Malcolm X and His Legacy in Fighting for Equal Rights

Be part of social justice or social change means that you are fighting for every human being is treated justly, without discrimination based on financial status, race, gender, ethnicity, etc. In our day, there are no longer issues involving racial discrimination because of past events that worked toward the common goal of equality. Everyone wants to play an important role in the world and with laws supporting equal rights, we can influence decisions as a unified population. One-man Malcolm X was very grateful and will give you or show to you the legacy he gave to us. Even though today he is no longer alive he is admired by millions of people, but why? 

I will start this paper with a small biography about him. Malcolm X was orphaned early in life. At the age of six, his father was killed and it has been rumored that white racists were responsible. Seven years later his mother passed away after which he lived in a series of foster homes. At the age of 20 in 1946, he was sentenced to prison for larceny and breaking. During his time in prison, he joined the Nation of Islam and after being released in 1952 he became one of its leaders. He was the public face of the controversial group and he preached the Nation’s message of black supremacy, criticized the separation of black and white teenagers and scoffed at the Civil Rights Movement’s emphasis on integration. After twelve years with the Nation of Islam, he had grown disillusioned with the Nation and its head Elijah Muhammad and repudiated its teachings. He then embraced Sunni Islam and after a period of travel in Africa, he returned to the United States to found Muslim Mosque, Inc. and the Organization of Afro-American Unity. Though continuing to support black rights and black equality he apologized for his racism in the Nation of Islam by saying: I did many things as a Black Muslim that I 'm sorry for now. I was a zombie then ... pointed in a certain direction and told to march”. In February 1965, shortly after leaving the Nation of Islam he was assassinated by three of its members. The Autobiography of Malcolm X has been called one of the most influential books of the twentieth century.

Malcolm X, a man like you and me, a basic individual that motivated an age of African-Americans to battle for their freedom. His efforts are viewed as brave and heroic by using his followers due to the fact he gave black Americans the rights that they deserved. Many people will say yes, he is like Mather Luther King, but I choose Malcolm X for this essay because he had a different vision to Martin Luther King a greater vision, I think Martin Luther King concern was equal rights and integration into white society for blacks while Malcolm X wanted rights for blacks in general. It didn’t remember to him that colleges had been segregated, he wanted the faculties that black students attended to be equal to the colleges that whites attended. He desired blacks to have identical opportunities, to be handled with the same dignity and appreciate as the white men.

Some human beings might also argue that he used to be no better than the whites at the time due to the fact he used racist phrases himself. He did this because he believed that you have to communicate the language of the oppressor now not solely to communicate, but to shine mild on what it is that oppressor is doing. When many white humans known as black humans ‘niggers’ and ‘monkeys’ he spoke back with ‘pale white thing’ and so on. He argued that he didn’t hate white people, he simply distrusted them, not due to the fact of their pores and skin color, but because of their deeds. He compared them to the snake. He said:

‘When a snake bites your children, you don't hate the snake for being a snake, you hate it for biting your children.’

He additionally argued explicitly that Blacks and Whites need to be able to sit down on the desk and talk to one every other besides concern of hurting each other’s feelings, to get the entirety aired out and up from below the covers so that we can have a legitimate, mental conversation about what has happened, what is happening, and what we can mutually do about it. However, there are human beings who assume that his movements have been racist and violent. A quote to guide this comes from his ‘…by any means necessary’ in which he advocated the killing anyone who stood in the way of the advancement of his people.

Malcolm executed many things while he was once alive such as: Becoming a minister at three of the Nation of Islam’s mosques. Founding the Nation of Islam’s newspaper, Muhammad Speaks. Participating in several debates along with boards on radio stations (Los Angeles, New York, Washington), TV applications ('Open Mind,' 'The Mike Wallace News Program') and universities (Harvard Law School, Howard University, Columbia University). Becoming the 2d most sought after speaker in the United States in 1963. Befriending boxer Cassius Clay who decides to convert to Islam and exchange is identified to Muhammad Ali. 

Malcolm X was once a passionate chief who promoted the rights and privileges of his people. He did this by using pronouncing the equal things that many white Americans have been saying, but in reverse. He stated that Black Americans had the right to use violence to protect themselves in opposition to the violence of others which was the complete opposite of Martin Luther King’s peaceful campaign. Many whites did not object to the use of violence as long as they were the ones using it.

He inspired an era of African-Americans to fight for their rights and freedom. His efforts are viewed as courageous and heroic through his followers because he liberated black Americans. However, there are human beings who think that his movements were racist and violent. A quote to support this comes from his ‘…by any means necessary’ in which he recommended the killing each person who stood in the way of the development of his people. He also recommended the formation of separate states for African-Americans. To aid their arguments they quote from his speeches: 'Anyone who looks different than me is my enemy. Anyone who acts differently than me is my enemy. Anyone who disagrees with me is my enemy. Anyone who thinks differently than me is immediately a Liberal. Anybody who contradicts me is brain-washed.'

Another quote from his ‘By any means necessary’ speech: That’s our motto. We want freedom by any means necessary. We want justice by any means necessary. We want equality by any means necessary. We don't feel that in 1964, living in a country that is supposedly based upon freedom, and supposedly the leader of the free world, we don 't think that we should have to sit around and wait for some segregationist congressmen and senators and a President from Texas in Washington, D. C., to make up their minds that our people are due now some degree of civil rights. No, we want it now or we don't think anybody should have it.

The use of the words ‘by any means necessary’ suggests that Malcolm X saw the advancement of black people more important than anything and that if anything stood in its way, he would be prepared to do anything for it. The first quote supports his racist image because he says ‘anyone who looks different from me is my enemy’ and ‘anyone who disagrees with me is my enemy’. A large majority of people who disagreed with him were white so he is saying that white people are his enemies and that they are brainwashed.

In my opinion, Malcolm X is now not a hero nor a villain. He was once an extremist that had correct intentions but took the incorrect approach in carrying them out. He used to be violent and endorsed racist views- ‘anybody who contradicts me is brainwashed’. He additionally promoted violence employing announcing that Blacks should no longer enable anything to stand in the way of their advancement. I assume that if he had taken a greater peaceful method like that of Martin Luther King, he would have been a lot more successful in spreading his message. By being violent and the use of extremist terms he didn’t show that they have been equal, he proved that black humans had been simply as terrible as the whites at the time. Martin Luther King, on the other hand, proved that black humans had been peaceful and civilized and deserved to be handled identically to the whites.

However, after his pilgrimage to Mecca, he realized that violence wasn’t the sole way ahead and stated that the things that he did while he was a member of the Nation of Islam had been wrong and that their message used to be false. This used to be what sooner or later killed him. The Nation of Islam is the notion to be at the back of his assassination because he was killed through three of its members.

Malcolm X was once a very fascinating and intricate person. Throughout his life, Malcolm had exposure to practically every type of person the world had to offer. In his younger years, he excelled in his neighborhood predominately surrounded by way of whites. He then acquired into the hustling enterprise within the black community which furnished for all sorts of people. After that, he joined the Nation of Islam, joining himself with many Muslims. Lastly, Malcolm went on a Hajj to Africa, where his conversation with various groups of people expanded. Each time Malcolm had a new group of people in his life, he had a unique alias to go by. Whichever one is remembered most, Malcolm Little, Malcolm X or El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz, his influence on society will be remembered forever.