Malcolm X » 6 review
(Pathfinder)MARION--PLEASE CHANGE THE PRICE TO $8.95 Malcolm X on Afro-American History
In this speech, Malcolm X presents a vindicationist narrative of Afro-American history. Noting the international context of the rising Third World, he argues that black people in America have been deliberately kept ignorant of their history to keep them in a low position. He then crafts a masterful historical narrative, exposing the great heights of black civilizations, the backwardness of white civilizations, and the cruelty by which black people were converted into the condition of slavery. Throughout his speech he goes on insightful tangents concerning other subjects such as the arbitrariness of racial divisions, the nature of language, white liberals, the inefficacy of nonviolence, and the blackness of whitewashed ancient civilizations.
Malcolm’s X speech is not meant to be a dispassionate, neutral history. It is a political work meant to return power to powerless people. But history has never been a neutral subject; history is a battleground. So with his incisive wit and fiery tone, Malcolm X replies to the centuries of whitewashed history aimed at perpetuating class domination with his own history aimed at demolishing it. Malcolm X made this speech when the world [was] in trouble, and it remains so today. We can only hope to learn from his anger and translate it into serious action, as he attempted to do so. By the end of this speech, he asks for donations and collects $135. The small amount he collects contrasts the great weight of his influence, but it also serves as inspiration. Great change always begins with small acts. Nonfiction, Biographies Memoirs Kitap, Malcolm X’in Ortadoğu ve Afrika seyahatleri sonrası yaptığı son konuşmaları içeriyor. Eser, hacim olarak küçük olsa da Malcolm X’in hedefleri ve prensipleri üzerine ışık tutacak nitelikte.
Yıllar önce Malcolm X’in otobiyografisini (başka bir deyişle Alex Haley ile olan söyleşisi) okuduğumda çok etkilenmiştim. Malcolm X’e dair öncelikle o kitabın okunmasını tavsiye ederim.
Malcolm’a dair, kızı İlyasah Shabazz’ın yazdığı Ketebe’den çıkan “X” ile; İthaki’nin yayınladığı Manning Marable’ın biyografi eseri “Malcolm X” de okuma listemde. Nonfiction, Biographies Memoirs Although Malcolm X is far more radical than I am (and that's saying something!) I came away with a lot after reading this book.
The biggest wake up call for me is how we teach our youth about ancient African civilizations and the contributions that they made to science, art, architecture, language, etc. Or, more accurately, how we DON'T teach our youth about this. The only African civilization we learn about in school is Egypt and somehow it is taught as if it isn't a part of Africa (most pointedly in the pictures we see of what the ancient Egyptians must have looked like--light-skinned--which is absolutely ridiculous).
It is an absolute disservice to all youth but mostly to black youth to not learn about the amazing contributions that Africans have made throughout history. Nonfiction, Biographies Memoirs This is my third book on Malcolm X, in which this one is the shortest. Despite that, it truly broke my heart reading on the many torturous and inhuman treatments on the black people, done by the ‘slave-makers’ and all those who supported them, in order to remove any trace that would lead them to their African culture, civilization, and their upbringings. Nothing of their history is kept, so that with time, even the Africans themselves would not believe how civilized and high-cultured they were in the long past. And sadly, black people are still many a times seen as inferior to even an ignorant and illiterate white person. Malcolm X called for black nationalism, and for action, instead of passively hoping that they’d be stronger one day. Only when their voices are heard, and only when they step up, whilst knowing their true identity and history, will the blacks have the rights that they deserve. Nonfiction, Biographies Memoirs I've never heard/read any of Malcolm's speeches, so I did not really know much about him or his politics (besides the obvious!). He sounded very well educated and informed, was extremely charismatic and well spoken, and brought up numerous excellent points. However, as much as he is bashing on racism, he is being racist himself. His whole speech is centered around the white man who has wronged him, the white man who is a liar, the white man who is a criminal, etc... Going as far as to say that if there is an honest white man out there - he hasn't met him yet. Wow - that is the definition of racism that he was trying to do away with! I mean - so much generalization - you'd think no whites helped the blacks escape and endangered their own lives during the slavery period in America. From his attitude, you'd also think that every white person was a slave owner...but let's not forget that the European countries did not have black slaves - all the slaves were white! Nonfiction, Biographies Memoirs
Whilst I wholeheartedly support the sentiment, the history presented here is patchy, vague, and tenuous. Nonfiction, Biographies Memoirs This book has one long speech that Malcolm X gave in Harlem after he split from the Nation of Islam and about a month before he was assassinated. The book also has several smaller parts of X's other speeches.
You can see why Malcolm X had a large following, even larger after his death (and the publication of X's and Haley's Autobiography) in 1965. He was a brilliant, dynamic speaker, and his energy and passion and righteousness leap off the cold page.
He is so world famous now that it's really ironic that at a couple points in the speech he's passing around a hat to get people to contribute, and the end figure is about $130 that he collects. This is about 10 months after his departure from the Nation, so he no longer has the support of an institution. His rhetoric is provocative and on point, but it's clear from the context that this speech is being given to an organization that is struggling to survive.
I feel like Malcolm X opened up a cultural space in which we could all be more honest about slavery and its ripple effects throughout our history and culture. What educated people today take for granted as the true nature of slavery -- see 2013's movie 12 Years a Slave -- wasn't the cultural consensus at the time. There was a whole bunch of Lost Cause sentimentality still around back in the 1950s and 1960s. Malcolm X saw it as part of his job to pierce through that bullshit. And in the American culture of 1965, there was so much bullshit to pierce through that this slender volume makes for a very quick read indeed. Nonfiction, Biographies Memoirs J'ai appris énormément dans ce livre, mais j'aurais absorbé toutes ses paroles sans réfléchir si les propos avaient été un peu plus nuancés. Il n'est pas agréable de devoir douter de certaines parties d'un discours si inspirant Nonfiction, Biographies Memoirs I consider this work to be a most excellent primer and introduction to the transformative and transforming philosophy of Malcolm X prior to the Nation of Islam split. There is an inclination to read this Malcolm as less radical and more peaceful, but I see him as more strategically grounded and solution oriented. This book presents a single lecture given to members of the newly formed OAAU towards the objective of orienting them to the history of the struggle of black people. The excerpts also serve excellently to flesh out parts of his expanding philosophy. The full text of which are to be found by exploring other works in tandem with this one. Nonfiction, Biographies Memoirs Short book of speeches given by one of our greatest master teachers. “I read aimlessly, until I learned to read selectively with a purpose.” Malcolm X.
This book contains speeches that can be found in other places but it hits home. Can be easily given to someone who doesn’t know much about Malcolm or someone who needs that overstanding. Rate 10/10 Nonfiction, Biographies Memoirs