The Discrimination and The Human Rights During the hundred years of civil rights revolution in the United States, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X are the two most important leaders which helped lead the African American has gained their voices in the society. Both of them, the two greatest leaders have been fighting for the equal rights for Black Americans; growing up in different environment, they had different ways of delivering the messages of equality. This also led to dissimilar beliefs and tangible, intangible differences in how they gained their triumph for equality and freedom to Black Americans. According to “Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, and the Civil Rights Struggle of the 1950s …show more content…
and 1960s” by David Howard-Pitney, Dr. King grew up in a middle-class and was well educated while Malcolm did not. Malcolm X grew up in a lower class family which was very hostile and also barely educated. As a result, Dr. Martin Luther King strongly believed in the nonviolent and negotiation in peaceful as a way of wining rights for Black people; on the other hands, Malcolm X was believing that While people should not be seen as superior. Besides the differences, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X had some in commons. They both were born to Baptist activist religion. Howard-Pitney stated in the book “Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, and the Civil Rights Struggle of the 1950s and 1960s”, that King’s father, Martin Luther King Sr., was a Baptist minister activist. King’s farther and Malcolm’s farther are both Baptist Minister in the church, where educated human being’s about principles, this component is considered as most the important factor lightening the two kids about human rights and equality. In the meantime that Malcolm X always was a top student in the school, King graduated as PhD in Boston University when he was only 25 years old. These two young talented leaders both announced that there would be a full stop towards discrimination. However, beside the similarity, there also a significant differences among two great persons, which is the interpretation as well as the methodological approach towards discrimination. The first significant different was the influence on their childhood background. Growing up in a middle class and having a comfortable home, and as stated in his Nobel Prize biography, King was the second of three children, who dwelt in the serious education environment. For instance, his successful to be valedictorian in his high school graduation at the ages of fifteen. After that, he attended and received the Bachelor of Divinity degree. Not far away from that, he went back to school and received Doctorate of Ph.D. At the age 25, he moved to Montgomery, Alabama, to become a Pastor at the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church (“Nobel Peace Prize”). Obviously, Martin Luther King was born and raised in a well-educated environment. Contrarily, Malcolm X grew up in an inferior environment. He was born in a lower- classed family, which affirmed by his official website. He also had other nine brothers and sisters. Suffering in his childhood, three brothers were killed violently by white people, the Ku Klux Klan lynched his uncle and killed his father. Worse, after many of his family had killed, Malcolm’s mother had a nervous breakdown and was sent to a mental institution. So, Malcolm X was forces to be in the system of foster care. At middle school, his teacher destroyed his dream of becoming a lawyer. As stated in “From night mare to salvation”, “Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, and the Civil Rights Struggle of the 1950s and 1960s”, this teacher told Malcolm X that “A lawyer – that’s no realistic goal for a nigger. You need to think about something you can be” (From night mare to salvation, 52). Consequently, he withdrew the school and became a non-happy person. Affected of being crushed and defeated, he did stealing and and doing drugs. He ended up arrested and sentenced to prison. During his seven-year incarceration, Malcolm X was re-educated himself and converted to Islam. He joined the religious organization Nation of Islam, led by Elijah Muhammad. It is obviously that people seeing him of tinting with anger, bitterness and the desire to get back at the world that treated him pretty much unfairly. Undeniably, The differences in their childhood and family backgrounds were significantly that led them having dissimilar reactions to the discrimination in the United States. Another different between Martin Luther King Jr.
and Malcolm X was the way they saw and expressed their ideal on racism and equality. As King stated in the book “Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, and the Civil Rights Struggle of the 1950s and 1960s”, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly” (Letter from Birmingham Jail, 75). In his letter, King Jr. explained why he came to Birmingham City, where was considered as the most segregated city in the country. This city had the large amount of African Americans were brutally opposed. Truthfully, injustice did not only affect the society development, but also felled the moral of human being in that society. The significant tools that Martin Luther King used for fighting against discrimination was non-violent campaign, as he encouraged others. For instance, he has mentioned, “I am convinced for practical as well as moral reasons, nonviolence offers the only road to freedom” (Nonviolence: the Only Road to Freedom, 91). Basically, violent was never used in author’s term. He simply influenced others by peaceful requests on those unjustified laws to be changed. Also, he believed that constitutions and laws were never developed to downgrade and punish any other races. As his biggest hope, “let us all hope that the dark clouds of racial prejudice will soon pass away and the deep …show more content…
fog of misunderstanding will be lifted from our fear-drenched communities, and in some not too distant tomorrow the radiant stars of love and brotherhood will shine over our great nation with all their scintillating beauty” (Letter from Birmingham Jail, 90). Truly, African Americans deserve their rights as other races. They are deserved to be treated and respected equally from the communities. On the other hand, Malcolm X was fighting for the human right in a different way.
Contrasting with Martin Luther King’s opinion, Malcolm showed his dislike extremely strong to white people. Suspiciously to the whites, he was willing to use “by any means necessary” to achieve equality. His philosophy showed the very sharp different to Martin Luther King’s. He promoted nationalist and separatist doctrines. He strongly believed that by the revolution and compulsion, black people could gain their rights to live and delicate in the society. According to his famous “By any means necessary”, he aggressively mentioned that “If it’s necessary to form a Black Nationalist army, we’ll form a Black Nationalist army. It’ll be the ballot or the bullet. It’ll be liberty or it’ll be death” (The ballot or the bullet, 171). He also joined the Nation of Islam, which was a religious taught racial separation, the inherent evil of white people, also the necessary to embrace African culture. The leader of this religious was Elijah Muhammad, who appealed to young Malcolm, because it embraced the richness of black history and culture, while completely rejecting white society and values. It is believed that Malcolm X wanted to influent other black people that do not see themselves through white’s view. He believed that black people would impossibly value themselves it they continue take to the standard of valuation that lower their value. As he said “There’s been a revolution, a black revolution,
going on in Africa” (On revolution, 100). He was a segregationist until he went to Mecca. The commonality that they both share is that they both wanted equal rights for African Americans they just went down different paths to receive those rights. In general, even with the differences in Martin Luther King’s and Malcolm X’s backgrounds, beliefs and methods, it is undeniable that both Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X were the two most influential and powerful in civil rights activists during the 20th century. People remember them as martyrs who fought for the cause of Black America at the time those people were desperately struggle the most. Also, people remember them as men who had strengths and hopes for their people to overcome their struggles and rose high through all the hatred that bounding them. And most importantly, people remember them as individuals who were ahead of their time and died prematurely, working for a goal yet to be achieved: equality and justice among all races. In my opinion, people are born the same, and no one should be treated differently from others. I believe that the color of one does not mean anything, neither having anything towards his or her personalities, as well as their roles to the society. We are all human being, and race is just a definition to determine one’s ancestors. I believe that if we are together, different races with different backgrounds and cultures, it will help us enable and understand more of our strengths and weaknesses. As a result, we will be able to support others and build a better world.
Malcolm believed that Negro in America were lost. He was a strong advocate for tying race religion and together. “We don’t separate our color from our religion ”(25pg ). Islam is the native religion of black people, but when they
The Nation of Islam, which Malcolm X was an important member of, is not a religious organization as the name suggests but rather an organization whose goal was to make the lives of African Americans better instead of actually teaching the proper ethics of Islam. One of the main objectives of this organization was Black Nationalism, through which Black leaders can control the areas where there is a majority of African Americans. This cause was greatl...
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” .
The Civil Rights movement was a movement against racial segregation and discrimination in the southern States that became nationally recognized in the middle of the 1950s. Though American slaves were given basic civil rights through the Fourteenth and Fifteenth amendments of the Constitution, African Americans still had a hard time trying to get federal protection of their newly found rights. A man by the name of Martin Luther King Jr. was one of the American Civil rights Leaders who used nonviolence in order to reach a social change. He used nonviolent resistance to overcome injustice against African Americans like segregation laws. He wasn’t just fighting for the equality of all African American but was also fighting for the equality of all men and women. Malcolm X is another great leader who fought for what he believed in. He was a black activist who, unlike King, promoted a little violence. Malcolm X wanted the nation (African Americans) to become more active in the civil rights protests. Both Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. had different methods for gaining civil rights. I believe that Martin Luther King Jr. method was more effective thanMalcolm X methods. In King “’Letter from Birmingham Jail” King defends himself on writing about why he is using nonviolent resistance to racism. Throughout the letter he shows his reasoning using logic, emotion, and ethics. Throughout his life King used this same method to reach how to hundred of thousands of African Americans.
Martin Luther King and Malcolm X were both African American civil rights leaders wanting to bring freedom to black people during the 1960s. Even though both leaders wanted to liberate black people; their philosophies were drastically different. Malcolm X was wanted racial separation, while Martin Luther King wanted to both races to coexist. Religion is also a major part of this situation because most African Americans including MLK in America were Christian while Malcolm X’s goal was to turn all people who follow his path to convert into Muslims. Martin Luther King’s philosophy would’ve made more sense to 1960s America because most people who wanted freedom in society would rather consider coexisting than more racial
Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X were very significant during the Civil Rights Movement. Both were excellent speakers and shared one goal but had two different ways of resolving it. Martin Luther King Jr. chose to resolve the issues by using non-violence to create equality amongst all races to accomplish the goal. Malcolm X also wanted to decrease discrimination and get of segregation but by using another tactic to successfully accomplish the similar goal. The backgrounds of both men were one of the main driven forces behind the ways they executed their plans to rise above the various mistreatments. Martin Luther King Jr. was a more pronounced orator, a more refined leader, and overall saw the larger picture than Malcolm X.
African Americans are fortunate to have leaders who fought for a difference in Black America. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X are two powerful men in particular who brought hope to blacks in the United States. Both preached the same message about Blacks having power and strength in the midst of all the hatred that surrounded them. Even though they shared the same dream of equality for their people, the tactics they implied to make these dreams a reality were very different. The background, environment and philosophy of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X were largely responsible for the distinctly varying responses to American racism.
Although both of these activists have different solutions and deliver things differently, they both address racism and the injustice the U.S. government performs on daily basis. In addition to this, they are both African Americans who persuading different audiences but are delivering the same content. In MLK’s letter he responds to his clergymen’s criticisms by addressing the racial injustices in Birmingham; while Malcolm X is delivery the same content but his audiences are blacks and whites. Even though they are both striving to declare freedom and are willing to fight for their human rights, MLK is more effective than Malcolm X in fighting against racial
Until the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., his life’s work was dedicated to the nonviolent actions of blacks to gain the freedoms they were promised in the Emancipation Proclamation of 1863 by Abraham Lincoln. He believed that “injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere” (King, 1963). These injustices had become so burdensome to blacks that they were “plunged into an abyss of despair” (King, 1963). The nonviolent actions of the sit-ins, boycotts, and marches were so the “individual could rise from the bondage of myths and half-truths…to help men rise from the dark depths of prejudice and racism” and ultimately lead to “inevitably opening the door to negotiation” (King, 1963). Not only was King’s approach effective with the older black generation, it was also successful with white people. They did not feel threatened when approached by King. White people gained a sense of empathy towards the plight of black freedom as King’s promise of nonviolence did not threaten their livelihood. Malcolm X viewed the world similarly to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., however; his beliefs to changing the status quo were slightly different from his political counterpart. Malcolm X realized that “anger could blind human vision” (X, 1965). In realizing this, X knew that in order to achieve racial freedom blacks had to “forget hypocritical politics and propaganda” (X, 1965). While Malcolm X was more so an advocate for violent forces against white people than King, X merely used force when it became necessary for defense. According to X, “I don’t go for non-violence if it also means a delayed solution. I am for violence if non-violence means we continue postponing a solution to American black man’s problem” (X, 1965). However, this le...
“I’m for the truth, no matter who tells it. I’m for justice, no matter who it is for or against. I’m a human being, first and foremost, and as such I’m for whoever and whatever benefits humanity as a whole” (X). This quote by Malcolm X represented his attitude towards equality and self-empowerment. The true Malcolm X was a passionate human rights activist as well as an extremely outspoken man during the fifties and sixties. X encouraged millions of African Americans to fight for what they believed in and to take pride in their ethnicity. X persuaded a multitude of African Americans that they are supreme and should not be degraded for their skin color. He learned at a very early age if he wanted something in life, he had to make some noise
[2] Most white people who lived through the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960's will often place Malcolm X and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. side by side as representations of Black activism: the former, a model of Black rage and confrontation, uncompromising in his stance; the latter an example of the peaceful, non-confrontational method towards achieving equal rights -- the "right way." Martin has been seen as the good guy and Malcolm as the bad. While Martin usually occupies a few pages in history books, Malcolm is usually found in only paragraphs. Even after his assassination, Malcolm's detractors seek to keep him quiet. I visited my high school in Connecticut back in February, Black History Month, and asked my sister and her friends what they knew about Malcolm X. Those that knew anything replied that he hated white people and that he was assassinated. When I asked several history teachers about how Malcolm was taught, they admitted that he takes a back seat to Mar...
...ica. Anna Hartwell states, “Christianity occupies a central place in Malcolm’s account of white supremacy, in both its global and domestic incarnations” (Hartwell). She also states, “Against this Christian tainted legacy, Malcolm X counterpoises Islam as “the true religion of the black man”. Islamic universalism proffered for him an alternative to U.S. citizenship, which had constantly failed to live up to its promises for African Americans” (Hartwell). Malcolm X had an understandable dislike of the system of white supremacy because it is a system that thrives from people being on the bottom who have higher percentages of taxes taken out paychecks even though they make far less than everyone else. The thing about white supremacy is that it affects in a negative way poor people of all colors, but black people suffer the most for obvious reasons. This was the message
Malcolm X’s forceful declamations attracted a lot of publicity as well as a large personal following. In his speeches he implored black people to separate from the whites and gain their freedom “by any means necessary.” This became his “motto.” Through many public political and religious protests Malcolm X became notorious with the white community. He became the most well known figure in the Islam Nation.
The teaching of the Nation of Islam helped him grow his ideas of racism and his view of white people while he was in prison. Malcolm’s opinion about the Nation’s belief that black people were seen as good and whites were seen as bad. When Malcolm X was released, his ideas change. Men were seen as being good or bad based on their action and no longer determined by their skin color. Malcolm traveled to Mecca cause another deep change; as the Nation of Islam had taught him, he realized that white people he had detested and fought in America was not so much matter of skin color but a matter of attitude and behavior. Being white did not make a man evil; but being a white American, nevertheless, mainly did indicate particular standard of behavior and particular attitudes about race. In this manner, Malcolm X began to believe that the only way that America could avoid racial trouble was to amend its social composition.
During the 1950s and 1960s, the Civil Rights Movement was at its peak and Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X were two of the most influential leaders of the movement. Both men were African Americans and both fought for equal rights for African Americans. The difference between the two, however, is found in their ideologies on how to best help and serve the black community. By looking at both men’s best-known speeches, one can better understand these men’s different ideologies and why Americans tend to gravitate more towards Martin Luther King, Jr. than towards Malcolm X.