Call for Change: #4

The #blacklivesmatter movement that has become a large force on many social media outlets lately, in the wake of the murder of many innocent African-Americans in the past few years, such as Trayvon Martin, Eric Garner, Mike Brown, and many more. Many comparisons can be drawn between Malcolm X’s movements and the Black Lives Matter movement, as done by various sources such as HuffingtonPost. One similarity is that neither of these are civil rights movements. There is too much legislative work to be done for civil rights movements, only furthering prolonging the problem. Malcolm X once said “Whenever you are in a civil-rights struggle, whether you know it or not, you are confining yourself to the jurisdiction of Uncle Sam. No one from the outside world can speak out in your behalf as long as your struggle is a civil-rights struggle. Civil rights means you’re asking Uncle Sam to treat you right. Human rights are something you were born with” (596). Malcolm X is essentially trying to say that people, regardless of their skin colour, are supposed to be treated fairly and that no group should have to fight for that. A similar problem is prevalent in the Black Lives Matter movement, as laws are not what is causing these problems anymore (because legally, no one race is to be seen as better or worse than any other). The problem lies in the toxic mentality that stems from superiority complexes, as often seen in American law enforcement. This is the reason for so many murder cases in America against blacks, as bias often overrides law. For example, Eric Garner was legally doing nothing wrong. There was no evidence to support that he was involved in any illegal activity, and even if there was, the action taken against him was not proportionate to his alleged crime (he was allegedly attempting to sell cigarettes on the property of a store, and was then choked to death by a military grip while being held to the ground by six law enforcement officers). The case was not investigated very thoroughly, and I, personally have seen a lot of backlash from many white people on various social media outlets. This goes to show that even though America has come closer to being a land of opportunity for more and more people of colour lately, many of the harsher and more negative realities still exist. Black people are still being killed, abused and stereotyped and it is not simply a legal problem like it was a century ago.

Another similarity to Malcom X’s movement in the media was the reign of gangster rap group, N.W.A. Known for their blunt and harsh singles meant to show the hardships that come with being black in America, such as “F*** Tha Police”, N.W.A share their personal experiences with racism and discrimination. In their biopic, “Straight Outta Compton”, the group is simply talking and eating outside of their studio, when several police officers (including black police officers) approach them and attempt to arrest them, simply for “looking suspicious”, despite not having done anything wrong. Despite it being illegal to racially discriminate against any ethnic group at the time, the authorities could and/or would have ignored the case, should the group have filed a report. This goes to show that even though progress has been made, there is not a large disparity between the issues then and now. Black people are still stereotyped and discriminated against for no real reason. N.W.A’s response was similar to that of Malcolm X in the violent stages of his movement because they believed in fighting back, not simply trying to co-operate to ensure their safety. On many instances, the group defied the law and purposely offended many people to make a statement, regardless of the cost. For example, the group was advised once by police not to perform the song “F*** Tha Police” live, or they would be arrested. Regardless, they still performed the song and they were arrested after. The irony is that they were being arrested for exhibiting basic human rights, which was the whole reason why the song was written in the first place.

All in all, there are many connections that can be drawn between Malcolm X’s movement and modern-day movements, which is quite unfortunate. Both he and Martin Luther King Jr. would have a few things to be happy about; for example, America having a black president. However, there are still many problems that exist now to really be able to celebrate anything. Their movements helped to help black people feel empowered, but changed very little about how they were treated. Much work has yet to be done.

Call for Change: #3

Target Audience:

While there is no doubt that Malcolm X's autobiography touched and inspired people of many ethnic groups, the target audience is not simply anyone who has access to the book. The target audience for Malcolm X's autobiography was the same as that of his worldview, which is black people in America. During the more violent stages of his movement, he was seen urging his fellow African-Americans to be more vocal and assertive in their ideals. Because of his bluntness and lack of a filter in regards to his views on white people, this urged the oppressed to try to find a voice, and feel like they were not alone. This triggered a more direct and loud response from his audience. As his worldview changed to be less hostile against whites, his perspective still remained consistent. His worldview was not that white people were terrible and something to be defeated, but instead, that black people needed to work harder to be empowered and free.

The target audience is not white people for some very obvious reasons. An argument could be made that if a white American were to read the book, their perspectives on oppression would change. However, I feel that his goal was to empower black people, rather than receive pity from white people. His experiences in the ghettos of Boston and New York lead him to a very violent worldview, which was that black people should not accept help from white people. As his views of white people changed, his views on black people did not.

I believe that he wished to communicate a few things that he believed were important to his target audience. One of them being the aforementioned, that black people should be striving to be free and empowered, by any means necessary. Another perspective that he wished to communicate to his fellow African-Americans was that Islam was the right way to go for them. In an interview, Malcolm says "I believe that the Islam religion is the best religion for our people because it creates unity and gives everyone dignity". His conversion to Islam, joining and then leaving the Nation of Islam, and then founding his own Islamic organization were all pivotal points of his life, which helped to understand the true meaning of Islam and change his views on peace. His approach to violence changed dramatically, and I personally believe that his conversion may have had a lot to do with it.

While I believe that everyone can benefit from having read this book, Malcolm X's target audience was the audience of people who experienced the same things that he did, who he wished to save and empower. He wished to create a world where people no longer had to worry about surviving, where they could simply live independently without being harmed.

Call for Change #2: Author's Worldviews

The worldviews of the author in this book are very blatant, as it is an autobiography. Throughout the story, the worldviews of Malcolm X change, leading to many critical moments of his life. Malcolm X's outlook and changing perspective on racism lead to many pivotal moments that showcase the change in his demeanor from his childhood to his passing.

The first showing of his worldview is in his childhood, following the death of his father, followed by the loss of his mother as she became mentally unstable. He says that he has "no mercy or compassion in him for a society that will crush people, and then penalize them for crushing under the weight" (22).  It was at this point where Malcolm's hatred for society had developed, after the two most important figures in his life had been taken away from him due to "society's failure, hypocrisy, greed, and lack of mercy and compassion" (22). In the way he speaks, he sounds very angry and resentful towards the society that took away his father and mother, leaving him and his siblings to fight for themselves. In this chapter specifically, he also addresses the belief that African-American people were viewed more as statistics than people, which he believed would turn him into a very "vicious and dangerous person" (22).

Another instance of his changing worldview came from when he was sent to prison, and his subsequent conversion to Islam. Upon being sent to prison, he realizes that the series of unfortunate events in his life were more a reflection on racism than they were an attack on him and his family. Upon observing the slums which he inhabited where he became involved with crime and drugs. Islam gives Malcolm an outlook that he had not previously had, which was that while his years of crime were by no means good, they were essential for personal growth and that Allah (God) would give him a chance to redeem himself. In a way, he believes that Allah had guided him through many trials and tribulations to teach him lessons; by making many mistakes, he is offered a chance to learn and correct them in the future. His worldview shifts focus from feeling like the crimes against him were an attack on him and his family, to addressing the issue that there is a clear divide between the blacks and whites - and that it was destroying lives other than his own. This is where his "extremist ideals", as some may call them, stem from.

Malcolm X's ideals are merely a reflection of the life he experienced. There are a few other instances where his worldview changes too, like when he leaves the Nation of Islam, where he decides to pursue a completely nonviolent movement. His worldview was almost exclusively impacted by his experiences, and not inherent ideals that he was simply born with. One could say his worldviews were pretty malleable and subject to change based solely on his experiences, a contrast to the rigidity of certain views of other people. For example, the inherent prejudice towards black people in South-Asian communities is still prominent, even here in Canada. A few of my relatives cannot bear the idea of someone that is non-Bengali marrying into one of our families, despite living in one of the most multicultural countries on Earth, moreso living in one of the most diverse communities in the Greater Toronto Area. It seems that regardless of the intensity and/or amount of exposure they have to other groups, be it the LGBTQ community or other ethnic groups, certain people just simply cannot change their minds. All it took for Malcolm X, however, was exposure to different life experiences. He went from a belief that black and white people should be separated to almost believing that they should all be working to tackle the same cause, and make equality no longer be a dream.

"Call for Change": #1

As many (if not all) know, Malcolm X was a driving force against the discrimination of people of African-American descent. Unlike Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X's approach to fighting discrimination was not a means of forgiving and forgetting, rather, protecting his values and beliefs "by any means necessary". This often meant resorting to more extreme measures such as violence to push his ideas, making him a controversial figure, even to this day. Regardless of ones' views on the ethics behind his methods of evoking change, Malcolm X was, and still is, an undeniably influential figure in American History. Because of this, there is a little bit more depth to how I think my worldviews, values, and perspectives will impact how I interpret the text. 

Even though I have not faced nearly the same amount or degree of racial discrimination as Malcolm X or any African-American during that time, my family members, namely my mom, faced different forms of prejudice from other ethnic groups in regards to our background. For example, during the 1971 Independence war between Bangladesh and West Pakistan, many Bengali people were being killed. I ask my mom about the war sometimes, and she tells me about the horrible things that happened there, that eventually lead to the murder of my grandfather, who I will now never get to meet. Now, the connection between Malcolm X and the Independence War are not very clear, of course. But my main point is that due to a very pointless hatred that stems from racism, people suffered, badly. My mom was 4 years old at the time that they killed my grandfather, and her and her 10 siblings had to survive in poverty and without a father for the rest of their lives. A few of her brothers (my uncles), who I cherish quite a bit in my life right now, were almost killed during the war too. I feel as though I can connect on a familial level to Malcolm X, as his father's death was made to seem like a suicide, leaving his family to suffer. Malcolm and his siblings grew up fatherless, and soon after, their mother was placed into a mental institution, leaving the children to essentially be motherless. He had thought that all of his struggles could have been avoided if African-Americans had not been treated so poorly, as I am sure my mom thinks the same about Bengali people within her situation. While I cannot completely empathize with his situation (and I sincerely hope that I will never have to suffer enough to be able to), I can understand to a degree the hardships that come from a minority. 

Also, in my childhood, I was bullied quite a bit for being a Muslim. My experiences weren't completely terrible, but coupled with me not having many friends around that time, it definitely added to my stress and gave me a negative outlook on everything, which is not safe to have in just elementary school. It makes me think, for those who consider Malcolm X extreme, was it really extreme? Of course, this is a personal bias of mine, as someone who experienced only a fraction of what he did - however, after having been treated like that, I, too, wanted to prove myself, not caring about what the cost was. If being bullied at a young age infrequently and for a short time could evoke such a negative response from me, it could most definitely have a more extreme effect on someone else who experienced it throughout their entire lives. Perhaps, the "extremity" of Malcolm X's ideas and beliefs were simply relative to the hardships that he had personally endured himself. From looking at both Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X, I noticed a very interesting contrast between two people who fought for the same thing, but had completely opposite methods of doing so.