Society today will never understand the struggles of the black community, that had to endure to battle for racial equality and freedom, back in the day. Martin Luther King Jr and Malcom X were very influential African American individuals who had a goal to achieve and to accomplish one task, to fight for their rights. Years after the deaths of Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X, still remain the two of the world's most respected political activists of the American Civil Rights movement. The civil rights movement was a struggle for social justice that took place mainly in the timeframe between the 1950s and 1960s for blacks to gain equal rights under the law in the United States. This paper will discuss the similarities and differences of …show more content…
He was a well-educated man who believed in the Christian faith who was always against violence, throughout his entire ministry. His approach to civil rights was non-violent protesting, speaking out for non-violence, passive resistance, and what he called, "weapons of love". According to Martin Luther King Jr., he believes that "Nonviolence is the answer to the crucial political and moral questions of our time; the need for man to overcome oppression and violence. Man must evolve for all human conflict a method which rejects revenge, aggression and retaliation. The foundation for such a method is love." One of his famous accomplishments was the March from Washington to the Lincoln memorial took place in Washington D.C. on August 28, 1963. Over 20,000 people came to march on, this event is where he became a huge influence of the civil rights movement. In the mind of Dr. King, he was convinced that self-respect would come through …show more content…
Dr. King and Malcom X knew racism was the biggest issue that had to be fixed, with the support of millions of followers. Unlike their differences of religion, the independent strong leaders had their own spiritual beliefs. Meanwhile, Malcolm X was older than Martin Luther King Jr., they were both assassinated at the same age. Malcolm was 39 when the members of the Nation of Islam gunned him down on February 21, 1965 as he gave his speech at the Audubon Ballroom in Manhattan. King was 39 as well, when James Earl Ray shot him down on April 4 1968, as he stood on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee; he was in town to support striking African American sanitation workers. As Martin Luther King Jr, and Malcom X may have different takes on nonviolence, the two prominent leaders shared a great deal of