Three Events In Malcolm X

1010 Words3 Pages

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. …show more content…

Ostrowski, his eighth grade teacher. Despite being the top of his class his teacher discouraged him from becoming a lawyer, saying “A lawyer - that’s no realistic goal for a nigger. You need to think about something you can be.” This statement changes Malcolm’s perception of the people around him. Malcolm begins to notice how all the white people he is surrounded by treat him. “It was then that I began to change—inside. I drew away from white people.” Malcolm no longer accepts it when people call him “nigger.” He also has a general feeling of unease around white people and people are constantly asking him “What’s wrong?” until he goes to Boston. This shows how he becomes aware of the inequalities faced by black people in America, even among the “nice white people” who like him and try to treat him well. From this point forward Malcolm has a general distrust of white people unless they prove that he should believe

Show More
Related

  • Malcolm X Saved Summary

    333 Words  | 1 Pages

    In this essay “Saved,”’ by Malcolm X. Malcolm is talking about how he went to prison and how that made him want to improve his language. So he got a holed of a dictionary and read it. while doing this, he though to himself he also could improve his hand writing so when he would read the dictionary he would also write down what he read. than he would read what he wrote down out loud, this made him a faster writer and a good reader. Now because of this, Malcolm loved reading he said he would stay up all night reading and only would get 4 to 5 hours of sleep, but that was all he needed.

    Read More

  • Similarities Between Richard Wright And Malcolm X

    771 Words  | 2 Pages

    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

    Read More

  • The Life and Legacy of Malcolm X

    522 Words  | 2 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Malcom X: The Religious Journey Of Malcolm X

    656 Words  | 2 Pages

    He was born Malcolm Little, to a Baptist lay speaker and a Grenada-born homemaker, Malcolm’s family had to be relocated several times because of constant death-threats toward his father. At the age of six, Earl, Malcolm’s father was killed in a streetcar accident that the family believed was the work of a white supremacist group called the Black Legion. At thirteen, Malcolm’s mother was institutionalized at a mental hospital, leaving her children to be separated into foster homes. Although an excellent student in junior high school, Malcolm dropped out of school when a white teacher told him that his dream of practicing law was “no realistic goal for a nigger”. After a youth of petty crime and a young adulthood of larger infractions, Malcolm found himself in jail for larceny and breaking and entering.

    Read More

  • How Did Malcolm X A History Day Outline

    2860 Words  | 6 Pages

    Thesis: Malcolm X’s prejudice towards Whites began diminishing after his trip to Mecca. Following the life-changing journey to Mecca Malcolm was able to contribute more to the Civil Rights Movement.

    Read More

  • Malcolm X: A Different Kind of Leader

    827 Words  | 2 Pages

    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 ...

    Read More

  • Malcolm X: The Civil Rights Movement and The Non Violent Pursue of Integration

    927 Words  | 2 Pages

    Malcolm X, the activist & outspoken public voice of the Black Muslim faith, challenged the mainstream civil rights movement and the nonviolent pursuit of integration championed by Martin Luther King Jr. He urged followers to defend themselves against white aggression “by any means necessary” {Malcolm X}

    Read More

  • Malcolm X's Life and Accomplishments

    1413 Words  | 3 Pages

    Malcolm graduated junior high at the top of his class, with aspirations of being a lawyer, until a teacher told him that being a lawyer was “no realistic goal for a nigger,” suggesting that he be something practical, like a carpenter (J. Si...

    Read More

  • Malcolm, Malcolm X: A Life Of Reinvention

    1588 Words  | 4 Pages

    “Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today.”

    Read More

  • Chapter Summary Of Malcolm X

    1026 Words  | 3 Pages

    For me, what I can see, Malcolm is confused. He wants to be with the white, but at the same time he can felt that they are not really accepting him. There are certain limits for the black in America. This can be seen when the teachers make him felt discomfort. They did give him chance to be the class president but they make him down by saying that he should be carpenter. The discomfort makes him stayed with his sister house. Actually at this time, Malcolm thought that he himself being oppressed by the white. He did not really understand that it is the issue of race.

    Read More

  • Malcolm Little's Autobiography Of Malcolm X

    858 Words  | 2 Pages

    Malcolm's family was pushed to the very edge by the white man and he explains exactly how it

    Read More

  • Islam in America

    2522 Words  | 6 Pages

    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...

    Read More

  • Malcolm X: Paving the Way for the Rights of African Americans

    983 Words  | 2 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Free Essays - Autobiography of Malcolm X

    957 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Autobiography of Malcolm X as told by Alex Haley is about a man who changed the history of America.  Malcolm (Little) X preached what he believed about racism, discrimination, and segregation.  He went through many changes in his fight for equality.  The three transformations that really changed the way Malcolm thought and preached where his transformation in prison, his transformation into the Islamic religion (following Elijah Muhammad), and the biggest transformation of all, his pilgrimage to Mecca.  In all of Malcolm actions, teachings and transformations we learn different points of view and we get a good look at different aspects of events.  The life of Malcolm (Little) X as told in his autobiography should be read by all.

    Read More

  • Summary Of Malcolm X

    589 Words  | 2 Pages

    My initial reactions to this movie were inspired and enlightened. Malcolm, like any young African-American boy in a time of racial hatred, did not have it easy growing up. In fact, he did not have it easy when he was in his teens to early twenties either. Nor did he have it easy when he was an adult. Yet, at least by his adult age he understood this and what his father had been fighting for. Therefore, with his Islamic conversion in prison, he set out to change the world as best as he sought. Thanks to this film and the autobiography it was based on, we can now truly understand this struggle, inner and outer, for justice, liberty, and the pursuit of all to have happiness. With Denzel Washington -traditionally a great actor- playing Malcolm

    Read More

More about Three Events In Malcolm X

Open Document