Malcolm X was one of the most influential and prominent civil rights activists in the 20th century. Born in Omaha, Nebraska, in 1925, he grew up in a world of segregation, poverty, and violence. Despite these challenges, he rose to become one of the most powerful voices in the fight for equality and justice for African Americans.
Malcolm X was originally born as Malcolm Little and grew up in Lansing, Michigan, where his family experienced intense racial discrimination and violence. His father, a Baptist preacher, was murdered when Malcolm was six years old, and his mother was committed to a mental institution when he was a teenager. After several run-ins with the law, Malcolm was sent to prison for larceny and breaking and entering in 1946. While in prison, he converted to Islam and changed his name to Malcolm X, symbolizing the rejection of his "slave name" and his
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He quickly rose through the ranks and became one of the group's most prominent spokespeople, traveling the country to give speeches and engage in debates with other civil rights leaders. Malcolm X's speeches were characterized by his charismatic delivery and his unapologetic condemnation of white America's history of oppression and violence against African Americans. He advocated for black self-defense and self-sufficiency, and he was a vocal critic of the nonviolent approach of other civil rights leaders like Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
In 1964, Malcolm X left the Nation of Islam and made a pilgrimage to Mecca, where he had a spiritual awakening and began to reconsider his views on race and religion. Upon his return to the United States, he founded the Organization of Afro-American Unity and continued to speak out against racial injustice and oppression. He also made efforts to reconcile with other civil rights leaders, including Dr.