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4.47 AVERAGE
4.47 AVERAGE
Missing epilogue and introduction. Would definitely recommend the paperback if you’re wondering why it abruptly cuts off and feels unfinished.
challenging
This book was very hard to read. Not because it was difficult to understand or poorly written, it was neither of those things. It was difficult to read solely through how I move through the world as a white woman. It wasn’t even difficult because I disagreed with what was said; it was difficult for the fact that I do agree. This book provides a very important perspective on a man who most white people (white people raised like me anyway) would’ve likened to a terrorist.
The Summer after I graduated college I worked at a factory with a bunch of women and we made suction devices for open-chest surgeries. In a hairnet I sorted parts and listened to this book on tape on my walkman. I kept wanting to step up and shout with joy and defiance. I pictured myself a Norma Rae to these women who made fun of me for listening to books. Eventually I got fired for wearing dirty jeans. Great book though.
So glad I listened to this. Laurence Fishburne’s reading made it even better.
dark
informative
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
reflective
slow-paced
Malcolm X was a man unafraid to tell the truth, even if the world wasn't ready to listen—this made his unabashed, clear, and searing observations of life for Black people (and the crimes of white people) in America more prophecy than reality, since his world wasn't ready for them and we are still dealing with them today. Before reading this book, I didn't know about his tragic young family life or young adulthood as a doped-up hustler in Boston and Harlem—utterly fascinating—or his time in prison and conversion to total straight-edge Nation of Islam, or his pivot away from NOI in the end. But most importantly what I didn't know was how much he changed over the course of his life, and how true and kind his heart was. It's obvious after hearing the words of people who knew him well and saw him interact with people on the street what a good human he was. With this heart and this ability to seek out new knowledge and adapt to it, he was able to keep up the pressure telling truths that people needed to hear, but (in the last three years of his life) his generalized critiques of systematic racism in America left room for white people to redeem themselves. If only we'd do it.
I did not like Mr. X's portrayals of women in this book, but I know he didn't rewrite the NOI sections very much after their break, and I've heard he maybe had a change of heart towards the end, so I'm going to do more research into that!
Make sure to also read Alex Haley's (long) epilogue. It contains the growing of a friendship over time and easter eggs/behind-the-scenes from some moments in the autobiography that genuinely made me laugh.
"The American Negro never can be blamed for his racial animosities—he is only reacting to four hundred years of the conscious racism of the American whites. But as racism leads America up the suicide path, I do believe, from the experiences that I have had with them, that the whites of the younger generation, in the colleges and universities, will see the handwriting on the wall and many of them will turn to the spiritual path of truth—the only way left to America to ward off the disaster that racism inevitably must lead to.” p. 348
I did not like Mr. X's portrayals of women in this book, but I know he didn't rewrite the NOI sections very much after their break, and I've heard he maybe had a change of heart towards the end, so I'm going to do more research into that!
Make sure to also read Alex Haley's (long) epilogue. It contains the growing of a friendship over time and easter eggs/behind-the-scenes from some moments in the autobiography that genuinely made me laugh.
"The American Negro never can be blamed for his racial animosities—he is only reacting to four hundred years of the conscious racism of the American whites. But as racism leads America up the suicide path, I do believe, from the experiences that I have had with them, that the whites of the younger generation, in the colleges and universities, will see the handwriting on the wall and many of them will turn to the spiritual path of truth—the only way left to America to ward off the disaster that racism inevitably must lead to.” p. 348
This book blew me away. Malcolm X is not who I thought he was. I’m embarrassed to say I had the perception that he was a racist, and THE original angry black man. What I learned instead is that he evolved from poor uneducated black boy -> east coast hustler and junkie -> devout minister and follower of E. Muhammad -> activist / advocate for blacks / lover of all humans / supporter of human rights. So glad I read this, even though I found the first part to be a little slow. I had no idea of his role in spreading Islam among black Americans. Sorry I don’t read it sooner.
It was fascinating to hear this story of Malcolm X's life in his own words. In particular, his early life kept me flipping the pages as he detailed his time as a hustler in New York City. I knew that he'd made some kind of substantial shift in his thinking before he was killed, but I didn't know all of the events that led up to that, and it was especially interesting that the book was largely written already when all those events unfolded (context that Alex Haley's epilogue provides). Certainly I didn't agree with all of his beliefs — in particular, he accuses the non-violent civil rights movement of doing nothing when they were bringing about more concrete change than he himself was — but I could understand his anger and appreciated that he wasn't afraid to call out white America even knowing it would likely cost him his life. Both before and after his change of opinion about white people he acknowledged that he was speaking not of any individual white person but of the collective impact of white people in America, which can't be denied, though it sounded like much of the history we now take for granted about slavery and its aftermath wasn't fully known and accepted then (at least among the poorer black people with whom he first starting speaking).
Two related thoughts:
-I'm fascinated to know how Elijah Muhammed came to create a version of Islam that was so different from the Islam practiced everywhere else. Was it a case of misunderstanding or deliberate reinvention? The fact that he styled himself Allah's only prophet argues that it was deliberate, but I'm sure there are books and other media that explore this question specifically.
-Malcolm X was a strong believer in respectability politics, which was kind of surprising given everything else he believed. He believed that the condition of black people (with a specific focus on black men) was the collective fault of white people, and yet the solution was for individual black people to recognize that drugs, etc., were just buying into what the white man wanted and cast them off, I guess through sheer willpower. The Nation of Islam required everyone to follow strict behavioral codes and cast out anyone who didn't follow them, but I don't remember him talking about rehabilitation programs and the like — the approach seemed to be making speeches about the Nation of Islam, asking people if they were ready to follow Elijah Muhammed, and then expecting them to follow the radical lifestyle expectations, kicking them out if they failed. Clearly near the end of his life, Malcolm X changed his mind about certain aspects of this, but I didn't get the sense that his overall beliefs had changed regarding the necessity of individual black people singlehandedly transforming their own lives.
It's clear that the image I had been given previously of Malcolm X — as the "violent" civil rights leader — was simplistic at best. I'm glad to have had this fuller picture of his life and his opinions and grateful to Alex Haley for making this book happen (despite many initial setbacks) before Malcolm X's untimely death at 39.
Two related thoughts:
-I'm fascinated to know how Elijah Muhammed came to create a version of Islam that was so different from the Islam practiced everywhere else. Was it a case of misunderstanding or deliberate reinvention? The fact that he styled himself Allah's only prophet argues that it was deliberate, but I'm sure there are books and other media that explore this question specifically.
-Malcolm X was a strong believer in respectability politics, which was kind of surprising given everything else he believed. He believed that the condition of black people (with a specific focus on black men) was the collective fault of white people, and yet the solution was for individual black people to recognize that drugs, etc., were just buying into what the white man wanted and cast them off, I guess through sheer willpower. The Nation of Islam required everyone to follow strict behavioral codes and cast out anyone who didn't follow them, but I don't remember him talking about rehabilitation programs and the like — the approach seemed to be making speeches about the Nation of Islam, asking people if they were ready to follow Elijah Muhammed, and then expecting them to follow the radical lifestyle expectations, kicking them out if they failed. Clearly near the end of his life, Malcolm X changed his mind about certain aspects of this, but I didn't get the sense that his overall beliefs had changed regarding the necessity of individual black people singlehandedly transforming their own lives.
It's clear that the image I had been given previously of Malcolm X — as the "violent" civil rights leader — was simplistic at best. I'm glad to have had this fuller picture of his life and his opinions and grateful to Alex Haley for making this book happen (despite many initial setbacks) before Malcolm X's untimely death at 39.