Martin Luther King Jr. vs Malcom X

This right here shows the difference between two very influential men. Wanted to know what you guys thought about this.

Two different sides still fighting for one cause.

Dr. King is still above Malcom X though.

In my opinion MLK > MX, MX did preach blacks have a right to defend themselves which is 100% true no matter ones race or lifestyle but I think MLKs message of fight hate with love is what made the Cival Rights Movement work

Malcolm X has my vote instead of integrating under a "white" dominant system which was inherently racist we should have been trying to create wealth in our own community that lack of wealth and resources has led to the current predicament that we are in.

I agree with Malcolm X more. Why do black people need to wait for white approval for their own freedom? Malcolm taught blacks that they can not only be like but also surpass white people, this is what needs to be done to fight back.

Also, what does MLK know about black people's suffering? He lived in a wealthy family and attended a lot of academic education. Malcolm? His family suffered from the Klan and had little formal education. He was mostly self taught and rose to become what many white people may not have been capable of during that age.

It's said that MLK and Malcolm X were paralel to Professor X and Magneto.

Which is true in some aspects. Charles Xavier is the child of a wealthy family whilst Magneto was a holocaust survivor.

Martin Luther King Jr actually got things done. Malcolm X while ideologically interesting achieved very little.

@mandarinestro:

agree with Malcolm X more. Why do black people need to wait for white approval for their own freedom? Malcolm taught blacks that they can not only be like but also surpass white people, this is what needs to be done to fight back.

Also, what does MLK know about black people's suffering? He lived in a wealthy family and attended a lot of academic education. Malcolm? His family suffered from the Klan and had little formal education. He was mostly self taught and rose to become what many white people may not have been capable of during that age.

This is besides the point. The law at that time still asserted white supremacy; Martin Luther King Jr was better off than poorer blacks but he did not escape this.

You might as well say that about Gandhi considering he was on his way to becoming a Lawyer; he wasn't the lowest of the low yet he later became known as the father of the nation...

MLK's non-violent methods were taken from Gandhi, they were very practical in the sense that they actually stood a chance at changing laws.

Ya know.. I don't even remember learning about Malcom X in school as a kid... maybe just quickly glossed over him, but I remember learnin a whole sh!t ton about MLK.... My dad taught me about Malcom.

Malcom X also has my vote.

I feel like MLK actually accomplished more, plus, I agree with his philosophy more.

I don't understand why Malcolm thinks Islam is liberating of the slavery Africans underwent.

Did he not remember the Muslim Arab enslavement of the African?

@frozen: Ugh... Always wanting to get the bad side of Islam. Did you forget that it's the Arab's own fault? You don't see any other types of Muslims do that, do you?

@frozen: Well I do agree that MLK accomplished more. The OP was probably asking who I can agree with more ideologically. If you're just saying MLK did more, then I suppose it's fair enough since it's true and I'm not even black to begin with.

This wasn't my point. My point was that Malcolm generalized his hatred for white people {though justified to an extent, my point is Christianity} and Christianity {he hated Christianity due to the oppression it gave to blacks}, proclaiming Islam gave him a new identity; despite the fact that there also a Muslim slave trade which he chose to not generalize.

My point wasn't that other ethnic Muslims had slaves, it's that Malcolm selectively generalized.

Regardless of what you're point was, that's the Arab's own fault, not the Muslims, and making people slaves is something that contradicts to Islam. That's the type of stuff you would find in the Old Testament.

It's because the Nation of Islam was notorious for trying to lift Islam up as a Black Man's Religion against the oppression of the White Man's Faith of Christianity. It was not just an idea of Malcolm X that Islam was liberating the Slavery of Africans it came out of the Nation of Islam even before Malcolm X was there.

Back on Topic, I like Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. about as much as I do Malcolm X... Dr. King did accomplish more than Malcolm X but people are forgetting the fact that King was in a better position to accomplish more than Malcolm X... Dr. King was a Christian, he followed Christian Principles ( as well as obviously inspired by Gandhi ) as far him being a forerunner to the Civil Rights Movement... now back in the 1950's - 1960's, America was Heavily Christian... so a Black Christian Man following principles of Non Violence and Love and Forgiveness is always gonna be more accepted by White People than a Black Muslim Man who believe in principles of Self Defense and attacking the White Man if he is attacking one of your Brothers... then you had teachings of the Nation of Islam that White Men are Devils. How could Malcolm X accomplish as much as Dr. King when even his base religion of Islam was no where near as accepted as what Dr. King believed in America ?

MLk.

Shaka.

Martin Luther King Jr. for me. I believe his ideology was more sound and effective. Wisdom is key for all situations.

#4 Edited by nick_hero22 (7433 posts) - 12 hours, 5 minutes ago - Show Bio

Malcolm X has my vote instead of integrating under a "white" dominant system which was inherently racist we should have been trying to create wealth in our own community that lack of wealth and resources has led to the current predicament that we are in.

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#5 Posted by Mandarinestro (4698 posts) - 11 hours, 49 minutes ago - Show Bio

I agree with Malcolm X more. Why do black people need to wait for white approval for their own freedom? Malcolm taught blacks that they can not only be like but also surpass white people, this is what needs to be done to fight back.

Also, what does MLK know about black people's suffering? He lived in a wealthy family and attended a lot of academic education. Malcolm? His family suffered from the Klan and had little formal education. He was mostly self taught and rose to become what many white people may not have been capable of during that age.

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I don't understand how some people are coming to the conclusion that Martin Luther King's assimilation philosophy when it is in fact self-defeating to the cause of the Civil Rights Movement which is why we had Martin Luther King later in his life making statements like, "I fear, I am integrating my people into a burning building", so even Martin Luther King questioned the soundness of his philosophy.

What MLK said:

What he actually meant:

I lol'd.

Malcolm X deserves way more recognition.

Why in the world is this even relevant? We're not judging these guys on living situations... We're judging them on accomplishments!!

Zulu day. I smell a petition!

I agree. Even though I think MLK was the better of the two, Malcolm X was very influential as well.

@kingwillie: same here, had to google him to learn anything, I didn't even learn about Caesar Chavez even though I lived in a farming and immigrant town in Cali

Interesting.

I gotta go with Malcolm X on this one.

Beata

QFT

X gets less recognition because his practices were nowhere near as "user friendly" to King's platform. Both died before their time but it seems unfair to bury Malcolm's legacy in the shadows of American History.

To make it short and sweet, I definitely respect both men, but if I was a black man/woman in the 50s, I don't doubt that I would've sided more with Malcom X's teachings.

@symbioticspider-man: I actually find Malcolm X methods more practical (especially in today's times). Essentially his arguments boil down to real change occurring in the banks and voting booths rather than white restaurant seats. He was more focused on organizing regional power than playing politics with his oppressors. Of course his criticisms came off more often as trash talk and his public persona didn't earn him many friends outside of his own group, but it still kept focus on the issues of the era.

@frozen: I forgot about the Gandhi part.

Gandhi didn’t bend his words so they seem white-friendly, or in this case British-friendly. Gandhi didn't try to appease India's British oppressors into granting them independence; he passively resisted their grasp over India, stirred up the people power of India, and forced Britain into recognising them. He even said "first they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win", a quote I believe you are well aware of. Gandhi was definitely more confrontational than MLK and although MLK was inspired by him the two of them cannot be compared.

I would side with Malcolm X. His stance of beating racism on his own terms tips him over, in my opinion. His anger was well placed.