Recently 9 black people were gunned down in one of the oldest Black Churches in Charleston, South Carolina by a 21 year old white male. The assailant gave the reason for the dastardly act as 'the country is being taken over by the blacks'. This has shaken the American people as they thought that they have largely overcome race related hate crimes against the black people. (though there have been many cases of police brutality against Blacks over the last few years). This came as a wake up call. Obama went so far as to say 'Racism is in our DNA'.
I was looking up the history of the 'Black Pride' movement and the Civil Rights movement in America.
The struggle of the Afro-American (Black) community in America for racial equality made significant strides in the 1950's and 1960's.
Martin Luther King Jr. came into forefront in mid 1950's and gave the call for a non-violent struggle against racial segregation. He was inspired by Mahatma Gandhi. This was quite a new path for the blacks in America. He was a charismatic leader and a great orator. He got widespread support and eventually a landmark law was passed just after his assassination. He is without doubt the greatest leader of the Black Movement in America. In fact he became an icon for freedom and equality the world over.
I was surprised to find that a man of such moral stature and also a pastor by profession had many illicit affairs. Well those are the foibles of great men !!
His assassination still remains a mystery. It is quite remarkable to note that in the 1960's there were so many high profile assassinations in America and till date there are conspiracy theories as to who did it. Of course the most famous was the assassination of JFK. And later his brother Robert Kennedy was killed. All these men were quite young.
In 1965 Malcolm X, another icon of the Black Movement was assassinated.
Many people believe that these killing were orchestrated by the FBI. It still remains a mystery and a topic for books, movies etc.
Malcolm X was quite an enigmatic personality. Unlike Martin Luther King, his contemporary, he preached that taking up arms against the white man in self defense is the right of the black man. He was associated with the Nation of Islam (NOI) whose belief was that the 'white man is a devil'.
He was an impressive personality, 6' 3" tall, slender, handsome, intense and always impeccably dressed and well groomed. He was a great orator too. There was a restrained aggression and arrogance about him. He would never go on the back foot in any debate. By his manner and bearing he let it be known that he considered himself superior to the white man. He became a revered figure among the black people. He had a criminal past and had spent time in jail in his youth. It was in jail that he became close to the Nation of Islam, converted to Islam and took the name Malcolm Shabazz. Though the world still knows him as Malcolm X. He educated himself in jail and became a self-taught man.
Later on he had differences with the NOI leaders (notable Elijah Mohammad) and also with their philosophy. He left the NOI and embraced Sunni Islam. He toured many countries and also performed the Hajj.
He was assassinated in 1965, it is believed by people belonging to the Nation of Islam. But again many conspiracy theories are still in vogue as to who was behind his death. He was killed at age 39, the same age as Martin Luther King.
His legend keeps growing as time passes. (somewhat like Che Guevara).
Of course the other Black icon of the same period who instilled a lot of pride and self belief in the Black people the world over was Mohammad Ali. He has been rated as the Greatest Athlete in history. Certainly he has been the most influential. Like Malcolm X, who was his friend, he was also influenced by the Nation of Islam and converted to Islam. He called himself 'The Greatest' and the 'Most beautiful boxer' and backed all that bravado by becoming heavy weight World Champ 3 times. By his outspoken views on the Vietman war and for the rights of the black people in America, he became a icon for racial equality too.
During that time was coined the phrase - Black is Beautiful.
There have been many others like these who have been part of the long struggle which eventually paved the way for Barack Obama becoming the first Black President of America. That certainly was a landmark moment for America in the path of racial justice and equality. People shed tears of joy and thought that this is the long awaited dawn in American history.
But the shooting in Charleston shows that racism can still rear its ugly head.
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