Malcolm X: A Different Kind of Leader

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A Different Kind of Leader

There are many prominent Civil Rights leaders that stand out from the past. All of which had their own unique way of fighting for what they believed in. Two of those past leaders are Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X. They both fought for Black Rights and were both very good at what they did. Even though they both fought for Civil Rights, they used different approaches to fight for what they believed in because of their different upbringings and how that influenced them as they became adults and later as leaders in the fight for Civil Rights.

Malcolm X had an interesting childhood that ended up shaping how he would end up as an adult. Malcolm had a very large family, he was one of eight children. His mothers’ name was Louise Norton Little. She was a stay at home mom and cared for her children. His father, Earl Little, was a very outspoken Baptist minister and an avid supporter of the Black Nationalist leader Marcus Garvey. This is where his life started to get interesting. Earl's civil rights activism prompted death threats from the white supremacist organization Black Legion, forcing the family to relocate twice before Malcolm's fourth birthday. ( www.malcolmx.com p 1). Earl wanted nothing to do with violence and wanted to keep his family safe from harm. He tried to put as much distance between him and the Black Legion. Despite his efforts to elude the Legion, in 1929, their home in Lansing, Michigan, was burned to the ground. Two years later, Earl's body was found lying across the town's trolley tracks (www.malcolmx.com p 1). Police declared that both of these incidents were in fact accidents and not attacks on the family by the Black Legion. This violent end to Malcolm’s father’s life ...

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...or freedom by “any means necessary,” including violence, Martin Luther King, Jr. used the power of words and acts of nonviolent resistance, such as protests, grassroots organizing, and civil disobedience to achieve seemingly-impossible goals. (www.thekingcenter.org. p 3). Martin Luther King, Jr.’s childhood really did affect how he acted as an adult and shaped the way he acted as a Civil Rights leader.

Malcolm X and Martin Luther King, Jr. were both great leaders. They both fought for Civil Rights, but they fought for it in different ways. Their upbringings, and studies greatly influenced how they fought for Civil Rights. Malcolm X was more for violent attacks or whatever they thought was needed to achieve their goal. While, Martin Luther King, Jr. was an advocate of nonviolence and fought for what he believed in without violence.

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