Malcolm X By Any Means Necessary

In Malclom X By Any Means Necessary, by Walter Dean Myers, we are shown how Malcolm Little grew up and became Malcolm X. On May 19, 1925, Malcolm Little was born in Omaha, Nebraska. Malcolm’s father, Earl Little, wanted to “help his people gain their independence, and to help African-Americans everywhere to reach their full potential.” Influenced by the ideas of Marcus Garvey, a black leader, Earl Little fought for the rights of African-Americans. By speaking out, Earl Little spread his message. Because he spoke out about his beliefs, he was always threatened by racists and others who disagreed. When Malcolm was four, the Little family moved into Lansing, Michigan. But whites there did not want him and his family in their neighborhood. They took this to court, but when Earl Little decided to stay in the house, the house was set on fire and burnt down. Because of this, they moved into East Lansing, Michigan. But he was still getting threats and moved again. Then on September 28, 1931, Malcolm’s father died. He had been run over by a trolley. The conductor claimed to not have seen him, but Malcolm’s mother, Louise, believed he was killed by whites who did not want him to spread his beliefs about blacks.
America was in the middle of a depression when Malcolm’s father had died. Jobs were scarce and single mother Louise was having a very hard time providing for her family. Malcolm had to face poverty at the young age of six. He was teased at school because of his old clothes. He would go hungry some days because they had no money. Malcolm was good in school, and realized that he was bright. But at home, things were not going well. All the stress was taking a toll on his mother. She began to cry for no reason or talk to herself. When social workers came to their home, they found his mother to be an “unfit mother.” She was taken away from her children and they were put into foster homes. Malcolm was still doing very well in school. He was at the top of his classes and was elected as class president in the 8th grade. But one day, his teacher asked what Malcolm wanted to be when he grew up. He told his teacher that he wanted to be a lawyer. Instead of supporting this idea, his teacher said, “. . . you’ve got to be realistic about being a nigger. A lawyer – that’s no realistic goal for a nigger.” Although Malcolm knew that blacks were not expected to succeed, he thought that if he could work hard and get good grades that he could still make it. But talking with his teacher changed his mind. He went to live with his half-sister, Ella, in Boston.
Malcolm loved the excitement in Boston, and this is where he found himself a new image. With the help of his new friend, Shorty, he got his first zoot suit and a conk. Since he had dropped out of school, he was able to have a job as a shoeshine boy, a clerk in a drugstore, a busboy, and, with the help of one of Ella’s friend, a kitchen helper on the railroad. Because of Malcolm’s kitchen helper job, he was able to see different cities, including Harlem. Malcolm felt at home in Harlem’s black community. It was in Harlem where he felt that he could earn respect. But he started to use drugs. When his drugs got him into trouble with New York gangs, he moved back to Boston. There, he and a couple of his friends started to rob houses. But they were caught and Malcolm was sentenced to eight to ten years of hard labor. He was put in the Charlestown State Prison. He learned about an experimental prison reform plan that was being conducted at an institution in Norfolk, Massachusetts. He was accepted and found that Norfolk had an excellent library. From letters that he received from his relatives, he found out about the Nation of Islam.
The Nation of Islam was not just a religion. It was a movement. At 23 years old, Malcolm Little converted and wrote a letter to the head of the Nation of Islam, Elijah Muhammad. In Elijah’s reply, Malcolm was told not to think of himself as a criminal, but to think of the whites who had forced you into the acts you have committed as the criminals. When Malcolm was released from prison in 1952, he found a job at a furniture store, lived with his brother, Wilfred, in Detroit, and joined Temple Number One in Detroit. In Chicago, Malcolm saw Elijah Muhammad for the first time. After the meeting, Elijah invited him and other members to his home. They decided to try to recruit the young people in the area. After attending meeting and listening to the teachings of ministers, Malcolm Little fully understood the beliefs of the Nation of Islam. He had full membership and now, he had the right to drop his “slave name” and assume the last name of “X.” The “X” stood for his unknown, lost African name. This is how Malcolm Little became Malcolm X.
In 1954 Malcolm becomes the minister of New York Temple Number Seven and, four years later, marries Sister Betty X. Thanks to Malcolm, the Nation of Islam was growing rapidly. However, the growth proved to be too much for the structure to handle. Conflicts between Elijah Muhammad and Malcolm arose. So in 1964, Malcolm announced his split from the Nation of Islam.
After making the sacred hajj, Malcolm changed his message, he was willing to work with all races, as long as they were sincere in their efforts to help African-Americans gain freedom.
But during one of Malcolm’s speeches, in February of 1965, he was shot. A year later, it was found that Talmadge Hayer, Norman 3X Butler, and Thomas 15X Johnson had assassinated Malcolm X.
My Response:
Although I believe that Malcolm X was right, and African-Americans should be given their freedom, I do not agree with his methods. I can see it is hard to just stand by and watch “their women and children being beaten and killed,” but if you use violence to end violence, nothing gets solved. I understand that it is hard to let someone push you down without kicking him back, but if you do the same thing that he is doing, you’re no better of a person. I think if Malcolm X had followed the kindergarten rule, two wrongs don’t make a right, people would have been more supportive and his message would have gotten through a little better. Martin Luther King Jr. used tactics that created “enormous sympathy for the black cause throughout the world,” and this increased “moral pressure on American legislators to pass and enforce the new civil rights laws.” I know that Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X had the same goal. Both wanted to give their people the rights they deserved. However, their ideas and methods were different. I cannot say that I completely agree with Malcolm’s ideas, but I do believe that American would not be what it is today without Malcolm X.