“Malcolm X”

Malcolm Little was born in Omaha, Nebraska, on May 19, 1925. His father was murdered when he was 6 years old, the victim of a white racist group. He spent his childhood years in foster homes with his siblings, dropped out of middle school, and a few years later moved to Boston and found work on the streets as a shoe-shiner, drug dealer, gambler, and burglar.

Malcolm joined the Nation of Islam (NOI) while serving a prison term in Massachusetts on burglary charges. Shortly after his release in 1952, he moved to Chicago and became a minister under Elijah Muhammad, abandoning his “slave name,” and became Malcolm X. By the late 1950s, Malcolm had become the NOI’s leading spokesman.

After the assassination of John F Kennedy, Malcolm X came out and made a statement that upset Elijah Muhammad, leading him to silence Malcolm for 90 days. Shortly after, Malcolm publicly announced his separation from the Nation of Islam and founded his own religious organization, the Muslim Mosque, Inc.

After spending time on a pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, sharing his beliefs and visions with people of all different cultures, Malcolm X returned to the United States with a new energy and vision for his work. He began to not only direct his work towards African Americans but to people of all races and ethnicities. He preached about human rights, freedom, action, and community building.

He was assassinated February 21, 1965.

HELLA INSPIRED.
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