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Malcolm X (born Malcolm Little, also known as el-Hajj Malik el-Shabazz) (1925–1965) was an African American primarily known for his political activism as the leader of the black nationalism movement, and as a priest in the Nation of Islam. He was one of Martin Luther King's most vocal critics, rejecting nonviolent protest in favor of forceful emancipation, now famous for its slogan “By any means necessary”.

Malcolm grew up in the world of 1930's and 1940's America, a time of intense racial tensions. Malcolm's family became victim of extreme racial harassment, systemic racism and the personal betrayal by several white people, which contributed to the set of beliefs he would end up holding. After his father's death and his mother's hospitalization, he spent his adolescence living in a series of foster homes or with relatives. Mostly left for himself, still, he ended up committing various crimes and, in 1946, was sent to prison 8 to 10 years for burglary.

In prison, Malcolm X joined the Nation of Islam and, after his parole in 1952 (having served 6 years of his sentence), quickly became one of the organization's most influential leaders. The NoI embraced black nationalism and had a significant impact on Malcolm's attitude towards other races. He was the public face of the NoI for 12 years before disillusioning and forming his own Sunni Islamic organization Muslim Mosque, Inc. and the Pan-African Organization of Afro-American Unity (OAAU). Malcolm would spend the rest of 1964 arguing - violently, they sent him death threats - with the Nation of Islam until on February 21, 1965, Malcolm's life was cut short during an attack involving the largely defensive weapon of gun.

Malcolm's beliefs and attitudes changed as his life progressed. His original rationale was that black emancipation was long due and that, if whites won't give it to them, blacks will have to take it forcefully. Malcolm brought up the example of the American Revolution as a successful example of gaining freedom from oppressors using violent means, and advocated for something like this for black people in America at that time. He believed that something similar would have to happen in the United States as well, if blacks ever were to live harmonious lifes - not harmonious with whites, necessarily, but amongst each other. In fact, he proposed 'economic nationalism', an economic program of self-sufficiency, ie. black control of the economy and politics of black communities.

Anything that white people would give them, like black suffrage or civil rights, Malcolm said, were insincere token breadcrumbs intended to keep blacks appeased in their oppression, and he believed that cooperation with whites and people of other faiths was impossible. As he disillusioned from the Nation of Islam and during his pilgrimage to Mecca he underwent the most drastic changes in his political attitude, beginning to accept cooperation with whites, though still only in the pursuit of the ultimate goal of black emancipation. Unfortunately, Malcolm's intellectual and spiritual journey was cut short only two days later as he was assassinated on an event of one of his organizations (the OAAU). He was unceremoniously shot by a sawed-off shotgun, rushed to a hospital and pronounced deceased the same day. The exact circumstances around his assassination and the person responsible for his death, however, remain a mystery.

malcolm_x.1708166890.txt.gz · Last modified: 2024/02/17 11:48 by ultracomfy

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