Malcolm X And The Civil Rights Movement

The Modern Civil Rights movement emerged during the 1950s and 60s, after the end of the World War II and Cold War Era that rocked thousands of societies around the world. This nation-changing period of time was a mass movement led by the African American population whom were demanding constitutional equality. Blacks were demanding equality and desegregation in schools, basic voting rights, equal access to public areas, the end of job discrimination, among with other provisions of the previous life for blacks in modern America. They fought for all of these changes in various ways, including; boycotts, sit-ins, freedom rides, voter registration, and marches. The beginning of all of this was sparked by three main events that fired African Americans

He held a strong sense of black nationalism throughout his eventful and prosperous life as well, which meant that he believed blacks were “African” not “American” and they deserved to be treated in that way. A famous quote, “I am black first, I am not interested in being American, because America has never been interested in me” (Malcolm X), is powerful in so many ways; showing his true sense of black pride, not integration like his counterpart. Malcolm X was known as the “nightmare” to Martin Luther King Jr.’s “dream” because he was more interested in fighting for the power of blacks as a nationality and race than assimilating to the American way of life. As a young boy living in Lansing, Michigan Malcolm was shown the violence of both whites and blacks, but especially by his own parents who beat each other and their children with physical and verbal abuse, but Malcolm was sure to let his voice be heard about the horribleness of what they were doing. This may help us understand why his ideologies of violence to gain freedom and equality were constructed throughout his lifetime. Another life event of Malcolm’s childhood that may have shaped his perspectives was his father’s death, due to white hate groups, which was yet again another example of freedom in his young life to help shape his young mind. Malcolm was also

Martin was born a “dreamer” and ended a “dreamer” after a lifetime of activism through speeches and movements showing African Americans that equality would come through hopes and dreams. Martin was protected, unlike Malcolm, from the horrible things that white racists were capable of, further expanding his thoughts of gaining the American Dream through moral and subtle power forces. He was surrounded by ministers, including his father, who preached about freedom and the correct style of protest to achieve goals that illumined the idea of nationalism and interactionism into the African American peoples minds. Martin’s education was gained in a segregated atmosphere and his religion was a major influence on his way of going about things, which differed drastically from Malcolm. Martin’s education introduced him to a love for language, which shaped his outstanding and powerful speeches and writings that would come later on in his