You better not X with the X

“You’ll get freedom by letting your enemy know that you’ll do anything to get your freedom; then you’ll get it. It’s the only way you’ll get it. When you get that kind of attitude , they’ll label you as a “crazy Negro,” or they’ll call you a”crazy nigger”-they don’t say Negro. Or they’ll call you an extremist or a subversive, or seditious, or a red or a radical. But when you stay radical long neigh and get enough people to be like you, you’ll get your freedom.” (461)

Malcolm X believed in a different way of attaining equality. Passive resistance was a pipe dream that the white man would not respect. The Black Panthers showed intimidation with their guns and call for self-defense. The March on Washington was artificially made by whites. Government leaders were scared of the march and endorsed the march. “They controlled it so tight, they told those Negroes what time to hit town, where to stop, what signs to carry, what song to sing, what speech they could make, and what speech they couldn’t make, and then told them to get of town by sundown…”Post March on Washington,  there was a continuation of bombings and lack of civil rights improvements. An alternative action and route must’ve been taken. When a black church is bombed, African Americans are not thinking of showing passive resistance but are filled up with rage they wish to release. Howard Zinn is puts emphasis on the different forms of protesting and shows the response it received. Zinn understands the rough edginess of Malcolm X being that passive resistance wasn’t very impactful.