Nurah Speaks

Yosef Ben Asiel is the host of the ‘Know Thy Self Radio' podcast and is this week’s guest on Nurah Speaks. Yosef, who hails from Chicago, has an interesting background. His late mother was a student and follower of the Honorable Elijah Muhammad and his father is Prince Asiel Ben Israel, the International Ambassador of the Hebrew Israelites. His exposure to both the Hebrew Israelites and the Nation...

This week’s episode of Nurah Speaks is a special tribute replay in honor of the recently departed Munir Muhammad. Brother Munir was the business manager and co-founder of CROE (Coalition for the Remembrance of Elijah Muhammad). He is also known to be the chief archivist and historian of the Honorable Elijah Muhammad and the Nation of Islam. This interview was recorded on December 9, 2017 during a...

In order for us to prevent child abuse, we must recognize the antecedents and take proactive measures to protect our children. This episode shares seven proactive measures we can take to safeguard our children and guard the wellbeing of our communities. If you would like to engage with the Nurah Speaks podcast, submit your listener questions to info@NurahSpeaks.com.  Listeners can also learn more...

This episode is the conclusion of my conversation with Denise Poole, Founder and CEO of Heart 2 Heart Services. If you did not listen to the first part of our conversation, I advise you to go back and listen to episode 79. Be advised that this conversation may be triggering for some. Heart 2 Heart is a nonprofit agency providing education on Sex Trafficking in the United States as well as outreach...

Denise R. Poole is an International Speaker, Author, Therapist, Workshop Presenter, and Founder/CEO of Heart 2 Heart Services, Inc. With experiences that span more than twenty years, Denise is considered an expert in the field of social services and child and youth development. Denise established Heart 2 Heart Services, Inc. with a mission to educate and provide outreach to services linked with pr...

Knowledge affords the knowledgeable the ability to solve problems, breach barriers, overcome resistance and make progress. Many can testify that in our individual lives as well as collectively, we are not as progressive as we should be. In the 156 years post the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation, we are still asking government for equality and justice. Yet we have more educational attainmen...

This episode concludes my series of conversations about the role Black women - in particular - have in impacting our community. This episode touches on the impact that we have in shaping the strength and the weaknesses in our boys and men. It is not always easy to do a critical self examination and identify those areas in which we have not supported our boys and men as they need. I salute the sist...

In too many urban areas across this country, un-informed leadership have taken to patterning themselves after a certain beggar named Lazarus who laid at the gate of the rich man desiring to be fed with the crumbs that fell from the rich man’s table. These leaders amplify the role of corporations and politicians to reduce crime rates and gun deaths in our communities while diminishing the role of t...

There are consequences for children and communities when children are born to fractured homes. The discussion in this episode shares some of those consequences and the considerations we need to create better outcomes for our families and communities. This is episode is part 2 in a short series of conversations especially for Black women to help us realize the impact we have in shaping our communit...

Truth hurts but it can also heal if we allow it. This episode is part one in a short series in which I discuss sensitive issues regarding black women. This installment calls on us to be accountable for our choices, particularly those involving reckless sexual behavior resulting in unintended pregnancies…and single parenthood. As I say in this episode, this discussion is shared with love, not judge...

“Somebody needs to do something!” This is a familiar refrain in response to events and conditions outrageously offensive to the general public. Gun deaths. Educational deficiencies. Youth delinquency. Drug abuse. Gang violence. Unscrupulous police activity. Neglectful parenting. Food insecurity. It is true that 'somebody' needs to do something and that 'somebody' is you! We do not need to look ove...

Cher McCall is this week’s guest on the Nurah Speaks podcast. She is a licensed social worker who works primarily with the adolescent population. Cher has extensive experience serving youth who’ve endured physical, mental, emotional and spiritual trauma. She shares her insights into practical approaches in helping youth manage their pain and fostering hope in what seems to them as a hopeless reali...

This was an insightful conversation with Judge Charles Dortch Jr. and the takeaways from this episode are abundant. A key takeaway is the lesson of entitlement embedded in him by his parents. He understood at an early age that he was entitled to be his best and do his best. And the encourages the youth who come before him to do the same. Judge Dortch’s impact on youth and families extends well bey...

This is Part 2 of my series for ‘National Take Your Daughters and Sons to Work Day.’ This episode features my other son Qahhar Muhammad. In this episode Qahhar shares thoughts on mentorship and his experiences with the criminalization of childhood that is impacting children and families nationwide. Qahhar is a member of Camden’s New Jersey’s Youth Leadership and Readiness Program, Camden Men’s Wre...

Since it is ‘National Take Your Daughters and Sons to Work Day’, I have brought my two sons onto the podcast to hear their thoughts on life. This week’s episode, Episode 70, is part one of a two-part series and features my son, Haidar Muhammad. Haidar shares his thoughts on fear, leadership, 'Dad Talks' and being reared in a two parent household plus so much more. He is a member of Camden New Jers...

Jealousy is one of those social cancers that eats at the fabric of our community and the sanity of the individual bearing the jealousy. In this episode I discuss five common components of jealousy and how jealousy is manifest. Be sure to read the accompanying article to this episode which shares those five components in even greater detail by using this link: https://nurahmuhammad.com/blog/jealous...

We are fooling ourselves if we think we do not need a strategy to capture the attention of our youth. Corporations and organizations (legitimate and illegitimate)are competing for the minds of our young people. And they are very strategic in their solicitations. There are lessons we can learn from these strategies and this episode explores them and what we risk if we do not recruit our young peopl...

In an instant broadcasters, social media influencers and entertainers can define our attitudes and perspectives on trending issues. We can often find ourselves immersed in the overwhelming and repetitive coverage of trending topics while matters much closer to home are left ignored. This episode is a reminder to stay vigilant; stay woke! We had better because while we are swept up in the distracti...

Since there is no maximum capacity to learning, it is great to keep an open mind. Doing so avails us the great potential of learning new and useful information and applications to improve our lives. But we block those blessings, so to speak, when we make roadblocks of pride, fear or even guilt, preventing our accessing solutions to many of the problems we face. In this week’s episode, I discuss ou...

The political season is bearing down upon us. Candidates will soon be stomping in your town seeking your vote. But what considerations do you have when choosing your elected officials? Choosing our elected officials, especially at the local level, is one of our most important acts of civic engagement because it is these electeds who will be voting on legislature that will directly impact our famil...

It’s been a while since I’ve done a ‘Drive Time’ episode and this week’s 'Drive Time' conversation is about our Facebook habits. The content that we post online says a lot about our values, our character and our discipline. Take a listen to this episode as I discuss: •Why we should treat Facebook like Main Street •Content that is not good to share on Facebook •Policies your employer, organization...

Negative thinking is not only an impediment to personal and professional growth but also to our health and wellness. We must learn how to prioritize the good over the bad by ‘settling on the best part’ of our lives, of our families, of our communities and of ourselves. Why is it so important to settle on the best part and avoid persevering on the negative? Inclining to negative thoughts and attitu...

It was an honor to sit with this week’s guest, Andrea Lawful-Sanders. Andrea is many things. She is a writer, a wife and a mother, a child and family advocate, a mentor, a columnist, a radio show contributor, an executive director and so much more. And in all that she does, one words resonates loudly: authentic. Andrea lives her life authentically and she challenges others to do the same. Listen t...

Temporary responses to the permanence of racism is getting us nowhere. As it is the cycle, once the offenders of racism issue their apologetic platitudes, we are soon thereafter pacified back to neutral. We are too easily placated with interim damage control in the form of sensitivity forums, promotional opportunities and temporary access. Our short term memory of the sustained offenses against ou...

There is a stark contrast in what a Community Activist is and what some may consider a Community Terrorist. In general, activism is lobbying special interests, confronting inequities, challenging governmental dysfunction and persuading social change, sometimes through protest and otherwise through affirming new social norms. For purposes of this conversation, I will define community terrorism as:...