Malcolm X
Malcolm Little, Aka Malcolm X, was a famous civil rights movement activist. He had a hard childhood. He was picked on due to the light color of his skin by peers and family members. He grew up poor and spent years of his life committing crimes and ended up in prison. Malcolm X found Islam in prison, and developed different philosophies which came from his childhood experiences. Malcolm X eventually found peace, and unfortunately was killed after he began to make a positive difference.
“Malcolm Little was born on May 19, 1925 in Omaha, Nebraska” (Perry Page 2). Everyone was excited to have a baby boy born into the family, except Malcolm’s father, Earl Little, because he was ashamed that Malcolm had light skin, blue-green eyes and ash-blonde hair. Malcolm’s mother, Louisa was the same complexion as Malcolm, which is where he got his looks from. Louisa’s father was Scottish, and this made her complexion so light that she passed as white. Earl was very into his color. He was a strong believer of being proud to be black. “Earl was a disciple of Marcus Garvey and was elected president of the Omaha branch of Garvey’s Universal Negro Improvement Association. Louisa also joined the UNIA, which emphasized that blacks should be proud of their blackness and their African heritage. It urged them to free themselves from their dependence on whites, economically and otherwise. Garvey taught that instead of integrating whites, blacks should establish their own sovereign nation” (Perry Page 3). Garvey’s philosophy influenced Malcolm’s beliefs. “Malcolm’s father reportedly decided to leave Omaha after Ku Klux Klan horsemen brandishing firearms and blazing torches besieged the Littles’ home, shattering the window panes with their gun but...
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...e was removed from their minds by the religion of Islam” (Kershaw). Malcolm X discovered that Islam is the religion of peace. After traveling to Africa and doing some soul searching, Malcolm X found his organization, Muslim Mosque, Inc. He had a new peaceful outlook and would say things like, “I believe in human beings, and that all human beings should be respected as such, regardless of their color” (Kershaw). Unfortunately Malcolm X was killed about a year after finding his organization.
Work Cited
Haley, Alex. "The Autobiography of Malcolm X." SparkNotes. SparkNotes, Web. 23 Apr. 2014
Kershaw, Tom. "Malcolm X’s Religion and Political Views." Malcolm X's Religion and Political Views. 7 Nov. 2012. Web. 23 Apr. 2014.
Perry, Bruce. Malcolm: The Life of a Man Who Changed Black America. Barrytown, NY: Station Hill, 1991. Print.
Malcolm X while in prison completed his first transformation. Like many great figures and history makers had a low point in is life. At this time Malcolm was into drugs, hustling, women and money. He became so dependant on making a lot of money he and some of his friends decided to rob the house of an old white man. They were caught for this crime and were not only charged with this crime but were also charged with having sex with white women. Malcolm and his friend "Shorty" were sentenced to six years in prison. The two white women that were Malcolm and Shorty’s accomplices were sentenced to a year in jail. During the first couple days of prison Malcolm was coming off a drug high and was having withdrawals. These withdrawals led Malcolm into solitary confinement for two months. When he was let out of his chamber he met the man that would later be responsible for Malcolm’s transformation. This man was a follower of the nation of Islam and the great Alijah Muhammad. Malcolm learned a great deal form him. This shows us that even in the worst of circumstances we can learn and become better. This transformation was a great test for Malcolm and starts to let us see what a great influence he would end up being in the lives of many Americans.
Of the people whose names are mentioned in history, some men like Thomas Edison are praised for their genius minds, while others such as Adolf Hitler are criticized for leaving a depressing legacy behind. While it is relative easy to notice the type of legacies these two men left, legacies of other men are often vague and they seem to be imbedded in gray shadows. This is how many people view the life of Malcolm X. Malcolm X during his lifetime had influenced many African Americans to step up for their rights against the injustices by the American government. One on hand, he has been criticized for his hard stances that resemble extremism, while on the other hand he has been praised him for his effort in raising the status for African Americans. The extremes in viewing his life from the modern day perspective have often come from reading his climatic speech The Ballot or the Bullet that he gave in many cities across America in 1964. When he was with the Nation of Islam, Malcolm X favored Blacks to be separated from the Whites, and during this time he strongly opposed White Supremacy. This also seems quite prevalent in his speech The Ballot or the Bullet. However, one events during the last year of his life reveal that he wanted the Blacks and the Whites to coexist as peaceful Americans.
Goldman, Peter. The Death and Life of Malcolm X. Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 1979.
However, it was what happened in his life that made Malcolm X the man who people remember today. From a very early age, Little lived in fear of racism and hate groups, much of it rooting from his father’s murder by white supremacists. He was effectively orphaned by 13, as his mother was placed in a mental institution, and lived until he was 20 in several different foster homes. He was arrested for a crime and once released, went on to commit several crimes, including using and distributing drugs, etc. It was when he was imprisoned that he found the Nation of Islam, who helped him when he was released from prison to find a new life. From them, he was able to attain great oratory skills and create an environment when he spoke in which the people around him, white and black alike, felt empowered and equal. Once he discovered corruption and began to disdain the Nation of Islam, he became independent and was later assassinated. However, he along with MLK, were empowered by their stories, Malcolm’s being one of hatred, poverty, hope, and truth, that changed him to become a stimulus for African American equality in
Malcolm Little was born on May 19, 1925 in Omaha, Nebraska. At the time of his birth, Malcolm's father was a Baptist Minister. His mom was a writer of Marcus Garvey. Before he was born, his father had 3 children with his previous marriage and 3 before him with his mom.
“When my mother was pregnant with me, she told me later, a party of hooded Ku Klux Klan riders galloped up at our home in Omaha, Nebraska, one night...The Klansmen shouted threats and warnings at her that we had better get out of town because ‘the good Christian people white people’ were not going to stand for my father’s ‘spreading trouble’ among the ‘good’ Negroes of Omaha with the ‘Back to Africa’ preaching’s of Marcus Garvey.” ( The Autobiography of Malcolm
Three events in Malcolm X’s life were very significant in Malcolm’s development and influenced his ideas. His interaction with Mr. Ostrowski opened his eyes to a new, more aware, point of view that marked his transition from childhood. His time in prison turned him against white people and led him to completely accept the ideas of Elijah Muhammad and transition away from hustling and crime. Malcolm’s pilgrimage to Mecca transitioned him from the hate-driven society of the Nation of Islam and towards a more accepting society of traditional Islam. All these events progress or completely change Malcolm’s ideas about systemic oppression, racial identity, and separation verses integration and push him to a new period of life and the next event.
Malcolm X should be everyone’s hero, someone people like myself should look up to as a human being. Anyone who thinks otherwise is either a racist or is extremely ignorant. Malcolm X wore his heart on his sleeve and whether right or wrong he was never afraid to say what was on his mind to anyone who cared to listen. I personally believe Malcolm X’s beliefs give me strength to do what's right and carry myself with dignity. I remember, as a kid, my parents had tons of books about Black History books. The first book I read was a Malcolm X biography. I realized Malcolm X was truly a powerful, significant, and essential work for all time.
Malcolm set everything in motion when he converted to the Nation of Islam, an African American movement that combined elements of Islam with Black Nationalism. While in prison, his siblings persuaded him to write to the Nation’s leader, Elijah Muhammad. X was uneasy at first, but came around shortly. Malcolm wrote Muhammad a one-page letter each day in curiosity about the Nation of Islam. Muhammad replied as the “Messenger of Allah” welcoming Malcolm into the “true knowledge” (Haley 195). Before X’s release in nineteen fifty-two, he went under an intense self-educated program by reading books in the prison library, and even memorizing an entire dictionary. He also sharpened his forensic skills by participating in debate classes. When Malcolm was released from prison he had his first official visit with Muhammad in Chicago, he devoted his life to the Muslim ministry. Soon Malcolm began traveling and preaching with other ministers. He picked up their techniques and devoured their knowledge. Malcolm quickly rose in the Nation of Islam ranks becoming minister of Temple number eleven in Boston and Muhammad’s most effective recruiter and spokesman. Soon after, X was rewarded minister of Temple number seven in Harlem, New York, the largest and most prestigious after the Chicago Headquarters and eventually named the National Representative of the Nation of Islam, second in rank behind Muhammad himself. Under X’s lieutenancy the nation claimed a membership of five-hundred thousand, as the numbers grew X’s teachings began to change; he wanted to make a vast difference. He spread the glorious history of African Americans. He urged the Nation to become more active in the civil rights protest instead of being a critic on the side. X articulated the Nation’s racial doctrines of evil
X, Malcolm, and Alex Haley. The Autobiography of Malcolm X. New York: Ballantine, 1999. Print.
When Malcolm x was known as Malcolm Little which was from his birth until during his time in prison went he converted to the Nation of Islam ( Malcolm X 154-172) he experienced traumatic events that laid the foundation in terms of how he came to view white people u...
Malcolm X was born May 19, 1925, and he was assassinated on February 21, 1965. Malcolm X was a Muslim leader and Civil Rights leader. He was born Malcolm Little to Earl Little and Louise Norton, who were both activists in the Universal Negro Improvement Association. Malcolm X was a bright student but was very bitter towards white authority figures. X quit school after a teacher said that his desire to become a lawyer was not a “realistic goal for a nigger.”
The Web. The Web. February 2014 Noaman, Ali “About Malcolm X” Malcolm-x.org. Web. 2013.
The Autobiography of Malcolm X is a personal account of one man’s search for truth in a racially charged world. Born Malcolm Little, in Omaha, Nebraska, his life is marred by injustice and violence at a very young age. His father, a tall and extremely black man, with little education, is mysteriously murdered, forcing his mother into a mental hospital. Malcolm, along with his siblings, were placed in foster homes. His beginnings had always included racism; the family firmly believed, though never proven, his father was murdered by a KKK splinter group, after years of harassment. A turning point came when a teacher asked him what he would like to be when he grew up. As he answered he wanted to become a lawyer, his teacher told him, “you’ve got
Malcolm X has truly captured the hearts of many. From his empowering personality to his amazing life story, he is a figure history can never forget. His autobiography is a full and honest account of his life, his struggle against racism, mistakes, regrets, choices good and bad, as well as discove...