Today we honor the life and legacy of the El Hajj Malik El Shabazz, aka Malcolm X.
A legacy is a “gift … by will.” What did Malcolm X willfully gift us?
To address that question, I would like to invoke some imagery motivated by African deep thought. I call upon the wisdom of the Dogon people of West Africa who have a system of knowledge consisting of five levels. It takes many years of increasingly in-depth study to make the journey from the bottom level to the top level. Malcolm’s life and legacy is a representation of this transformative journey.
Imagine Malcolm X, the man, standing before you, face to face with us. We are at the beginning level called “Giri So,” “So” meaning “word.” Giri So means “word at face value,” the level where we encounter a collection of facts.
Malcolm Little was born in Omaha Nebraska, May 19, 1925. His parents were members of Marcus Garvey’s Universal Negro Improvement Association. His father was killed by white supremacists. His mother had a mental breakdown after the murder of her husband. Moving to Boston and then Harlem as a young man, he was known as “Detroit Red,” a petty thief and pimp.
He was arrested and sent to prison in 1946. In 1947, while in prison, he joined the Nation of Islam (NOI) where he was given the name Malcolm X.
After release from prison in 1947 he became a minister in the NOI, eventually becoming the national spokesperson for the NOI. He separated from the NOI in 1964. He converted to orthodox Islam and in April 1964 he made pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, becoming El Hajji [the Pilgram] Malik El Shabazz. He founded the Organization for African American Unity in June 1964. He was assassinated on Feb 21, 1965, while giving a speech at the Audubon Ballroom in Harlem, New York.
This is the level where most stories of Malcolm’s life begin and end. But Malcolm X was not a man to stand still, he was on a journey, and we accompany him as he walks. In order for us to let him take his walk we must move to the side.
We are now at the level of “Benne So” – “word from the side.” Here, the collection of facts is organized into information. We can now see a little of how the Malcolm X facts are arranged, of his coming and going. We can see what was hidden behind him; multitudes of African American men and women who took Malcolm X’s example and transformed their own sometimes all too desperate lives.
His life became a model for that transformation. We must move on as he did when he joined the NOI and then left the NOI and formed his own organization.
After his trip to Mecca, Malcolm’s knowledge and analysis began to take on an international perspective. He realized that the pathology he had encountered among American whites wasn’t natural, it was mental/psychological with intergenerational effects on the cultural/structural. The problem was not in the so-called ‘race’ of people; it was psycho-social-systemic. Transformation required a mental revolution before there could be a structural revolution.
As Malcolm moves out ahead of us, we find ourselves at the “Bolo So” stage – “word from behind.” We can see ahead and can think of this as information that answers the question “where are we going”, ‘information in use’, or knowledge. Malcolm moves out ahead of his time, because he also realized that the pathology of African Americans also was not natural, it was also mental/psychological with intergenerational effect on the cultural/structural. Again, transformation first required a revolution in the mind.
We continue and find ourselves at the level of So Dayi – “the clear word” – notice the change in word order! This is not merely more knowledge, or even the next level of data, information, and knowledge! No, this is something else!
What has become clear? Malcolm X was a faithful husband, devoted father, and family man who made the ultimate sacrifice for his community, and in a way that others would not be hurt. He stuck to his values and principles until the end. As Malcolm’s image disappears – only we are left.
What has become clear? I paraphrase. ‘Wisdom is the principal thing, get wisdom, but with all your getting, get understanding’ as in the ancient Dogon system knowledge is not the ultimate end. Knowledge is not enough. One can have great knowledge and still be an educated fool! We seek to be wise, to not be foolish, to make prudent decisions for ourselves and our community. But what is our understanding of what WE must do? Above knowledge – what stands-under wisdom?
What has become clear? Malcolm X’s life and legacy calls upon us to live purposeful lives whereupon we ask ourselves – what are the values and principles that we are willing to live by? As the great Pan-African scholar and revolutionary Amilcar Cabral informed us we must, “tell no lies, mask no difficulties, and claim no easy victories.”
Surely, in these days and times, what has become quite clear is that we must make a sober, honest assessment of where we are. We must prudently plan for where we want to be. We must do this as a community-led mission with widespread community engagement. No one will or can do this for us!
Finally, we arrive at Aduno So Dayi – “the astonishing word of the world.” The wisdom that comes from understanding that no one is coming to save us! The astonishing word of the world is: the things that must be done must be done by us!
This is the legacy of the life of Malcolm X. We can transform our community from the distressed to the remarkable! Let’s get on with it!
