Compare And Contrast Martin Luther King Jr And Malcolm X

Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr were both strong leaders of the civil rights moment that cast down discrimination and oppression of African Americans. Malcolm X put this into action through encouraging people to use equal force against vicious oppression. Dr. King had a different approach by encouraging nonviolence. This Period of time was overwhelmed by discrimination and the Jim Crow laws which segregated blacks and stopped them from having the freedom in which whites had. To encourage political and social change, Malcolm X and Dr. King both wanted the same opportunities and quality of life that the whites had, for black Americans. Both leaders applied very different aims to reach their goals which is seen through not only there past lives and experiences but also their personalities and leadership quality. Malcolm X encouraged Blacks to use violence and fight back against the white oppressors unlike Dr. King who was the inventor of non-violent protests. Even though they both fought for the same goal and end result of freedom and equality, Malcolm X and Dr. King were very diverse leaders with distinctive leadership styles.

Imagine yourself back in the 1960's as an African American fighting for your own right to be an average human being. It is already well known there were many heroic leaders for these people through their struggle. Two of these well known leaders were Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X. While these two people were both influential in the African American fight for equality, they each had their own way of representing their ideas. Dr. King was more of a pacifist in his fight for freedom, while Malcolm X was more aggresive with his strategy. While both men were highly effective in their fights, Martin had the stronger plan overall for several reasons. The first reason would be that peaceful protests will not get as many, if any, people harmed due to violence in the protests. It was also a stronger strategy as it was more convincing to people who were against their cause. Those who argue Malcolm X had the stronger strategy do not realize that to win with aggression, you must be able to fully defeat your opponent. For Malcolm's strategy to really work for him, he would have to have ran his opposition fully out of business, which would have been nearly impossible. Martin Luther King Jr. had the stronger strategy for equality because it would result in less harm, communicate the message more effectively, and, unlike Malcolm's plan, not require fully beating their opposition.

There are two major leaders during the Civil Rights Movement, Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcom X. In this paper I will first be looking at each of these two leaders individually including their backgrounds and what they are most well-known for. Then, I will be looking at the similarities and differences between these two famous leaders.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr is a widely remembered as one of the primary leaders of the American Civil Rights Movement. He often reiterates nonviolence based on his Christian belief. He was back then a less loved person and now a man who is considered an end all be all of activism. While Malcolm X is deemed as violent due to his involvement in the Black panther party and his Islamic faith. These men were very prevalent when talking about the American history and the civil rights movement.

The African-American community could improve their economics in multiples ways that could come with success but with different outcome. Both Martin Luther King and Malcolm X have good points and ideas that could contribute to the situation but while they contrast one another they also have some things in common. Out of all the ways to boost the black economy building up ones own business is the best and is the most reasonable yet peaceful solution.

Throughout history, there are stories about great leaders who fought for what they believed in. Martin Luther King and Malcolm X are two great african american individuals who fought for equal rights but in different ways. Their beliefs come from how they grew up and where they come from. King for example is well educated and grew up in a middle class family. While, Malcolm X’s household was underprivileged and he barely had any schooling. Even though King and Malcolm X come from different backgrounds, they both fought for the same rights, but each had a different way of approaching it.

He said in his famous speech, “we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to climb up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day” (Document B). It is clear that Malcolm X was only trying to push America backwards while Martin Luther King's was trying to push America forward more into desegregation. The quote reveals to us how Dr. King believed that whites and blacks should work with each other in order to gain equality. King thought that by having whites and blacks communicate together over time the bad rooted thoughts of each side would fade away and both sides will start to realize that they have much in common. King’s idea of integration is very good because he is trying to change the mindset of black and whites unlike Malcolm X who is building the thoughts of separation. That is bad because then the idea will be passed on from parents to kids which will make it harder to change the mindset of those people. Martin Luther King thought integration would lead to peace between both races. Martin Luther King shows us how he wants both races to collaborate together in his speech “The Future Of Integration”, when he said “If we are to make brotherhood a reality, the white man must treat the Negro right, not merely because the law says so, but because it’s natural, because it’s right, and because the Negro is his brother. If the problem is to be solved, men and

Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X were two of the most important civil rights movement leaders. Although they had different approaches, they were after the same thing, equality for black people. What they wound up finding along the way neither man expected. It was a much larger problem than just race. These two men had entirely different philosophies and methods which were shaped from their respective past. I do not believe one was more effective than the other at winning civil rights or had more influence on the movement than the other. They were co-effective if you will, meaning that without the other, neither one would have been as effective as they were, which ultimately got us to where we are today as a whole. To put it in perspective they were what yin is to yang or good cop / bad cop.

The African-American civil rights movement commenced on December 1, 1955 in Montgomery, Alabama, when Rosa Parks refused to give her sit up for a white passenger and was arrested. The African-American civil rights movement did a lot to achieve equality for blacks. From the desegregation of bus seats in 1956, to the Fair Housing Act of 1968.During the 1960s, a number of groups and persons participated in the fight against racial discrimination in America, of which Malcolm X and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. were two of the most significant figures in the fight for black freedom and squashing of white supremacy. These two men defined the civil rights struggle and black power movement, with Martin Luther King based in the south and Malcolm X in the north. Although they both had similar backgrounds and wanted social equality for the African-American people, they however differed greatly in their approach to their goals. While

Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. were icons of the Civil Rights Movement and it still seen as that today. Though there were many others, these two are the most notable and are discussed frequently in our History classes. Their legacy is apparent because of desegregation. Many compare the two because they wanted they both wanted the same thing, but they had very different backgrounds, beliefs and methods of achieving what they wanted. The two men were profoundly dedicated to social justice, but they preferred dissimilar control techniques to achieve their ultimate goal of justice and liberation for African Americans.

Martin Luther King and Malcolm x were both advocates for racism and had the same goals for their fellow negroes. They both fought for freedom, for their fellow black people to come together and fight, and for the future generation to have a brighter future. However, even with the same goals, their thoughts on how to gain it was very different. While MLK wanted to do it in a very peaceful manner, Malcolm X wanted it to happen in a very hostile manner. Also, MLK wanted everyone from gay, Muslims, and black to work together to achieve the big goal of ending racism but, Malcolm X wanted divisions to happen between all sorts of people. Therefore, supporting MLK seems more reasonable than supporting Malcolm X.

So both individuals grew up with very different opinions on how they were going to achieve civil rights. King had a very peaceful view, pushing his followers to protest non-violently. While Malcolm X grew up very angry and hating whites, he believed violence was the only way to solve his problems. (Novelguide, n.d.). This proved itself to be correct during the years of the 1950’s and early 60’s.

A man who obtained much wisdom once said, “One country. One ideology, one system is not sufficient. It is helpful to have a variety of different approaches. We can then make a joint effort to solve the problems of the whole humankind” (unknown). Different approaches in an understatement when it comes to the drastically different methods of Martin Luther King JR.

Many African Americans and the white community thought that using non violence was a cowardly act on their part and would just lead to more police brutality. So instead of looking for a fight they tried to find common ground between them and work towards a friendship. While looking for common ground King reminded people that the fight for freedom was injustice vs. justice and believed that justice would eventually be served to those who deserve it. Malcolm x thought very differently, he knew

“Peace cannot be kept by force; It can only be achieved by understanding. Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” - Martin Luther King.Jr. Mr King and Malcolm x were civil rights activist that accomplished many goals, yet both leaders differ opinions and beliefs. Although Malcolm X was an accomplished orator, Martin Luther King Jr. is better suited to be leader, based on his ideas of peaceful protest, uniting, and giving African Americans voting rights.