Biography
Malcolm X was born on 19th May 1925 as Malcolm Little in Omaha, Nebraska. His mother was Louise Norton Little and his father Earl Little. Earl was an outspoken Baptist minister, a civil rights activist and a staunch follower of Marcus Garvey. As a civil rights Activist, Earl’s activities led to death intimidation from the Black Legion, a white supremacist organization. Before Malcolm's fourth birthday the family relocated twice to try to fend off the death threats. Despite relocating, suspected members of the Legion burnt the Little’s Michigan home in 1929. Earl was murdered two years later. Louise underwent emotional breakdown several years after Earl’s death. Malcolm and his siblings were placed in different foster homes (Marable, 2012).
Malcolm graduated from junior high at the top of his class. However, his favorite teacher told him that his ambition of becoming an attorney was unrealistic since he was ‘a nigger’. Malcolm dropped out of school. He engaged in odd jobs in Boston, Massachusetts where he stayed for a while before travelling to Harlem, New York where he was involved in petty crimes. By 1942, Malcolm was managing numerous prostitution, gambling, and narcotic rings.
Malcolm was arrested in 1946, in Boston alongside his friend Malcolm "Shorty" Jarvis. They were convicted on burglary charges and sentenced to 10 years in prison. While serving his prison sentence, Malcolm underwent a significant transformation. First he was significantly influenced by the prisoner called Bimbi. Bimbi was a self-educated person who was categorical about the importance of education. With Bimbi as his teacher, Malcolm X was able to read and write and even enrolled in the Latin and English courses.
During his time in prison, in particular 1948, Malcolm’s Brother Reginald visited him and enlightened him about Islam. From then on, Malcolm X stopped eating pork meat in line with the beliefs of the Nation of Islam Organization. Reginald belonged to the Nation of Islam (NOI) organization led by Elijah Muhammad. Malcolm studied the teachings of Elijah Muhammad and the activities of the NOI. Malcolm was released on parole in 1952. He changed his name from Malcolm Little to Malcolm X.
Since Malcolm was articulate and intelligent, Muhammad appointed him the national spokesperson for NOI and a minister at Temple Seven that was based in Harlem. During his time as a member of NOI he was also an organizer at various other temples within the United States. He and Elijah Muhammad became close friends, and Malcolm became the trusted adviser to Muhammad. During the early 1958, Malcolm X got married to a female member of his congregation by the name of Betty. Malcolm and his wife were blessed with four daughters namely: Attilah, Ilyasah, Qubilah, and Amiliah. By the year 1959, the NOI began to attract national publicity.
Malcolm used the media to popularize the NOI and its activities. The NOI support surged from 500 followers in 9152 to around 30,000 in 1963. However, Malcolm’s faith in the NOI was tested in 1963 during the intense lobbying from the civil rights movement. He found that contrary to the NOI teachings which advocated for abstinence from sexual intercourse until marriage, Elijah Muhammad had several affairs with women. Malcolm had stayed celibate in line with the NOI teachings until his marriage to Betty Shabazz in 1958. Subsequently, the NOI silenced Malcolm for 90 days following Malcolm’s unpleasant comments regarding President J. F. Kennedy’s assassination.
In March of 1964, Malcolm ended his relationship with Elijah Muhammad and the NOI then formed his own religious group, the Muslim Mosque, Inc. Malcolm attended a pilgrimage in Mecca during the same year where he shared his thoughts with believers from different cultures. The response was overwhelming. Particularly, Malcolm X came to the realization that the whites were not as evil as the NOI had portrayed them over the years. He became aware that being white was not a function of color and that it was all about the attitude and individual behavior. He began to believe that the racial issues within the United States could only be solved through uniting all races. Upon his return from the pilgrimage, Malcolm started a new integrative attitude that aimed at spreading peaceful messages to all races. However, following his renouncing of Elijah Muhammad their relationship became volatile.
It is believed that Elijah Muhammad and Nation of Islam organization members tried to assassinate Malcolm X on several occasion as they sought to curb his influence. Eventually, Malcolm X was assassinated on 21st February 1965 when three gunmen shot him several times. At the time of his assassination, Malcolm X was inside the Audubon Ballroom in Harlem where he was expected to deliver a speech at the organizational meeting of the Organization of Afro-American Unity. As soon as he rose to speak, there was some commotion within the audience. Following the commotion, three gunmen approached Malcolm X at the podium and proceeded to shoot him several times. He died soon after. The three gunmen were apprehended, charged, and convicted for the murder of Malcolm X.
Malcolm X’s Life in Relation to Erickson's Developmental Perspectives
The Erickson’s theory relates to eight development stages. Every stage is characterized by unique conflicts that every person must endeavor to overcome. The theory shows that the higher the demand circumstances the higher the conflicts. Consequently, every person has two choices to deal with personal conflicts in each stage of development. The two choices are: to be become accustomed to various settings or to fail to make the necessary adjustments to cope with various situations. Erickson’s theory provides that it is only when people are able to manage the crisis in one stage of development that they can have sufficient resolve to manage issues in the subsequent developmental stages.
There are many instances in the life of Malcolm X that coincide with Erickson’s theory and perspective of development. Erickson provides eight stages of psychological development. These stages are: between birth and one year, early childhood, preschool years, early school years of between 5 and 11 years, early adulthood, adulthood, and during old age (Fadiman, 2002).
The stages that are more vivid in the biography of Malcolm X are between stage three and stage eight. Stage three which explores pre-school years is when children begin to assert themselves but still have no control over the world. This is apparent from the biography when before Malcolm’s fourth birthday he has to relocate severally with the family as his father tries to evade the Black Legion. Consequently, stage four is about the interaction of the child between the age of 5 and 11. During this stage, Malcolm is forced to interact with other children in a foster home as his mother is admitted to a mental institution. According to Erickson, children become competent when they believe in their abilities. This is seen when Malcolm graduated from junior high top of his class and believes that he can become a lawyer.
Stage five of Erickson’s perspective of development is during the adolescent stage where children explore their individuality and cultivate a sense of self. Those who receive proper advice and encouragement emerge with a resilient sense of self, autonomy, and control. Children like Malcolm, who lack proper counsel, emerge from this stage in trepidation. They become apprehensive about their abilities and their future achievements. In Malcolm’s life bad advice from his favorite teacher leads him to drop out of school.
Erickson’s stage six refers to the period of early adulthood that is marked with exploring personal relationships. A child looks to develop skills learned from previous stages. People who have a poor sense of self have few commitments to relationships. This is manifest when Malcolm engages in odd jobs, in Boston before leaving for Harlem where he is also involved in petty crimes and later establishes various illegal activities.
Stage seven refers to where people become proud of their achievement and seek to have lasting partners. For Erickson, people develop a sense of unity. This is seen when Malcolm is arrested alongside his buddy Malcolm "Shorty" Jarvis. This shows that he is no longer working alone and has combined with Jarvis to continue their illegal activities.
Stage eight is that of regret and despair as people reflect on their lives (Erickson, 1993). For Malcolm, this stage arrived when he was in prison. He reflected on his life, and it seems that he was not happy with his accomplishments so far. He decided to change after learning about Islam from his brother Reginald.
References
Erickson, H. E. (1993). Childhood and Society. W. W. Norton & Company Inc.
Fadiman, J. and Frager, R. (2002). Personality and Personal Growth (5th Ed.). Pearson Prentice
Hall.
Marable, M. (2012). Malcolm X: A Life of Reinvention. Penguin.
