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4.47 AVERAGE
4.47 AVERAGE
A moving and intimate look at the life of Malcolm X. His views during his last few years were especially prescient and American history is all the poorer for the simplified narrative that was the opposite of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
I always find reading autobiographies so interesting. This was a great one! There are definitely places where his biases show (he does not look favorably on queer people or women other than his wife) but it is a fascinating look into the mind and life of an important and great man. It is well written and frank which I appreciate. Nothing is sugar coated or watered down. I definitely recommend this as a must read.
challenging
hopeful
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
Malcolm X was a prophet. We are VERY lucky to have this text. Required reading for every person on earth.
challenging
informative
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
A truly beautiful book. Reflecting on it, I think white evangelical Christians took the exactly wrong message from the two great prophetic voices against injustice in the 60s (X and King) - to the American evangelical, King showed love and should be imitated by black people in their struggle for justice and that X was an understandably disgruntled man who embraced the false religion of Islam. No doubt this posture was adopted because it's entirely self-serving. I believe that a better moral lessen would be this:
1. The gospel is not just words or the sinners prayer. It is seeking to imitate Christ, which is unattainable without an understanding of Christ's unconditional love for us while we were still sinners. Hence, X's Islam was closer to true Christianity than the bastardized & heretical form of imperialistic Christianity that was modeled to him. To share the gospel with individuals in a post-Christian nation (and world) does not just mean to demand others parrot the words of the sinners prayer under the threat of eternal damnation, but to radically accept others unconditionally as they are and to seek liberation for the oppressed while naming Christ as the author and perfector of faith. It does not demand the immediate renunciation of people's existing religion because God does not coerce, it simply requires the Christian to walk in the way of love and let the truth of God speak through you in humility.
2. X understood that non-violence was a bad faith doctrine of white American Christianity, it's only touted as a binding directive to victims of injustice and never to perpetrators because of an unwaivering allegiance of the false God of the prevailing social order. The violence of the state is legitimized because the state is the avatar of God in this bizarro-world version of Christianity.
3. The moral imperatives of Christianity are inherently relative. They are always only binding to YOU and never to the other. You cannot demand others ascribe to the moral standards that you are impelled to by God directly, the white American church (and conservative Christian churches) inverts this paradigm and only imposes these directives on others. The commandments of Christ are always rules for me and not for thee, to switch this is to produce rotten fruit.
4. You can't begin to love another in earnest unless you have self-respect. X could have never authentically embraced Orthodox Islam until he embraced the NOI first and I thank God that he did, despite the pain and suffering that it caused him. The self-hatred that is ingrained into black people in our culture is something that needs to be overcome by any means necessary.
Minus one star because while Malcolm X was able to see the injustice of racism so clearly and speak with such eloquence and force against it, he never seemed to recognize how regressive his view of women was. All of the above observations go for gender relations as well as race relations. Also he did voice some disturbing antisemitism
1. The gospel is not just words or the sinners prayer. It is seeking to imitate Christ, which is unattainable without an understanding of Christ's unconditional love for us while we were still sinners. Hence, X's Islam was closer to true Christianity than the bastardized & heretical form of imperialistic Christianity that was modeled to him. To share the gospel with individuals in a post-Christian nation (and world) does not just mean to demand others parrot the words of the sinners prayer under the threat of eternal damnation, but to radically accept others unconditionally as they are and to seek liberation for the oppressed while naming Christ as the author and perfector of faith. It does not demand the immediate renunciation of people's existing religion because God does not coerce, it simply requires the Christian to walk in the way of love and let the truth of God speak through you in humility.
2. X understood that non-violence was a bad faith doctrine of white American Christianity, it's only touted as a binding directive to victims of injustice and never to perpetrators because of an unwaivering allegiance of the false God of the prevailing social order. The violence of the state is legitimized because the state is the avatar of God in this bizarro-world version of Christianity.
3. The moral imperatives of Christianity are inherently relative. They are always only binding to YOU and never to the other. You cannot demand others ascribe to the moral standards that you are impelled to by God directly, the white American church (and conservative Christian churches) inverts this paradigm and only imposes these directives on others. The commandments of Christ are always rules for me and not for thee, to switch this is to produce rotten fruit.
4. You can't begin to love another in earnest unless you have self-respect. X could have never authentically embraced Orthodox Islam until he embraced the NOI first and I thank God that he did, despite the pain and suffering that it caused him. The self-hatred that is ingrained into black people in our culture is something that needs to be overcome by any means necessary.
Minus one star because while Malcolm X was able to see the injustice of racism so clearly and speak with such eloquence and force against it, he never seemed to recognize how regressive his view of women was. All of the above observations go for gender relations as well as race relations. Also he did voice some disturbing antisemitism
Still incredible how much one person can change, given an open mind and accumulation of knowledge.
An amazing, inspiring man. This book is an absolute must read for all.
Growing up, I was told little of Malcolm X except that he was radical, and controversial, and important. My parents told me he was an extremist, a racist who thought all white people should be killed. I always knew that was nonsense, but knew little of who he really was, or what he really did.
From the very beginning this book grips you and does not let you go. It is easy to forget that his fascinating story as a struggling youth is reality, not just for him, but for many black people in America, to this very day. I say it is easy to forget because it's like a movie, it totally sweeps you away into the "fantasy" of the scene. But it happened. It is real. And it should not be taken for granted.
Pay close attention to his remarks regarding Martin Luther King Jr, and the March on Washington. He talked of MLK Jr and the March in ways radically different from what I was taught in schools. Of course, I still believe MLK Jr was a great man, but it is easy to see why he is lauded while Malcolm X is vilified. What he has to say about the March is very interesting, and rings true for many major political "progressive" movements today.
In fact, most of his words still ring true to this day. That is why it is so important to read. His final words are almost eerie, a starkly clear picture of contemporary reality, fifty years after the book's completion and his own death. Racism in America is still exploding.
And finally, I am inspired by his words on organizing, and on allyship. He asks anti-racist white people to organize amongst themselves and to confront other white people, while black people work together to build up their own down trodden community. Many people wish to help, but in reality just wish to cater to their egos and saviour complexes. This would challenge that. One of the most important qualities in an ally is to be humble.
Read this book!
Growing up, I was told little of Malcolm X except that he was radical, and controversial, and important. My parents told me he was an extremist, a racist who thought all white people should be killed. I always knew that was nonsense, but knew little of who he really was, or what he really did.
From the very beginning this book grips you and does not let you go. It is easy to forget that his fascinating story as a struggling youth is reality, not just for him, but for many black people in America, to this very day. I say it is easy to forget because it's like a movie, it totally sweeps you away into the "fantasy" of the scene. But it happened. It is real. And it should not be taken for granted.
Pay close attention to his remarks regarding Martin Luther King Jr, and the March on Washington. He talked of MLK Jr and the March in ways radically different from what I was taught in schools. Of course, I still believe MLK Jr was a great man, but it is easy to see why he is lauded while Malcolm X is vilified. What he has to say about the March is very interesting, and rings true for many major political "progressive" movements today.
In fact, most of his words still ring true to this day. That is why it is so important to read. His final words are almost eerie, a starkly clear picture of contemporary reality, fifty years after the book's completion and his own death. Racism in America is still exploding.
And finally, I am inspired by his words on organizing, and on allyship. He asks anti-racist white people to organize amongst themselves and to confront other white people, while black people work together to build up their own down trodden community. Many people wish to help, but in reality just wish to cater to their egos and saviour complexes. This would challenge that. One of the most important qualities in an ally is to be humble.
Read this book!
Laurence Fishburn reading this audiobook was fantastic. Reading this and the MLK bio together was incredibly interesting. The books were both depressing and inspiring.
So much of what Malcolm X said felt so relevant today in 2023. I appreciated his willingness to learn, and he did. He learned and changed. I wish it had a little less religion in it but I’m intolerant to religion.
This book, and MLK just made me feel incredibly sad. We haven’t learned a damn thing since they were here trying to tell us the truth. It is still amazing to me how little we are willing to listen to the people we are hurting with our rules, laws and biases. I am grateful these books are here for me today. I wish more people would listen.
I know Malcolm X is not seen in the same light as MLK but Malcolm definitely spoke many truths I think MLK should have listened to. If they could have figured out how to work together they may have done incredible things together. I fear Malcolm’s message got lost in Islam. Again, this might be my personal bias against religion. I think both of them needed a lot less religion. Their messages were lost in it. I’m also aware no one will listen to an atheist.
So much of what Malcolm X said felt so relevant today in 2023. I appreciated his willingness to learn, and he did. He learned and changed. I wish it had a little less religion in it but I’m intolerant to religion.
This book, and MLK just made me feel incredibly sad. We haven’t learned a damn thing since they were here trying to tell us the truth. It is still amazing to me how little we are willing to listen to the people we are hurting with our rules, laws and biases. I am grateful these books are here for me today. I wish more people would listen.
I know Malcolm X is not seen in the same light as MLK but Malcolm definitely spoke many truths I think MLK should have listened to. If they could have figured out how to work together they may have done incredible things together. I fear Malcolm’s message got lost in Islam. Again, this might be my personal bias against religion. I think both of them needed a lot less religion. Their messages were lost in it. I’m also aware no one will listen to an atheist.
adventurous
challenging
emotional
inspiring
reflective
tense
medium-paced