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Malcolm X

American Black rights activist (1925-1965) · United States · Activists · Died at 39

Malcolm X is read about 8,426 times a day, in 100 languages.

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He walked the line between prophet and provocateur - the Nation of Islam's sharpest voice, calling for separation when integration was the mainstream dream, then breaking with the Nation entirely after Mecca shifted his vision.

ActivistsPoliticianPoliticsStand UpActivismUnited StatesAmericas20th Century

A life in dates

1966Anisfield-Wolf Book AwardsAward1965Died21 February 19651964“We are African, and we happened to be in America. We're not American. We are people who formerly were Africans who were kidnapped and brought to America.”In their words28 June 1964Speech at Founding Rally of the Organization of Afro-American Unity (28 June 1964)

“There can be no black-white unity until there is first some black unity. There can be no workers' solidarity until there is first some racial solidarity.”In their words12 March 1964A Declaration of Independence (12 March 1964)

1963“Anybody that gives even a just criticism of the Jew is instantly labeled antisemite. The Jew cries louder than anybody else if anybody criticizes him.”In their wordsMay 1963May 1963 interview with Playboy, quoted in Dictionary of Antisemitism (2007).

“President Kennedy never foresaw that the chickens would come home to roost so soon.”In their words2 December 1963On the assassination of John F. Kennedy, quoted in The New York Times (2 December 1963) "Malcolm X Scores U.S. and Kennedy". p. 21.

“If violence is wrong in America, violence is wrong abroad.”In their wordsNovember 1963Speech at a Northern Negro Grass Roots Leadership Conference, Detroit, Michigan, November 1963

“By the way, right at that time Birmingham had exploded, and the Negroes in Birmingham - remember, they also exploded.”In their wordsNovember 1963Speech at a Northern Negro Grass Roots Leadership Conference, Detroit, Michigan, November 1963

1925Born19 May 1925

Also in Deutsch

Photos 11

A Boston police mug shot of Malcolm taken in 1944, following his arrest for larceny[23]A Boston police mug shot of Malcolm taken in 1944, following his arrest for larceny[23]Malcolm X speaking to members of the African-American Students Foundation. (1959)Malcolm X speaking to members of the African-American Students Foundation. (1959)Muhammad Ali (second row, in dark suit) watches Elijah Muhammad speak, 1964Muhammad Ali (second row, in dark suit) watches Elijah Muhammad speak, 1964Malcolm X's only meeting with Martin Luther King Jr., March 26, 1964, during the Senate debates regarding the (eventual) Civil Rights Act of 1964.[151]Malcolm X's only meeting with Martin Luther King Jr., March 26, 1964, during the Senate debates regarding the (eventual) Civil Rights Act of 1964.[151]Malcolm X meeting with Prince Faisal bin Abdulaziz (1964)Malcolm X meeting with Prince Faisal bin Abdulaziz (1964)

In their own words 10

,
Malcolm X
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10 statements, newest first

  1. We are African, and we happened to be in America. We're not American. We are people who formerly were Africans who were kidnapped and brought to America.

    Jun 28, 1964, Speech at Founding Rally of the Organization of Afro-American Unity (28 June 1964), Own words

  2. If you stick a knife in my back nine inches and pull it out six inches, there's no progress. If you pull it all the way out that's not progress.

    Mar 1964, TV interview after 90-day moratorium (March 1964), Own words

  3. There can be no black-white unity until there is first some black unity. There can be no workers' solidarity until there is first some racial solidarity.

    Mar 12, 1964, A Declaration of Independence (12 March 1964), Own words

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Awards

Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards1966

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About this person

Born Malcolm Little on May 19, 1925, he moved through foster homes after his father's death and his mother's hospitalization, then landed in prison in 1946 on larceny and burglary charges. Inside, he found the Nation of Islam, shed "Little" for "X" to mark the African name stolen by slavery, and emerged in 1952 as the group's public face for the next twelve years. He preached Black empowerment and separation, criticized Martin Luther King Jr.'s nonviolence, and stayed under FBI surveillance through the 1950s onward. By the 1960s he'd soured on the Nation and its leader Elijah Muhammad; after the Hajj to Mecca he became el-Hajj Malik el-Shabazz, embraced Sunni Islam, and founded the Islamic MMI and the Pan-African OAAU. The break brought death threats. On February 21, 1965, three Nation members shot him in New York City - two of those convictions were vacated in 2021. His autobiography with Alex Haley came out posthumously that same year, and streets, schools, and a day bear his name.

Country
United States
Category
Activists
Type
Activist
Status
deceased
Dates
Lived 1925 to 1965 · aged 39

In common with Malcolm

Mike WallaceAlso in The Hate That Hate Produced (1959)Louis FarrakhanAlso in The Hate That Hate Produced (1959)

Activists from the United States 4

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