Omar Abdel-Rahman
A blind Egyptian cleric whose radical sermons and conviction for conspiracy made him a symbol of Islamist extremism in America.
1938–2017 (age 79)·Egyptian Islamist militant·Birthday: May 3·The Silent Generation
Biography
Omar Abdel-Rahman, known as 'The Blind Sheikh,' was a polarizing figure whose life became entangled with the early front lines of modern terrorism. Blinded by diabetes as an infant, he devoted himself to Islamic studies in Egypt, emerging as a charismatic scholar with a fiercely anti-government stance. His teachings, which advocated for violent jihad against secular regimes, put him at odds with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, leading to imprisonment and eventual exile. He settled in New York in 1990, where his Brooklyn mosque became a hub for radicalized followers. While not directly charged for the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, his incendiary rhetoric was cited as inspiration, and he was later convicted in 1995 for a seditious conspiracy to wage a 'war of urban terrorism' against the United States. His life sentence transformed him into a martyr figure for some, and his legacy remains a dark footnote in the pre-9/11 security landscape.
The Silent Generation
1928–1945
Born between the Depression and the end of WWII. Too young to fight, old enough to remember. They became the conformist middle managers of the 1950s — and the civil rights leaders who quietly dismantled Jim Crow.
Omar was born in 1938, placing them squarely in The Silent Generation. The events that shaped this generation — world wars, depression, and rapid industrialization — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Omar Was Born
The biggest hits of 1938
#1 Movie
You Can't Take It with You
Best Picture
You Can't Take It with You
Omar's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1938Born
Kristallnacht and the escalation toward WWII
Gas: $0.20/galHome: $2,850Min wage: $0.25/hrPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"Begin the Beguine" — Artie ShawBest Picture: You Can't Take It with You
1943Started school
Allies invade Sicily; Battle of Stalingrad ends
Gas: $0.21/galHome: $3,290Min wage: $0.30/hrPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"I've Heard That Song Before" — Harry JamesBest Picture: Casablanca
1951Became a teenager
First color TV broadcast in the US
Gas: $0.27/galHome: $7,925Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Too Young" — Nat King ColeBest Picture: An American in Paris
1954Could drive
Brown v. Board of Education desegregates US schools
Gas: $0.29/galHome: $8,925Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Little Things Mean a Lot" — Kitty KallenBest Picture: On the Waterfront
1956Could vote
Elvis Presley appears on The Ed Sullivan Show
Gas: $0.30/galHome: $10,050Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Heartbreak Hotel" — Elvis PresleyBest Picture: Around the World in 80 Days
1959Turned 21
Fidel Castro takes power in Cuba
Gas: $0.30/galHome: $12,400Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"The Battle of New Orleans" — Johnny HortonBest Picture: Ben-Hur
1968Turned 30
Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert Kennedy assassinated
Gas: $0.34/galHome: $14,950Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"Hey Jude" — The BeatlesBest Picture: Oliver!
1978Turned 40
First test-tube baby born
Gas: $0.63/galHome: $35,300Min wage: $2.65/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Shadow Dancing" — Andy GibbBest Picture: The Deer Hunter
1988Turned 50
Pan Am Flight 103 bombed over Lockerbie
Gas: $0.90/galHome: $74,800Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Faith" — George MichaelBest Picture: Rain Man
1998Turned 60
Google founded; Clinton impeachment
Gas: $1.06/galHome: $107,300Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Too Close" — NextBest Picture: Shakespeare in Love
2008Turned 70
Barack Obama elected first Black US president; financial crisis
Gas: $3.27/galHome: $153,100Min wage: $6.55/hrPresident: George W. Bush"Low" — Flo RidaBest Picture: Slumdog Millionaire
2017Died at 79
#MeToo movement; solar eclipse crosses the US
Gas: $2.42/galHome: $195,000Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Donald Trump"Shape of You" — Ed SheeranBest Picture: The Shape of Water
Key Achievements
- Was the spiritual leader and convicted ringleader of a plot to bomb New York City landmarks in the mid-1990s.
- Authored a religious treatise that justified the use of violence against civilian targets, which was cited in his trial.
- Was convicted of seditious conspiracy in a high-profile U.S. federal trial in 1995 and sentenced to life imprisonment.
Did You Know?
He lost his eyesight at the age of ten months due to untreated diabetes.
He earned a PhD in Islamic jurisprudence from Al-Azhar University in Cairo.
He was granted a U.S. visa despite being on a State Department watchlist, a major security failure investigated by Congress.
“Jihad is the way to liberate Muslim lands from the rule of the infidels.”
