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Malcolm X and his Views of the“White Man” in America Before and After Mecca
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Malcolm X was a very important figure for the black race in America during his time. Fighting against racism, oppression and segregation, he was one of America's leaders for African American democracy and black liberation in the United States. During Malcolm’s pilgrimage to the holy City of Mecca, his views of the white race drastically changed within a few months. With the society of America and the orthodox Muslim religion of Islam as his guide, Malcolm had two completely opposite views of whites before and after his trip to Mecca. This change of thought was a very intricate part of Malcolm's life, because it helped him see the intricacy of the white and black race problem in America. From this gained knowledge, Malcolm also realizes that the solution of the racial problem in America, is the Muslim religion where both races accept the Oneness of God and become “brothers” despite the differences in color and appearance. Before Malcolm’s pilgrimage, he viewed the white man as the “devil” of the world. From childhood, Malcolm had been looking for an answer or excuse that explained the black man’s racial problems in America. With the help of Elijah Muhammad, Malcolm found thought he had fond the answer when he developed the theory of black separation from the white devil. During and Malcolm’s pilgrimage, his thoughts changed as he realized and witnessed the truth about the white man throughout the world. Malcolm saw that, both the white and black race could be brother and sister, through Islam Malcolm's childhood had an immediate affect on his views of himself and whites in America. Malcolm witnessed firsthand the violence of racism projected by the white man. Louis Decardo explains this idea as he writes, " In the particular sense of racism, Malcolm would come to know from his youth the reality of white racial animosity and innocence toward the black struggle." During Malcolm's youth he and his family were harassed and threatened by white racists. Malcolm describes this harassment as he writes, "The white kids didn't make any great thing abut us, either. They called us "nigger" and "darkie" and "Rastus" so much that we thought those were our natural names." This had an immediate impact on his perception of the white race as whole. At the mere age of six, the little family suffered an everlasting loss when Malcolm's father was murdered by white racists. Louis Decardo describes how Malcolm viewed his father’s death as he writes, "Like the rest of the family, Malcolm viewed his father's tragic death through the lens of a racist system." In an interview with Kennith Clark, Malcolm shows his reasoning behind this belief as he states, "The police department and various branches of the law were interwoven with that Klan element, so the Klan had the backing of the police, and usually the police had the backing of the Klan." The culmination of Malcolm's childhood experiences caused Malcolm to start to develop a feeling of animosity towards the white race. Michael Dyson describes this feeling that Malcolm develops in the passage below: This experience of racial violence, which Malcolm termed his "earliest vivid memory," deeply influenced his unsparing denunciation of white racism during his public career as a Black Nationalist leader." Another event that had an impact on Malcolm occurred during his schooling when his dreams of becoming a lawyer were broken by Mr. Ostrowski his 8th grade English teacher. Malcolm's dreams vanish when Mr. Ostrowski states, "But you've got to be realistic about being a nigger. A lawyer -- that's no realistic goal for a nigger. You need to think about something you can be." This conversation forced Malcolm to realize the degree of racism and the lack of "equal opportunity" that occurred in the America's society during that time. That event marked the first major change in Malcolm's association with and perception of himself in the eyes of the white man in America. This devastating insult caused Malcolm to virtuously abandon his schoolwork and question his identity as a member of the black race. This realization caused Malcolm to search for an identity. Realizing the status of blacks he tries to remake himself into a white person by acquiring a zoot suit, wearing a conk hair cut, walking a diddybop, dancing a lindy hop and most importantly dating a white woman. Malcolm shows this by stating, "I was trying as hard as I could to become white." Malcolm finally thinks he has found himself when he adopts the "hood" mentality, which got him familiar with hoodlums, thieves, dope peddlers, and pimps. This eventually lead to Malcolm's seven-year imprisonment at the mere age of 20. In prison, Malcolm was introduced to the religion of Islam, which guided him to a new and more powerful feeling towards the white race throughout the world. The religion of Islam, the teachings of Elijah Muhammad, a man by the name of John Elton Bembry (whom Malcolm called Bimbi) and Malcolm's older brother, Reginald helped lead Malcolm to a new view of history and religion along with this new vision of whites in the world.
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