Malcom X

Malcolm X, a civil rights leader in the 1960's believed that blacks and whites should be segregated. He also believed that white man was evil and were trying to brainwash all blacks and that Martin Luther King's non-violent protests weren't working and that violence was needed for change. Malcolm X's life was a life with a lot of conflict and violence in it. Malcolm X was born under the name of Malcolm Little in Omaha, Nebraska in 1925. His father was a Baptist minister and an outspoken follower of Marcus Garvey, the black nationalist leader of the 1920s who preached that all blacks should leave the US and go back to Africa. While Malcolm's father was away and Malcolm's mother was pregnant with Malcolm, a group of KKK members came to their house and told Mrs. Little to send out her husband. She came out of the house and stood where all the KKK could see that she was pregnant and told them that Mr. Little was in Milwaukee preaching. The KKK, disappointed, shouted threats and told them to leave town. After this they broke every window in the Little's home and left. When Mr. Little came home and heard what happened, he decided to move as soon a Malcolm was born to Lansing, Michigan. Here was where Malcolm's father died at the hand of the Black Legion (X 4-13).

After Malcolm's father's death, his mother who had to take care of eight children and endure threats from the KKK, suffered a nervous breakdown. As a result, the welfare department took Malcolm and his siblings. Malcolm was later enrolled in a reform school and did very well grade wise. He was the best student in his class and wanted to become a lawyer. When the school heads heard about this, they sent a person to talk to Malcolm.

This person told and convinced Malcolm that he was black and that he could never become a lawyer because of it. As a result, he dropped out of after the eighth grade and moved to Boston, Massachusetts where he worked several different jobs. Soon, Malcolm became associated in a gang and sold and used drugs, and was involved in many other criminal activities. His gang career ended when he got into some trouble due to a bet with the gang leader. Since the gang wanted Malcolm killed, Malcolm hid for a while. Soon, Malcolm decided to rob a house, which he heard had a lot of valuables in it. Soon one night, he robbed the house, but was caught later. Malcolm was charged with burglary and sent to prison for a maximum of eight years of which he served six.

This was a turning point in Malcolm's life. While in prison, Malcolm educated himself and became interested in the teachings of Elijah Muhammad. Malcolm spent his time in jail educating himself and learning more about the Nation of Islam (later known as the Black Muslims). Their belief, which was contrary to Martin Luther King JR’s, mainly to was to segregated whites and blacks. The Nation of Islam wanted to establish a separate Afro-American homeland in the U.S. and believed that the white person is the Devil who wanted to enslave all non-whites. The Nation of Islam also strictly followed the Islamic belief.

When Malcolm was released from prison after in 1952, he joined a temple in Detroit. Then took the name Malcolm X. He took the name X because his present last name, was the last name of the slave master who freed their slave. Since the slave didn't know who their ancestors were, and therefore didn't know their real last name, they often took up the last name of their master. Many Muslims kept the name X because in math, X is represented as an unknown variable like their real last name. A person was to keep the name X until God himself gave them a holy name (Encarta 2). Soon after his release from jail, Malcolm worked for his oldest brother who managed a furniture store. While working, he also gave many speeches, and went fishing (fishing is when someone stands out on a sidewalk and hand out brochures and explained about their ideas of the Nation of Islam.) for new members for the Nation of Islam. He did this until he became an official spokesperson for them. After officially being excepted, Malcolm rapidly became an outstanding figure in the Nation of Islam. By the early 1960s, the Nation of Islam had become well known and Malcolm was their most prominent spokesperson. Malcolm gave many speeches and had dedicated his life to serve Elijah Muhammad and God. Because of the Nation of Islam popularity, television reporters were now very curious about it. To represent the Nation of Islam, Elijah Muhammad chose Malcolm X. For the next few years, Malcolm X was a major and widely publicized figure. This had its good and bad side. It was good because it spread the ideas of the Nation of Islam all across the WORLD,