Rebuilding Rob

If you could meet a famous historical figure, who would you want to meet and why?

There are so many historical figures I would like to meet. Instead of going with one of the usual suspects, i would say that one historical figure I would like to meet is Malcolm X.

Most American history books, if they even mention Malcolm, sum his life and accomplishments up in one or two sentences. Not only are his social achievements eclipsed by those of Martin Luther King, but so is the ideology that he carried for most of his career. Most history books sum up Malcolm as “the angry African-American guy”. The fact is that history views MLK as easier to digest than Malcolm X.

I read The Autobiography of Malcolm X when I was in college. I’m not exaggerating when i say that it was one of the most life-altering books I’ve ever read. First and foremost, it changed my perception of the man. I think we all know that no history book can ever tell the complete story of every famous person; but I feel like Malcolm was one of those people who was really misunderstood and misrepresented by the history books.

The one thing that most people commonly associate with Malcolm is the “the white man the devil” philosophy that was engrained in him by the Nation of Islam. While that philosophy hung over much of what he did in his public life, most people don’t talk about his philosophical shift after he made his pilgrimage to the holy city of Mecca.

While in Mecca, Malcolm met with, talked with, worshipped with, and ate with white Muslims. It occurred to him that white people were not problem in America. Rather, it is that race has been used to divide the people of this country. Islam, he concluded was the spiritual path that could lead Americans to racial harmony.

The Autobiography… really made me rethink a lot of things in my own life. It made me start to think about what I do – and do not – prioritize. Finally, the biography got me thinking about the rest of my own life, what I wanna do before I shed this mortal coil.

Before his death, Malcolm was planning to start his own organization – still working for the betterment of African-Americans – but also willing to work with work with non- Blacks. It was that break with the Nation of Islam that led to his untimely assassination.

I would love to hear what Malcolm X thinks of life in America, 50 years after his death. I wonder what he would think of social media, and its potential to connect, or divide people. I’d love to hear his take on the ongoing wars and Ukraine, and in Gaza I’d be curious to hear his thoughts about popular culture, current celebrities, and especially politicians.

If you could meet a famous historical figure, who would you want to meet and why?

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The article “What Would Malcolm Think?” first appeared on Rebuilding Rob.