Ibrahim Abdurrahman Farajajé
Dr. Ibrahim Abdurrahman Farajajé (December 19, 1952 – February 9, 2016), formerly known as Elias Frajajé-Jones, was a queer theologian, AIDS activist, scholar, spiritual leader, academic and professor. Farajajé was raised in Berkeley, California in an ethnically and religiously diverse environment. His parents were both education activists. He was one of the first black male students at Vassar College where he received a bachelor’s degree in religion in 1972. He went on to teach at Howard University School of Divinity in 1986. In the Eastern Orthodox Church, Farajajé was an ordained priest in the Santería religion. In 1995 he started as a faculty member at Starr King School for the Ministry. At Starr King, Farajajé was a provost and professor of cultural studies and Islamic studies until his death in 2016. Early life Farajajé grew up in a progressive, racially, and economically mixed neighborhood. His extended and immediate family was said to be religiously and ethnically mixed. He credits his parents for his knowledge on the importance of advocacy and social justice. Growing up, Farajajé had tutors for school to stay ahead and a second language tutor and learnt many languages like Spanish and French during this time. He is