Essay Philosophies and Tactics of Dr. King and Malcolm X

During the mid-1900s, the Civil Rights Movement was a crucial part of the United States’ growth. Many men and women both black and white contributed to the development of rights for African Americans and other minorities. Among them, Martin Luther King and Malcolm X had an everlasting effect on the treatment of minorities in the United States. Although their philosophies and tactics differed greatly, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X helped shape the Civil Rights Movement and make the United States a better place for people regardless of their race. Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X had different beliefs and goals for the Civil Rights Movement. While Martin Luther King Jr. took a more peaceful position, Malcolm X could best be†¦show more content†¦From Thurman, King developed his mentality regarding the power religion and peace could have in the fight against segregation. Thurman’s actions, words, and book Jesus and the Disinherited all had a weighty influence on King. Thurman helped blend Christianity, social justice, and Gandhi’s nonviolent protest in a manner that helped shape King’s tactics against segregation and social injustice. Unlike King, Malcolm X did not start out with a religious base. He did not come upon the Nation of Islam until he entered prison in the late 1940s. Despite encountering religion a bit later in life, the Nation of Islam had a substantial influence on his beliefs until he left it in 1964. From the Nation of Islam he gained the mentality that black people were the original race of the world and that blacks were superior to whites. This mentality began the Black Power Movement throughout the sixties and the seventies. Some blacks began to believe that their separation from society was fine as long as they were treated equally. Others held the belief that there was no place for them as a minority in the white-run American society and that the only place left to go was back to Africa. Mal colm X also believed that the nonviolent, peaceful protests of the civil rights movement were not very effective; he believed that African Americans should have sufficient means of defending themselves. As opposed to merely issues dealing with civil rights, Malcolm X believed that black identity,Show MoreRelatedDifferences Between Martin Luther King and Malcolm X Essay805 Words   |  4 PagesDuring the 1960’s Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X represented two sides of the Civil Rights Movement. Speaking to all of humanity, Dr. King made these famous peaceful words, â€Å"I have a dream, a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: â€Å"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal† (King, 1963, para 10). 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