Why Malcolm X and Dr. Kings united front never materialized according to cones work
According to Cones, there existed philosophical differences between Malcolm X and Martin Luther. Martin Luther was born in Georgia, and his father was a respected Baptist minister. He was brought up in a segregated but prosperous neighborhood (Cone, 2012). His father taught them to be hardworking, as he also taught them the word of God. He had exemplary leadership skills, which triggered civil rights movements national wide in 1963. This led to the formation of civil rights acts of 1964 and the voting rights Act of 1965. He earned a Nobel peace prize because he advocated for peace and not violence.
On the other hand, Malcolm X was born in Omaha in 1925. His father was a Baptist minister. Their family was subjected to violence by members of the white supremacist. Whites did not agree with the fact that his father, in partnership with Marcus Garvey, used to organize for African movements (Cone, 2012). The white supremacist later killed their farther. Malcolm X joined his sister in Massachusetts, where he became a criminal. He was involved in breaking in and peddling dope. He was jailed for ten years because of his acts of crime.
Both Martin Luther and Malcolm x had a different upbringing, and this has contributed to their philosophical differences. According to Cones, this was the most popular African American Leaders. Bothe had been victims of assassinations. King was looking forward to the day Americans and Africans would treat each other like brothers, while Malcolm X wanted African-Americans to have control over their own lives (Cone, 2012). They also had different ideas on the use of violence to achieve their intended goals while they also differed on the role the whites played in the civil rights movement. Malcolm X converted to a Muslim and did not believe in Christianity, as was Martin Luther.
The differences of martin Luther ideas and those of Malcolm X and Why most Africans and Americans responded to the ideas of Martin Luther rather than those of Malcolm X according to Cones work
The history of African Americans is filled with struggle, inequity, and oppression. The United States of America is a country that promotes freedom and equality. However, it has built by blood and sweat by Africans who were sold as slaves (Cone, 2012). Blacks were viewed to be less than human beings, thus regarded as inferior to white people. In the 1950s and 1960s, most of the black people became tired of the mistreatments and decided to make something difference; thus, they started the civil rights movement. The civil rights movement was pioneered by Malcolm X and Dr. Martin Luther. They all wanted to see African Americans being treated fairly and considered as equal human beings. However, they had different ideas on how each one of them was to go about it (Cone, 2012). Martin Luther was a staunch Christian who believed in brotherhood. Thus, he was looking forward to the day blacks and whites were to treat each other as brothers. He also never believed in the use of violence to attain his goals. He can be said to be moderate. However, this was not the case for Malcolm X. Malcolm, who had converted to a Muslim, believed in the use of violence. He called on the black community to protect themselves from the white people by all means. His highest goal was to ensure that Africans gained freedom over the white.
According to Cone’s work, it was easy to incorporate Martin Luther’s ideas in society rather than those of Malcolm X because they promoted peace, equality, and brotherhood (Cone, 2012). They can also be thought to be realistic. However, Malcolm X ideas seemed to promote violence, at a point when the whole society was looking forward to peace and equality (Cone, 2012).
Reference
Cone, J. H. (2012). Martin & Malcolm & America: A dream or a nightmare?.