring on it, is pressing down on a pile of bodies.

A quote on the meme, which was misattributed to French philosopher and writer Voltaire, actually was said by a white nationalist and Holocaust denier. Billy Penn and WHYY broke the story last month.

In past statements, Muhammad maintained he was not aware that the meme was anti-Semitic, saying he removed the post when he learned it “bared significant offense to the Jewish community.” He never explicitly apologized for the post.

The national office of the NAACP initially backed Muhammad, although it condemned his posting as hate speech.

The inaction and support of national leadership for Muhammad led to grumbling and frustration among state and local NAACP leaders.

Yet Muhammad never lost support from some in the Black community, including Sheriff Rochelle Bilal, a long-time local chapter board member who stepped down from the organization after she was elected sheriff last year.

As criticism against Muhammad mounted and local Jewish organizations refused to work with the local chapter of the NAACP, the national office stepped in to manage the controversy.

Until Aug. 20, the Philadelphia chapter’s executive board was made up of Bishop J. Louis Felton, first vice president; the Rev. Cleveland Edwards, second vice president; Kamryn Bonds, third vice president; Shirley Jordan, treasurer; Shirley Williams, assistant treasurer; and Shirley Roberts, secretary.

Wednesday’s announcement came a day after local Black and Jewish leaders held a virtual discussion to address Muhammad’s social media post and underlying tensions between the groups, according to Billy Penn. Muhammad was not present.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.