The Ballot or The Bullet speech by Malcolm X is considered to be one of the the most important of the 20th century, and even American History. This Speech given in 1964, an election year, is one where Malcolm X calls out and speaks on many issues regarding African Americans and America, like Self Defense, the Government,and Civil Rights. Overall, Malcolm X’s speech is very straightforward, and as you could tell by the title, The Ballot or The Bullet, he “tells it like it is” throughout. Although at first he tries to be somewhat warm and relatable, using the words we and us, his bluntness quickly takes over as he starts speaking about the condition of African Americans:
“It’s time for us to submerge our differences and realize that it is best for us to first see that we have the same problem, a common problem, we’re all in the same boat and we all are going to catch the same hell from the same man. He just happens to be a white man.”
The speech tackles the topic of the relationship between African Americans and the Government at that time,with Malcolm X stating that African Americans have done so much for so little in return, saying:
” Not only did we give of our free labor, we gave of our blood. Every time he had a call to arms, we were the first ones in uniform. We died on every battlefield the white man had. We have made a greater sacrifice than anybody who’s standing up in America today.”
He takes time to advise African Americans as well, making them aware of the importance of their vote. Malcolm X implies that they need to be more careful and more politically aware because, African Americans, by sticking together and being politically present, could possibly change the landscape of American politics. He criticizes Washington as well, saying that things aren’t as they appear,and that the government cannot be trusted. He adds that the Democrats, a party that African Americans religiously back , is duping them,with Northern Democrats and Southern Democrats (Dixiecrats, segregationists) working together. He repeats the words Democrats and Dixie around the same number of times here, maybe to insist on the fact that they are similar.
“That’s camouflage, that’s trickery, that’s treachery, window-dressing. I’m not trying to knock out the Democrats for the Republicans. We’ll get to them in a minute. But it is true; you put the Democrats first and the Democrats put you last.”
The Skepticism displayed towards the government in this speech is what leads Malcolm X to say the Ballot or the Bullet, stressing on the importance of African American Political awareness and their ability to rise up to gain their voice either violently or non violently. The skepticism displayed in the text can also be seen in the article from the New York Times titled “Young Blacks Voice Skepticism on Hillary Clinton, Worrying Democrats “, published in September 2016. In this Article the same concerns that were brought up by Malcolm X are brought up by the African American youth. With the youth asking questions like, Can we trust them? What have they done? and What will they do for our cause? It is said in the article:
“They are demanding more from politicians as part of a new confrontational wave of black activism that has arisen in response to police killings of unarmed African Americans.[…]because the conversation that younger black voters are having is no longer one about settling on a candidate who is better than the alternative.”
This quote from the Newspaper is a modern translation of Malcolm X’s which, again, emphasizes the importance of African American votes, and political awareness.
“A ballot is like a bullet. You don’t throw your ballots until you see a target, and if that target is not within your reach, keep your ballot in your pocket.”
This could lead to 2 questions. First, Has Malcolm X’s influence led the African American Community to be more Politically Aware now? And Does the government agenda that he mentioned in his text still exist nowadays?