Malcolm X History
MWEEK-5 HOME WORK ASSIGNMENT
Malcolm X--Myth and Truthfulness Civil Rights Activist, Malcolm X was born as Malcolm Little on May 19, 1925 in Omaha, Nebraska, the fourth of eight children born to Louise and Earl Little. Louise was a homemaker and Earl was a preacher who was also an active member of the local chapter of the Universal Negro Improvement Association and avid supporter of the Black Nationalist leader”. (Marcus Garvey). Because of Earl Little 's civil rights activism, the family faced frequent harassment from white supremacist groups such as the Ku Klux Klan and one of its splinter factions, the Black Legion. In fact, Malcolm X had his first encounter with racism before he was even born. "When my mother was pregnant with me, she told me later," he said, "a party of hooded Ku Klux Klan riders galloped up to our home... Brandishing their shotguns and rifles, they shouted for my father to come out." The harassment continued; when Malcolm X was four years old, local Klan members smashed all of the family 's windows, causing Earl Little to decide to move the family from Omaha to East Lansing, Michigan. However, the racism the family encountered in East Lansing proved even greater than in Omaha. Shortly after the Little’s moved in, in 1929, a racist mob set their house on fire, and the town 's all-white emergency responders refused to do anything. "The white police and firemen came and stood around watching as the house burned to the ground," Malcolm X remembered. Two years later, in 1931, things got much, much worse. Earl Little 's dead body was discovered laid out on the municipal streetcar tracks. Although Malcolm X 's father was very likely murdered by white supremacists, from which he had received frequent death threats, the police officially ruled his death a suicide. Malcolm X attended West Junior High School, where he was the school 's only black student. He excelled academically and was well liked by his classmates, who elected him class
Malcolm X--Myth and Truthfulness Civil Rights Activist, Malcolm X was born as Malcolm Little on May 19, 1925 in Omaha, Nebraska, the fourth of eight children born to Louise and Earl Little. Louise was a homemaker and Earl was a preacher who was also an active member of the local chapter of the Universal Negro Improvement Association and avid supporter of the Black Nationalist leader”. (Marcus Garvey). Because of Earl Little 's civil rights activism, the family faced frequent harassment from white supremacist groups such as the Ku Klux Klan and one of its splinter factions, the Black Legion. In fact, Malcolm X had his first encounter with racism before he was even born. "When my mother was pregnant with me, she told me later," he said, "a party of hooded Ku Klux Klan riders galloped up to our home... Brandishing their shotguns and rifles, they shouted for my father to come out." The harassment continued; when Malcolm X was four years old, local Klan members smashed all of the family 's windows, causing Earl Little to decide to move the family from Omaha to East Lansing, Michigan. However, the racism the family encountered in East Lansing proved even greater than in Omaha. Shortly after the Little’s moved in, in 1929, a racist mob set their house on fire, and the town 's all-white emergency responders refused to do anything. "The white police and firemen came and stood around watching as the house burned to the ground," Malcolm X remembered. Two years later, in 1931, things got much, much worse. Earl Little 's dead body was discovered laid out on the municipal streetcar tracks. Although Malcolm X 's father was very likely murdered by white supremacists, from which he had received frequent death threats, the police officially ruled his death a suicide. Malcolm X attended West Junior High School, where he was the school 's only black student. He excelled academically and was well liked by his classmates, who elected him class
References: Krieg, Robert A. Journal of Religious Thought; Fall79/Winter80, Vol. 36 Issue 2, p37, 8p Morrison, Allan Ebony, Oct1965, Vol. 20 Issue 12, p135-142, 6p http://www.brothermalcolm.net/archivedsites/discussion_list.htm Malcolm X. (2012). Biography.com. Retrieved 04:19, May 06, 2012 from http://www.biography.com/people/malcolm-x-9396195