Malcolm X

by Manning Marable

  80 was an Ethiopian former slave named Bilal. Turner, Islam in the African-American Experience , p. 13.

  80 Muslims made up about 7 or 8 percent. Ibid., pp. 22-25, 27-32, 36-37.

  81 uniting black humanity throughout the world. Wilson Jeremiah Moses, The Golden Age of Black Nationalism (New York: Oxford University Press, 1976), p. 21.

  81 aesthetics drawing upon Africa and the black diaspora. Turner, Islam in the African-American Experience, p. 50.

  82 and their genealogy extended back to Christ. Ibid., pp. 92-93.

  82 temples were investigated for sedition. Ibid., pp. 94-104.

  83 who supported rapprochement with orthodox Islam. Ibid., pp. 109-28.

  83 does away with all distinctions of race, color and creed. Mufti Muhammad Sadiq, article in Moslem Sunrise, January 1923, quoted in ibid., p. 129.

  84 Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Chicago, and Kansas City (Missouri). Ibid., pp. 129-34. Literature documenting the history and evolution of the global Ahmadiyya movement includes: Humphrey J. Fisher, The Ahmadiyya Movement (London: Oxford University Press, 1963); and Yohannon Friedman, Prophecy Continuous: Aspects of Ahmadi Religious Thought and Its Medieval Background (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1989).

  84 those of the Moorish Science Temple. Turner, Islam in the African-American Experience, p. 127.

  84 antiwhite views of the staunch Garveyite. Louis A. DeCaro, Jr., Malcolm and the Cross: The Nation of Islam, Malcolm X, and Christianity (New York: New York University Press, 1998), pp. 11-12.

  84 which connected in ancestry to Muhammad. Erdmann Doane Beynon, “The Voodoo Cult Among Negro Migrants in Detroit,” American Journal of Sociology, vol. 43, no. 6 (May 1938), p. 897.

  84 “and higher mathematics, especially calculus.” Ibid., p. 900.

  85 “I was turned around completely.” Ibid., p. 896.

  85 “also a free transportation to the Holy City of Mecca.” Gardell, In the Name of Elijah Muhammad: Louis Farrakhan and the Nation of Islam (Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 1996), p. 56.

  86 Asiatic black man from his centuries-long slumber. Ibid., pp. 151-53.

  86 “yet time for me to be known.” Turner, Islam in the African-American Experience, p. 151; and DeCaro, Malcolm and the Cross, pp. 29-30.

  86 realize the shattered dreams of Garveyites. Turner, Islam in the African-American Experience , pp. 152-55; and DeCaro, Malcolm and the Cross, pp. 22-31.

  87 instructed them in their roles as Muslim wives. Carlos D. Morrison, “The Rhetoric of the Nation of Islam, 1930-1975: A Functional Approach,” Ph.D. dissertation, Howard University, 1996, pp. 73-74; and Gardell, In the Name of Elijah Muhammad, pp. 60-61.

  87 missionary efforts had been particularly well received. Gardell, In the Name of Elijah Muhammad, p. 56.

  87 Then, in 1934, Fard simply vanished. Malcolm X and Haley, Autobiography, pp. 212-13.

  87 citing his arrest for disorderly conduct. Gardell, In the Name of Elijah Muhammad, p. 58.

  87 black American organization, Development of Our Own. Ibid., pp. 58-59; and Turner, Islam in the African-American Experience, pp. 166-67.

  88 622 CE and Elijah Muhammad’s wanderings. Turner, Islam in the African-American Experience , pp. 167-68.

  88 his followers to resist military service. Ibid., p. 168.

  88 her husband and visiting him in prison. Malu Halasa, Elijah Muhammad: Religious Leader (New York: Chelsea House, 1990), p. 60.

  88 “Holy City of Mecca, Arabia, in 1930.” Elijah Muhammad, The Supreme Wisdom: Solution to the So-Called Negroes’ Problem, vol. 1 (Newport News, VA: The National Newport News and Commentator, 1957), pp. 12-13.

  88 “through its devilish nature, destroying itself.” Malcolm X and Haley, Autobiography, p. 170.

  89 “in the destruction of this world.” Elijah Muhammad, The Message to the Blackman in America (Newport News, VA: United Brothers Communication Systems, 1965), chapter 125, pp. 1-6.

  90 and at his headquarters in Chicago. Turner, Islam in the African-American Experience, p. 169.

  90 “and give a focus to my inner life.” Quintin Hoare and Geoffrey Nowell Smith, eds., Selections from the Prison Notebooks of Antonio Gramsci (New York: International Publishers, 1971), pp. xcii-xciii.

  91 “wet, I was gone on debating.” Malcolm X and Haley, Autobiography, p. 187.

  91 which helped him attract listeners. Robin D. G. Kelley interview, July 26, 2001. Kelly argues that there existed an “important intersection between the great preachers” like Malcolm and the great jazz performers, who frequently talked about playing as “preaching.” In jazz, Kelley explains, “there are shout choruses that are called preacher’s choruses, in which you have a call-and-response. Someone like Ben Webster would play a measure, and then not play the next measure. . . . When Malcolm would speak, he would speak and leave a space for response, a space for congregations of people—whether it’s on the street or inside a mosque—to say, ‘Amen, Preach.’”

  91 speaking style borrowed its cadences. Ibid. There is a growing scholarly literature on the rhetoric and effective use of language by Malcolm X. See John Franklin Gay, “The Rhetorical Strategies and Tactics of Malcolm X (Movement Theory, Neo-Aristotelian, Black Muslims, Persuasion),” Ph.D. dissertation, Indiana University, 1985; Andrew Ann Dinkins, “Malcolm X and the Rhetoric of Transformation: 1948- 1965,” Ph.D. dissertation, University of Pittsburgh, 1995; Archie Epps, “The Rhetoric of Malcolm X,ʺ Harvard Review, no. 3 (Winter 1993), pp. 64-75; Celeste Michelle Condit and John Louis Lucaites, “Malcolm X and the Limits of the Rhetoric of Revolutionary Dissent,” Journal of Black Studies, vol. 23, no. 3 (March 1993), pp. 291-313; and Scott Joseph Varda, “A Rhetorical History of Malcolm X,ʺ Ph.D. dissertation, University of Iowa, 2007.

  91 “ever got more out of going to prison than I did.” Malcolm X and Haley, Autobiography, pp. 178-83.

  92 “no circumstances don’t ever preach to me,” he warned. Malcolm Little to Philbert Little, no date (approximately mid-1948), MXC-S, box 3, folder 1.

  92 “rid the planet of these wretched devils.” Malcolm to Philbert, November 28, 1948, ibid.

  92 “vast emptiness created by men.” Malcolm to Philbert, February 4, 1949, ibid.

  92 “I certainly woke up the hard way, hmm?” Malcolm to Philbert, February 1949, ibid.

  92 a new appreciation for their mother. Malcolm to Philbert, December 12, 1949, ibid.

  92 “as he had come, he was gone.” Malcolm X and Haley, Autobiography, p. 190.

  93 of “Master W. D. Fard, the Messiah.” Ibid., p. 192.

  93 “truth in the first place,” he charged. Ibid., p. 190.

  93 “ocean of blackness where I was to save me.” Ibid., p. 192.

  94 of “his dislike for the white race.” “Transfer Summary for Malcolm Little,” March 23, 1950, Prison File of Malcolm Little.

  94 “Saturday I told her to do whatever she can.” Malcolm to Philbert, March 26, 1950, MXC-S, box 3, folder 1.

  94 “Cells to Facilitate ‘Prayers to Allah.’” See “Four Convicts Turn Moslems, Get Calls Looking to Mecca,” Boston Herald, April 20, 1950; and “Local Criminals in Prison, Claim Moslem Faith Now: Grow Beards, Won’t Eat Pork; Demand East-Facing Cells to Facilitate ‘Prayer to Mecca,’” Springfield Union (Massachusetts), April 21, 1950.

  95 “Peace to cease,” Malcolm predicted, “peace will cease!” Malcolm Little to Commissioner MacDowell, June 6, 1950, Prison File of Malcolm Little.

  95 “isn’t hard to convince people that I am.” Malcolm Little to Harry S. Truman, June 29, 1950, in MX FBI, Summary Report, Detroit Office, March 16, 1954, p. 6. Also see Karl Evanzz, The Judas Factor: The Plot to Kill Malcolm X (New York: Thunder's Mouth, 1992), p. 11.

  96 “of the wicked accidental world.” DeCaro, On the Side of My People, pp. 57-58.

  96 his name “Malcolm X (surprised?).” Malcolm to Philbert, December 11, 1950, MXC-S, box 3, folder 1.

  96 “However he can give me a home and a job.” Malcolm to Philbert, December 1
9, 1951, ibid.

  97 “Just in all that I think, speak and do.” Malcolm Little letter, January 9, 1951, in MX FBI, Summary Report, Boston Office, May 4, 1953, pp. 5-6; and MX FBI, Memo, Boston Office, February 17, 1953. This report indicates that Malcolm “has been the subject of a Communist Index Card” by the FBI.

  97 become targets of harassment by prison guards. Evanzz, The Judas Factor, p. 10.

  97 composed primarily of bread and cheese. DeCaro, On the Side of My People, p. 92.

  97 had “read so much by the lights-out glow in my room.” Malcolm X and Haley, Autobiography , p. 193.

  98 the petition be denied. Not surprisingly, Dever agreed. Ralph E. Johnson, Executive Secretary, Council Chamber, State House, to Elliott E. MacDowell, Commissioner, Department of Corrections, December 6, 1950; George E. Thompson, District Attorney for the Northern District, Commonwealth of Massachusetts, to Governor Paul A. Dever, December 13, 1950; and MacDowell to Dever, December 19, 1950, all in Prison File of Malcolm Little.

  98 countries throughout the world. Malcolm Little to Commissioner MacDowell, December 13, 1950, ibid. Also see DeCaro, On the Side of My People, p. 94.

  98 he go to Detroit to live with Wilfred. Philip J. Flynn, Massachusetts Supervisor of Parole, to Gus Harrison, State Supervisor of Parole, Division of Pardons, Paroles and Probation, State of Michigan, Lansing, Michigan, June 27, 1952, in Prison File of Malcolm Little.

  98 date for his release was set for August 7. P. J. Flynn, Massachusetts Supervisor of Parole, to Parole Board, August 4, 1952; Flynn to Harrison, August 6, 1952; and Flynn to Harrison, August 12, 1952, ibid.

  98 younger brother on as a salesman. DeCaro, On the Side of My People, p. 95.

  98 with the warden to resolve grievances. Morris, “Massachusetts: The Aftermath of the Prison Riots of 1952,” pp. 36-37.

  99 “my life was about to become.” Malcolm X and Haley, Autobiography, pp. 195-96.

  Chapter 4: “They Don’t Come Like the Minister”

  100 it was ready for morning prayers. Malcolm X and Haley, Autobiography, pp. 197-98.

  100 Mecca for their prayers. Dannin, Black Pilgrimage to Mecca, p. 170.

  101 “the fine print that never was read.” Malcolm X and Haley, Autobiography, pp. 196-97.

  101 but Wilfred advised patience. Ibid., pp. 198-200.

  101 accompanied by three of his brothers. MX FBI, Memo, Detroit Office, March 16, 1954.

  101 such peerless example recalled Job. Malcolm X and Haley, Autobiography, pp. 201-2.

  102 The point went home. Ibid., pp. 203-4.

  102 Ismail al-Faruqi termed “Islamicity.” Ismail al-Faruqi quoted in Larry Poston, Islamic Da’wah in the West: Muslim Missionaries and the Dynamics of Conversion to Islam (New York: Oxford University Press, 1992), p. 6.

  102 metamorphosis adding to Malcolm’s reputation. FBI—Joseph Gravitt (also known as Captain Joseph and Yusuf Shah) file, St. Louis, Missouri Office, January 17, 1955; Robert L. Jenkins, “(Captain) Joseph X Gravitt (Yusuf Shah),” in Jenkins, ed., Malcolm X Encyclopedia, pp. 243-46. Also see Karl Evanzz, The Judas Factor; Collins, Seventh Child, p. 137.

  103 United Auto Workers Local 900. Ferruccio Gambino, “The Transgression of a Laborer: Malcolm X in the Wilderness of America,” Radical History, vol. 55 (Winter 1993), pp. 7-31.

  103 truck equipment, cranes, and road machinery. MX FBI, Memo, Detroit Office, March 16, 1954; and “Wood Workers,” Time, July, 20, 1936.

  103 “material or grinds surface objects.” Gambino, “The Transgression of a Laborer,” p. 22.

  103 “serve Mr. Muhammad in the lowliest capacity.” Malcolm X and Haley, Autobiography, p. 204.

  103 the beginnings of his life as a minister. Ibid., p. 205.

  103 Michigan’s discharge followed shortly thereafter. “The Commonwealth of Massachusetts Parole Board Certification of Discharge, Malcolm Little #8077,” Prison File of Malcolm Little; and MX FBI, Summary Report, Detroit Office, March 16, 1954, p. 4.

  103 claiming conscientious objector status. Malcolm X and Haley, Autobiography, pp. 206-7.

  104 “asocial personality with paranoid trends.” MX FBI, Memo, New York Office, January 24, 1955.

  104 Detroit Temple No. 1’s assistant minister. Malcolm X and Haley, Autobiography, p. 205.

  104 he was preparing for the ministry. MX FBI, Memo, Philadelphia Office, April 30, 1954.

  104 “spreading his wisdom to his students.” Malcolm X and Haley, Autobiography, pp. 208-9.

  104 delivered to one such gathering in early January 1954. Ibid, p. 216.

  104 dangerous the sect was believed to be. MX FBI, Summary Report, New York Office, September 7, 1954, cover page.

  105 “the cult towards the white race.” Ibid., p. 3.

  105 “to have been able to convert Ella.” Malcolm X and Haley, Autobiography, pp. 217-18.

  106 throughout the last three weeks of March. MX FBI, Memo, Philadelphia Office, April 30, 1954; and MX FBI, Memo, Philadelphia Office, August 23, 1954.

  106 and commercial ventures in Chicago. Sharron Y. Herron, “Raymond Sharrieff,” in Jenkins, ed., Malcolm X Encyclopedia, pp. 503-4. Also see Claude Andrew Clegg III, An Original Man: The Life and Times of Elijah Muhammad (New York: St. Martin’s, 1997).

  106 most of the Nation of Islam’s ruling elite in Chicago. Evanzz, The Messenger, p. 162.

  106 “cutting off a devil’s head.” FBI—Gravitt, Summary Report, Philadelphia Office, November 19, 1954.

  107 Fruit of Islam and as a substitute minister. Ibid.; and MX FBI, Memo, Philadelphia Office, August 23, 1954.

  107 “contained over a million black people.” Malcolm X and Haley, Autobiography, p. 219.

  107 Temple No. 7 as its FOI boss. MX FBI, Memo, Philadelphia Office, April 30, 1954; and MX FBI, Memo, Philadelphia Office, August 23, 1955.

  108 “sometimes not that many.” Malcolm X and Haley, Autobiography, pp. 221-22.

  108 their garbage into the streets. For example, see “50 Called on Rubbish: Harlem Tenants Summoned for Tossing Refuse from Windows,” New York Times, May 1, 1954; and “93 Face Rubbish Charges,” New York Times, May 12, 1954.

  108 for nearly all-white Flushing, Queens. “Tuberculosis Death Rate Here Declines 12 Percent from the Level of a Year Ago,” New York Times, June 10, 1954.

  108 the Bronx, Queens, and Brooklyn. Alphonso Pinkney and Roger Woock, Poverty and Politics in Harlem (New Haven, CT: College and University Press Services, 1970), p. 27.

  108 symbolized that growing clout. Layhmond Robinson, Jr., “Our Changing City: Harlem Now on the Upswing,” New York Times, July 8, 1955.

  108 Tri-State Bank, in Memphis, Tennessee. “Boycott of Banks Slated in Harlem,” New York Times, March 5, 1955.

  109 “themselves and voting as independents.” “G.O.P. Appeal in Harlem,” New York Times, October 18, 1956; and “Powell Sees Shift of Negroes to G.O.P.,ʺ New York Times, November 7, 1956.

  109 address racial discrimination in the city. “10,000 in Harlem Protest Verdict,” New York Times, September 26, 1955.

  109 “white-skinned people in free America.” Turner, Islam in the African-American Experience, p. 135.

  110 1,331 of them had any nonwhite members. Ibid.

  110 drummer Kenny Clarke’s (Liaqat Ali Salaam). Dannin, Black Pilgrimage to Islam, p. 58.

  110 visa for a pilgrimage to Mecca, in 1957. Ibid., pp. 61, 112.

  110 by a black couple, Curtis and Susie Kenner. MX FBI, Memo, New York Office, January 28, 1955.

  110 Cincinnati, Ohio, to support local initiatives. MX FBI, Summary Report, May 23, 1955, p. 25; and MX FBI, Summary Report, New York Office, April 23, 1957, p. 22.

  111 but sharply reminded the faithful that he (Joseph) “was not.” FBI—Gravitt, Summary Report, New York Office, June 9, 1955.

  111 the Shabazz restaurant on Fifth Avenue. FBI—Gravitt, Memo, New York Office, January 7, 1955.

  111 it was announced that he would be remaining in New York. FBI—Gravitt, Summary Report, New York Office, Jun
e 9, 1955.

  112 ever having been a member of the Communist Party. MX FBI, Memo, New York Office, date illegible (around mid-1955). Based on its expanded surveillance of Malcolm X in the first five months of 1955, the New York FBI office advised the office of Director J. Edgar Hoover: “In view of the subject’s long active membership in the MCI and his position as minister of the MCI as well as his speeches and statements against the U.S. government, it is believed that he could possibly commit acts inimical to the national defense and public safety in a time of emergency.”

  112 with FBI agents who might contact them. MX FBI, Summary Report, New York Office, January 31, 1956, pp. 33-34.

  112 “of the white man by the ‘black man.’” MX FBI, Summary Report, New York Office, May 23, 1955, pp. 23-24.

  112 New York City on May 11, 1933. Curtis Austin, “Louis Farrakhan,” in Jenkins, ed., Malcolm X Encyclopedia, pp. 218-19.

  112 “in my mind, and in my spirit.” Louis Farrakhan, “The Murder of Malcolm X and Its Effects on Black America—Twenty-five Years Later,” lecture delivered at Malcolm X College, Chicago, Illinois, February 21, 1990. Text of speech in possession of author.

  113 first as Louis X, and then as Louis Farrakhan. Evanzz, The Messenger, p. 168.

  113 “I was scared of him.” Louis Farrakhan (also known as Louis X Walcott) interview, December 27, 2007; and Farrakhan, “The Murder of Malcolm X and Its Effects on Black America.”

  113 They heard nothing for five months. Louis Farrakhan interview, December 27, 2007.

  113 “talk the way this brother talked,” Farrakhan recalled. Ibid.

  113 “nook and cranny in the United States of America.” Ibid.

  114 “the father I never had.” Farrakhan, “The Murder of Malcolm X and Its Effects on Black America.”

  114 Within a year Louis was elevated to minister. Louis Farrakhan interview, December 27, 2007.

  114 that became wildly popular among temple members. Evanzz, The Messenger, pp. 168-69.

  115 “has always been to be good at both,” he said. James 67X Warden interviews, July 24, 2007, and August 1, 2007.

  115 “the other dog in the streets.” MX FBI, Summary Report, New York Office, January 31, 1956, p. 18.