This article was first published on Crasstalk last year in honor of Malcolm X’s birthday.
Today would have been the 86th birthday of Malcolm X, had he not been gunned down at the age of 39 at the Audubon Ballroom in Manhattan while delivering a speech to the Organization for African-American Unity. In an editorial following his death, the New York Times called his worldview “distorted and dark,” his intentions based on a “ruthless and fanatical belief in violence.” Such opinions on Malcolm X were not uncommon; to many he was a demagogue, a troublemaker, the dangerous antithesis of Martin Luther King Jr.
While these charges are still thrown about today, you probably are not likely to hear or see this: “We respect anyone who respects us.” Continue reading