How Are Martin Luther King Jr And Malcolm X Alike

In the pursuit of equality during the Civil Rights Movement, two main ideologies emerged: those of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X. These two men’s philosophies are usually viewed as complete contradictories. Both Malcolm X and Martin Luther King hold the same end goal of rights for African Americans; however, their methods for achieving that goal differ. Malcolm maintained a more violent approach whereas King deemed that the best way to achieve equality was through nonviolent and peaceful practices. Additionally, Malcolm believed in the separatism of African American and white cultures, in contrast to King’s belief in the integration of black and white cultures. As will be demonstrated in subsequent pieces of evidence, the nonviolent

believed that African Americans would only be able to achieve equality through peaceful and nonviolent means. King was a Baptist preacher who lived by the lessons taught in his sermons, including the teaching contained in the bible to turn the other cheek. In his book Stride Toward Freedom, King declared to the oppressors of black equality that “We will match your capacity to inflict suffering with our capacity to endure suffering.” This endurance of persecution displays the importance of equal treatment for African Americans. Previously, African Americans and other minorities utilized violent methods in their struggle for equal rights and freedom. However, the nonviolent protests and endeavors employed by African Americans in the 1960s caught the attention of individuals nationwide. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s refusal to react violently showed white Americans that African Americans were not subhuman creatures prone to violence, but humans capable of intelligence and reason. African Americans were not animals capable of only slave labor, but individuals deserving of the rights promised by the Constitution of the United States to all American citizens. In addition to the aforementioned pieces of evidence, Martin Luther King believed that violence would never lead to peace, only to more violence. He was firm and justified in his affirmation that “This is the ultimate weakness of violence: It multiplies evil and violence in the universe. It doesn’t solve

For example, Malcolm said that African Americans must learn how to own, operate, and develop businesses within their communities. They must do this “to create employment for the people of [their] community so … they won’t have to be constantly … involved in picketing and boycotting other people in other communities in order to get a job.” Malcolm believed that it would be better for African Americans to start businesses and only buy from African American businesses to become independent from whites. Additionally, Malcolm believed that his fellow African Americans were wasting their time with peaceful protests and should sunder themselves from white society. Furthermore, Malcolm believed that the best way for genuine white Americans to help blacks was to create a division between their societies. In his autobiography, The Autobiography of Malcolm X, Malcolm wrote that “Working separately, the sincere white people and sincere black people actually will be working together.” Malcolm envisioned a separate nation or state for African Americans. However, this severance of cultures would not have solved the issue of racism. Instead, racism toward blacks would have remained rampant among white Americans; meanwhile, the physical presence of African Americans would no longer be present in a white America, leaving the issue of racism unsolved. Contrarily, Martin Luther King, Jr.’s dream of integration was better for