Thread by @zei_squirrel

Happy Birthday to the great Malcolm X, whose words are as important today as when he first spoke them. THREAD WITH CLIPS

Malcolm's response when cops shot and killed an unarmed black man and refused to take action against those responsible

a reporter asks Malcolm X if we're making progress

Malcolm X on liberals

a reporter asks Malcolm X if he's afraid of being killed

a white reporter accuses Malcolm X of being unable to be objective about racism because the KKK burned down his family house and killed his father. Malcolm calmly puts that depraved scumbag in his place

Malcolm X's brilliant analysis of the betrayal of solidarity among oppressed groups, where he ties it to the class and economic dimension of it: "They never wanted their master's property threatened and were more defensive of it than the master was."

the final part of that speech shows Malcolm X in all his genius. It's why people flocked to hear him speak and why the FBI and political elites were so desperate to kill him. With humor and intellect and boundless charisma Malcolm roused people's spirits and called them to action

another example of Malcolm's ability to inspire and stir people to action. A desperate activist laments that everything is hopeless because elites are too powerful and there are too few to oppose them. Malcolm X: "Never let your enemy tell you how many of you there are."

a reporter asks Malcolm X if he hates white people. Malcolm's response leaves him speechless

Malcolm X on black celebrities who are promoted as leaders of the black community by white elites to control and subdue them

Malcolm X: "Who taught you to hate the color of your skin to such extent that you bleach to get like the white man?"

in 1964, just three months before he was assassinated, Malcolm X was invited to debate at the Oxford Union. Having no formal education, he easily defeated his opponents on the question of whether extremism in defense of liberty is justified. Here is the conclusion to his talk:

"The most disrespected person in America is the black woman." Malcolm X

Malcolm X on the necessity of declaring war on violent racists, using revolutionary violence as a form of self-defense

thread on Malcolm X's historic meeting with Fidel Castro, which helped bring together the liberation struggles in the US and Cuba. When the Cuban delegation was thrown out of their hotel, Malcolm arranged an alternative location in Harlem:

Malcolm's famous "the chickens coming home to roost" speech, given in the wake of JFK's assassination and leading to his first major conflict with the Nation of Islam leader who thought it was too radical

as John Brown was vilified by white historians as a mad man, Malcolm X saw him as what he actually was: one of the few sane white men of his era, who saw the evil of slavery and decided to devote his life to destroying it by any means necessary

a reporter asks Malcolm X if he would encourage black people to fight for America against Russia or China in case of war. Malcolm: "I would never fight for America."