Throughout one’s life, we face a lot of predicaments which ironically shape our lives the most. Throughout these hardships, we often see the holes in our personality, in our lives, or even indictment of society. Yet, what makes predicaments so ironic and beautiful is that they become a cornerstone of the successful lives; not only they change one’s life, they also have power to capsize the whole world. Especially regarding black American’s history, the stories of black American congregated and induced the omnipotent power that influenced the whole history of human-beings. Yet, always, without any stimuli, even omnipotent “potential” power means nothing; two men, Malcolm X and Martin Ruther King Junior were the one who ignited the dormant energy of history and brought the astounding change in human history. Among these two figures, Malcolm X’s life starts from peripheral and very individual life and gradually extends to the love of black race and eventually to human-race which distinctly shows how the predicaments shapes one’s human spirit and eventually connects it to the history.
Malcolm X, in his biography, frankly shows his life story from trivial incidents to major incidents that served as a turning-point in his life. He was born in May 19, 1925 with a name, Malcolm Little. His father was one of the black activists who were killed by white supremacists. After he became teenager, he moves to Roxbury where he meets one of his lifelong supporter Ella -- his sister – and meets many other people who often school him to be “cool” in the city of Harlem. Yet, it’s not until Malcolm moves to Boston city that his life plunge into abyss; as one of the title in his biography reads, he become “Hustler”. He learns how to burgle, how to drug, porter of prostitution, and all the insane things that he could do in Harlem. He was more famous with his stage name “Red” than his real name “Malcolm Little” at that time.
All the vicious villainies that Malcolm has done in Harlem eventually lead him to the jail. Even in the jail, he was entangled with drug and lives unrestrained life which gives him another name “Satan”. Nonetheless, he faces one of his life turning-point in the jail: Bimbi, one of his inmates inspires him to refine himself once again. Malcolm starts to channel his rage into reasoned argument through astounding amass of books in prison. He learns how to debate, how to move other people with words. Most importantly, as Malcolm’s brother Reginald’s request, Malcolm half-forcefully encounters Nation of Islam which influences his whole life. After getting out of the jail, under his youth experiences marked by violence and darkness, he starts to teach so called “black pride” to his fellow friends and family. Yet, one obstacle still remained within his mind: victim mentality of his own race and Malcolm still tried to distinguish black and white rather than looking them as a whole.
At the period when Malcolm differentiates black and white and argue black is the supreme race, he faces a lot of criticisms towards him and his Nation of Islam. Mainly this was because Malcolm was more close to radical activist than moderated leader of black right movement: he criticized other black civil right leaders and often depicted them as “Integration-mad Negroes” and ascetic towards the media. Nevertheless, emissary to Mecca transmutes Malcolm’s point of view. He realizes that there are a lot of different races but they all are able to cooperate and are all same human-being unlike his previous thought. This is when he changes his peripheral point of view towards his own race’s problem to broader perspective which is about euphony around the world. Once again, his bestows himself a new name “El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz”. Here, he says “I’m for truth, no matter who tells it. I’m for justice, no matter who it is for or against”. Unlike his premature movements, we clearly could see that Malcolm, El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz, is now for the universal means of peace and harmony.
From Detroit Red to El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz, Malcolm X frankly reveals his life to the world without any hesitation; probably because “he is a human being first and foremost, and as such he for whoever and whatever benefits humanity as a whole” and wants others to see his life and wish them to get something precious enlightenment out of it, not because his life was honorable and exemplary. His last legacy, his life story, moved many other people from different country with different backgrounds and this factor which moved others -- that is implausible to explain with words -- would be the stimuli and energy that moved the world and will continue to move the world.
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