During the Civil Rights Movement there were people around the country trying to get their voices heard, but only a few people stood out. One of those people was Malcolm X who separated himself from other civil rights leaders because of his harsh language, and hateful outlook on "white men" as he called all Caucasian Americans. Malcolm X wanted African Americans to use violence in order to crown themselves as the superior race when all was said and done. Being a radical with all of his views, Malcolm despised all the glorified Civil Rights Movement leaders because he viewed them as puppets for the government. This included Martin Luther King who was his predominant target when criticizing the civil rights leaders. He disagreed with their idea of a non-violent protest being the answer and was quoted saying, "You haven't got a revolution without bloodshed!" (Grassroots). As radical of beliefs Malcolm X had, his views on white people surprisingly changed drastically as he aged. He began to look at the topic of civil rights in a much more logical manner. He stop making sweeping claims of the entire white race, and his changed perspective helped him earn respect from Martin Luther King. Eventually him and Martin Luther King would come to have similar teachings and actually supported one another.

As soon as Malcolm X started preaching, it was easy to comprehend that he was a racist. This was shown when he said, "What we have foremost in common is that enemy, the white man"(Grassroots). This is a perfect example of him making sweeping indictments of white people which is seemingly a very ignorant statement, but also understandable when thinking about what African Americans were going through during this time period. Malcolm was trying to rally all blacks together as one regardless of race or politically views. His speeches were full of outrage and this was used to try and spark a fire within the black community. His ultimate plan for African Americans was to unite them as one and start a revolution. He used violent and harsh language, which made him a polarizing and controversial figure around the country. In his grassroots speech he mentioned the house and field Negro which ends up contradicting his idea of bringing together all blacks. He calls out the house Negro saying, "And the house Negro always looked out for his master. When the field Negro got too much out of line, he held them back in check." This quote was important because it essentially broke apart the blacks that he was trying to bring together. Malcolm also called out the great civil rights leaders like MLK, calling them house Negroes and using that as the reason they are for anti-violent protesting. He did not believe that Martin Luther King was being genuine with his preaches and that his words were predetermined by the "whites". 

A trip to Mecca, his holy land, would end being the changing point in Malcolm X's outlook toward civil rights. He seemed to be a very irrational person before his journey to the Mecca, but he came back humbled and much more educated then before he left. An Islamic website discussed Malcolm before he left for Mecca by saying, "He believed that the white man was the devil and the black mans superior"(Haley). This comment would seem shocking if it came from the new and improved Malcolm X as he was quoted in a letter he wrote about his experience at Mecca saying, '"But on this pilgrimage, what I have seen, and experienced, has forced me to rearrange much of my thought-patterns previously held, and to toss aside some of my previous conclusions."' His mind set took a complete 360 and changed for the better. He moved his hate from the broad term of white men and changed it to ignorant, white, American men, which showed he had become less racist. In his letter he also calls himself brothers with the white men he met in Mecca because of their belief in the same god, and the peace they shared. It was peculiar to see Malcolm X have such a level headed approach on the subject of race, and it helped increase his popularity with the people even more then before. 

Malcolm X's trip to Mecca not only changed his views on civil rights, but also increased his popularity and lead to the unification of the two most powerful Civil Rights Movement leaders of all time. Martin Luther King and Malcolm X disagreed on almost every aspect of their movement preaches, and had animosity for each other during the whole movement. But during the latter parts of each of these men's lives, they began to advocate each other and Malcolm even started reaching out to MLK. John Blake of CNN stated in an article, "In 1965, Malcolm X traveled to Selma, Alabama, where King was leading a campaign, to offer support"(Blake). This was a turning point for these influential figures, as it united all the civil rights leaders and gave the African Americans a common ground to focus on. Malcolm X's perspective on violent protest and revolution changed immensely after reaching Hajj in Mecca. He is quoted saying, "I can state in all sincerity that I wish nothing but freedom, justice and equality, life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness for all people"(Malcolm X). He specifically used the words, "all people", which is the first time he has put forth the idea of equality. Equality was Martin Luther Jr's main objective from the first time he stepped foot in front of the black community. Proving that as John Blake said, "Near the end of his life, Malcolm X was becoming more like King"(Blake), was in fact the truth.

Our parents and grandparents preach to us that age and wisdom go hand and hand. Malcolm X would be the first one to tell us that this statement is 100% accurate. It is bewildering to listen to Malcolm X's speech "grassroots movement", and then follow that by reading his letter from Mecca. It seems to be two completely different people absorbing these two significant pieces. He changed his frame of mind on violent revolution to a more educational though process that included equality and not "blood shed." His relationship with Martin Luther King changed drastically as well because their standpoints on civil rights became so similar. Both MLK and Malcolm just wanted black people to be proud of their African American Heritage, and I think they would be happy to see the progress that has been made!

