Fatimah Ali, the unmistakable voice that welcomed listeners on the WURD900am airwaves with her show “The Real Deal with Fatimah Ali,” has died. The station announced in a statement that the veteran journalist, whose career spanned print and broadcast, died Tuesday morning. She was 55.
Ali, who spoke of her career beginning in 1981, last appeared on the airwaves on Jan. 23 following her show. Details surrounding her death are currently unavailable but she did inform listeners that she was battling a cold.
“She will be deeply, deeply missed here at WURD. She provided a fiery program, our 10 to 12 noon show Monday through Friday called the Real Deal with Fatimah Ali and she was a veteran journalist; an outspoken critic of culture and education,” said Sara Lomax-Reese, president and general manager of WURD 900am Radio.
Lomax-Reese shared what she believed Ali’s legacy would be.
“She was an advocate of prisoners and incarcerated men and women and she just spoke truth to power and that was really her legacy of not being intimidated and not backing down to anyone regardless of their title or position,” she said.
“So, she was just a real, outspoken advocate for people who didn’t have a voice.”
The tributes have continued to pour in following Ali’s unexpected death from colleagues and friends who lauded not only her, but her remarkable career. In addition to her stint at WURD, Ali was a former Philadelphia Daily News columnist and held other positions in the field she loved.
Ali is survived by her husband Natu Ali and five children, Ariell Hughes, Khadija Ahmaddiya, Rashida Ali, Yasmin Ali and Malik Ahmaddiya.
Service information is pending, but WURD 900am said that a tribute in her honor will be held on Friday Jan. 27.
