Malcolm X

Malcolm X

Malcolm x was born May 19, 1925 in Omaha, Nebraska. His mother, Louise

Norton Little was a homemaker. His father Earl Little was an outspoken Baptist minister

and ,supporter of Black Nationalist leader Marcus Garvey. Earl's civil rights activism

prompted death threats from the white supremacist organization Black Legion, forcing

the family to relocate twice before Malcolm's fourth birthday. Regardless of the Little's

efforts to elude the Legion, in 1929 their Lansing, Michigan home was burned to the

ground. Two years later, Earl Little was found lying across the town's trolley tracks.

Police ruled both incidents as accidents, but the Little's were certain that members of the

Black Legion were responsible. Louise suffered emotional breakdown several years after

the death of her husband and was committed to a mental institution. Her children were

split up amongst various foster homes and orphanages.

Malcolm was a smart focused student. He graduated from junior high at the top of

his class. However when a favorite teacher told Malcolm his dream of becoming a lawyer

was "no realistic goal for a nigger," Malcolm lost interest in school. He dropped out spent

some time in Boston, Massachusetts working various odd jobs and then traveled to

Harlem, New York where he committed petty crimes. By 1942 Malcolm was

coordinating various narcotics, prostitution and gambling rings. Eventually Malcolm and

his buddy, Shorty, moved back to Boston. In 1946 they were arrested and convicted on

burglary charges, and Malcolm was sentenced to 10 years in prison. (He was paroled

after serving seven years.) Recalling his days in school, he used the time to further his

education. It was during this period of self-enlightenment that Malcolm's brother

Reginald would visit and discuss his recent conversion to the Muslim religion. Reginald

belonged to the religious organization the Nation of Islam

Malcolm began to study the teachings of Nation of Islam leader Elijah

Muhammad. Muhammad taught that white society actively worked to keep African-

Americans from empowering themselves and achieving political, economic and social

success. Among other goals, the NOI fought for a state of their own, separate from one

inhabited by white people. By the time he was paroled in 1952, Malcolm was a devoted

follower with the new surname X. He considered Little a slave name and chose the X to

signify his lost tribal name.

Malcolm was appointed as a minister and national spokesman for the Nation of

Islam. Elijah Muhammad also charged him with establishing new mosques in cities such

as Detroit and Harlem. Malcolm utilized newspaper columns, as well as radio and

television to communicate the Nation of Islam message across the United States. His

charisma, drive and conviction attracted an astounding number of new members.

Malcolm was largely credited with increasing membership in the Nation of Islam from

500 in 1952 to 30,000 in 1963.

The crowds and controversy surrounding Malcolm made him a media magnet. He

was featured in a week-long television special with Mike Wallace in 1959, called "The

Hate That Hate Produced." The program explored the fundamentals of the Nation of

Islam and tracked Malcolm's emergence as one of its most important leaders. After the

special, Malcolm was faced with the uncomfortable reality that his fame had eclipsed that

of his mentor Elijah Muhammad. Racial tensions ran increasingly high during the early

1960s. In addition to the media, Malcolm's vivid personality had captured the

government's attention. As membership in the Nation of Islam continued to grow, FBI

agents infiltrated the organization one even acted as Malcolm's bodyguard and secretly

placed bugs, wiretaps, cameras and other surveillance equipment to monitor the group's

activities.

Malcolm's faith was dealt a crushing blow at the height of the civil rights

movement in 1963. He learned that his mentor and leader, Elijah Muhammad, was

secretly having relations with as many as six women within the Nation of Islam

organization. As if that were not enough, Malcolm found out that some of these

relationships had resulted in children. Since joining the Nation of Islam, Malcolm had

strictly adhered to the teachings of Muhammad which included remaining