Everyone Has a Little Malcolm in Them: Malcolm X’s Leadership On November 10, 1963, Malcolm X delivered his best known speech at the Northern Negro GrassRoots Leadership Conference in Detroit, Michigan. One of his most famous lines from his speech, “Message to the GrassRoots” states, “Be peaceful, be courteous, obey the law, respect everyone; but if someone puts his hand on you, send him to the cemetery.”(“Americas | Malcolm X: Key quotes”) Malcolm X was one of the most famous leaders of the Civil Rights Movement because strongly believed in a certain leadership style that was controversial in a lot of instances. He firmly agreed with using self defense on any occasion that he felt threatened. Also, he believed those who did not use self defense
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Clearly, Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X had always had tension between each other because they both had complete opposite leadership strategies. Both leaders had very diversified childhoods, which made their leadership styles completely different. On one hand, Malcolm was self-taught with little schooling and moved from house to house throughout his childhood because of his split up family after his father’s death. While on the other hand, Martin Luther King Jr. lived in a very comfortable and middle class home with loving parents as well as a consistent education; his family was very well-known and idolized in his area of Atlanta, Georgia (Mabelle). It is obvious that Martin Luther King Jr. had the better end of life than Malcolm did. Due to these reasons, Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr’s differential childhoods are evident to why their leadership qualities are so distinct. For instance, Malcolm believed in self-defense and he would never dare to let a white man walk over him. “Malcolm represented the kind of attitude and political perspective of many of young black so-called militants and radicals coming out of urban areas in the north. They had a different kind of attitude. It was hard for them to swallow this notion of non-violence ... Malcolm says, 'Somebody hits you. You send him to the cemetery'” (“Malcolm X and Martin Luther King.”). This implies that, Malcolm had many …show more content…
could have expressed their leadership in a different manner to compromise with each other and work together. Malcolm could have partnered with King to balance his leadership; Martin Luther King Jr. could have provided the love and care for shaping society with nonviolence and Malcolm could have contributed violence when needed at the appropriate times. In that case, Martin Luther King Jr. pointed out some flaws in Malcolm’s leadership after Malcolm’s death in his public reaction, he stated, "I think Malcolm X did serve a role, I think he played a role in pointing out the problem, calling attention to it, but his great problem was an inability to emerge with a solution. He had slogans that were catchy and that people listened to, but I don't think he ever pointed out the solution to the problem" (“Malcolm X and Martin Luther King.”). For these reasons, Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X could have worked together if they listened to each other’s critiques instead of having a rivalry. In spite of these reasons, the two great leaders did not work together; as mentioned earlier, they only met once for a brief minute. In that case, Malcolm and Martin not working together ended up shaped history for the Civil Rights Movement. Yet, Malcolm still had numerous accomplishments. For example, Malcolm was named the second most sought out speaker in the United States. He also led the Unity Rally in Harlem, which was recorded as one of the
Clearly, Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X had always had tension between each other because they both had complete opposite leadership strategies. Both leaders had very diversified childhoods, which made their leadership styles completely different. On one hand, Malcolm was self-taught with little schooling and moved from house to house throughout his childhood because of his split up family after his father’s death. While on the other hand, Martin Luther King Jr. lived in a very comfortable and middle class home with loving parents as well as a consistent education; his family was very well-known and idolized in his area of Atlanta, Georgia (Mabelle). It is obvious that Martin Luther King Jr. had the better end of life than Malcolm did. Due to these reasons, Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr’s differential childhoods are evident to why their leadership qualities are so distinct. For instance, Malcolm believed in self-defense and he would never dare to let a white man walk over him. “Malcolm represented the kind of attitude and political perspective of many of young black so-called militants and radicals coming out of urban areas in the north. They had a different kind of attitude. It was hard for them to swallow this notion of non-violence ... Malcolm says, 'Somebody hits you. You send him to the cemetery'” (“Malcolm X and Martin Luther King.”). This implies that, Malcolm had many …show more content…
could have expressed their leadership in a different manner to compromise with each other and work together. Malcolm could have partnered with King to balance his leadership; Martin Luther King Jr. could have provided the love and care for shaping society with nonviolence and Malcolm could have contributed violence when needed at the appropriate times. In that case, Martin Luther King Jr. pointed out some flaws in Malcolm’s leadership after Malcolm’s death in his public reaction, he stated, "I think Malcolm X did serve a role, I think he played a role in pointing out the problem, calling attention to it, but his great problem was an inability to emerge with a solution. He had slogans that were catchy and that people listened to, but I don't think he ever pointed out the solution to the problem" (“Malcolm X and Martin Luther King.”). For these reasons, Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X could have worked together if they listened to each other’s critiques instead of having a rivalry. In spite of these reasons, the two great leaders did not work together; as mentioned earlier, they only met once for a brief minute. In that case, Malcolm and Martin not working together ended up shaped history for the Civil Rights Movement. Yet, Malcolm still had numerous accomplishments. For example, Malcolm was named the second most sought out speaker in the United States. He also led the Unity Rally in Harlem, which was recorded as one of the