Jeffrey Shaun King is an American activist and writer who recently gained worldwide attention after he converted to Islam with his wife, Rai.
King uses social media to support movements for social justice, such as Black Lives Matter.
King was born and grew up in Kentucky and completed his undergraduate studies at Atlanta, Georgia’s Morehouse College.
He became a pastor after temporarily teaching high school civics. King established the Courageous Church in Atlanta and served as its pastor for four years.
Recently, videos circulated online depicting Shaun and his wife engaged in an apparent Arabic-speaking interaction with a religious figure wearing a traiditional Muslim attire.
The video indicated that the former Christian pastor and his wife have now “embraced Islam.”
On the first day of Ramadan in the year 1445 AH-2024, renowned American writer and activist Jeffrey Shaun King, along with his spouse Rai King, officially converted to Islam.
A live broadcast was shared by US-based Professor Khaled Beydoun on his Instagram on Sunday, March 11.
The footage captured Shaun and Rai reciting the Shahadah, a declaration of faith guided by US Muslim scholar and activist Omar Suleiman.
Viral Video Captures Shaun King And His Wife’s Religious Conversion To Islam
After the video was uploaded on Sunday night, which was also the first day of Ramadan, a significant Islamic holiday, the video received hundreds of likes.
The person with whom the King and his wife are speaking in the video is Dr. Omar Suleimon, who identifies himself as an imam – a religious Muslim leader.
Shaun King has always freely discussed in the past how important being Christian was to him, which highlighted his and his wife’s conversion as particularly notable.
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Shaun King claimed to be a Christian who had actually been a pastor for nearly 10 years in a 2016 Facebook post.
A little over a year later, in another Facebook post, Shaun King stated that he “was a Christian pastor for nearly 15 years”.
He has always been the subject of debate, especially in relation to his recent religious reflections and now due to his sudden conversion.
Doubt Surrounds Shaun King’s Religious Conversion and Advocacy for Palestine
Despite the positive portrayal of Shaun King and his wife embracing Islam, there was doubt expressed on social media, triggered by various arguments saying he was enriching himself through online donations.
Some criticized the timing of his conversion during Ramadan as a publicity stunt, while others expressed doubt about his fundraising efforts for Palestine.
In response to these, Shaun King reassured his followers that all funds raised for Palestine were directed to the intended families and not kept for his personal use.
He also promised that he has seemingly been doing good and said that he will never stop.
Regarding his conflicts, on December 25, Shaun stated that Instagram had suspended his account due to his support to Palestine during Israel’s current conflict.
Shaun, who has gained over six million Instagram followers, expressed his frustration at being removed from the platform for standing up for the rights and dignity of Palestinians.
Shaun has posted several pro-Palestine statements on social media since October 7.
These messages highlight the destruction in the Gaza Strip and call for an end to Israel’s brutal military war there.
FAQs
1. What is the ethnicity of Shaun King?
Despite having white man name, Jeffery Wayne King, he disclosed in 2015 that his mother informed him that his biological father is a light-skinned black man.
2. How many kids does Shaun King have?
Shaun Kings has with five children in which three of his them were conceived with his wife, and two were adopted.
3. What happened to King’s Instagram account?
The Meta spokesperson mentioned that the account was deactivated because it repeatedly expressed support for specific entities, which was against their policies.
