Gaza people inspired US activist Shaun King and his wife to embrace Islam

American writer and activist Jeffery Shaun King and his wife Rai King have converted to Islam on the first day of the holy month of Ramadan.

On Monday, the two pronounced a testament of faith, known as Shahadah, over Instagram live under the guidance of King’s friend for over 10 years — US Muslim scholar Omar Suleiman.

The 44-year-old wore a Palestinian garment keffiyeh as he addressed the crowd, crediting his decision to the “past six months of suffering, pain and trauma that we’ve seen in Gaza”.

“It has touched me in the most profound ways to see people right now in the most dangerous, traumatic place on the planet still be able to sometimes look at nothing but rubble and the remains of their family, and still see meaning and purpose in life.”

“Their faith and their devotion to Islam has not only opened my heart but has opened the hearts of millions of people around the world,” said King.

King has been vocal about his support for Palestine against Israel’s war on besieged Gaza, which has killed at least 31,112 people, mostly children and women, and wounded 72,760 so far.

Since October 7, King regularly shared posts on social media that highlighted the destruction in Gaza and called for an end to Israel’s attacks.

King even alleged that he worked with Hamas for the release of two American hostages: Natalie Raanan, 17, and her mother, Judith Tai Raanan, 59. A claim that the family denies.

In response to his support for Palestine online, King said Instagram banned his account with over six million followers in December. It remains unclear why Meta deactivated and removed King’s account.

But who is Shaun King and why is he advocating for the Palestinian cause?

Victim of racism, hate crimes

From a group of youngsters attempting to run him over with a pickup truck at school to undergoing multiple spinal surgeries due to an assault by “a dozen self-described ‘rednecks'”, King regularly speaks out against the racism he experienced as a biracial child growing up in the US state of Kentucky.

In the aftermath of one particular assault, King said a visit by his high school best friend and his father, who was a pastor, prompted him to consider a career in religion.

King said he grew up fatherless and was “so impacted by this man coming to visit me that I wanted to be like him.”

After his studies, King briefly taught high school civics and also worked in Atlanta’s juvenile justice system, before deciding to become pastor at a Christian centre in Georgia.

In 2008, he founded a church in Atlanta called Courageous Church and frequently used social media to recruit new members for it, earning him the nickname “Facebook Pastor”.

However, just four years later resigned from the church due to “personal stress and disillusionment.”

Advocating for civil rights

All the while, drawing on his own experiences with hate crimes, King devoted his life to promoting social justice causes, notably the Black Lives Matter Movement.

He did this through his writing focused on civil and human rights, race relations, police brutality, mass incarceration and law enforcement misconduct.

He was a regular contributor to media outlets such as the Daily Kos, the New York Daily News and The Young Turks.

In one particular article, King analysed the shooting of black teen Michael Brown, and argued against the claim that police officer Darren Wilson’s life was in danger.

He was also credited as leading a successful social media campaign that led to the identification and arrest of three of the men behind an assault assault on Black man DeAndre Harris in 2017.

Through his activism, King also founded a non-profit group, Grassroots Law Project, and started several internet campaigns, websites and organisations, including HopeMob.org, Justice Together, the Real Justice PAC and The North Star.

However, some his activities have faced accusations of fiscal mismanagement and complaints from colleagues through the years.

King and his wife currently reside in New York with their five children, two of whom were adopted.