X: “ By any means necessary. ”
- Malcolm X grew up migrating from foster home to foster home, even sometimes with relatives. His mother was hospitalized when Malcom was young, and his father passed away. Growing up around this, Malcom acted out a bit and eventually ended up being sentenced 8 to 10 years in prison. While there, he grew fond of the Nation of Islam, converted and became a spokesperson for them. Malcom X strongly believed that peace won’t make voices heard and this has been a controversial topic.
MLK: “ Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. “
- Martin Luther King Jr grew up around the church, due to his father being a Baptist, and he gained many of his beliefs through this. Martin grew up to be one of the most prominent civil rights leaders, doing peaceful marches and speeches. Unlike Malcolm , Martin believed that violence isn’t the answer, and this has also been controversial to some.
Despite all these differences in their bringing up, beliefs and ways of leading, both people got things done and led a significant path in the civil rights movement. While everyone things their clashing ideas caused the 2 to oppose each other, it was quite the opposite. Martin has said that the two have a “deep connection”, and are proud of what each of them have accomplished. There has been a huge debate on whether peace and nonviolence is actually better than violence. If you were to place yourself in the shoes of a civil rights activist, which would you choose?
Useful links : https://www.britannica.com/biography/Malcolm-X , https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malcolm_X , https://castle.eiu.edu/~wow/classes/fa03/mlkchildhood.html , https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_Luther_King_Jr
