Summary Of Malcolm X's Speech By Any Means Necessary

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Over the course of Malcolm X’s life, his perspective of identity changed, particularly before and after he went to Mecca. In the speech By Any Means Necessary Malcolm stated, “The time for you and me to allow ourselves to be brutalized non-violently is passe….Be non-violent only with those who are non-violent to you”(Malcolm X). Essentially, Malcolm X is implying that we should have the rights to defend ourselves from those who cause harm to us. Before Malcolm x went to Mecca, he believed that white supremacy could not be conquered through love, but only through vigorous self-defence (“By Any Means Necessary”) . Malcolm x informs other African American about how their culture had been stripped by whites and how they created and inspired …show more content…

In “By any Means Necessary,” Malcolm X in one of his speeches states; “I am not a racist. I am against every form of racism and segregation, every form of …show more content…

According to X, “The ballot or the bullet”... “Now in speaking like this, it doesn't mean that we're anti­-white, but it does mean we're anti­-exploitation,we're anti­-degradation, we're anti­-oppression. And if the white man doesn't want us to be anti-­him, let him stop oppressing and exploiting and degrading us”(Malcolm #2). The essence of Malcolm’s argument is that he is not anti white, he is anti whites oppressing and disenfranchising African Americans and if the white person wants to not be hated, then he should stop hating himself. In a letter written in Mecca, Malcolm X says,“on this pilgrimage, what I have seen,and experienced, has forced me to re-arrange much of my thought-patterns previously held, and to toss aside some of my previous conclusions” (Malcolm X). After he went to Mecca his philosophy about the use of violence change after encountering a wide variety of different races who are all Muslim from the places he visited. Malcolm X views of whites had changed because before visiting Mecca, he believed the whites are “devils”, but after he went to Mecca his views on whites had