Imam Daayiee Abdullah was born Sidney Thompson in Detroit, Michigan on January 11th, 1954. From a very young age, Daayiee displayed an independent mind, becoming aware of his sexuality at age 4. He also realized that the Baptist church he was raised in wasn’t the right fit, beginning a lifelong journey of exploring different faiths.
During high school, Daayiee largely kept his sexuality hidden, though he also had his first boyfriend Otis during that time. Their relationship lasted until Otis tragically died of suicide during Daayiee’s senior year.
After graduating from high school in 1969, shortly after the Stonewall riots, Daayiee came out to his parents, who provided support and affirmation. This gave him the confidence to embrace his identity and become actively involved in the gay community. Daayiee established a Black gay publication that his parents kept on their coffee table, which played a significant role in supporting other relatives who later came out.
At 19, Daayiee fell in love with San Francisco. There, he began his journey of activism within the community. While working for Governor Jerry Brown, Daayiee became a referee for the 1979 National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights. At the March, he met members of the National Black Gay and Lesbian Task Force, and attended their side conference at Howard University during the March, which was eye-opening for Daayiee.
Following the March and the conference, Daayiee relocated to Washington DC, a place he decided was his Black gay Mecca. From 1983 to 1986, he lived in China, where he was introduced to Islam; he then spent time in the Middle East from 1987 to 1990. These experiences fueled his passion for studying law, with a focus on international law and becoming fluent in Chinese and Arabic. After graduating and practicing law for a couple years, Daayiee decided that being a lawyer was not for him and returned to the Middle East to teach for the Royal Saudi Air Force. He developed a deep interest in Islam there, attending mosques regularly and finding peace through prayer rituals. Eventually he converted to the Muslim faith.
Equipped with his training under Islamic scholar Dr Taha Jaber al-Alawani, Daayiee gained popularity in the late nineties by encouraging gay Muslim men in online forums to prioritize the Qur’an over the Hadith, resisting outrage from individuals who claimed that the Qur’an prohibits homosexuality.
He earned the title of Imam by conducting ceremonies for marginalized individuals, including funeral rites for those who had died of complications from AIDS. Imam Abdullah also went beyond societal norms by officiating same-sex and interfaith marriages, and providing counseling services to both heterosexual and homosexual couples.
Daayiee then began studying at the Graduate School of Islamic Social Sciences, with the intention of becoming a sheikh. However, he was kicked out of the school for being openly gay.
In 2010, Daayiee opened a mosque with the guidance of Bishop Rainey Cheeks, continuing his work within the progressive Muslim community. Currently, he serves as the Executive Director of the MECCA Institute, a nonprofit organization focused on re-educating the Muslim community for contemporary times. He has also written the book Progressive Islam: The Rich Liberal Ideas of the Islamic Faith.
Daayiee is one of only a few openly gay Imams in the world.
