Library & Archives Lunch Hour: Ibrahim González

For this month's Library & Archives Lunch Hour, we are so excited to dive into the collection of Ibrahim Aqil Adbush Shakur González, known as Ibrahim González. González was a multifaceted artist; musician, photographer, radio host, activist, and educator born in East Harlem well known for helping set up one of the first Latino-Muslim organizations in the East Coast of the United States. González was involved in various organizations and social justice movements, ultimately leading him to getting involved with the Afro-American Islam-influenced movement The Five-Percent Nation.

With the support of other Muslim Latinos, he founded the first Hispanic Muslim organization in the US, Alianza Islámica, along with a bilingual islamic journal. By the early 1990’s Ibrahim González had already started hosting radio shows at WBAI named Radio Libre and In the Moment. During this time, he led various bands like the Ibrahim González Latin Jazz Quintet, Caribbean Troubadours, Nuyorican Jazz Experience, Bronx Jam Band, and the Overnite Cabal. He also taught at different cultural institutions such as Carnegie Hall where he would conduct workshops introducing Latin Jazz to NYC school teachers; Warner Music Project, where he would conduct music workshops to community youth and organize community concerts.