About The Engineer’s Blueprint: From The Projects To The Palace
A legacy is more than a name; it is a structure built to survive.
Born in Brooklyn in 1975, Omar Abdul Hakeem was heir to a complex and powerful history. His father, Luqman Abdul-Hakeem, was a civil engineer and a veteran of the Korean War who stood at the crossroads of history—facilitating the legendary 1960 meeting between Malcolm X and Fidel Castro. But for Omar, that legacy wasn’t just found in history books; it was lived in the stark contrast between the white-walled villas of Casablanca, Morocco, and the rugged urban landscape of the American projects.
The Engineer’s Blueprint is a raw, cinematic journey of an “Urban Pedestrian” navigating a life of displacement, spiritual searching, and survival. From the discipline of a Moroccan upbringing to the “Zero Protocol” reality of homelessness on the streets of Oakland, Omar documents the internal architecture required to maintain one’s dignity when the world falls apart.
Infused with the spiritual discipline of the tradition of Prophet David and the technical precision of an engineer’s eye, this memoir explores:
The meeting of icons: Unseen perspectives on the legacy of Malcolm X and the Nation of Islam.
The Transatlantic Struggle: The culture shock of moving from the “Palace” of African nobility to the struggle of American inner cities.
The Search for the Foundation: A son’s lifelong quest to find his mother, Patricia Haynes, and reclaim a fractured family line.
This isn’t just a memoir; it’s a manual for anyone who has ever had to rebuild their life from the ground up. It is proof that while you may start in the projects, your mind can always reside in the palace.
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Author Bio:
Omar Abdul Hakeem is a writer, security professional, and observer of the human condition whose life has been a bridge between two worlds. Born in Brooklyn in 1975, Omar was raised in the shadow of his father, Luqman Abdul-Hakeem—a civil engineer, martial arts master, and veteran who facilitated the historic 1960 meeting between Malcolm X and Fidel Castro.
After a transformative childhood spent in the white-walled villas of Casablanca, Morocco, Omar returned to the United States to forge a career in high-stakes security and management across New York and California. In An Engineer’s Blueprint: From the Projects to the Palace, he documents the internal architecture required to survive displacement, homelessness, and the search for identity. Today, he lives in Oakland, California, where he maintains a disciplined spiritual practice following the tradition of Prophet David.