Malcolm X is one of the unsung heroes; he was a victim of democracy. He is known as an African American speaker, one of the most effective speakers in the 20th century. Many people only know about the national heroes and neglecting local heroes who really suffered of serving & helping their countries. Such heroes had the honest believe in what they are doing and believe in correcting the wrong situations; even if it will lead them to bad consequences. Also, sometimes sacrifices of their life in order to develop their country and make it a better place to live. Malcolm X is one of those heroes, heroes that people don’t know the truth about them, due to the publication efforts in hiding their stories for democratic reasons. Malcolm X was a huge player in the civil rights battle that faced the United States in the 1960’s. Malcolm X was born in Omaha, Nebraska, on May 25, 1925.. He was the second in command in the Nation of Islam. Also, Malcolm established many mosques all over the country. He became open minded after his journey to Mecca and started to accept the whites. Before that, he had some racism in his way of thinking and what people don’t know that he changed after his journey to Mecca. My paper will show who he was affected by Elijah Mohammad, his journey to Mecca and how it changed his personality especially in the racism side and what he gained from reaching the true Islam, which changed his thinking in many ways.
Malcolm X embraced true Islam when he made the pilgrimage after he left the Nation of Islam and found the truth about his leader Elijah Mohammad. After leaving the nation of Islam, he started to search for the answers to his questions. He found all what he need in his trip to Mecca. However, before this changing...
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...past he used to take everything from Elijah Mohammad but now he is thinking and this is what he sees now, this is the conclusion that he reached. Now he think that there is not a good or bad people depending on their color, he think that all human beings are divided to good and bad people. Unfortunately, most images of Malcolm today focus on the nation of Islam period of his life, although the changing that happened to his way of thinking after that period is much different and very important message for the American people.
Works Cited
Eugene victor, W. (1993). THE VICTIMS OF DEMOCRACY: MALCOLM X AND THE BLACK REVOLUTION. London, New York: Free Association Books.
Peter, G. (2013). THE DEATH AND LIFE OF MALCOLM X. Urbana: University of Illinois Press.
MALCOLM X - AN ISLAMIC PERSPECTIVE. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.colostate.edu/orgs/MSA/find_more/m_x.html
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
During his stay in prison, Malcolm continually lashed out at the guards and fellow inmates. After realizing that this would never get him anywhere, he began to study the teachings of Islam. With the aid of a fellow convict he cam to the mindset that it was his new mission in life to convert fellow blacks in order to unify them as a people. He felt that there was no real way that blacks and whites could come to a mutual agreement in America, and the only solution would be a great Diaspora back to his "homeland" of Africa.
This was due to the fact that Malcolm felt his hero and mentor, Elijah Muhammad, had betrayed him. Muhammad had violated his own teachings of marital affairs when he had fathered several children out of wedlock. After this fallout with Muhammad, Malcolm went on a journey to Africa where he did the Hajj, which was the traditional Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca. After his pilgrimage to Mecca Malcolm X converted to traditional Islam and again changed his name to El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz.
Malcolm X was often encountered by Muslims from other countries who wished to “enlighten” him with what they felt was true Islam. He was initially very skeptical towards these claims but eventually his curiosity got the better of him. To get to know the religion better, Malcolm was directed by his friends to an Egyptian professor in New York, Dr. Mahmoud Youssef
Malcolm X is an important figure in human history because he was a human rights activist and fought for equality among people. He was a proficient public speaker who spoke for minorities, mostly African Americans. By reading Malcolm X’s story, I visualize on how a man suffered from the effects of prejudice and his whole disposition was formed from it. I see how a very angry man stayed angry at the "white devils" f...
Malcolm X became one of the leading figures during the civil rights movement with his great ideas and speaking abilities. Elijah Muhammad and Malcolm X led the Nation of Islam in the United States. The Nation existed as a growing organization and the government felt that it would turn into a violent association. The FBI became intensely interested in Malcolm after his joining with Elijah Muhammad and began to tap Malcolm X and try to find charges against him so he...
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.
The Web. The Web. February 2014 Noaman, Ali “About Malcolm X” Malcolm-x.org. Web. 2013.
Malcolm X. “Nightmare.” Intersections: An Introduction to the Liberal Arts. Ed. Peggy Fitch. Littleton, MA: Tapestry, 2011. 90-99. Print.
Malcolm X achieved quick result with his violent approach, which also led to other problems. Malcolm did not care about the punishment, he wanted to see if the end was reachable. Malcolm proved to the people that he was determined to find the end of African American favour (Salzman). Malcolm never had the chance to fully speak his mind until he departed from Elijah Muhammad’s Nation of Islam in 1963.
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.
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.
Hoyt, Charles Alva. “The Five Faces of Malcolm X.” Negro American Literature Forum 4 (1970): 107-112.
Malcolm X is arguably one of the most revolutionizing figures in America for playing a huge role as a human rights activist and a black leader during the civil rights era, for being a key spokesman for the Nation of Islam, and his miraculous attempt to preach and fight for the end of racism and violence against his