Gustavo RuizHIST 365 7980 Recent America: 1945 to the Present

Thesis Statement

The Malcolm X Legacy is still relevant today because African American are still fighting for equality.

Abstract

The racial discrimination has been one of the areas of social concern since primeval times in the world. Africans Americans have been facing inhumane circs in the backdrop of racial segregation, over many centuries. Though stringent laws have been enforced these days, but the problem still curtails in the American society. Malcolm X is one of the well-known civil rights’ activists whose anti-racist contributions had been a pivotal crux in the American history. He rose from the fathom of despair to revolutionize the trammel world from the confines of slavery and the racial in-congruencies. His obstinate postulates that disputed the oppression of all forms, resonates even today.

Annotated Bibliography

1)Byrd,D.J.,andMiri,S.J.(2016), Malcolm X: From Political Eschatology to Religious Revolutionary, Brill, Boston,Ch4,6,8.

In the year 2015 we remembered the 50th anniversary of Malcolm X's assassination in Harlem, New York. Spurred by the commitment to continue the critical work that Malcolm X began, the scholars represented in the book have analysed the enduring significance of Malcolm X's life, work and religious philosophy. Edited by Dustin J. Byrd and SeyedJavad Miri, Malcolm X: From Political Eschatology to Religious Revolutionary, represents an important investigation into the religious and political philosophy of one of the most important African-American and Muslim thinkers of the 20th century. Thirteen different scholars from six different countries and various academic disciplines have contributed to our understanding of why Malcolm X is still important fifty years after his death.

2)Coles,T., (2011), The Legacy of Malcolm X: Why His Vision Lives on in Barack Obama, The Atlantic.

Of the great figure in twentieth-century American history perhaps none is more complex and controversial than Malcolm X. Constantly rewriting his own story, he became a criminal, a minister, a leader, and an icon, all before being felled by assassins' bullets at age thirty-nine. Through his tireless work and countless speeches he empowered hundreds of thousands of black Americans to create better lives and stronger communities while establishing the template for the self-actualized, independent African American man. In death he became a broad symbol of both resistance and reconciliation for millions around the world.

3)Haley, A.(1964),The Autobiography of Malcolm X. Grove Press, N.Y.

In the pages of this classic autobiography, originally published in 1964, Malcolm X, the Muslim leader, firebrand, and anti-integrationist, tells the extraordinary story of his life and the growth of the Black Muslim movement. His fascinating perspective on the lies and limitations of the American Dream, and the inherent racism in a society that denies its non-white citizens the opportunity to dream, gives extraordinary insight into the most urgent issues of our own time. The Autobiography of Malcolm X stands as the definitive statement of a movement and a man whose work was never completed but whose message is timeless. It is essential reading for anyone who wants to understand America.

4)Kendrick, C., (1971),On the Autobiography of Malcolm X*, New York, Journal of Medical Association.

This Autobiography of Malcolm X was a phenomenal economic and critical success. The essay, which also inspired Spike Lee's Malcolm X, was named by Time magazine as one of the 10 most important nonfiction works of the 20th century and has helped to construct a durable image of one of the most significant African Americans in memory. In this article, the author argues that the representation of Malcolm X's agency, and particularly the elision of that agency, functions to enable the reader to forgive young Malcolm's vices, to imagine her or himself as an activist, and to consider the possibility of racial progress.

5)Kováčová,D.(2012), Malcolm X and the African-American Self Concept, a Bachelors thesis of MASARYK UNIVERSITY BRNO

As the result of this research, it can be concluded that the importance and greatness of Malcolm X consist in his power to lead people to know themselves, to teach them how important is to accept themselves as they are and to show them there is more than one possible way in solving problems. Moreover, Malcolm X brought self-confidence among the black people and provided them support when they needed it most. He also helped the black people to form their own attitudes toward themselves, which became an inseparable part of their self-concept. It is obvious that Malcolm had his part in creating the history and the African-Americans would be completely different without his contribution in history.

6)Lim, C.J.,(2015),Malcolm X Was Assassinated 50 Years Ago & The Causes He Championed Still Loom Large In America,

Born Malcolm Little in Nebraska, the civil rights leader had a tumultuous childhood; his family often a target of white supremacists for their prominent civil rights activism. Following a stint in prison for several crimes, Malcolm was introduced to the Nation of Islam where he changed his last name to "X" in memory of the African family name lost to slave owners whose members were ultimately found guilty for his death. Oftentimes described as the polar opposite of Dr. Martin Luther King, Malcolm's message of achieving equality "by the ballot or the bullet" resounded among a black community that had underwent 50 years of violent discrimination and segregation, despite claims of integration. In fact, the two most prominent civil rights leaders deeply disagreed with each other's approach Malcolm even accused King of being a puppet of the white man. The white man pays Rev. Martin Luther King; subsidizes Rev. Martin Luther King, so that Rev. Martin Luther King can continue to teach the Negro to be defenseless that's what you mean by non-violence. To be defenseless in that face of one of the cruelest beasts that has ever taken the people into captivity that is the American white man.

7)Waldschmidt-Nelson, B. (2015). 8. El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz: MalcolmsspirituelleNeuorientierung und sein Engagement fürBürger- und Menschenrechte (1964–1965). Malcolm X, 211-249.

Malcolm X traveled to the Middle East, Africa, and Europe, and in letters and interviews he shared his experiences, at times shocking even his followers in the U.S. He made the hajj (pilgrimage) to Mecca, where his vision of humanity was transformed, as he saw that Islam could unite Muslims of every race and nationality. He himself was transformed: having made the hajj, he became El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz. Back home in Harlem, through both of his organizations, he tried to strengthen ties to the civil rights movement and local community leaders struggling around issues such as housing and education. Something much more sinister also occupied him. Threats, assaults, and murder attempts on his and his followers’ lives had become a regular occurrence, escalating as time went on. He had publicly revealed Elijah Muhammad’s transgressions, and the Nation was in a retaliatory mood. On February 21, 1965, the day he was assassinated at the Audubon Ballroom, Malcolm X was also under surveillance by local and federal authorities.