Malcome X
...jobs. Soon, Malcolm became associated in a gang and sold and used drugs, and was involved in many other criminal activities. His gang "career" ended when he got into some trouble due to a bet with the gang leader. Since the gang wanted Malcolm killed, Malcolm hid for a while. Soon, Malcolm decid! ed to rob a house which he heard had a lot of valuables in it. Soon one night, he robbed the house, but was caught later. Malcolm was charged with burglary and sent to prison for a maximum of eight years of which he served six. This was a turning point in Malcolm's life. While in prison, Malcolm educated himself and became interested in the teachings of Elijah Muhammad. Malcolm spent his time in jail educating himself and learning more about the Nation of Islam (later known as the Black Muslims). Their belief, which was contrary to Martin Luther King Jr.'s, mainly to was to segregated whites and blacks. The Nation of Islam wanted to establish a separate Afro-American homeland in the U.S. and believed that the white person is "the Devil" who wanted to enslave all non-whites. The Nation of Islam also strictly followed the Islamic belief. When Malcolm was released from prison after in 1952, he joined a temple in Detroit, and took the name Malcolm X. He took the name X because his present last name was the last name of the slave master who freed their slave and since the slave didn't know who their ancestors were, and therefore didn't know their real last name, they often took up the last name of their master. Many Muslims kept the name "X" because in math, "X" is represented as an unknown variable like their real last name. A person was to keep the name "X" until God himself gave them a "holy name"(Encarta 2). Soon after his release from jail, Malcolm worked for his oldest brother who managed a furniture store. While working, he also gave many speeches, and went "fishing"(fishing is when someone stands out on a sidewalk and hand out brochures and explained about their ideas of the Nation of Islam.) for new members for the Nation of Islam. He did this until he became an official spokesperson for them. After officially being excepted, Malcolm rapidly became an outstanding figure in the Nation of Islam. By the early 1960s, the Nation of Islam had become well known and Malcolm was their most prominent spokesperson. Malcolm gave many speeches and had dedicated his life to serve Elijah Muhammad and God. Because of the Nation of Islam popularity, television reporters were now very curious about it. To represent the Nation of Islam, Elijah Muhammad chose Malcolm X. For the next few years, Malcolm X was a major and widely publicized figure. This had it's good and bad side. It was good because it spread the ideas of the Nation of Islam all across the WORLD, but also put Malcolm X in an awkward position since he received a lot of publicity. Because of all the attention he got, many of the nation of Islam's members became jealous. As a result, they bad mouthed Malcolm X behind his back for many years to Elijah Muhammad. They said many things, like Malcolm was getting too much money from the Nation of Islam, when infact all he got from them was a house and car for twelve years! of service. Another thing they said was that Malcolm was trying to take over the Nation of Islam and that he was taking credit for the things Mr. Muhammad really did. This was anything but the truth because Malcolm always mentioned "As Elijah Muhammad teaches..." in everyone of his speeches. He also worshiped and would have died for Elijah Muhammad if he had to. Over the course of the next few months, Malcolm's eye's were finally opened to the happenings behind his back due to a series of events. These events eventually led to his break away from the Nation of Islam. After breaking away, Malcolm announced that he was creating a new organization (Organization of Afro-American Unity (OAAU)) that didn't have the strict and harsh rules and reli...