60 years ago to this day, Malcolm X was assassinated – silenced at the height of his revolutionary power. Decades later, his warnings about racism, imperialism, and exploitation remain as urgent as ever.
On this day in 1965, around 3 in the afternoon, standing at the podium of the Audubon Ballroom in New York City, el-Hajj Malik el-Shabazz, formerly known as Malcolm X, was mortally shot by former brothers of the Nation of Islam, extinguishing one of the most fervent revolutionary heats the north of this continent has ever seen. Conspiracy claims of the intent of the shooters and the intellectual perpetrators of the crime arise to this day; Malcolm X died where he was most dangerous for the powers that be.
Time will pass for the public, especially in the US, to understand the importance, depth, and relevance of his words. Besides his letters, Malcolm rarely wrote essays or publications. As an unwritten bond with his religion, all his works resonate in audio records or transcription by fellow allies and scholars around the world.
His death sentence came just a few months before he arrived from a tour through Africa, the Middle East, and Europe in July of 1964. As told in his own words, he was being followed by the US State apparatus throughout his journey, especially in Cairo, where he attended the African Summit of the Organization of African Unity. There, he was accepted as an observer and submitted a memorandum that urged the African nations to support the plight of African Americans before the United Nations, days after the enactment of the Civil Rights Act in the US.
Portrayed as racist, extremist, and a violent agitator, Malcolm X was one of the most insightful and intuitive thinkers of his time. He continually urged Black people to recognize and comprehend the foundation of racism, racial exploitation and segregation in the United States: slavery, a brutal 310 years of forced labor, torture, and control. One of his most deep-seated insights was the emphasis on acknowledging that America’s wealth was built on the labor and suffering of those who had been enslaved; while inviting Black people to understand the significance of their connection to Africa:
“As long as we think – as one of my good brothers mentioned out of the side of his mouth here a couple of Sundays ago – that we should get Mississippi straightened out before we worry about the Congo, you’ll never get Mississippi straightened out. Not until you start realizing your connection with the Congo.”
Malcolm X declared that the Civil Rights Movement had overlooked the importance of exploitation as the common thread binding all marginalized people in the country. He argued that focusing solely on segregation was a mistake since it diverted attention from the need to identify the true common enemy: the colonizer and oppressor. Malcolm X’s call for unity was determined and focused on the prioritization of racial solidarity above all other differences. Repeatedly denouncing the narrative of the Civil Rights Movement, he claimed that it lacked the spirit necessary to achieve real freedom and the determination to push for substantial changes. He alternatively advocated for a focus on human rights: “the right to hold [our] heads up, and to live in dignity like other human beings”.
“We are victims of democracy, nothing but disguised hypocrisy”. He fiercely opposed the wars fought on behalf of the U.S. government in which countless Black, Asian, and Latino lives were lost, while their country failed to provide them with basic dignities: proper housing, economic opportunities, or a quality and safe education. Malcolm X’s position against the wars waged by the imperialist powers of this world, but endured by people in colonized and occupied territories, remains still a distressing issue today. The ones who could be compelled to serve, fight, and die for their country abroad, are the same ones who continue to perish from preventable or treatable illnesses simply because dignified healthcare is not affordable. Meanwhile, the U.S. government has spent over $22 billion in military aid to Israel since October 2023 to sustain its war against the Palestinian people, highlighting the stark contrast between prioritizing basic human needs in their own land and the pursuit of power, control, and the exploitation of people and natural resources for the benefit of a few.
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