Time Bind
In the year of 1960s, the civil right movement was at its peak. At this time, blacks were mistreated and discriminated against and because of that, the Negroes were searching for a leader who can change the status of blacks. What is a leader? A leader is, according to a dictionary, a guiding or directing head, as of an army, movement, or political group. There is no doubt that Malcolm X, formerly known as El Hajj Malik El Shabazz, had many characteristics of a great leader written all over him, when he joined the Nation of Islam. As a result, African Americans looked up to Malcolm X, who called himself the angriest Negro in America, for leadership. In this paper, I am going to argue that Malcolm was a great leader, who gave his life for the struggle for equal rights in the richest and most powerful country of the world, the USA. In a country, where everybody seeks to fulfill "the American dream", but where many people live in a nightmare. For that, he should be remembered along with Martin Luther King Jr. To fully understand how great of a leader that he was, we need to take a closed look at Malcolm X's life. Malcolm led three remarkable lives in less than four decades: first as Malcolm
Another reason why he was a great leader was that his readiness to revise his ideas and change them. People make mistakes and it takes courage to admit it publicly and try to change it so the mistake won't happen again. In the fields of politic and religion, which he was vigorously involved in, people usually don't change, even they proved to be wrong. Malcolm X was different. He turned all his beliefs and his way of life upside down when joining the Nation of Islam. He stopped drinking, smoking and abusing drugs instantly and dedicated his life to his leader, whereas he had been selfish and greedy his whole life before. Haley, Alex and Malcolm X, The Autobiography of Malcolm X. Malcolm X was a misunderstood figure of his time, in my opinion. If you have read or heard what he said, you would undoubtedly label him as a racist. He went as far as calling whites the "devils" and he stirred up both the black and white communities with his "anti-white" philosophy. Malcolm is usually projected as the uncompromising advocate of Black Nationalism. Malcolm, always brooding and alienated, is depicted as the architect of armed revolution and confrontation and he is presented as the hostile critic of White liberalism. Many people base this on his denunciation of racism and they misinterpret this statement to mean that now he endorsed the principles of integration as a solution to America's racial dilemma. What people didn't realize at that time was Malcolm's basic goal or objective never changed: He was totally committed to freedom for oppressed people. Malcolm wanted for blacks only what whites wanted for themselves, no more and no less. Also we have to realize that his trip to Mecca had changed the way he thought about white people and he was not given enough time to show the world his new point of view because he was assassinated soon after. That's why most people today have the impression that Malcolm was a "bad" guy, who would gain freedom by any means necessary. Little, a convicted burglar and con man; as Malcolm X, the Nation of Islam's flamboyant orator; finally, as El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz, organizing an international approach to the problems besetting African Americans. It all began when Malcolm Little's confidence and dream was shattered and crashed. His teacher told him that he had to be "realistic about being a nigger." (Malcolm X 118) I don't think Malcolm would became what he was if it was not for his teacher's comment on his dream of becoming a lawyer one day. Then, we have Minister Malcolm X, who devoted his life to the teaching of Elijah Muhammad. "The Honorable Elijah Muhammad is giving us true identity,
Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1778
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page double spaced)
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