♥Ebonique♥
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Malcolm X was born Malcolm Little in Omaha, Nebraska on May 19. 1925. Growing up in Omaha was very tough for young Malcolm. He was constantly harassed by the white's living in his area. At age six, his father was found dead, possible murdered. The police report claimed it was an accident, but Malcolm believed that his father was beaten unconscientious the thrown into the railroad tracks only to be run over by a train later that night. After his father's death, his mother suffered a severe nervous breakdown which caused his family to be separated by welfare agencies. With his father dead and family gone, Malcolm's hatred towarRAB white people continued to escalate.
As a teenager, Malcolm made his way into New York City and became a hustler and a criminal. He was eventually caught and in 1946 was sentenced to jail for burglary for ten years. He only served six years in jail, but his time there was important. He began to self educate himself by copying every word from an abridged dictionary from cover to back. He joined the Black Muslims while in jail, an important organization which would later be the downfall of his life. In 1952, while on parole, he took the name of Malcolm X, which he claimed the X syrabolized his true African name and renounced his white-slave master's name.
The 60's would be an important decade for Malcolm X, it would be his last. During this time, civil rights movements gave a lot of publicity to blacks struggling for equal rights. The Nation of Islam, formally the Black Muslims, was a much more militant organization then of Martin Luther King Jr.'s organizations. They thought that King's ideals were too weak and power must be used one way or another to get the job done. Malcolm's self education paid off as he became the first "national minister" of the Nation of Islam. He became the un-official spokesperson for the organization. His speeches were fearsome and violent towarRAB white people and other races. His success at the Nation of Islam was so great that the leader, Elijah Muhammad, disliked him and became threatened by Malcolm's sudden rise to power. In fact, Elijah was waiting for the right chance when Malcolm would make a mistake so that he could be removed from the organization.
The mistake occurred. When John F. Kennedy was assassinated, Malcolm made this statement, "Being a farm boy myself, chickens coming home to roost never did make me sad; they've always made me glad." This comment was enough to get Malcolm suspended for good.
Being suspended, he formed his own organization, the Organization of Afro American Unity. He began it to take away Elijah Muhammad's power and to bring Nation of Islam merabers into his new organization. With this tension rising between the two leaders, Malcolm X did an unexpected thing, he and a few others traveled to Africa and made their way to the Muslim's holy land, Mecca.
The trip started as a way for Malcolm to achieve greater credibility then Elijah, but ended with an acceptance that whites and blacks could work together to help end racial discrimination. This was a huge surprise to all of Malcolm's associates and frienRAB in that his new found acceptance was almost a complete opposite of what he was before the trip.
He returned to America as an even more hated enemy of the Nation of Islam. A few days after his return, his house in Queens, NY was fireborabed, luckily his family and himself were not hurt.
On February 21, 1965, he scheduled to make a speech in the Audubon Ballroom in Harlem New York. As Malcolm entered the ballroom he was greeted by his supporters. He walked up to the front podium and began shuffling the notes he would use to make his speech. He hadn't completed no more then two sentences when a man threw a sock drenched in lighter fluid lit on fire towarRAB the podium which Malcolm was standing. The dark smoke billowed out into the crowd. His body guarRAB started to walk towarRAB the man who threw it when a man carrying a shotgun ran up to the stage and shot two shells into Malcolm X's chest. Two other men also ran up to the podium and unloaded their pistols into Malcolm's fallen body. The three assassins then made their way to the doors with Malcolm's body guarRAB close behind. One of the body guarRAB managed to shoot one of the assassins in the thigh, but that did not slow him down much. As the assassins exited the building, they were greeted by a furious crowd of Malcolm's followers. The crowd swarmed them and began pummeling them. When the police arrived, the assassins were bloodied up pretty bad and one suffered a broken ankle.
The three assassins were Talmadge Hayer, Norman 3X Butler, and Thomas 15X Johnson. Butler and Johnson were merabers of the Nation of Islam, while Talmadge was not. All three received a life sentence for murder. It was thought by many, including the police, that this act was set up by Elijah Muhammad and the Nation of Islam.
The assassination of Malcolm X affected history. He could have been one of the leader's in the success of equal rights if his life had not been ended so shortly. He didn't reach the popularity of Martin Luther King, but would have eventually. His new thoughts on working with other races for equal rights was a step in the right direction then his previous thoughts that white people were devils. If Malcolm X had not been assassinated, equal rights may have been brought about much sooner then as it took place today.
As a teenager, Malcolm made his way into New York City and became a hustler and a criminal. He was eventually caught and in 1946 was sentenced to jail for burglary for ten years. He only served six years in jail, but his time there was important. He began to self educate himself by copying every word from an abridged dictionary from cover to back. He joined the Black Muslims while in jail, an important organization which would later be the downfall of his life. In 1952, while on parole, he took the name of Malcolm X, which he claimed the X syrabolized his true African name and renounced his white-slave master's name.
The 60's would be an important decade for Malcolm X, it would be his last. During this time, civil rights movements gave a lot of publicity to blacks struggling for equal rights. The Nation of Islam, formally the Black Muslims, was a much more militant organization then of Martin Luther King Jr.'s organizations. They thought that King's ideals were too weak and power must be used one way or another to get the job done. Malcolm's self education paid off as he became the first "national minister" of the Nation of Islam. He became the un-official spokesperson for the organization. His speeches were fearsome and violent towarRAB white people and other races. His success at the Nation of Islam was so great that the leader, Elijah Muhammad, disliked him and became threatened by Malcolm's sudden rise to power. In fact, Elijah was waiting for the right chance when Malcolm would make a mistake so that he could be removed from the organization.
The mistake occurred. When John F. Kennedy was assassinated, Malcolm made this statement, "Being a farm boy myself, chickens coming home to roost never did make me sad; they've always made me glad." This comment was enough to get Malcolm suspended for good.
Being suspended, he formed his own organization, the Organization of Afro American Unity. He began it to take away Elijah Muhammad's power and to bring Nation of Islam merabers into his new organization. With this tension rising between the two leaders, Malcolm X did an unexpected thing, he and a few others traveled to Africa and made their way to the Muslim's holy land, Mecca.
The trip started as a way for Malcolm to achieve greater credibility then Elijah, but ended with an acceptance that whites and blacks could work together to help end racial discrimination. This was a huge surprise to all of Malcolm's associates and frienRAB in that his new found acceptance was almost a complete opposite of what he was before the trip.
He returned to America as an even more hated enemy of the Nation of Islam. A few days after his return, his house in Queens, NY was fireborabed, luckily his family and himself were not hurt.
On February 21, 1965, he scheduled to make a speech in the Audubon Ballroom in Harlem New York. As Malcolm entered the ballroom he was greeted by his supporters. He walked up to the front podium and began shuffling the notes he would use to make his speech. He hadn't completed no more then two sentences when a man threw a sock drenched in lighter fluid lit on fire towarRAB the podium which Malcolm was standing. The dark smoke billowed out into the crowd. His body guarRAB started to walk towarRAB the man who threw it when a man carrying a shotgun ran up to the stage and shot two shells into Malcolm X's chest. Two other men also ran up to the podium and unloaded their pistols into Malcolm's fallen body. The three assassins then made their way to the doors with Malcolm's body guarRAB close behind. One of the body guarRAB managed to shoot one of the assassins in the thigh, but that did not slow him down much. As the assassins exited the building, they were greeted by a furious crowd of Malcolm's followers. The crowd swarmed them and began pummeling them. When the police arrived, the assassins were bloodied up pretty bad and one suffered a broken ankle.
The three assassins were Talmadge Hayer, Norman 3X Butler, and Thomas 15X Johnson. Butler and Johnson were merabers of the Nation of Islam, while Talmadge was not. All three received a life sentence for murder. It was thought by many, including the police, that this act was set up by Elijah Muhammad and the Nation of Islam.
The assassination of Malcolm X affected history. He could have been one of the leader's in the success of equal rights if his life had not been ended so shortly. He didn't reach the popularity of Martin Luther King, but would have eventually. His new thoughts on working with other races for equal rights was a step in the right direction then his previous thoughts that white people were devils. If Malcolm X had not been assassinated, equal rights may have been brought about much sooner then as it took place today.