Malcolm X biografi/tekst

Malcolm X, was born May 19th, 1925, in Omaha, Nebraska. He was originally named Malcolm Little. His father was Earl Little, an outspoken Baptist minister. His mother was Louise Norton Little, a homemaker that took care of the family’s eight children. The family would receive death threats from the white supremacist organization, Black Legion, because of Earl’s civil rights activism. This would lead to the family ?nding new home twice before Malcolm was four years old.  While Malcolm was still very young, the family moved to Lansing, Michigan. When Malcolm was just six years old, his father, Earl Little, was found dead, lying across railroad tracks. The police ocially ruled the death a streetcar accident, though Malcolm’s mother, Louise was sure it was a murder by the Black Legion. Rumors that white racists had been responsible for his father’s death were widely spread, and were very disturbing to Malcolm as a child.  In 1937, a man that Malcolm’s mother Louise had been dating, disappeared from her life when she became pregnant with his child. In late 1938, Louise had mental breakdown, causing her to be committed to the Kalamazoo State Hospital. The family’s children were separated among foster homes and orphanages.  Malcolm excelled in junior high school, but ended up dropping out after a white teacher, told Malcolm that practicing law, and becoming a lawyer which was his aspiration at the time, was “no realistic goal for a nigger”.  Malcolm X’s involvement in civil rights When Malcolm was age 14 to 21, he held dierent jobs while living with his half-sister Ella, in a largely African-American neighbourhood of Boston. After a short time living in Flint, Michigan, Malcolm moved to Harlem, New York City in 1943. Here Malcolm would engage in gambling, racketeering, robbery, drug dealing and pimping.  In late 1945, Malcolm returned to Boston, here he and four accomplices committed a series of burglaries, targeting wealthy white families. He would be caught in 1946, where he was arrested while picking up a stolen watch he had left at a shop for repairs. And in February he began serving an eight-to-ten-year sentence at Charlestown State Prison, for larceny and breaking and entering.  During Malcolm’s prison time, he met a convict, John Bembry, in?uenced by John, Malcolm started reading more and more. At the time, Malcolm’s siblings would write to him about the Nation of Islam, a new religious movement, preaching black self-reliance. In 1948, Malcolm’s brother Reginald wrote a letter telling Malcolm not to eat any more pork, and smoke any more cigarettes, and that he would show Malcolm how to get out of prison. Reginald visited Malcolm, and told him about his recent conversion to the Nation of Islam, Malcolm gained interest in his brother’s new religion, and began to study principles of the NOI leader, Elijah Muhammad. Malcolm X’s conversion to the Nation of Islam In late 1948, Malcolm wrote a letter to Elijah Muhammad. Muhammad told Malcolm to reject his past, bow in prayer to Allah, and promise to never engage in destructive behaviour again. Malcolm became a member of the Nation of Islam, and kept communication through letters with Muhammad. This was also around when Malcolm began signing his name as “Malcolm X”. He later explained that the “X” signi?ed the lost African name that he could never know.