I spent the winter break reading the biography of Malcolm X. Malcolm X was a towering intellectual, eloquent speaker and remains one of the most polarizing figures in human history. The novel is a collaboration between Malcolm X and journalist Alex Haley which chronicles his troubled childhood, time spent as a criminal in the streets of Detroit, incarceration, his eventual conversion to the Nation of Islam and his evolution as a thought leader for Black America and the world.
Even after Malcolm X’s passing he continues to be lauded as an anti-white, black supremacist who should not be celebrated. I think this is a simple and inaccurate characterization of Malcolm X. We are privileged to have the accounts of his life from his perspective and so there is no reason for the level of misinformation that exists today about Malcolm X. Moreover, this narrative fails to honor his complexity and the psychological effects of white supremacy on African people in the U.S and around the world. I enjoyed reading this novel because I was able to witness his humanity as his views about himself, history and his community evolved throughout his short but impactful life. He began as a self-hating man who straightened his hair and exclusively dated white women into a militant man who had a keen disdain for “white people” and finally to the best version of himself. He moves away from generalizing all “white people” as “white devils” but recognizes the global plight of Africans around the world, the importance of global solidarity and the need for people of African descent to address their unique issues such as self-hate, distrust, ignorance and healing before pursuing reconciliation with other communities. His main beliefs can be described here:
Malcolm X joins a long line of people of African descent who have challenged our understandings of justice and freedom while enriching our understandings of who we are as people. This is essential reading for everyone especially young black men and women. Take a look for yourselves (or you can cheat by watching the movie). Until the ink drips, Akua B
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AuthorMy name is Akua B and I'm a lover of all things Africa, natural hair and poetry... Archives
March 2017
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