Malcolm X from the Civil Rights Time Term Paper

Malcolm X from the Civil Rights Time - Term Paper Example The world today remembers him as a great leader of all times apart from his contribution to the Civil Rights movement. Brief biography Malcolm X was one of the eight children of Reverend Earl and Louise Little. He was born in Omaha, Nebraska and his birth name was Malcolm Little. His father believed in an individual’s fortitude and worked for unanimity within the black community. Malcolm grew up within the environment of racial prejudice and poverty. Earl was a dedicated Baptist minister and an organizer for Marcus Garvey’s UNIA (Universal Negro Improvement Society). Earl also preached as a disciple of Marcus Garvey for generating ethnic awareness and dignity amongst black communities and encouraging his parishioners to return to Africa, their ancestral homeland. In 1931, Malcolm’s father was brutally slain in Lansing, Michigan due to a spark of violence with a local hate group (Aboulafia 1). Malcolm attended school up to his eighth grade and spent most of his te enage years on streets of New York City’s Harlem, Boston and Chicago (Aboulafia 1-2). At the age of 20, in Feb 1946, he was convicted and sentenced for ten years imprisonment in a case of robbery (Aboulafia, 2). After this imprisonment, the phase of change within Malcolm began. This moral and spiritual transformation within him initiated after his discovery about the teachings of Honorable Elijah Mohammad who was known as the â€Å"Messenger of Allah†. These teachings of Elijah Mohammad and the Nation of Islam influenced him as it instilled self-respect and admiration within the black followers through criticism of the white colored people. Elijah Mohammad blamed the white colored people for the miserable condition of the blacks in North America. According to him, in order to resolve this problem of long standing injustice the blacks should embrace the strategy of separatism (Aboulafia 2). In 1953, Malcolm was released from prison and he actively participated in the Na tion of Islam movement which entirely changed the purpose of his life (Aboulafia 2). Malcolm X – role against discrimination As mentioned earlier, after being released from prison he became an active and committed member of the Nation of Islam. He was following the personal instructions of Elijah Mohammad when he was posted at Detroit (Siddiqui). He was appointed as an assistant minister for the Nation of Islam movement. During this time he also changed his name from Malcolm Little to Malcolm X (Miller). He preached all over the US about his newly adopted religion and converted thousands of blacks by helping them embrace Islam. Malcolm’s commitment towards the movement of Nation of Islam was very high and it helped Nation of Islam become a nation-wide organization. Furthermore, this movement also helped him emerge as an international figure. He was very popular and many major television broadcasters and magazines conducted interviews with him. He also spoke at various forums and universities across the country for the blacks and also advocated for their right of equal opportunity in education, employment and wages. His main strength lay in his eloquent speeches and powerful word selection which helped to vividly depict the predicament of the blacks and fervently lay the blame on the white people (Siddiqui). Once he also tried to make the whites realize how much they are prejudiced about the black people. When a white