“Malcolm! X! Malcolm! X!” As I walked up to 1-2-5 one last time before I left Harlem for the summer, I was quickly drawn to the chants and critical mass of marchers. After a year in Harlem studying international affairs and human rights “up the hill”, the opportunity to honor the legacy of an American civil rights legend seemed a fitting way to spend my last day.
The lasting impact Malcolm X has had on American society cannot be understated. Many a teenager reads The Autobiography of Malcolm X at one time or another, following the incredible transformation and development of a man fighting for dignity in a vicious society. Malcolm’s ever-evolving philosophy and the story of his struggle for civil rights, social justice, and human dignity is not only a story of the United States of America; it is one that characterizes the complex nature of the turbulent times that often surround revolutionary movements.
Malcolm’s own evolution from hustler to community organizer to political leader, and his eventual split from the Nation of Islam and later political vision, no doubt form many parts of a captivating narrative. Malcolm’s scathing critiques of the violence, racism, and hypocrisy, that pervaded his time have never failed to be thought-provoking, even decades after his assassination.
Malcolm’s own evolution from hustler to community organizer to political leader, and his eventual split from the Nation of Islam and later political vision, no doubt form many parts of a captivating narrative. Malcolm’s scathing critiques of the violence, racism, and hypocrisy, that pervaded his time have never failed to be thought-provoking, even decades after his assassination.
In the words of late Columbia Professor Manning Marable:
“Malcolm X was the most remarkable historical figure produced by Black America in the 20th century. That’s a heavy statement, but I think that in his 39 short years of life, Malcolm came to symbolize black urban America, its culture, its politics, its militancy, its outrage against structural racism, and at the end of his life, a broad internationalist vision of emancipatory power far better than any other single individual...”
Transitions often mark appropriate opportunities for reflection. As I followed the red-black-and-green flags through Harlem, and looked back at the past year, Marable’s assessment of Malcolm X seems more than relevant. Malcolm’s intentional efforts to connect the struggles of black Americans to the struggles of liberation movements in Africa and Asia embodied solidarity in the most practical sense. His commitment to emancipation and ability to understand the importance of connecting movements at home and abroad could not be more salient at the moment.
Today, Malcolm’s message continues to resonate with a diverse array of people: from high school kids in Harlem, to Black Panthers, to African storeowners, street vendors, random passer-bys (and at least one bougie grad student with his fist held high). To witness this plurality in celebration is both encouraging and endearing.
However, we also see Malcolm’s beliefs in basic human dignity, human rights, and freedom, across oceans. We see a similar fire in Mohamed Bouazizi’s self-immolation and the revolt that literally shook the stones in Tahrir Square. The revolutions in Tunisia and Egypt, and the continued uprisings, embody the potential of true people’s power.
However, we also see Malcolm’s beliefs in basic human dignity, human rights, and freedom, across oceans. We see a similar fire in Mohamed Bouazizi’s self-immolation and the revolt that literally shook the stones in Tahrir Square. The revolutions in Tunisia and Egypt, and the continued uprisings, embody the potential of true people’s power.
In the words of (another) Columbia Professor Rashid Khalidi:
“Egypt is now thought of as an exciting and progressive place; its people’s expressions of solidarity are welcomed by demonstrators in Madison, Wisconsin; and its bright young activists are seen as models for a new kind of twenty-first-century mobilization. ... The Arab states have a long way to go to undo the terrible legacy of repression and stagnation and move toward democracy, the rule of law, social justice and dignity, which have been the universal demands of their peoples during this Arab spring. The term ‘dignity’ involves a dual demand: first, for the dignity of the individual in the face of rulers who treat their subjects as without rights and beneath contempt. But there is also a demand for the collective dignity of proud states like Egypt, and of the Arabs as a people.”
The Arab Spring in its most inspiring forms is a manifestation of the potential of collective action aimed at re-shaping societies in line with values of social justice, freedom, and dignity; as well as an unequivocal rejection of violently repressive, morally corrupt, and illegitimate regimes that, as Khalidi explains, hold their own citizens with contempt. The battles against oppression that are igniting hearts and minds across the world, are the same that Malcolm and many others before and after him have fought in this country. Malcolm’s message of solidarity to connect what is happening overseas to our struggles at home cannot be lost on us now.
Marching through Harlem, invoking the legacy of Malcolm X, reminded me of the days of our youth. It reminded me of the rallies we organized, teach-ins we set up, concerts we held, and indeed the marches in which we took part. But today with a large portion of the world on fire, and the first year of a graduate degree under my belt, it is those months leading up to the United States invasion of Iraq and the palpable despair following “shock-and-awe” that still burns vividly in my memory.
It was then that we recited many of the same chants echoed today about people’s power before our country illegally, immorally invaded Iraq and forever changed the way many youth in this country viewed their own government, and certainly how millions all over the world viewed the United States. Those days that were characterized by blatant lies, largely regurgitated by a spineless media machine, made many of us feel like the Bush administration viewed us with contempt. And we should remember, Malcolm X and Dr. King, and all those that opposed aggressive military interventionism, connected the struggle for racial equality at home with the movement against war in Vietnam.
As the chants of, “Power to the people!” “Black Power!” and “Shut it down!” echoed past the Apollo, I noticed that the whole street indeed had been shut down. In fact, from 1-4 pm every single store on 125 was asked to close to honor Malcolm’s legacy. (Yes, even the H&M and Starbucks complied). “How are we going to do it? The hard way!”
Maybe this is what we can take away on this 86th birthday celebration. Our struggles for human rights such as universal health care, quality education, and affordable housing can be connected with other struggles at home and abroad. Just like Malcolm, just like Egypt, we are willing to do it the hard way.
Maybe this is what we can take away on this 86th birthday celebration. Our struggles for human rights such as universal health care, quality education, and affordable housing can be connected with other struggles at home and abroad. Just like Malcolm, just like Egypt, we are willing to do it the hard way.
On a sunny day in May, these are the whirlwind of thoughts I leave New York with to make my way to another world. Once again, I will be migrating briefly to the world’s largest democracy; a place where the values of social justice, freedom, and human dignity are in need of being invoked in the face of crushing poverty, gross inequality, and rampant corruption. Departing Harlem on Malcolm X’s birthday seems like favorable auspices to be leaving under. It is a reminder of the work that is still needed to be done, the plurality of perspectives to draw from, and the beauty of community-centered living. From New York to New Delhi, I personally wish to find within the strength, foresight, and heart necessary to continue to connect the dots.
Just read this. It is awesome. Did you read Marable´s biography of Malcolm X?
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