February 1965: Bullet holes in back of stage where Malcom X was shot.

Earlier this month, a Brown University student uncovered a lost Malcolm X speech in the university archives, reintroducing the internet feeds to one of the most courageous Civil Rights leaders in U.S. history. While February 21st marks the 47 years since Malcolm X’s death, it is surprising how a number of his speeches are still relevant to our current conditions. Because of Malcolm X’s monumental impact in U.S. history, these are the five Malcolm X speeches you absolutely must know.

Photo Credits: Wikimedia Commons 

The Ballot or the Bullet

April 12, 1964

Detroit, MI

This speech is a nod to the work of Frederick Douglass, who wrote an essay under the same title 100 years prior to Malcolm X’s version. The growing power of the Ku Klux Klan and their links to government bodies forced this speech to expose racist state power in the mid-1960s.

This key speech urged community members to vote as a means to achieve legislative victories for the Arican American community. Jim Crow laws were still in effect, and various loopholes were created to limit the number of registered African American voters nationally, and maintain the status quo.  Therefore, this speech was crucial to encouraging voter registration amongst African Americans, and worked in tandem with other efforts, like the work of the Freedom Summer of 1964.  

Oxford University Union Debate

December 3, 1964

Oxford University, England

In December 1964, Malcolm X participated in a classic debate at Oxford University’s Oxford Union. This was the first time the debates were made accessible to the public. At this time, Malcolm X was already the leading voice in the Black revolutionary movement, was already monitored by government agencies, and left the Nation of Islam. Despite various attempts to isolate him for the African American community, this was also the point were his influence and actions were becoming more global. In this debate, Malcolm X makes the case for “intelligent extremism” as a response to the racist conditions experienced by African Americans in the supposed democracy of the U.S. 

“You’re living at a time of extremism, a time of revolution, a time when there’s got to be a change. People in power have misused it, and now there has to be a change and a better world has to be built and the only way it’s going to be built is with extreme methods. And I for one will join in with anyone, I don’t care what color you are, as long as you want to change this miserable condition that exists on this earth."

Malcolm X. Oxford Union Debate, Dec. 3 1964 from Jason Patterson on Vimeo.

By Any Means Necessary

December 13, 1964

Audubon Ballroom, New York City

This is a call to action that urged communities of African descent to self-organize and advocate for themselves. Malcolm X saw injustice and oppression faced by African Americans as a manifestation of the denial of basic human rights. Other than this speech being quite inspirational, what is also fantastic about this clip is you hear how Malcolm X was able to both mobilize the community, yet remains a relatable figure to his audience. He peppers punchlines amidst his delivery, which gives room to chuckles from the crowd amidst his serious demands.

“We declare our right on this earth to be a man, to be a human being, to be respected as a human being, to be given the rights of a human being in this society, on this earth, in this day, which we intend to bring into existence by any means necessary.”

The Murder of Ronald Stokes - Los Angeles Police Brutality Speech

April 1962

At this time, Malcolm X was still the spokesperson for the Nation of Islam.  This speech was a response to the police shooting which killed seven unarmed Muslim men, and the death of Ronald Stokes is a point of focus.  After the incident, the Los Angeles newspapers falsely reported the killings as justified, and did not hold the LAPD accountable for the shooting. This speech asks that the community seek justice for the victims, and ensure the LAPD is investigated by higher authorities.

This clip is still quite relevant due to the targeted police brutality experienced by people of color and activists that have occurred in recent years. The deaths of Amadou Diallo, Oscar Grant, Sean Bell, and the brutality experienced by protestors during various Occupy Wall Street actions throughout the country are examples that come to mind.

“We are not brutalized because we are Baptists. We are not brutalized because we are Methodists. We are not brutalized because we are Muslim. We’re not brutalized because we are Catholic. We are brutalized because we are Black people in America.”

Message to the Grassroots

November 10, 1963, delivered at the Northern Grass Roots Leadership Conference

Detroit, Mi

This is one of the speeches that ranks as one of the top 100 American speeches of the 20^th century. Malcolm X unites the African American community by emphasizing the common injustices they all face the racist America of the mid-1960s. The ideas in this speech helped push the revolution needed in the African-American community to counter racist white power. This was one of the last speeches Malcolm X delivered as a member of the Nation of Islam. “Message to the Grass Roots” was one of the most political speeches Malcolm X made up to that point, and would foreshadow his break from the Nation of Islam, since the bulk of this speech espoused ideas that were beyond the institution's teachings.

“What you and I need to do is learn to forget our differences. When we come together, we don't come together as Baptists or Methodists. You don't catch hell because you're a Baptist, and you don't catch hell because you're a Methodist. You don't catch hell 'cause you're a Methodist or Baptist. You don't catch hell because you're a Democrat or a Republican. You don't catch hell because you're a Mason or an Elk, and you sure don't catch hell because you're an American; because if you were an American, you wouldn't catch hell. You catch hell because you're a black man. You catch hell, all of us catch hell, for the same reason.”