Students Attempt at Writing Malcolm X Thesis

Therefore, Malcolm X was not, contrary to what his critics said, violent or irrational. Rather, he is worthy of our admiration because he was uncompromising in his struggle to champion human rights, he was able to see the corruption of The Nation of Islam, he had the courage to denounce Elijah Muhammad, and he had the honesty to renounce his previous racist views based on skin color.

 

While Malcolm's critics point out Malcolm's extreme rhetoric, we cannot blame for Malcolm's extreme state of mind when we consider his extreme circumstances and the urgency of his message. In fact, what appears to be "extreme" in the life of Malcolm X was in fact an appropriate response to the racist country he found himself in. His transformation in prison, his civil rights mission to hold white America accountable for their sins, his exposing the corrupt Elijah Muhammad, and his passion for purging black Americans of their self-hatred do not define Malcolm X as "extreme" as much as they define him as virtuous evidenced by _________________, _____________, ___________________, and ________________________. 

 

Although Malcolm X encouraged violence to champion African American rights which made him a diminished figure in the eyes of many, we must look at the totality of his mission. In fact, Malcolm X was a self-taught historian who encouraged literacy, he was a warrior against the evils of white supremacy, he was a champion for black pride, and he was a man willing to die for his courageous commitment to his convictions.

Although Malcolm X made some worthy contributions in the civil rights struggle, he was a failure as a leader because he spent too much time being devoted to the criminal Elijah Muhammad, he failed to make alliances with mainstream black leaders like Martin Luther King, and he was guilty of making racist, anti-Semitic, and misogynistic commentary.  

Burrow  concedes (or admits) that Malcolm was at one time a racist, but that over time, especially after he returned from Mecca, an epiphany made Malcolm renounce his racist views.