TRIBUTE TO MALCOLM X FROM JAPAN
. [A study. of Malcolm X has just been published in Japan. Entitled THE. BLACK REVOLT: Malcolm X, The Man and His Ideas, it makes:abook of. e4e. pages. The author is ki ransiation of his °° epilogue follows.]... Dye, ee
“Tt was on the afternoon of February. 21, 1965, that Malcolm X, the revolutionary . Black Nationalist leader, was assassinated at the Audubon Ballroom: in- Harlem. Malcolm, known in our country as a black follower of. ‘Islam, | left:the Black Muslims in March 1964 and immedi-. ately after set up a religious as well as a political organization... (Muslim Mosque , Inc, and the Organization of Afro-American Unity) in attempting ‘anew to: advance by one more step the black revolutionary: movement. But he. died before he really could.
On the day of his assassination I was present at the ballroom, and-I1-felt utterly lost for words at his sudden death. During my stays of approximately one year in New York City I had visited. Small's Paradise, Count Basie's Bar, the Top Club, and other places : where ,the people of-Harlem frequent. Guided by a Negro friend, I... had also walked..around..Harlem' s.side streets where the dope addicts, homosexuals, alcoholics, hustlers, and like persons congregated. And so I was under the illusion that I more or less understood the mood of Negro society and the realities of the ghetto. This illusion, however, was quickly dispelled at the time of Malcolm X's assassination. The reason was simple. I was viewing Negro society and Malcolm X's revolutionary movemént as an observer, as a third party from the outside looking in.
= - When JL. realized this right. ‘after his assassination, a certain emptiness swept over.me. I understood .that. my way of grasping Malcolm X and his ideas had a limitation which could not be sur— mounted. So I. have.taken up my pen, firmly aware of this limitation, and have written this. book about -the man and his movement. .
The assassination of Malcolm X aroused an inordinate amount of sharp reaction not only within America, but. also. in Africa and in every country in Europe. That Malcolm X was different from previous Negro leaders; that he understood the American black revolution in terms. of an: international perspective; that at the same time he advocated independence and.clearly offered a philosophy of self-~' defense for Afro-Americans -- this unique way of thinking, i think,. accounts for this type of reaction.
After the assassination, George Breitman, the American Socialist,,..frankly stated his shock: "I was still-a young man 25 years ago "when another great :revolutionary was assassinated -- Leon. Trotsky. Perhaps I did not fully realize how much his leadership, advice and political wisdom would be missed, and probably I was
under the influence of the belief common among young people that to show certain'kinds of strong emotion is°a sign of weakness. Anyhow, I. did not cry when Trotsky: was killed, and I could not: b help erying when Malcolm was: killed.
"It was: not because Tr: considered Malcolm: the eréater of the two men. One reason for the difference was the realization that Malcolm, at the age of 39, was still in the process of reaching his full height, still in the process of working out his program, still in the early stage of building a. new movement -- whereas Trotsky, at the age of 59, had already reached full maturity, had already worked out his main ideas and his program, and left behind him the solid foundations of a movement that could not be destroyed by war, ‘by persecution from both the Allied and Axis powers, or by eold..;:: war reaction and witch-hunts.". James Baldwin, who was in Europe a. the time of the assassination, stated: ."The killing of Malcolm xX. . was a major setback for the Negro. movement. Whoever did it WAS sar formed in’ the crucible of the Western World, of the American. Republic. It is because of you -- the men who created this white supremacy -- that this man is dead. (our mills, your cities, your rape of a continent: started all this.
‘Having lived’ ‘asa ‘hustler during his youth, in. the black ... ghetto,. Malcolm .X:became.a Black Muslim in. prison, and upon his... release after several: years’ of-being active in the organization as a member he became, next to Muhammad, the most powerful leader. The strength of the Black Muslims. rapidly increased because of him. The official paper itself, Muhammad Speaks, was created by Malcolm X.. Thus, fearful and. jealous of Malcolm X's growing influence, Muhammad devised a scheme to expel him from his organization.
In 1964 Malcolm departed on his first trip to Africa after separating from the Black Muslims. His travel experience had a strong impact on him which acted as a turning point for his political philosophy...:: Subsequent to his return::-heme from his second trip to Africa on November 24, 1964, every Sunday night at the Audubon Ballroom he spoke about his black revolutionary philosophy to. the black masses from the ‘Speaker' s rostrum.
To explain the ‘language of his .speech is near to impossible, for he ‘spoke. in the jargon of the ghetto, always using metaphors and biting ironies. His. speech delivery was now fiery, now calm; while his booming voice retained its distinct quality throughout. His meetings in Harlem took place in an emotionally charged atmos-~phere in which capacity crowds. stomped their feet, shook their. bodies, yelling and screaming while responding in agreement with . Malcolm's every word and phrase. My wife and I went to hear one of these meetings on December 13, 1964. At that time Che Guevara had come. to New York City as the representative of Cuba to attend the UN General Assembly meetings, and he had sent.a telegram to Malcolm X expressing his support for his revolutionary movement. ‘I can still remember. the thunderous applause and ovation which shook the Audubon Ballroom at the moment when Malcolm read this telegram.
34
On February 27, 1965, Malcolm X's funeral was held at Faith Temple in Harlem. At this small temple, -crowds of black people crammed together both in the front and.sides, so much so that they were unable to move, awaiting for his body to be borne out. And at the moment when it did appear, nearly 10,000 black people bid their final farewell to their one and / only: ‘true revolutionary leader.