Similarities Between Malcolm X And Martin Luther King

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BOWIE STATE UNIVERSITY The Principles of Malcolm X & Martin Luther King History 115 Goodness Ezeji 11/16/2017 Student ID: 2157660 Professor: Dr. Tamara Brown The 20th century was a definitive time period for the Black civil rights movement. An era where the status quo was blatant hatred and oppression of African Americans, a time when a black son would watch his father suffer the indignity of being called a “boy” by a young white kid and say nothing in reply but “yes sir”. Where a Black person can be whipped or lynched for anything as little as not getting off the sidewalk when approaching a white person, for looking into their eyes, or worse, “for committing the unpardonable crime of attempting to vote.” In the midst of the racial crises and fight for social equality were Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. who despite their difference in philosophies were “icons of social justice movement both in the United States and around the world” . Malcolm X, born in 1925 as Malcolm Little in Omaha, Nebraska lived with the knowledge that his family house was burned down and that his father was killed by the Ku Klux Klan because he refused to vacate an area that was “supposed” to be for Whites only. His father was an independent man who wanted to fend for his family by himself and not have to rely on anyone …show more content…

They both were willing to sacrifice all they had, including their lives (they were both murdered), in order to secure a better future for their people. Though their backgrounds shaped their difference in philosophies, they both had global consciousness and advocated for oppressed people, especially those of African descent

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