February 21, 2018

On Feb. 21, 1965, 53 years ago today, influential African American leader Malcolm X was assassinated in New York City. Malcolm X, an important defender of black rights, was once a prominent voice of the Nation of Islam (also called Black Muslims). The Nation of Islam is a religious group in the United States that preaches black nationalism. Malcolm X left the group, however, and was killed by Black Muslims who felt he had betrayed the group and its leader at the time, Elijah Muhammad.

Malcolm X, an influential African American leader, died 53 years ago today on Feb. 21, 1965. Credit: © Frank Castoral, Photo Researchers

Malcolm X was born Malcolm Little on May 19, 1925, in Omaha, Nebraska. His father was a follower of Marcus Garvey, a black leader who worked to establish close political and economic ties to Africa. In 1931, Malcolm’s father was found dead after being run over by a streetcar. Malcolm believed white racists were responsible for his father’s death. When Malcolm was 12 years old, his mother was committed to a mental hospital. Malcolm spent the rest of his childhood in foster homes, and he was discouraged by the prevalence of racial prejudice around him.

In 1946, Malcolm was arrested for burglary and joined the Nation of Islam while in prison. The Nation of Islam taught that white people were “devils.” After Malcolm was released from prison in 1952, he adopted X as his last name. The letter stood for the unknown African name of Malcolm’s slave ancestors.

Malcolm X quickly became the Nation of Islam’s most effective minister. He was a fiery orator, urging blacks to live separately from whites and to gain equality “by any means necessary.” But he became dissatisfied with the Nation of Islam, in part because the group avoided political activity.

Credit: © African American History Month

In 1964, Malcolm X broke with the Nation of Islam. Soon afterward, he traveled to the Muslim holy city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia. He met Muslims of many ethnic backgrounds and rejected the view that all white people are devils. Malcolm X adopted the Muslim name El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz. After returning to the United States, he formed his own group, the Organization of Afro-American Unity.

Malcolm X rejected nonviolence as a principle, but he sought cooperation with Martin Luther King, Jr., and other civil rights activists who favored militant (aggressive) nonviolent protests. But by this time, some Black Muslims had condemned Malcolm X as a hypocrite and traitor because of his criticisms of Elijah Muhammad. On Feb. 21, 1965, Malcolm X was fatally shot while giving a speech at the Audubon Ballroom in Manhattan. Three members of the Nation of Islam were convicted of the crime. Malcolm’s views reached many people after his death through his Autobiography of Malcolm X (1965).

The Audubon Ballroom closed after Malcom X’s death. It was renovated and reopened as the Malcolm X and Dr. Betty Shabazz Memorial and Education Center in 2005.

June 6, 2016

Muhammad Ali, right, slugs Joe Frazier during their 1975 title bout in Manila, the Philippines. Ali was often referred to as “the Champ,” or, simply, “the Greatest.”
CREDIT: AP Photo

Late on Friday, June 3, former U.S. heavyweight boxing champion Muhammad Ali died at an Arizona hospital. Ali was perhaps the most colorful and controversial boxing champion in the history of the sport. Prior to becoming a three-time professional world champ, Ali won gold at the 1960 Summer Olympic Games. He was also a giant cultural figure, standing up for political, religious, and social causes regardless of their popularity. In the 1960′s, Ali refused to be drafted into the army during the Vietnam War. He rejected racial integration at the height of the civil rights movement. He joined the Nation of Islam (later converting to traditional Islam), and changed his name from Cassius Clay (what Ali called his “slave” name) to Muhammad Ali. Conservatives considered Ali a serious threat to the establishment at the time, while liberals often saw courage and nobility in his acts of defiance. Ali became an icon of the 20^th century itself, and was well known throughout the world. After a long fight with Parkinson disease, a chronic nervous ailment that inhibits movement and speech, Ali died at the age of 74.

Ali was born Cassius Marcellus Clay on Jan. 17, 1942, in Louisville, Kentucky. He became a professional boxer after winning the 1960 Olympic light heavyweight title. Ali’s famous ring opponents included Sonny Liston, Joe Frazier, George Foreman, and Larry Holmes. Ali last fought professionally in 1980, and he was diagnosed with Parkinson disease in 1984. In 1999, Ali was named Sportsman of the Century by Sports Illustrated magazine and Sports Personality of the Century by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). Ali’s daughter Laila became a professional boxer in 1999, fighting other women. In 2005, Ali received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, one of the country’s highest civilian honors. Also that year, the Muhammad Ali Center opened in Louisville. This museum and cultural center is dedicated to Ali’s life in and out of boxing.