During the Civil Rights Movement, there were many people who tried to bring attention and awareness to the issue at hand. Two very famous people who brought awareness and attention to the Civil Rights Movement were Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcom X. Both of these men were fighting for equal rights but their methods for gaining these rights differed entirely. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was all about peaceful protests while Malcom X was the polar opposite. These men disagreed mainly on three major points in their efforts to gain civil rights. First would be the method of retaliation, then the issue of segregation and how to negotiate and lastly the way in which they would get their message across. The very first issue that King and Malcom X disagreed on was the method of retaliation. To start off with, King was a very peaceful protester. King thought that the way they would finally get their rights would be by peaceful protests and sit-ins. King believed that violence was not the answer and so anyone who wanted to join his cause had to agree to not use violent retaliation. King wanted to appeal to the “white-moderates” emotions. He wanted people to look and them and feel guilty because all they were doing were peaceful protests. He wanted to make the cops look bad for harassing the people who joined in his effort to gain civil rights. On the other hand, Malcom X had a completely different view. He believed that in order for people to actually pay attention to them, they needed to act in any way possible, even if it meant using violence.
Malcom X would only use violence if necessary but he thought that they only way to be seen and heard was speaking out loud and clear. He did not care about making people feel guilty or playing with their emotions, he wanted to get the message out by any means necessary. While the method of retaliation was one major difference between the two men, the issue of segregation and how to negotiate it was another major point of difference that they had. As stated before, King wanted to appeal to the white-moderates emotions in order to create sympathy. This was King’s way or trying to negotiate with the people in authority and to try and get them to see his side. Malcom X however had a different approach. He believed that in order to negotiate with the white-moderates, you needed to be aggressive and stand up for what the group believed in, even if it meant using violence. Malcom X was not about peaceful sit-ins protests, he believed in direct confrontation and calling out the people in authority. He believed that this was really the only way that civil rights could be gained. While fighting for segregation and how to negotiate it was also a difference they had, these men had one last point of difference.
The last point of difference was the way in which each would spread and get their message across. King would go on to give speeches like the “I Have a Dream Speech” to get his message across. He acted by having peaceful protests and sit ins. He did it in the most non-violent way possible and got hundreds of people to follow him and protest in his same non-violent manner. Malcom X however was known for his controversial manners of trying to get his message across. Although Malcom X stated that he would use violence as a last resort, he was often met with hate and criticism towards his method of aggression because people saw it as violent. In conclusion, many of the ideas presented were different between Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcom X. One supported a completely non-violent act while one was willing to do anything it took, even if it included using violence. King appealed to the emotional guilty side of the white moderate while Malcom X appealed to the fear based emotions of the white-moderate. Each had their supporters and that is why today the civil rights movement has made such a great impact in the history of our world. If it was not for these two men standing up for what they believed in and believed was right, then we would most likely not have a world as we know it today. Each made a tremendous impact in the history of civil rights and neither of their efforts will ever be forgotten.
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