Daughters Unhappy with Malcolm X Bio
New book touches on strained marriage
(AP) — Two of Malcolm X's faithful and devoted because my
daughters are unhappy that a new father was a man of impeccable in
biography alleges their parents' tegrity, and I think that most people,
marriage was strained and that their if they're not clear on anything,
mother — and possibly their father they're clear that he was moral and
— were unfaithful.
ethical and had impeccable charac
The marriage "was definitely ter," Ilyasah Shabazz said.
Ilyasah and M alaak Shabazz
spoke to The Associated Press
about "Malcolm X: A Life of Rein
v e n tio n ."
A u th o r M an n in g
Marable, a highly respected scholar
who worked for more than 20 years
on the book, died earlier this month
MaiaaK snaoazz (iert) ana ilyasah Shabazz, daughters of slain civil
rights leader Malcolm X, are unhappy about a new biography, 'A
Life of Reinvention: Malcolm X ,' which alleges that their parents'
marriage was strained. (AP Photo)
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PACIFIC P O W E R
Let’s turn the answers on.
of complications of pneumonia just
before publication. Malcolm X's
daughters did not speak to Marable
for the book, which draws upon
thousands of interviews, govern
ment documents and private pa
pers.
The book has been in the top 10
on Amazon.com's best-seller list.
While both sisters acknowledged
they have yet to read the book, they
questioned reports about the con
ten ts. M arab le had in ten d ed
"Malcolm X" as a tribute to the slain
activist's life and influence, but he
also wanted to avoid portraying him
as "a saint, without the normal con
tradictions and blemishes that all
human beings have," as the histo
rian wrote in the introduction.
Malcolm X was assassinated in
1965. His wife, Betty Shabazz, died
in 1997 after one of her grandchil
dren set fire to her apartment.
The book alleges that parts of
"The Autobiography of Malcolm
X," a classic released after Malcolm
X's death that sold more than 1
million copies, were inaccurate. For
instance, Marable questions details
of Malcolm X's early life as a crimi
nal, writing that Malcolm likely ex
aggerated his wrongdoings. Ques
tions about the autobiography's
accuracy have been raised for de
cades, and Marable addresses ques
tions about the book's co-writer,
Alex Haley, who many believe left
out or softened Malcolm's more radi
cal political views in the last couple
of years of his life.
He also looks into Malcolm X's
more controversial words and ac
tions, including a meeting with mem
bers o f the Ku Klux Kian in the early
1960s. At the time, he was a high-
ranking member of the Nation of
Islam and had discussed with the
Kian the possibility of the nation
purchasing land for blacks to live
on. Malcolm X would later express
regret, although Marable still called
the meeting "despicable."
Marable subtitled the book "A
Life of Reinvention" in part because
Malcolm X acknowledged mistakes
and transformed and transcended
himself, from street hustler and con
vict to black separatist of fierce anti
white opinions to political and so
cial activist seeking to work with all
races, worldwide.
His marriage, however, was
widely seen as steady, close and
supportive, especially as dramatized
by Denzel Washington and Angela
B assett in Spike L ee's m ovie
" Malcolm X." Shabazz herself would
remember her years with Malcolm
as "hectic, beautiful and unforget
table — the greatest thing in my
life."
Malcolm X married Betty Sand
ers, a nurse and fellow member of
the Nation of Islam, in 1958. They
had six children. According to the
book, the marriage was often tense,
in part because of Malcolm's wish to
have a traditional, subservient
Muslim wife and because he was
away so often and his life was often
threatened. There were problems of
emotional and physical intimacy.
M arable includes a letter from
Malcolm to Nation of Islam leader
Elijah Muhammad that offers a blunt
account of their home life, with
Malcolm reporting that his wife be
lieved they were "incompatible sexu
ally." Malcolm also tells Muhammad
that Betty had threatened to "seek
satisfaction elsewhere."