Malcolm+X

=**M a l c o l m * X**=

1925-1965


Malcolm X, real name: Malcolm Little, was born on May 19, 1925 in Omaha, Nebraska. His father, Earl, was a minster and preached to black freedom. Earl was killed by a white lynch mob when Malcolm was 9 years old. Louise, his mother, went insane and was placed in a insane asylum. The Little children were split apart through different foster homes. When Malcolm was 13 years old, he was placed in a juvenille detention center in Mason, Michigan. He attended a junior high school in Mason, was very popular and recieved high remarks for his academic record. Malcolm then gave up on his education when he was 15 years old. Malcolm wanted to be a lawyer; his teacher, a white man, informed Malcolm that there was no way possible for an afro-american to land a professional position in the work place. Malcolm's career as a criminal started in the 1940's- drugs, stealing, prostitution. Malcolm's streetname was, 'Big Red' - Malcolm became a widely-known pimp in the Detroit area. While into the negative things in his life, Malcolm, and his best friend, Malcolm "Shorty" Jarvis, were sentenced to 10 years in prison, each. Malcolm paroled after serving seven years. While in jail, Malcolm decided to further his education, for his own self-enlightenment. During this period, Malcolm's biological brother, Reginald, came to visit Malcolm- to teach him about a group Reginald had joined; the NOI. NOI- Nation of Islam, was a militant black freedom group, and its leader was known as the honorable Elija Muhammad. The group believed that all white men were racist devils- this is what Malcolm believed too. Malcom starting writing Muhammad, sharing his thoughts and ideas. Muhammad thought that Malcolm had wonderful potential for the group, and appointed Malcolm to be minister and National spokesman. For years Malcolm was taken under Muhammad's wing, and lived under the full contract of NOI. He travelled around different states, speaking out against segregation. He wanted freedom, and he wasn't willing to wait. Malcolm had officially become one of the symbols for black freedom throughout the civil rights movement. 4 years after Malcolm joined NOI, he had found out that his mentor, Muhammad, had been involved in affairs with different women from the group- and even resulting with children. Being extremely dissapointed with this, Malcolm left the group to start his own organization, the Muslim Mosque Inc. While speaking for freedom at an event in NY, Malcolm was shot 15 times at close range by the Black Muslim Faith on February 14, 1965. He is layed to rest at Ferndiff Cemetary in Hartsdale, NY.

//Stephanie Mizner//

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