Introduction
Nowadays, the principles of equality and tolerance are discovered as guiding concepts in modern society. It implies that every individual is treated with respect disregarding his/her race, gender, and ethnicity. Nonetheless, the situation was different in the past due to slavery and high levels of discrimination in the United States of America. Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X could be discovered as the key figures in the African-American movement, and they wanted rights and freedoms of black people to be recognized in the USA (Howard-Pitney, 2004). Alas, their childhood and adolescence shaped their ideologies differently and defined that the leaders would use entirely dissimilar approaches to reach their goals. Consequently, the primary objective of this essay is to discover a substantial impact of different experiences on the development of ideologies and beliefs of King and Malcolm X and contrast their ideas. In the end, the conclusions are drawn to summarize the main findings of the paper.
The Influence of Experiences of King and Malcolm X on Their Ideologies
To establish a foundation, it is essential to understand the role of different experiences and situations in shaping the views and ideologies. It remains apparent that childhood, surroundings, relationships between family members, and values tend to have a critical impact on the development of beliefs and personal traits. In this case, a combination of these features explained the differences in ideologies and beliefs of King and Malcolm X, as they were raised in entirely different environments.
The childhood of King passed in the southern states of the country, where racism and discrimination were actively present and supported by the government and the society simultaneously (Howard-Pitney, 2004). During his school years, King was surrounded by the members of the black community, and this isolation could be discovered as one of the factors that drew attention to the problems of segregation in the subsequent years. Nonetheless, apart from racist attitudes in the society, the life of King was filled with love, and it inspired the future leader to graduate from both college and high schools with honors and pursue a career in politics (Howard-Pitney, 2004). Along with the favorable living conditions, King’s father played a critical role in the development of his personality and ideology. Being a preacher at the local church and the first leader of the Civil Rights Movement helped him become a role model and underlined the desire of King to continue the work of his father. Integrating these features with faith and love defined the values of King’s ideology that was developed in subsequent years.
On the contrary, Malcolm X had to face difficulties from the beginning of his life. This political leader was raised in the northern part of the United States (Howard-Pitney, 2004). His everyday life was filled with racism and domestic violence starting from his childhood. For example, his family was a victim of the anti-black movement, and his father was believed to be murdered by its followers and supporters (Howard-Pitney, 2004). Meanwhile, the incidents of racism followed Malcolm X through his childhood and adolescence while being present at school and in the streets (Howard-Pitney, 2004). These difficulties in his life and desire for revenge contributed to the domination of aggression as a driving force of his future actions. After gaining support and strengths in criminal surroundings, Malcolm X became another leader of the African-American movement but with an entirely different point of view and started to believe in Islam (Howard-Pitney, 2004).
Beliefs and Ideologies of King and Malcolm X
Apart from discovering key driving forces that were foundations for the viewpoints of King and Malcolm, it is essential to compare and contrast their beliefs. As was mentioned earlier, the example of King’s father defined his desire to become a leader of the Civil Rights Movement while Malcolm’s ideology was purely driven by revenge. Having different motives was one of the causes of the differences in political campaigns and actions of King and Malcolm X.
Initially, King’s religious beliefs were the foundation for taking advantage of peaceful actions that did not show any aggression towards the representatives of other races. For example, King organized several non-violent protests that helped people express their opinions and attract the attention of society to the issue of racism and segregation (Howard-Pitney, 2004). At the same time, giving speeches was another approach while King used them to deliver his opinions and aim at equality, tolerance, and recognition of rights of every race (Howard-Pitney, 2004). It could be said that King did not have any intentions to cause the development of the civil war but only wanted tolerance to become an essential part of the American culture. Alas, some of King’s statements that claimed the corrupt features of humans such as “groups tend to be more immoral than individuals” triggered the development of anti-white movement (Howard-Pitney, 2004, p. 77). Nonetheless, King understood his mistakes after being imprisoned (Howard-Pitney, 2004).
As for Malcolm X, his actions were initially driven by revenge and aggression, and these factors had a reflection in his ideology. In contrast to King’s desire to unite the representatives of white and black nations together, Malcolm X believed that violence was the only solution (Howard-Pitney, 2004). With the help of speeches, both leaders wanted their rights to be recognized. Nonetheless, Malcolm used them to support his ideas and create a ‘black’ army that would gain respect in the world by declaring war to the white nation (Howard-Pitney, 2004). He did not see the coexistence of these two parties by clearly stating that only one could have a dominant position in society. It could be said that on the contrary to King, Malcolm X did not want to diminish racism but sought to turn it in the opposite direction, and he stayed loyal to his ideology until death.
Conclusion
Overall, apart from having similar intentions, the actions and ideologies of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King were entirely dissimilar due to the differences in their experiences. Despite being raised in racism, a loving family, and a plethora of educational opportunities helped King not only attract attention to this issue and continue the work of his father but also highlight the need to live in peace. On the contrary, being a victim of racism during the school years defined Malcolm’s desire for revenge. He highly relied on these principles and designed a nationalistic ideology that claimed the war as the only solution. In the end, it could be said that the role of both political leaders could not be underestimated, as their actions were driven by their past and the need to live in the world where the rights and freedoms would be recognized and cherished.
Reference
Howard-Pitney, D. (2004). Martin Luther King, Jr., Malcolm X, and the civil rights struggle of the 1950s and 1960s: A brief history with documents. Boston, MA: Bedford/St. Martin’s Publishing.