A Brief History
On February 21, 1965, former Nation of Islam officer and African American nationalist, Malcom X, was gunned down prior to making a speech at the Audubon Ballroom in New York City.
Digging Deeper
Malcom had a falling out with the NOI and had received threats and warnings of imminent assassination. While one assailant blasted Malcom with a shotgun to the chest, 2 more gunmen fired multiple shots from semi-automatic handguns, hitting him with 21 bullets and 10 shotgun pellets.
Malcom X was killed, and one of his murderers was beaten and captured by the audience, while the other 2 escaped, but were identified by witnesses. All 3 gunmen were members of the Nation of Islam and were convicted of the murder, though 2 of them were later exonerated in 2021.
A high-profile murder, much conspiracy theory and speculation has followed, with allegations of the involvement of the CIA, the FBI, Louis Farrakhan, Elijah Muhammad himself, and the New York PD. Muhammad claimed Malcom X “Got what he deserved.”
Who was really responsible for the murder of Malcom X?
Question for students (and subscribers): Of the JFK, MLK, and Malcom X murders, which one do you believe has the conspiracy theories that just may be true? Please let us know in the comments section below this article.
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Historical Evidence
For more information, please see…
Malcom X. By Any Means Necessary. Pathfinder Press, 1992.
Payne, Les, and Tamara Payne. The Dead Are Arising: The Life of Malcolm X. Liveright, 2021.
The featured image in this article, an image from the FBI monograph of the Nation of Islam (1965), is a work of a Federal Bureau of Investigation employee, taken or made as part of that person’s official duties. As a work of the U.S. federal government, the image is in the public domain in the United States.
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