Different Paths: King, Malcolm X and Black Power

The civil rights movement was never united on methods or goals. Martin Luther King Jr. advocated nonviolent direct action and integration, appealing to American and Christian ideals. Malcolm X, a leading minister of the Nation of Islam until 1964, criticized nonviolence in the face of violent attacks, emphasized Black pride and self-defence, and was sceptical that white America would grant equality.

After leaving the Nation of Islam and making the pilgrimage to Mecca in 1964, he spoke more of human rights and international solidarity, before he was assassinated in February 1965. In 1966 SNCC leader Stokely Carmichael popularized the slogan 'Black Power', calling for political and economic self-determination; the Black Panther Party, founded that year in Oakland, combined armed self-defence patrols with community programs such as free breakfasts.

Supporters saw Black Power as restoring dignity and independence; critics, including some civil rights leaders, feared it would alienate allies. Studying these debates shows that movements contain competing strategies.