You have to be very careful introducing the truth to the black man, who has never previously heard the truth about himself. The black brother is so brainwashed that he may reject the truth when he first hears it. You have to drop a little bit on him at a time, and wait a while to let that sink in before advancing to the next step——MALCOLM X (from the autobiography of Malcolm X)
The Honorable Elijah Muhammad found me here in America in the muck and mire, in the filthiest civilization on earth. He pulled me out and cleaned me up, and he stood me on my feet and made me the man I am—–MALCOLM X (from the Autobiography of Malcolm X)
You will not catch me with a free 15 minutes, in which I’m not studying something that I feel might be able to help the black man. Yesterday I spoke in London , and both ways on the plane across the Atlantic , I was studying. Every time I catch a plane, I have with me a book that I want to read, and that’s a lot of books these days, If I wasn’t out here battling the white man everyday, I could spend the rest of my life reading. Reading changed the course of my life forever. I didn’t go to college, my alma mater was books—–MALCOLM X (from the Autobiography of Malcolm X)
You’ve been waiting for the crumbs to fall off the white man’s table, but God is going to take the white man’s bread away, and force you to do for self. The only reason you are following the white man, is because you are looking for crumbs, and when you find out he has no more crumbs or bread to give you. Then you will turn him loose like a hot potato——MALCOLM X (from his speech called, Cooperative Economics)
When you realize that you’re wrong, admit it. Even if it is against yourself, when you know for sure that you’re wrong always admit it. Regardless of the consequences, admit the truth and apologize—–MALCOLM X
One thing that the white man can never give the black man is self respect. The black man in the ghettos, have to start self correcting his own material moral, and spiritual defects, and evil. The black man need to start his own program to get rid of drunkenness, drug addiction and prostitution. The black man in America has to lift up his own sense of values——MALCOLM X
Even before I went to prison I had already become an Atheist, because I could see the hypocrisy of Christianity. None of them really practiced what they preached——-MALCOLM X (from his interview with Kenneth B Clark)
Our people have to become registered voters, but we first have to get a better understand of politics. We go into politics in a gullible way, an emotional way. When politics is cold blooded and heartless, we must first learn the science of politics, and we should not take sides with either party. We should not sell ourselves to either party—-MALCOLM X (from his lecture at Harvard Law School , 1964)
I don’t think people should refer to themselves as leftist, or rightist. I think they should be whatever they are, and don’t allow anybody to put labels on them—–MALCOLM X (from his speech given January 7th, 1965)
You give white politicians all of your support, and get nothing in return. You put the Democrats first, and they put you last—–MALCOLM X (from his speech called, the Ballot or the Bullet)
The white liberal differs from the white conservative only in one way. The liberal is more deceitful than the conservative. The liberal is more hypocritical than the conservative. Both want power, but the white liberal is the one who has perfected the art of posing as the Negro’s friend and benefactor, and by winning the friendship and support of the Negro, the white liberal is able to use the Negro as a pawn or tool in this political football game. Politically the American Negro is nothing but a football, and the white liberals control this mentally dead ball. Through tricks of tokenism and false promises, and they have the willing cooperation of Negro leaders. These leaders sell out our people for just a few crumbs of token recognition and token gains—–MALCOLM X ( from his speech called, God’s Judgment of White America)
The white conservatives aren’t friends of the Negro either, but at least they don’t try to hide it. They are like wolves, they show you their teeth in a snarl. That always keep the Negro aware of where he stands with them, but the white liberals are foxes who show their teeth to the Negro also, but they pretend they’re smiling. The white liberal is more dangerous than the conservative. They lure the Negro, and as the Negro runs from the growling wolf. He flees into the open jaws of the smiling fox. The job of the Negro leaders is to make the Negro forget that the wolf and fox belong to the same canine family, and no matter which one of them the Negro puts his trust in. He always ends up in the dog house—-MALCOLM X (from his speech called, God’s Judgment of White America)
I don’t think I would ever run for political office. I think I am more effective attacking the establishment, and you can’t do that as well once you’re on the inside—–MALCOLM X (from the Village Voice, 1965)
The black masses reject the Uncle Tom approach of the Negro leadership that has been handpicked by the white man. These Uncle Tom leaders don’t speak for the Negro majority, they don’t speak for the black masses. They speak for the black bourgeoisie, the brainwashed white minded, middle class minority. Who are ashamed of black and don’t want to be identified with the black masses—MALCOLM X (from his speech called, God’s Judgment of White America)
The reason that most black business fail, is because they are selling a product that they bought from white man. They themselves have gone to the white man, to purchase something to resale to you. Everything that’s in the Negro store is a resale, and he has to resale it at a price high enough to get his investment back. The black person that’s in business is acting as a salesman for the white wholesaler, and the white producer. The real owner of merchandise that the black business man is selling, is the white man. He robs you when he sells it to you, and you have to turn around and rob your people in order to get your money back, and then you wonder why they won’t come in your store. As black people we have to learn to produce something.
We have to be producers as well as consumers, and then we can set the sale price at a low cost. If you produced the product that you sold, then you would be eliminating the middle man, and you could sell to your people at a low cost. Everything that leaves your pocket goes into the pocket of the white man. We are being robbed because we produce nothing of our own. Mr. Muhammad said that we must be producers as well as consumers. I don’t care if you have a million dollars business, if you are not producing anything, then you are just a rich slave. I don’t care how wealthy you are, if you are not producing you are just a slave for your master. The Honorable Elijah Muhammad teaches us that it is better to be independent, than dependent—MALCOLM X (from his speech called, Cooperative Economics)
Go into Japanese neighborhoods, you don’t see Negro stores. Go into China town, you don’t see Negro stores. Go into Jew town, you don’t see Negro stores. But come up here in black town and every kind of store is here but yours—-MALCOLM X (from his speech called, Cooperative Economics)
As a young minister I wouldn’t have considered it possible for me to love any woman. I had too much experience that women were only tricky, deceitful, untrustworthy flesh. I had seen too many men ruined or tied down, or in some other way messed up by women. Women talk too much, and to tell a woman not to talk too much, would be like telling Jesse James not to carry a gun, or telling a hen not to cackle. Can you imagine Jesse James without a gun, or a hen that didn’t cackle, and for anyone in leadership or position as I am. The worst thing in the world that a man could have, is the wrong woman. Samson was destroyed by the woman that slept in his arms. It had been 10 years since I thought anything about a woman or a mistress, and as a minister now I was thinking even less about getting a wife——MALCOLM X (from the Autobiography of Malcolm X)
In my years as a Muslim minister, I had always taught so strongly on moral issues. That many Muslim sisters accused me of being anti-woman. I had not even touched a woman for 12 years——MALCOLM X (from the Autobiography of Malcolm X)
I love Sister Betty, she’s the only woman that I ever thought about loving. She’s one of the very few women that I have ever trusted. She’s a good Muslim woman and wife. With me trying to wake up this brainwashed black man, and telling this arrogant white man the truth. Betty knows this is a full time job. I am only home 2 or 3 days a week, but if I have to do work while I’m home she allows me to have that quiet time that I need to work in—MALOLM X ( from the Autobiography of Malcolm X)
While in Beirut I went walking, and I could clearly see the European influence upon their women. It showed me how any country’s moral strength, or it’s moral weakness is quickly measurable by the street attire and attitude of it’s women, especially it’s young women—–MALCOLM X
Look at the women in America , young and old. Hardly any moral values are left in them. You can measure this by their dress and attire. Their spiritual values are almost destroyed, because of their emphasis on material things—MALCOLM X (from the Autobiography of Malcolm X)
Our young girls, our daughters, and our baby sisters are becoming unwed mothers before they are hardly out of their teens. Our community has 1000’s of unwed mothers, that has no hope of ever getting a husband. Our community has 10’s of 1000’s of little black babies who have no father to act as their provider—MALCOLM X (speaking at the University of California , 1963)
I only went to the 8th grade, and everything I know above the 8th grade I learned from Mr. Muhammad. He’s been my teacher, and I think he’s a better teacher that I would have had in public school—-MALCOLM X (from his interview with Kenneth B Clark)
Mr. Muhammad had raised me from the dead, everything I was he made me. When I was a foul vicious convict, this man had rescued me. He was the man that trained me, he treated me like I was his own flesh and blood. He was the man who had given me my wings to go places, and do things that I otherwise never would have dreamed of—–MALCOLM X (from the Autobiography of Malcolm X)
Mr. Muhammad had rescued me when I was a convict, and he trained me in his home as if I was his son. He allowed me to make important decisions for the Nation of Islam. One day he told me Brother Malcolm I want you to become well known. Because if you are well known it will make me better known, and he went on to say Brother Malcolm there is something you need to know. You will grow to be hated when you become well known. Because people usually get jealous of public figures—MALCOLM X (from the Autobiography of Malcolm X)
I love the Nation of Islam and Mr. Muhammad, I lived for the Nation of Islam and Mr. Muhammad. In 1963 Mr. Muhammad made me the Nation of Islam first National Minster. Mr. Muhammad embracing me told the audience this is my most faithful and hard working minister. No praise from any other earthly person could have meant more to me. White people and Negros would make me uncomfortable, by always trying to give me so much credit for the steady progress of the Nation of Islam. I told everybody anything creditable that I do, is because of Mr. Muhammad. I could not have gained the International prominence I gained, if it was not for Mr. Muhammad giving me my wings—MALCOLM X (for the Autobiography of Malcolm X)
When I left the Nation of Islam, my heart was still there. It’s like a man separating from his wife. Even though they are separated, sometimes the man heart is still with the woman—-MALCOLM X
There is no better teacher than adversity. Every defeat, every heart break, every loss contains its own seed, its own lesson on how to improve your performance next time—-MALCOLM X
We are living in a world that is so hypocritical. White people pretend they want Negros to be free, and Negros pretend like they believe white people. This is hypocrisy, you fool me and I fool you. This is the game that the white man, and Negros play with each other—-MALCOLM X
Don’t try and change the white man’s mind, we have to change our own mind. You can’t change his mind, and this whole thing about appealing to the moral conscience of America . America ’s conscience is bankrupt, she lost it a long time ago. Uncle Sam has no conscience. We can’t waste time trying to change the white man’s mind. We’ve got to change our own mind about each other. We have to see each other as brothers and sisters. We have to come together in unity and avoid jealousy and division—–MALCOLM X
Being white is not a skin color, it is an attitude. We have Negros who are as white as some white people. Being white is a Holier than thou attitude, it’s an arrogant attitude it’s not a skin color—–MALCOLM X
There’s plenty wrong with Negros . They have no society, they’re robots, automations with no mind of their own. I hate to say this about us, but it’s the truth. They are a black body with a white brain like the monster Frankenstein. The top part is your bourgeois Negro, he’s not interested in his poor black brother. He’s usually so far in debt from trying to copy the white man’s social habits that he doesn’t have time to worry about anything else. They buy the most expensive clothes and cars, and eat the cheapest food. They act more like the white man, than the white man does himself——MALCOLM X (from his interview with Alex Haley)
Now the Negro leaders are demanding the white man’s job. Which mean they are demanding a certain quota, or percentage of white people’s job. What will this lead to? First the Negro leadership demanded the white man’s house, and whites vacated their run down houses, and they built new homes for themselves out in the suburbs, but now the Negro leadership are demanding the white man’s job. Can the whites vacate their jobs, like they vacated their houses and schools? Not without violence and blood shed. The same white liberals that use to praise you for patience and non violence, have now become openly inpatient in defense of their jobs—–MALCOLM X (speaking on Affirmative Action, at the Harlem Unity Rally)
If the master said we got a good house, that House Negro would say yeah we got a good house here. If the master’s house caught on fire, that House Negro would fight harder to put the blaze out than his master. If the master got sick that House Negro would say what’s the matter boss, we sick? He identified with his master more than his master identified with himself. If you came to that House Negro and said let’s escape, let’s run away. He would look at you and say man you crazy. Where can I get a better house than this? Where can I wear better clothes than this? That’s that old House Negro, and we still have some House Negros today. They say where am I going to find a better place than America ? They say where am I going to find a better job, than this white man gave me? They don’t want to do for self, they don’t want to work for themselves, but that Field Negro was intelligent. If the master’s house caught on fire that Field Negro prayed Lord let it burn, they didn’t try to put it out. There are Field Negros today, I am a Field Negro—-MALCOLM X
Interviewer Claude Lewis: Malcolm X have you ever received any kind of award for your work? Malcolm X: NO, whenever I walk the street and people love what I’m doing, that’s my reward. Whenever people come out to hear me speak and they’re in agreement, that’s my reward. Interviewer Claude Lewis: Malcolm how do you want to be remembered? Malcolm X: I want to be remembered as someone that was sincere. Even if I made mistakes, they were made in sincerity. If I was wrong, I was wrong in sincerity. I can deal with a person that’s wrong, as long as they are sincere.