about Yusuf Estes

Yusuf Estes, (b. 1 January 1944) is an American former-minister who converted to Islam in 1991. He is a former National Muslim Chaplain for the United States Bureau of Prisons as well as a Delegate to the United Nations World Peace Conference for Religious Leaders held in September 2000. Active in Islamic missionary work in the United States, he often features as guest lecturer and keynote speaker at various Islamic events as well as frequently appearing on various Islamic satellite TV channels. Estes takes a dim view of public education in the United States for Muslim children, and recommends schools where they might receive an Islamic education as well as a more advanced scholastic education

Personal life

Sheikh Yusuf Estes was born in Ohio, and was raised in Houston, Texas in a Anglo-Saxon Protestant family.

From 1962 to 1990, his career was in the music industry, entertainment, marketing, working as a music instructor and music minister, whose family owned several musical instrument companies including the Estes Piano and Organ Company. He produced and directed live entertainment programs in the United States from the mid 1960s until his last endeavor for cable TV in Florida, entitled ‘Estes Music Jamboree’.

Yusuf Estes left Christianity in the early 1990s after being involved in a business collaboration with an Egyptian named Muhammad  Following his conversion, Estes entered the field of spreading Da’wah or knowledge about the true essence of understanding Islam. Although semi-retired[citation needed] he still appears on shows found on Peace TV, Washington, D.C., in the United States.
Estes denies the theory of Darwinian evolution and instead promotes creationism according to Quranic dogma.

Islamic Activities

After embracing Islam, Estes pursued Arabic language and Quranic studies in Egypt, Morocco and Turkey

From 2004, Estes regularly appeared on the Islam Channel, as well as Peace TV and on Huda TV which are 24/7 Islamic channels broadcasting in many countries around the globe, via satellite and via the website WatchIslam.com TV Channels.

He also set up websites directed toward English speaking Muslim youth which include www.TubeIslam.com, a Muslim video sharing site, and www.ChatIslam.com, a Muslim Chatroom, and for young children www.WorldPreschool.com, Preschool Learning.

He also produced a television series aimed toward English speaking children of Muslim parents entitled, “Qasas Ul Anbiya” – Stories of the Prophets.

His Islamic activities have included:

• Volunteer Imam in a Texas military installation.

• National U.S. Chaplain for the Federal Bureau of Prisons, starting 1994.

• Delegate to the United Nations Peace Summit for Religious Leaders in August 2000.

• University guest speaker (including Carnegie Mellon Qatar)

• Television program producer and director, preacher, syndicated television programs on satellite and cable networks.