Biden adviser has been associated with a church that has a history of providing a platform for antisemites: "Devil by nature"

A high-ranking advisor in the Biden administration has worked at a church in Washington, D.C. for many years, where several activists and religious leaders with a history of antisemitism have spoken, including one Black activist who, in a 2002 speech, called for the murder of "Zionists" in Israel, including their infants.

Rev. Thomas Bowen, a minister of social justice at Shiloh Baptist Church since 2002 and listed on the church's website, has joined the White House as the senior adviser for the Office of Public Engagement, which works to ensure community leaders, diverse perspectives, and new voices inform the President's work at the local, state, and national levels.

Shiloh Baptist Church, a historic Black church that Vice President Kamala Harris and her husband visited on Christmas Day in 2022, is led by Reverend Doctor Wallace Charles Smith, Shiloh's senior minister and a longtime mentor of Bowen. During a sermon before Shiloh's congregation last month, Bowen called Smith his "hero," "friend," and "mentor ... to whom I owe a debt that I could never ever repay."

Rev. Smith invited multiple activists with long histories of antisemitism into their church, and Bowen's social media is filled with praise for him.

In April 2018, Rev. Smith hosted the National Black Men’s Convention at Shiloh Baptist Church, a five-day summit aimed at mobilizing and organizing brothers for a better future for their community and opposing President Trump. Each day had a different theme, including reparations, and several of the speakers involved with the summit had a history of problematic rhetoric against White people.

In the months leading up to the convention, Rev. Smith met with Malik Shabazz, the founder of Black Lawyers for Justice and former chairman of the New Black Panther Party, at Shiloh Baptist Church. Shabazz, who has been labeled by the Southern Poverty Law Center as a "racist black nationalist with a long, well-documented history of violently anti-Semitic remarks and accusations about the inherent evil of white people," posted a photo of him and Smith hugging on his Facebook and said they had a "great meeting" together. Shabazz also added that "Pastor Smith and other pro-Black Christian preachers will be speaking" at the convention.

In 2020, Shabazz posted a photo with Louis Farrakhan and captioned it "I HAVE WALKED WITH THE BEST," calling Farrakhan one of the great influences in his life. In the months leading up to the 2018 convention, Shabazz promoted Shiloh Baptist Church as the host and shared videos of himself attending church events while Bowen was on the church's payroll.

The SPLC's website contains several quotes from Shabazz, including a 2002 speech in Washington, D.C., where he reportedly said, "Kill every goddamn Zionist in Israel! Goddamn little babies, goddamn old ladies! Blow up Zionist supermarkets!" In another speech from the early 2000s, he pushed antisemitic tropes about "Zionists" controlling the media and foreign policy.

In 2012, Shabazz posted a photo with former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and stated that his views were influenced by his experiences. He revealed that he was invited by a deceased journalist for the Nation of Islam's publication, and Farrakhan was present with numerous imams. Ahmadinejad has consistently referred to Israel as an "illegitimate regime" and has advocated for its "elimination."

When asked about his ties to Farrakhan and his history of antisemitic remarks, he replied, "I have no associations with Louis Farrakhan and I am not anti-Semitic." However, after a social media post showing him with Farrakhan, he clarified, "I have no current associations with him."

The other co-host of the convention was Minister Hashim Nzinga, who died in 2020 and was the chief of staff for the New Black Panther Party at the time. He made several controversial statements, including saying that every White man and every Jew is the devil by nature. In a 2016 interview with the Los Angeles Times, he admitted that he still believes that all Zionists should be killed before they kill others.

The LA Times reported that Nzinga stated in an interview that homosexuality is evil, Jews control the media and are responsible for the Sept. 11 attacks, and that blacks are God's "chosen people," with Jesus himself being black.

The convention's website describes Leonard Jeffries, a political scientist and uncle of House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, as having achieved national prominence in the early 1990s for his historical statements about Jews. On the website, it is stated that Jeffries claimed that Jews financed the slave trade, used the movie industry to harm Black people, and that whytes are "ice people" while Africans are "sun people."

Shabazz uploaded Jeffries' speech on his Facebook page, beginning with "Black power" and requesting applause for Shabazz and Nzinga, who organized the convention. He also acknowledged Farrakhan in his speech.

Dr. Boyce Watkins, a speaker at the convention, is the author of "The 10 Commandments of Black Economic Power" and a staunch supporter of Farrakhan. In a 2018 tweet, Watkins defended Farrakhan by comparing Jews to termites and saying that anyone attacking Farrakhan for his statement about being "anti-termite" is probably a termite themselves. He has also used antisemitic tropes like saying Jews control Hollywood and the music industry.

In September 2023, Watkins declared, "I am deeply devoted to Farrakhan. Absolutely." In a 2022 video, he bragged about being invited to the Nation of Islam's annual Saviour's Day event and stated that the Nation of Islam are like family to him. When he attends these events, he receives an overwhelming amount of love from the NOI members. Watkins wanted to express his gratitude to them at that moment.

It is unclear whether Bowen, who previously served as director of African American strategic engagement in the executive office of DC Mayor Muriel Bowser, was involved with the planning for the convention or was in attendance. However, an archived version of Shiloh's website states that he was one of the five "assistant pastors" at the time of the convention. Despite this, Bowen did not respond to Planet Chronicle Digital's request for comment.

In 2015, Rev. Smith invited Farrakhan and numerous Black community leaders to his church for a private meeting to discuss the upcoming 20th anniversary of the "Million Man March." Farrakhan, accompanied by several Nation of Islam members, including Rev. Smith and Cora Masters Barry, who faced criticism earlier this summer for a clip saying "F— the White women," spoke at the event.

The Washington Informer, a woman-owned multimedia news organization serving the African-Americans in the DC area, reported that Farrakhan, while speaking at Shiloh, believed it was time for Blacks to "distribute the pain" so they aren't the only ones suffering.

In 2011, Shiloh hosted former President Obama's controversial pastor Jeremiah Wright, who used an antisemitic trope to blame Jews for keeping him from talking with Obama after Obama won the 2008 presidential election. The comments ignited backlash from the Anti-Defamation League, which called Wright's comments "inflammatory and false."

"In 2009, an ADL spokesperson stated that Reverend Wright's assertion of Jewish control of the White House through his advisors' religious beliefs and their supposed superior power to the President expressed classic anti-Semitism in its most vile form."

Neither the White House nor Shiloh Baptist Church responded to Planet Chronicle Digital's inquiries for comment.