Study Questions

1. In what national publications do articles about Elijah Muhammad’s Nation of Islam first appear?

2. What was Malcolm’s first reaction to Alex Haley’s proposal about the publication of his life story?

3. What does Haley first ask Malcolm about that induces Malcolm to reveal intimate details about his life?

4. Next to college, where does Malcolm think is “the best place for a man to go if he needs to do some thinking”?

5. According to Haley, what is Malcolm’s opinion of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.?

6. By Malcolm’s calculations, what was the Nation of Islam’s membership before he joined? What was the membership 12 years later?

7. What are the goals of Malcolm’s new organization, the OAAU (Organization of Afro-American Unity)?

8. A New York Times opinion poll questioned New York City’s African Americans about their opinions on black leaders. What were the results of that poll?

9. Haley reports that Harlem’s residents were complaining about Malcolm X. What were their complaints?

10. When does an orthodox Moslem funeral service take place? Explain.

Answers

1. Articles about Elijah Muhammad’s Nation of Islam first appeared in Reader’s Digest, the Saturday Evening Post, and Playboy magazine.

2. Malcolm is startled and uncertain when Haley proposes to write his life story.

3. Haley asks Malcolm about his mother, which induces Malcolm to reveal intimate details about his life.

4. Malcolm thinks that “the best place for a man to go if he needs to do some thinking” is prison.

5. Malcolm had “reluctant admiration” for Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

6. Before he joined, Malcolm calculates that the Nation of Islam had 400 members. Twelve years later, Malcolm calculates that the membership is around 40,000.

7. The goals of Malcolm’s new organization, OAAU (Organization of Afro-American Unity) is “to unite Afro-Americans for a constructive program toward attainment of human rights.” In addition, it seeks “to convert the Negro population from non-violence to active self-defense against white supremacists across America.”

8. A New York Times poll of African Americans finds “three-fourths had named Dr. Martin Luther King as ‘doing the best work for Negroes,’” and “one-fifth had voted for N.A.A.C.P.’s Roy Wilkins, while only six percent had voted for Malcolm X.”

9. Harlems’ residents were complaining about Malcolm X because they felt that all he actually did was talk, and not take action. In addition, they felt that he was often confused and that he changed his opinions easily.

10. An orthodox Moslem funeral service takes place within 48 hours of a person’s death. Moslems believed that “when a body grows cold the soul leaves it and when the body is put into the earth it comes alive again.”