Siraj Wahhaj

Siraj Wahhaj (b. 1369 AH / 1950 CE), born Jeffrey Kearse in Brooklyn, New York, is one of the most prominent African-American Muslim leaders in the United States. He converted to Islam in the early 1970s through contact with the Nation of Islam but subsequently embraced orthodox Sunni Islam and became affiliated with the mainstream Muslim community.

He has served as the imam of Masjid At-Taqwa in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York, since 1981. Under his leadership, the masjid became a significant community institution, addressing not only the spiritual needs of the local Muslim population but also social issues such as drug rehabilitation, community safety, and youth development. Masjid At-Taqwa became known as a model for how a mosque could positively transform an urban neighborhood.

Imam Siraj Wahhaj is known for his powerful and engaging speaking style, combining Islamic scholarship with an intimate understanding of the challenges facing African-American and urban Muslim communities. He has been a vocal advocate for the application of Islamic principles in addressing social problems and has spoken at mosques, Islamic centers, and universities across the country.

In 1991, he became the first Muslim to deliver an invocation to the United States House of Representatives, a recognition of his standing as a Muslim leader in American public life. He has served as an officer in the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) and has been involved in numerous Muslim organizations and causes.

He follows the Sunni tradition in aqeedah and fiqh and has been a voice for orthodox Islamic practice within the American Muslim community. His decades of community leadership in Brooklyn and his national platform have made him one of the most recognized Muslim leaders in the United States.