Malcolm Little, born in 1925, was a social activist who fought for the rights of black Muslims. In his early life, Malcolm Little was a victim of racism and segregation, which at the time was not unusual. In his lifetime, Malcolm X and many other African-Americans were victims of denied rights, including voting and education. In 1877, laws were established that dealt with blacks. These laws were called the Jim Crow laws and included laws such as the following: black males were not allowed to offer a handshake to whites because it implied equality and if offered to a female, the black man would be accused of rape; black people had to sit in the back of cars driven by whites; blacks are not given the courtesy of having titles such as Mr., Mrs., Miss, etc.; blacks were not allowed to claim or show superior knowledge than that of a white person. In addition to these, there were many others. Malcolm X's goal in his later life was to eliminate these laws and gain equality for black Muslims in America. Early in his life, though, Malcolm's school teachers were racist towards him and believed he couldn't achieve anything in life, so Malcolm dropped out of high school at age 15. After dropping out, his life changed. He started taking drugs, drinking alcohol, and committing crimes. In 1946, Malcolm Little was convicted of theft and was sent to prison. He realized he needed to change his lifestyle; he began to write letters to Elijah Muhammad, the leader of the Nation of Islam. In prison, between the years of 1946 and 1952, Malcolm Little converted to Muslim and changed his name from Malcolm Little to Malcolm X, which represented his lost slave name; he did not want to keep the name of Little because it was his slave name. When released from prison, he met Mr. Muhammad and became an assistant minister in a mosque located in Detroit, Michigan. Soon after, he became an official speaker for black Muslims after gaining recognition for his dedication to the Nation of Islam. He disliked nonviolent speakers because he felt that in order to gain equality and start a revolution, people needed to be violent about it to get attention. "I've never heard of a non-violent revolution." These words prove Malcolm X's need for violence to start a revolution. He also didn't want black people to vote because they were mostly uneducated and didn't know who to vote for. He felt that if blacks were to vote, they should be educated before making their votes. Since he was so radical, people believed that Malcolm X wanted to take over the Nation of Islam from the Honorable Elijah Muhammad. In 1964, after being silenced for 90 days by Muhammad for speaking out on the assassination of John F. Kennedy, Malcolm X officially left the Nation of Islam. After leaving the Nation of Islam, Malcolm X founded his own organization called the Muslim Mosque, Inc. In 1964, he traveled to Mecca and when he came back, he rejoined the Nation of Islam. In February of 1965 at age 39, Malcolm X was in Harlem, New York giving a speech. After few words were said by Malcolm, he was shot dead by 3 Muslim African-Americans. The reason for the assassination of Malcolm X is unknown, but it is believed that he was killed because he blamed a man named John Ali as the reason Malcolm X left the Nation of Islam. John Ali wanted to get back at him so he planned an assassination. In conclusion, Malcolm X's background was extremely significant and was where he gained his lifetime achievements.
Malcolm X speaks with Elijah Muhammad, the leader of the Nation of Islam. Photo courtesy of: nytimes.com