The
Page 22
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Portland Observer Black
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February 18, 2015
O PINION
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From Malcolm X to El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz
A lasting impact
in struggle for
equality
BY M ARC H. M ORIAL
There is perhaps no
American civil rights
leader who generated
as many divergent opin-
ions as Malcolm X. As we near the
50th anniversary of his assassina-
tion on Feb. 21, 1965, our nation will
inevitably scrutinize his life, his work
and his lasting impact on our coun-
try and our continuous struggle to
address racial inequality and its hei-
nous consequences.
Depending on one’s perspective
or politics, Malcolm X was a hate-
monger filled with a blind, race-based
rage. Another view paints him as an
inspiring figure, pulling himself up
from a life of crime to become a
leading human rights figure. I would
put forth the view that Malcolm X
was much more than any one-di-
mensional interpretation of his life
or its seminal moments and that he
was a man who literally and figura-
tively journeyed far in his short 39
years – reinventing himself count-
less times along the way.
Born Malcolm Little on May 19,
1925 to a Grenadian mother and
African American father – also a
well-known activist – Malcolm be-
came accustomed to the cruelties of
racism at an early age, losing
his father in a suspected attack
by white supremacists. His
early life was a blur of broken
homes, petty crime and incar-
ceration. Introduced to the
teachings of the Nation of Is-
lam during his time in jail, Malcolm
X traded prison for a pursuit of racial
justice and equality for blacks in
America.
While his initial approach may
not have always been championed
by or aligned with other civil rights
leaders of the time, Malcolm X’s
later life transition and his embrace
of multiculturalism is an important
story to be acknowledged and re-
told. But often, supporters and crit-
ics alike attempt to isolate the “by
any means necessary” civil rights
leader to one part of his journey. For
example, and ironically, many gun
advocates invoke Malcolm X’s own
words as they seek to reinforce their
arguments and support for their
professed right to almost unfettered
access to firearms.
In his famous “The Ballot or the
Bullet” speech, Malcolm X said, “I
must say this concerning the great
controversy over rifles and shot-
guns. The only thing that I’ve ever
said is that in areas where the gov-
ernment has proven itself either
unwilling or unable to defend the
lives and the property of Negroes,
it’s time for Negroes to defend them-
selves. Article number two of the
constitutional amendments pro-
vides you and me the right to own a
rifle or a shotgun.”
However, Malcolm X’s call to
bear arms was no call to forego
background checks. It was no call
to sell guns anonymously on the
Internet. It was no call to supply
ordinary citizens with military-style
weaponry. It was, and remains, a
clear-cut indictment of race-based,
systemic inequality and violence.
He added, “If the white man doesn’t
want the black man buying rifles
and shotguns, then let the govern-
ment do its job.” The ballot was
always the immediate option.
Ten days after that speech,
Malcolm X left the United States on
April 13, 1964 for a life-altering trip
through the Middle East and Africa,
including a pilgrimage to Mecca in
Saudi Arabia, the holiest city in Is-
lam. It was during his experience of
the pilgrimage that his next transfor-
mation would occur.
In letters from his trip, he de-
scribed scenes of unimagined inter-
racial harmony among “tens of thou-
sands of pilgrims, from all over the
world. They were of all colors, from
blue-eyed blondes to black-skinned
Africans.” As he began to see that
unity and brotherhood were not
impossible realities between “the
white and the non-white,” his fight
for equality never changed. It only
became more inclusive.
In a letter to then Congress of
Racial Equality President James
Farmer, Malcolm, now El-Hajj
Malik El-Shabazz, wrote, “I am still
traveling, trying to broaden my
mind, for I've seen too much of the
damage narrow-mindedness can
make of things, and when I return
home to America, I will devote
what energies I have to repairing
the damage."
Unfortunately, Malcolm X’s
newfound approach to the pursuit
of racial equality was cut short less
than a year later under a fatal hail of
bullets in Harlem’s Audubon Ball-
room. But rather than end his jour-
ney to mend our wounded nation,
we can each walk a few steps in his
remaining miles to ensure equality
and justice for all.
Marc H. Morial is president and
chief executive officer of the Na-
tional Urban League.