The Day the Music Died: Malcolm X's Assassination

[American Dream]

http://www.blackagendareport.com/index. ... 7&Itemid=1

The Day the Music Died: Malcolm X's Assassination
Wednesday, 25 February 2009
by Roland Sheppard

"When I looked up, I saw Malcolm X standing up and glaring down at
one of his assassins. At that point, from the corner of my eye,
nearby to my left, I saw a flash from a gun as I watched Malcolm X
fall down and back about ten feet."

An earlier edited version of this article appeared in the San
Francisco BayView National Black Newspaper.

"It was the saddest day of my life."

In the afternoon, on January 21, 1965, I went to the Audubon Ballroom
to hear Malcolm X speak. I also went to sell the newspaper, The
Militant, a radical newspaper, which at that time, printed the truth
about Malcolm X, his speeches, and publicly defended him.

When I got to the Ballroom, things were radically different -- there
were no cops. (Normally Malcolm's meetings in Harlem were crawling
with cops.) As I was selling papers, Malcolm X approached the Audubon
Ballroom, I offered to sell him the latest issue, but he told
me, "not today Roland, I am alone and in a hurry."

A while later, as I entered the meeting room I again did not see any
cops. I went in to sit down, where I normally sat along with the rest
of the press in the front and the left side of the room. On the way
to my seat, Gene Roberts, who later surfaced as a police agent member
of the Black Panther Party, told me that I could not sit at my
regular place, but on that day I had to sit in the front row on the
right side of the hall, facing the stage.

As I sat down, I glanced over, to where I normally sat, and saw a
large Black man, with a Navy Blue-gray trench coat. When the meeting
started all was quiet, as the crowd listened to Benjamin X
introducing Malcolm X.

When Malcolm approached the podium, he gave the normal Muslim
greeting for peace, at that point a disturbance occurred in the room.
Two men were standing about halfway back in the room and to the right
of the Malcolm on stage. One was shouting "Get your hand out of my
pocket." Malcolm was trying to calm things down, when the men, one
later identified as Talmadge Hayer, started running down the aisle
shouting and firing a pistol at Malcolm and ran out the exit doors by
the stage, to the right of Malcolm X.

"I saw a flash from a gun as I watched Malcolm X fall down and back
about ten feet."

Suddenly I heard gunshots fired from all over the place, and I
instinctively hit the floor. When I looked up, I saw Malcolm X
standing up and glaring down at one of his assassins. At that point,
from the corner of my eye, nearby to my left, I saw a flash from a
gun as I watched Malcolm X fall down and back about ten feet. In that
instant, when Malcolm died before my eyes, I suddenly realized how
big he was and I realized that he was a giant in stature, in the
world. This vision of Malcolm X, being assassinated, has haunted me
till this day. (The fatal blast, which I later found out to be from a
shotgun, came from the area where I had seen the large Black man,
with a Navy Blue-gray trench coat!)

When I left the hall, Malcolm's bodyguards told me that they had
caught two of the assassins, one who was shot (Talmadge Hayer) and
one whom the police took away.

A few weeks later, when I was questioned in the Harlem Police
station, I was shown a series of photos of people whom I recognized
as members of the Nation of Islam or Malcolm's organization. I also
saw a picture of the large Black man, with a Navy Blue-gray trench
coat, that I had seen at the Audubon Ballroom. I was thinking of how
to respond to the cops and how to say that I did not recognize the
photos of Malcolm's friends and supporters and the members of the
Nation of Islam.

I then told the cops that I had to go to the rest room. When I got to
the men's room door, I saw the same large Black man, coming out of
the men's room, that I had seen in the Audubon Ballroom and in the
photos that were just shown to me. Then he walked by me, he walked
past the desks of the secretary pool, and went to his office inside
the police station! At that point I knew that he and the government
either killed Malcolm X or were part of the assassination plot. I
became very nervous thinking about what I was going to say to the
cops when I got back and how I was going to get out of the station
alive. I then came up with, "I can not recognize anyone, for all
Black people look the same." The cops nodded in agreement and I was
then allowed to leave the police station.

"At that point I knew that he and the government either killed
Malcolm X or were part of the assassination plot."

Malcolm X was my one of my heroes. He was the most honest mass leader
that I have ever known or seen. He was a great orator and his
speeches seemed like a conversation between himself and the audience.
His speeches were like music to my ear and have inspired me for the
rest of my life in the fight for social justice.

He was so human in his orations, I still remember him when made the
Harlem 'Hate Gang' Scare speech at The Militant Labor Forum, on May
29, 1964 and other speeches when he chuckled a 'heh heh' when he was
about to make a special comment. At that Forum he said: "It's
impossible for a chicken to produce a duck egg... The system of this
country cannot produce freedom for an Afro-American. It is impossible
for this system, this economic system, this political system, this
social system, this system period. It is impossible for it , as it
now stands, to produce freedom right now for the Black man in this
country - it is impossible. And if ever a chicken did produce a duck
egg, (heh heh) I'm certain you would say it was certainly a
revolutionary chicken. (heh heh)"

Both he and Martin Luther King had come to similar positions about
capitalism and the Vietnam War at the time of their death. That is
why this government assassinated them. No one has followed in their
footsteps. From the point of view of this government, the world
leader in political assassinations, the two assassinations worked.
For to this day, no mass leader has had the courage to pick up where
they left off. They were able to silence the art, science, and
truth, of these two great orators. To me, February 21st is "The day
the Music Died." It was the saddest day of my life.



Roland Sheppard is a writer and activist and former BA of the
Painters Union in San Francisco. Visit his website,
http://web.mac.com/rolandgarret.

[MinM]

Moved for the sake of clarity...

viewtopic.php?p=393724#p393724

Most people who read the autobiography perceive the narrative as a story that now millions of people know, and it was—it’s a story of human transformation, the powerful epiphany, Malcolm’s journey to Mecca, his renunciation of the Nation of Islam’s racial separatism, his embrace of universal humanity, of humanism that was articulated through Sunni Islam. Well, that’s the story everybody knows. But there’s a hidden history. You see, Malcolm and Haley collaborated to produce a magnificent narrative about the life of Malcolm X, but the two men had very different motives in coming together. Malcolm did—what Malcolm did not know is that back in 1962, a collaborator of Alex Haley, fellow named—a journalist named Alfred Balk had approached the FBI regarding an article that he and Haley were writing together for the Saturday Evening Post, and the FBI had an interest in castigating the Nation of Islam and isolating it from the mainstream of Negro civil rights activity. And so, consequently, a deal was struck between Balk, Haley and the FBI that the FBI provided information to Balk and Haley in the construction of their article, and Balk was—Balk was really the interlocutor between the FBI and the two writers in putting a spin on the article. The FBI was very happy with the article they produced, which was entitled "The Black Merchants of Hate," that came out in early ’63. What’s significant about that piece is that that became the template for what evolved into the basic narrative structure of The Autobiography of Malcolm X. [...]

I believe that if we could see the chapters that are missing from the book, we would gain an understanding as to why, perhaps—perhaps—the FBI, the CIA, the New York Police Department and others in law enforcement greatly feared what Malcolm X was about, because he was trying to build a broad—an unprecedented black coalition across the lines of black nationalism and integration...

So one of the riddles that I’m trying to solve in the autobiography is, why did Malcolm permit the context of the absence of security to occur on that particular day, especially at a time when the NYPD, the New York Police Department, and the FBI clearly set into motion decisions that facilitated the assassination on that day? [...]

http://www.democracynow.org/2011/4/4/af ... rable_dies

http://www.npr.org/2011/04/07/135211959 ... -malcolm-x

viewtopic.php?f=8&t=23011

[8bitagent]

So one of the riddles that I’m trying to solve in the autobiography is, why did Malcolm permit the context of the absence of security to occur on that particular day, especially at a time when the NYPD, the New York Police Department, and the FBI clearly set into motion decisions that facilitated the assassination on that day?

Have you ever seen the film Belly? It's one of my all time favorite movies, absolutely visionary in its look and feel. But basically near the end, one of the main protagonists(a killer street hustler drug dealer)
is conscripted by the CIA to assassinate a popular black speaker. But he knows this, and asks his guards to leave the room and go somewhere else, and accepts his fate...but not before giving a short talk to the would be assassin.

Interesting how so much of this stuff comes out eventually. The civil rights slayings of Viola Luizman(hell an FBI informant was in the Klan car that killed her), as well as Fred Hampton. MLK of course(directed to the Lorrain motel when he was suppose to be at another hotel) With MX, John Ali was a known fbi informant and provocateur. And sadly, it would not shock me if Farrakhan himself was under the control of the FBI. We know a number of so called black civil rights leaders were sellouts and some were even informants

[MinM]

So one of the riddles that I’m trying to solve in the autobiography is, why did Malcolm permit the context of the absence of security to occur on that particular day, especially at a time when the NYPD, the New York Police Department, and the FBI clearly set into motion decisions that facilitated the assassination on that day?

Have you ever seen the film Belly? It's one of my all time favorite movies, absolutely visionary in its look and feel. But basically near the end, one of the main protagonists(a killer street hustler drug dealer)
is conscripted by the CIA to assassinate a popular black speaker. But he knows this, and asks his guards to leave the room and go somewhere else, and accepts his fate...but not before giving a short talk to the would be assassin.

Interesting how so much of this stuff comes out eventually. The civil rights slayings of Viola Luizman(hell an FBI informant was in the Klan car that killed her), as well as Fred Hampton. MLK of course(directed to the Lorrain motel when he was suppose to be at another hotel) With MX, John Ali was a known fbi informant and provocateur. And sadly, it would not shock me if Farrakhan himself was under the control of the FBI. We know a number of so called black civil rights leaders were sellouts and some were even informants

Theatrical release poster
Directed by Hype Williams
Produced by Larry Meistrich
Ron Rotholz
Robert Salerno
Hype Williams
Written by Hype Williams
Story by Nas
Anthony Bodden
Hype Williams
Starring Nas
DMX
Taral Hicks
Tionne "T-Boz" Watkins
Method Man
Hassan Johnson
Louie Rankin
Music by Stephen Cullo
Cinematography Malik Hassan Sayeed
Distributed by Artisan Entertainment
Release date(s) November 4, 1998 (USA)
Running time White Edition: 96 min.
Black Edition: 106 min.
Country United States
Language English
Budget $10,000,000

[8bitagent]

Justice Dept. rejects new look at Malcolm X killing
Statute of limitations expired on federal laws that might apply, officials say

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/43868466/ns ... ork_times/

The Justice Department has declined a request to reinvestigate the Malcolm X assassination, saying that the statute of limitations has expired on any federal laws that might apply, like the National Firearms Act of 1934, according to a statement released Saturday.

Historians have long viewed the assassination as unsolved, as The Times reported Saturday. Several experts have argued that the Justice Department could take up the case under the Emmett Till Unsolved Civil Rights Crime Act of 2007, but the department, without elaborating, said the crime did not fit the parameters of that act.

Alvin Sykes, an advocate for justice in civil rights-era cold cases, has suggested that the department has the discretion to investigate even if no prosecution is possible, an authority that has been used in the past to examine the assassinations of John F. Kennedy and the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. But Malcolm X, the department said, does not rate similar treatment.

"Although the Justice Department recognizes that the murder of Malcolm X was a tragedy, both for his family and for the community he served, we have determined that at this time, the matter does not implicate federal interests sufficient to necessitate the use of scarce federal investigative resources into a matter for which there can be no federal criminal prosecution," the department said.

Mr. Sykes said he planned to appeal to President Obama, Congress and local law enforcement agencies to pursue the case.

This story, "Justice Department Declines to Reopen Malcolm X Case," first appeared in The New York Times.

[Laodicean]

^ That music is still alive to me. How about you?

[StarmanSkye]

Passing thought on watching the malcolm X debate: I wonder if one of the biggest 'lessons' the US Inc. deep-state MIC learned from their assassinations of JFK, RFK, MLK, Malcolm X was in the far-greater efficiency and practicality in controlling or otherwise eliminating popular, charismatic anti-fascist leaders and other activists/organizers BEFORE they achieved a high degree of notoriety, high profile attention in the popular media and popular support in challenging the status-quo, and in rallying resistance and opposition; To wit: HOW MANY hundreds or thousands of rising social-justice advocates have they confounded, delegitimized, disarmed or silenced by a variety of means, from causing scandals and legal problems, to rendering homeless and unemployable/penniless, to bribing or threatening into silence, to outright disappearing or killing?

[JackRiddler]

Passing thought on watching the malcolm X debate: I wonder if one of the biggest 'lessons' the US Inc. deep-state MIC learned from their assassinations of JFK, RFK, MLK, Malcolm X was in the far-greater efficiency and practicality in controlling or otherwise eliminating popular, charismatic anti-fascist leaders and other activists/organizers BEFORE they achieved a high degree of notoriety, high profile attention in the popular media and popular support in challenging the status-quo, and in rallying resistance and opposition; To wit: HOW MANY hundreds or thousands of rising social-justice advocates have they confounded, delegitimized, disarmed or silenced by a variety of means, from causing scandals and legal problems, to rendering homeless and unemployable/penniless, to bribing or threatening into silence, to outright disappearing or killing?

I think you're on to something, Starman, though you shouldn't underestimate the impact the 60s assassinations had in demobilizing and discouraging the movements of that time. You get too far, your leaders are killed and for those of you who are not blind to the state's role, there will be no justice for it. You can spend your days researching assassinations, rather than working for social justice. I see 1968 as the year genuine liberalism in the FDR tradition was murdered or rather decapitated, with the body busy dying ever since. One amazing thing is that Hoover had the goods on the sex lives of the Kennedys and King. With the Kennedys, this was used to blackmail for his own protection, but with King, to harrass him (he was sent a surveillance tape of his own conversations). Of course in the present, post-Clinton day, this stuff would have been leaked to the media, and the media would rush to outdo each other into turning it into a tawdry 24-hour spectacle. MLK's voice would have been drowned out that way. I see a byegone repressed morality at work, wherein assassination could be contemplated but airing a sex scandal in public was considered somehow dishonorable.

I think after the decapitations of the 1960s, what we've seen since is largely a process of making examples and providing constant distractions with personal scandals. Although assassinations have hardly gone away, but the preferred mode seems to be suiciding and accidenting, with the usual targets being whistleblowers or example-preventative killings (as seems to be the case with Wellstone, who for all the good he did was not necessarily going to lead the political uprising against the Bush regime).

.

[MinM]

FBI arrests Malcolm X's grandson as he travels to Iran
By Eric Morales * Feb 4, 2013

The activists grandson has reportedly been arrested by the FBI while traveling to a conference, his whereabouts are currently unknown.

The FBI has apparently arrested the grandson of controversial civil rights leader, and former representative of the Nation of Islam, Malcolm X according to reports from Press TV. Malcolm Lateef Shabazz is 29-years-old and was born in Paris to Malcolm X's second daughter Qubilah. According to MEHR News Malcolm Shabazz was arrested while traveling to Tehran for the Hollywoodism International Conference. No reason was given for the arrest, and Shabazz's current location is unknown.

The arrest coincides with Lifetimes airing of "Betty & Coretta" a dramatization of the relationship between Betty Shabazz, Malcolm's grandmother, and Coretta Scott King the widow of the legendary civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr. The film stars Mary J. Blige and Angela Bassett.

February 21st also marks the 48th anniversary of the 1965 assassination of Malcolm X in New York City. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated only three years later, both men were only 39-years-old when they were murdered.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10022317108

http://www.globalresearch.ca/fbi-arrest ... an/5321704

[Nordic]

[seemslikeadream]

Lost-Found ‘Negro’: Never-Before-Seen Chapter From Autobiography of Malcolm X Open to the Public

Angela Helm
Saturday 1:40pm


Malcolm X, Muslim leader, addresses a rally in Harlem in New York City on June 29, 1963.
Photo: AP Photo
When I was growing up, The Autobiography of Malcolm X was like manna; it was part of my introduction to “black consciousness,” at least from a proto-nationalist, the-black-man-is-god perspective. Malcolm was larger than life, especially for us inner-city girls who were as well versed on Surahs as Psalms; his words our Sunday sermon, his persona splashed across neverscared posters and baseball caps, his voice ringing from rap records and once a Spike Lee flick. Let’s just say you’d be hard-pressed to name another man more influential in both the black literary canon and pop culture in the 20th Century.

He occupies a space in our lives that is sacred, no doubt due to his diamond-hard brilliance and unshackled love for his kin. There was very little sugar coating it with Brother Malcolm; his oratory was masterful, his relatability his zakat. But perhaps his greatest gift was his fiery fluency in “make it plain” so that all black people—low country, low down, evolved, eccentric—could follow the output of his keen mind. Malcolm came from the muck, but emerged as a demigod (the excuse they used to kill him); this man of the people; this unapologetic sexist (who may have kissed a boy); this white man denouncer; this truth-teller; this shining black prince betrayed and murdered by his own.

And even though the dichotomous comparison to Martin King is facile at best, Malcolm did represent the impoverished kid from the dirt who went to prison—where so many black men who came after him found themselves—and eschewed reconciliation for jihad. He bathed in the amniotic fluid of lynch and a mentally ill mother to emerge as a bonafide star. And he did this all without a doctorate, fraternity affiliation or middle-class respectability.

In July, when the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture announced the acquisition of an unpublished chapter from The Autobiography — in addition to never-before-seen manuscripts and notes, written in Malcolm’s hand—many were more than excited. (I know I cried over glass when I saw James Baldwin’s papers on display last April.)


Screenshot: Courtesy Schomburg Center
Malcolm’s works were previously held by a private collector, who acquired them at a sale of co-author Alex Haley’s estate in 1992. The papers, incredibly housed on Malcolm X Boulevard in Harlem, display a back-and-forth written dialogue between Malcolm X and Haley on everything from diction to timing and tone, as well as written fragments in text showing Malcolm X’s reworking of key passages from the final pages of his autobiography, and a never-before-seen chapter from The Autobiography — titled “The Negro” — believed to be dropped after Malcolm’s untimely death on Feb. 21, 1965.

“The Negro” definitely has a different feel from the final book or the manuscript in progress, more sermon than story,” says Kevin Young, director of the Schomburg, to The Root. “It has the tenor of one of Malcolm X’s speeches at the time, addressing, and sometimes damning, the place of African Americans in history and America. His criticism I see as a form of love, emphasizing self-reliance and self-determination. The “lost” chapter also shows not just Malcolm’s writing in earlier form, but the changes he underwent between the chapter and what was the last year of his life, and his embrace of a pan-African and international perspective on Islam and the struggle for civil rights.”

Young explained that sharing this part of African American history is “extremely significant” for providing us yet another piece of Malcolm’s life.

“The Autobiography of Malcolm X is a monumental work. To actually see how that book took shape through Malcolm X’s handwritten corrections and notes is very powerful. Additionally, the omitted chapter, believed to be removed after Malcolm X’s death, places the work in a new context and provides an understanding as to why it was excluded from the book in the first place. The possibilities for new revelations are nearly endless, and we are so proud that the Schomburg Center can bring this material to light for the first time.”

Finally, Young explained that he expects not only scholars but the general public to view this historical offering.

“Scholars of Malcolm and Haley will certainly be interested in seeing the manuscripts and I suspect we’ll have many members of the public coming to see them while they are on display,” he said. “Those who are interested in seeing what the process of writing this landmark book may have been, fans of Malcolm X and Haley, and others with a love for or interest in this history will certainly come. But, the value of the manuscripts being held at the Schomburg Center is that they are open and accessible to any member of the public for research with a free, New York Public Library card. We invite everyone who has an interest to become a researcher in their own right, to have a chance to read the manuscript and the lost chapter, and to discover more of Malcolm on their own.”
https://www.theroot.com/lost-found-negr ... 1830200153