Warith Deen Mohammed was the son of Nation of Islam leader Elijah Muhammad

Imam Warith Deen Mohammed, who for many years led the nation’s largest contingent of Muslims and steered Islam away from the more separatist doctrine of his father, the late Elijah Muhammad, died Tuesday at his home near Chicago, The Washington Post reported. A spokesman for the Cook County Medical Examiners Office in Illinois told The Associated Press that the 74-year-old former head of the American Society of Muslims died of heart disease. Find out more about Mohammed’s life and death at BET.com/News. Send your condolences below.

Black Muslims meet in Detroit

When most people think about Black Muslims, Louis Farrakhan and the Nation of Islam is the first thing that comes to mind. But it’s the Muslim American Society and its leader, Imam Warith Deen Mohammed, that is widely believed to have the largest following among African Americans. This past weekend, thousands of Black Muslims converged on Detroit for an annual convention, which met in Michigan for the first time in more than 10 years. Metro Detroit has one of the largest Muslim populations in America . Mohammed is the son of the Elijah Muhammad, the longtime leader of the Nation of Islam, who died in 1975. After his father died, Mohammed took over the Black Nationalist organization and retooled group’s message, downplaying racial separatism and preaching orthodox Islam. “He’s a superb leader,” said Nadir Ahmad, 58, of Detroit , told The Detroit Free Press “He has a sober message of good morals, but also a commonsense approach to life and religion.” Ahmad said Mohammed “has always called for cooperation between faiths.”