Malcolm X “You can’t separate peace from freedom because no one can be at peace unless he has his freedom” (Malcolm X). Malcolm X was an American Muslim minister and a human rights activist; he was a man who believed that the problem that African Americans faced would not be solved through peaceful and quiet means. He believed that the problem gradually increased through centuries and it came to a point where the existence of African Americans as humans had to be forcefully done. Malcolm X’s methods were mainly campaigns and speeches that aimed at restoring the dignity of the African Americans. Now usually when the term Civil Rights and freedom for African Americans comes up, people normally associate it with Martin Luther King Jr., and forget …show more content…
Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. were raised very differently and grew up in two completely different environments. This affected the way they perceived the world and also affected how they went about fighting for the rights of African Americans. “Whereas, Malcolm X was raised in nightmarish conditions. King's home was almost dream-like. He was raised in a comfortable middle-class home where strong values natured his sense of self-worth” (Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X). As you can see MLK was raised in a middle-class family where education was stressed; with both his parents who were well established and ensured that there child was secure and happy. While on the other hand Malcolm X grew up in an underprivileged home and was a self-taught man who received little schooling and rose to greatness based on his own intelligence. The childhood of Malcolm X differed greatly from that of MLK due to the fact that Malcolm X grew up in an atmosphere of mostly anger and fear. In Malcolm X’s early years he faced not only abuse by whites but also by his father and mother. His father abused his mother and then both of them abused their children. Then later on in Malcolm X’s life
President Abraham Lincoln once said," Whatever you are be a good one. " Two intelligent men that fought for a better life, believed in themselves. The struggle they overcame of what is unfair is through believing what is fair and right for a better life. After all, success comes from hard work that opens opportunities.
They were both highly influential leaders who wanted equality for the African American race around the nation. Although Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X had few similarities , they also had many differences in their early life, ideology and achievements. Martin Luther King Jr. also known as MLK, was the son of a baptist minister from Atlanta, Georgia. He attended Morehouse College and graduated from Boston University
Martin was raised in Atlanta, George to a religious, middle-class family with values in education. Both Martin’s father and grandfather were pastors. Their protests symbolized a desire for equality with Whites. Malcolm X was unlike King, he did not have a university education; he came from the "bottommost" of black the social order, not from the middle class. Malcolm X rejected integration and wanted to insist his blackness over and against his American identity.
The most important decision of a leader is the style of leading they decide to use when inspiring others, or providing a vision for the future. By looking at the past, it is proven that some leadership styles are guaranteed to be more effective than others. The leadership style of Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X during the Civil Rights provides significant evidence of how different styles of leading can turn out to be a major success or defeat. Malcolm X’s leadership style included using violence to protest against violence and unequal rights, as well as supporting the segregation of African Americans and the whites. Martin Luther King’s style included nonviolent marches and protests against violence, and peacefully fighting for integrating the blacks and whites.
Martin Luther King Jr. and Malik El Shabazz (Malcolm X) are both two very opinionated African Americans that gave their lives for what they believed in. The methods they used in the emancipation of African Americans are beyond their years. King Jr’s method was adopted from Mahatma Gandhi and Malcolm’s was of Elijah Muhammad. Martin was a Baptist minister that believed in nonviolence as a way of life for all people. Malcolm was an ex-convict turned muslim with the Nation Of Islam that believed “we have to fight to overcome”.
Malcolm X once said,” Nobody can give you freedom. Nobody can give you equality or justice or anything. If you're a man you take it.” This was said during the civil rights when the whites and blacks were segregated. The civil rights worked on bringing the whites and blacks together to end segregation.
What caused Malcolm x, and Martin Luther King to become a civil rights activists. There were a number of things that contributed toward them both becoming activists like, losses in the family. Malcolm x was a muslim activist that followed the teachings of Elijah Muhammad, and become one of the biggest activists in history. Martin Luther King was a christian activist that had his own teachings, about the beliefs that he talked to the people about.
Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X were both respected ministers and established leaders of the African-American people. Although most whites often say that they were "like oil and water", these two men, how different they may have seemed to be, had the same goal: They wanted to end exploitation, discrimination and racism. Both had been deeply influenced by their fathers, especially by their religion and attitude towards whites. Malcolm emerged from the black underclass in the northern ghettos to a spokesman for the poor blacks, following the teachings of Islam and holding on to black nationalism. He demanded justice and that African-Americans should be respected as human-beings.
Malcolm X was an effective leader because he had exceptional communication skills. These skills are viewed in his speech “By Any Means Necessary” and have been analyzed. The main goal of this speech was for blacks to figure out or to begin to figure out, what they can do to change the injustice, in order for blacks to gain things that
MLK and Malcolm X both wanted equality but in different ways. Martin Luther King believed in nonviolence to end segregation. However, Malcolm X believed in segregation; where African Americans would govern themselves without bothering the whites. But which idea was better for society? Malcolm X’s philosophy offers a variety of solutions for
Philosophical differences between martin luther king and malcolm X The philosophical differences between Martin Luther King and Malcolm X have to do with the their protest strategies. MLK never fought with violence. Although he would get physically attacked, he stood his ground and continued to fight for equality peacefully. King believed that whites and blacks should come together to end the hate and violence.
Martin Luther King and Malcolm X were two influential men who served as important figures for the Civil Rights Movement. The two men came from diverse backgrounds and had contrasting views in life about religion and African American’s stance in society. Malcolm X was born in Nebraska and had great amounts of exposure to racism. Martin Luther King was born in an educated family in Atlanta, where he experienced racism, but to a lower extreme than Malcolm X. Although they passed away long time ago, they continue to live on today in a world independent of segregation. Martin Luther King and Malcolm X used opposing principles to achieve equality for blacks; King utilized integration of both races and nonviolence as opposed to Malcolm X who separated the same races and employed non violence so as to achieve the same goal.
Martin Luther King Jr said,“We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools”. In the late 1960s, racial tension was high, African Americans were not given the right to vote, the right to a fair education, and the right to a fair judgement. This then led to the separation of schools and the destruction of a normal livelihood. Dr.King and Malcolm X, two men in the face of oppression rose up to challenge the racial barrier, thus changing the world forever. Although Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X seem to have mutual respect and an equal understanding of the inequality, their philosophies were quite different from each other.
According to X, “The ballot or the bullet”... “Now in speaking like this, it doesn't mean that we're anti-white, but it does mean we're anti-exploitation,we're anti-degradation, we're anti-oppression. And if the white man doesn't want us to be anti-him, let him stop oppressing and exploiting and degrading us”(Malcolm #2). The essence of Malcolm’s argument is that he is not anti white, he is anti whites oppressing and disenfranchising African Americans and if the white person wants to not be hated, then he should stop hating himself. In a letter written in Mecca, Malcolm X says,“on this pilgrimage, what I have seen,and experienced, has forced me to re-arrange much of my thought-patterns previously held, and to toss aside some of my previous conclusions” (Malcolm X).
Without Malcolm, the White people would have not favored Martin Luther King Jr. over other Civil Rights leaders. Towards the end of Malcolm’s life, Martin Luther King Jr. began to become more like Malcolm in a militant way. Martin Luther king Jr. “was also re-evaluating his presuppositions and was moving toward a greater understanding of Malcolm X, especially regarding black pride, separatism, and White America’s lack of commitment to genuine black equality” (Cone, 1992, p. 256). These transformations of Martin Luther King Jr.’s ideas, likely led him to accomplish the revolution of Civil Rights. Although, this is a possibility, it is extremely unrealistic.