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Definition: Born Malcolm Little, Malcolm X (1925-1965) became a driving and motivational force behind the development of the Nation of Islam in the United States - as a result, he also represented the more militant side of the Civil Rights Movement.
As a youth in Omaha he supported Marcus Garvey's Universal Negro Improvement Association, but at the same time his family was the target of harassment - even to the point of their house being set afire. His family moved to Lansing, Michigan, in 1929 and while there his father was killed by a streetcar. Forever after Malcolm believed that he had been assassinated by the Ku Klux Klan.
Convicted of burglary in 1946 and sentenced to 10 years in prison, Malcolm began to experience a change of perspective while in prison as he became exposed to the message of Elijah Muhammad and the Nation of Islam. This lead him to view white people as "Satan" who would never be willing to live with black as equals and in peace. After his release from prison he rose through the Black Muslim organization, eventually become a national spokesman.
He did not, however, always agree with the Black Muslim leadership. In 1963, his feelings of bitterness towards the white establishment lead him to characterize the assassination of President Kennedy as an example of the "chickens coming home to roost." As a result, he was suspended from the Black Muslim movement. His continued personal transformations and disagreements with the leadership lead to a decisive break with the group in 1964.
Shortly thereafter Malcolme undertook a hajj to Mecca, where he discovered some of the radical differences between orthodox Islam and the teachings of NOI. In particular, he was confronted with the lack of racial distinctions, something which caused him to start rethinking his beliefs.
Once again changed his name to El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz and founded the Organization of Afro-American Unity and the Muslim Mosque Inc. Because his developing ideas, he became the victim of numerou death threats. His home was firebombed on February 14, 1965 and a week later, on the 21st, he was shot and killed in Harlem. Three of those who were later arrested for the murder were identified as members of the Nation of Islam. Unfortunately, he had not yet finished rethinking his beliefs and developing new ideas - had he been afforded that chance, the results might have been interesting.
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What is Islam?
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