[to be graded #2] malcolm x post 7.

the field trip to harlem, ny to visit places that malcolm visited was extremely interesting and touching. we drove into harlem and met our tour guides, Neal Shoemaker and Andi Owens, who gave us a brief background of malcolm's life, and the area of harlem. then we got off the bus and walked around a little, and saw different monuments and buildings where malcolm had walked or visited. we also saw a hotel where fidel castro and others of high importance once stayed. one my my favorite parts of the trip was visiting the Schombeurg Center for Research in Black Culture. it had exhibits of different moments in african american history, and had a great layout of events from Barack Obama's campaign tour. when we were upstairs, there was a group of younger african american children who were also on a field trip. i saw them while we were watching a quick movie of Obama, and i couldn't help but overhear them talking with their teacher. she was asking them if they knew about  Shirley Chisholm, who had been the first african american woman to run for president in 1972. i was astonished to hear these young kids know who she was talking about, and be able to tell her events that this woman witnessed. it proved to me how much culture there was in harlem and in events like the election of an african american president, were even more meaningful to people who never thought it could happen. this part of the tour was one of my favorites because throughout the entire election, my mom and i followed all the campaigning and speeches. every day, whether it was breakfast, dinner, or right after school, the tv in my kitchen was on MSNBC or any other news station that had events from the trail. even though the trip. being in this museum with the ashes of Langston Hughes buried underneath one of his poems in the ground. 

another one 

the Masjid Malcolm Shabazz Mosque was a part of the trip that i felt the most connected to. although i am not a muslim, i thought it was really interesting because i had never been in a mosque before. the man who met us in the mosque was referred to as a brother, and he even called us his "family." (we were referred to as brothers, sisters, and a big family multiple times during the day. i thought it was really nice and showed the hospitality, in the sense that these people don't care who you are, where you are from, or what you look like, they treat you the same as one of their actual family members). anyway, in this mosque, the brother taught us a little about why the interior of the mosque was decorated as it was. for example, no mosques are allowed to having any pictures or drawings on the walls, because it is impossible to depict G-d. we learned that if one person drew a picture of G-d, then everyone who thought they resembled the picture would think they were of a "higher" power, and everyone who didn't look like the depiction would not be as special. this was interesting to me, because in the jewish religion, you are not supposed to depict G-d or write any of G-d's names on a paper that could be thrown away. i realized that as different as many religions are, there are certain bonds that you can find which link their main thoughts together. this brought me to wonder about how important it is to learn about other religions. this article taught me that studying other religions can even make you more secure in what you believe in, because it shows you everything else that you do not believe in and clarifies it. i am not saying that you should just decide tomorrow to go out and learn about every other religion on the planet. i am trying to show that even my experience in the mosque taught me something new, and helped me understand how malcolm became so devoted to the islamic faith. i also realized that americans are not supposed to throw away american flags, you have to bring it somewhere for them to dispose of it properly, because it is un-American and improper to throw something away that has so much respect. i also remembered that if you are jewish and you drop a prayer book on the floor, you are supposed to kiss the corner to show your respect and almost say sorry for dropping something so sacred. you may think its confusing about how i tied all this together, but i am basically trying to show that my experience to harlem taught me about the culture and all the history that was in the area. it also encouraged me to learn more about different religions and understand the faiths of others. 

[to be graded #1] malcolm x post 6: benefits of reading as a hobby

i will admit that in my earlier posts, i have been very annoyed with the life that Malcolm was living. i did know that eventually he would turn his life around, and head towards a more positive setting, but for the time being, i was left confused about how someone who became so influential, had lived such an illegal and disrupted life before. i did say that i knew malcolm would eventually turn his life around, and the chapters about his life in jail proved that this was true. when malcolm talks about reading and his new hobby, i realized how much finding something that interests you can save your life. 

i felt an instant connection to this idea when malcolm started talking about his new love of reading. he quotes, "Let me tell you something: from then until I left that prison, in every free moment I had, if I was not reading in the library, I was reading on my bunk. You couldn't have gotten me out of books with a wedge" (Haley 176). this idea of being immersed in such a good book that you cannot even put it down, is one of the best feelings. over thanksgiving break, my family and i drove up to buffalo, ny, to visit my grandparents. the entire car ride there, i sat in the dark car, holding a flashlight over The Pact by Jodi Picoult. i would not let anyone turn on the radio and i wouldn't even talk to my family, because all i wanted to do was read this amazing book. 

after reading, i wondered if reading in places like prison could help change a person for the better, so i went online and found a website which helped explain the importance of reading as a hobby.  i read about how reading for pleasure can transform people. you can read for 5 minutes or 50 minutes, and still, with a good book, you can feel yourself stepping into Cinderella's shoes, living in Shakespearean times, or in the courtroom of a book such as The Pact. the article also taught me that reading can mentally calm someone from the fears and dangers of reality.  i know that especially when i am stressed, the two things i turn to are a good book and music. time flies when you are immersed in a hobby, and can give you a feeling of reaching new heights. as malcolm quotes, "In fact, up to then, I never had been so truly free in my life" (Haley 176). 

malcolm x post 5.

"Looking back, I think I really was at least slightly out of my mind. I viewed narcotics as most people regard food. I wore my guns as today I wear my neckties. Deep down, I actually believed that after living as fully as humanly possible, one should then die violently. I expected then, as I still expect today, to die at any time. But then, I think I deliberately invited death in many, sometimes insane, ways" (Haley 141). 

Malcolm is retelling his story in this autobiography, so it is interesting to see how he later realizes that he was crazy. Even though we have not yet reached the end of the book, I think that all of the experiences Malcolm encountered in his life may have shaped him into the individual who made such an impact on the world. In jail, he says that the men in his cell began to call him "Satan," because he was so against any religious beliefs. Many things in Malcolm's life contradict, because when he is still living with his mother, she becomes extremely religious. 

"People are always speculating--why am I as I am? To understand that of any person, his whole life, from birth, must be reviewed. All of our experiences fuse into our personality. Everything that ever happened to us is an ingredient" (Haley 153). 

The above quote backs my idea of all the events in Malcolm's life leading to who he eventually becomes. Currently, Malcolm is in jail, but I think that once he is released, his entire life will be different. His brothers and sisters are visiting him in jail and writing him letters, and teaching him about Allah and Elijah. This marks the beginning of a new Malcolm. He even states that he would later remember these words from his brothers and sisters, and use them in future speeches. 

malcolm x post 4.

"Have you ever been so sure you did something that you never would have thought of it again--unless it was brought up again? Then you start trying to mentally confirm--and you're only about half-sure?" (Haley 131).

     The reading over break brought me even deeper into Malcolm's life. There were many instances throughout the chapters where Malcolm's words shocked me, and I was even angry at how he was living his life. As shown in this quote, Malcolm also starts showing signs of himself turning crazy. Malcolm started robbing houses, gambling more than ever, and working with prostitutes just to earn money. Anyone who saw how Malcolm started out, a young child scared about his mother's condition and his family falling apart, would have to look twice at his life now. 

     I am angered by the fact that someone who ended up having such an impact on America, lived like this before. It's not the idea of Harlem, or even the moving around and coming and going into people's lives. I was seriously surprised to see how much marijuana, cocaine, and alcohol Malcolm consumed. I am hoping to find that as I read more of the story, Malcolm will become a better person. 

malcolm x post 3: movie + in class debate

in class today we had an extremely intense debate about racism and white privileges. i was so aggravated leaving class, and even continued the discussion with jen and jill while walking to gym. the article that we read opened my eyes even more to the idea of the "white privilege." i felt horrible after reading it, because i had never realized that things as small as a band-aid were made in flesh color, which is the color of white skin. things like that amaze me, because i can't imagine my life being on the other side of this circle. i agree with everyone that many people do not realize this sheet of white privilege, but unlike some people who think that if people just didn't think about racism and say it, then it wouldn't be there, i know that of course it would still be there. whoever thinks that having an african american president for the first time isn't that big of a deal is wrong; these people came from living these lives in the 1700-1800s where they were slaves for caucasian landowners, to running the United States of America. these people from minorities have come so far, so it should be recognized all the opportunity that white people may have, but others should receive. i also think that those that have the white privilege should be putting it to good use. we have the opportunity to help so many others who are less fortunate, so we should be using our advantages to help those with disadvantages. i am also shocked to know that there are still people (even classmates) that don't think discrimination is a big deal. it is especially easy for the white men to say this, because look at them. you're caucasian and a male, so your life should be pretty easy compared to others. i can't say that i have been discriminated against in such great detail as people of other races, cultures, and minorities, but i can say that i have experienced it. even being a jewish girl in a primarily christian country makes you face challenges. there are people that make "jew jokes," and there are times when people assume that you are christian because "isn't everyone?" these kinds of blind-spots in people's lives are part of the problem that we saw in the movie from wednesday. if everyone realized that there were so many types of people with different feelings and different needs, i think the whole "white privileges" thing would be reexamined. 

malcolm x post 1.

"These Negroes walked along the sidewalks looking haughty and dignified, on their way to work, to shop, to visit, to church.  I know now, of course, that what I was really seeing was only a big-city version of those "successful" Negro bootblacks and janitors back in Lansing. The only difference was that the ones in Boston had been brainwashed even more thoroughly" (Haley 42). 

This quote from Chapter 3 describes the differences in people that Malcolm finds in Boston. Earlier in the book, he says that the "upper class" Negroes worked as janitors, and in fields that most would not describe as upper class jobs. I thought that it was really interesting to see the differences in people from his hometown, versus Boston.  I had not realized that there were different types of workers within the same class; just as Malcolm said that the people in the ghetto in Boston differed from those in Lansing. I also noticed that Malcolm seems to enjoy staying with his half-sister Ella more than his family. This may be because now he has a stable home with food, money, and protection. 

He also foreshadows later events multiple times during these chapters. For example, Malcolm comments about how beautiful Harvard University is, and references that later in his life he would give a speech in front of the Harvard Law School Forum. 

malcolm x post 2.

I was really happy when reading chapter 3 to find out that Malcolm finally made a friend in Boston. Shorty calls Malcolm his "homeboy," which is where the title for chapter 3 comes from. Shorty immediately accepts Malcolm and brings him all around the ghetto parts of the neighborhood. It was nice to see that Shorty actually helped Malcolm, by finding him a job at the Roseland State Ballroom as a shoeshine boy. Freddie, the original shoeshine boy taught Malcolm all the skills of the trade, and how to get the most out of tips. He taught Malcolm to run up to the men after they used the restroom and offer them a hand towel, and to make a sound with the rags when cleaning the shoes, so the men thought you were working really hard. 

Shorty also conked Malcolm's hair, and helped him endure all the pain of the process. Malcolm was extremely happy with the results, and even stated that he would wear his hair like that every day for years. When we did the web quest as the pre-reading assignment, my topic was African American Culture Fashion Trends. When researching this topic, I learned about the importance of the exterior body to the African Americans. Men and women were extremely self conscious about their skin color, and wanted to look like the Whites. Malcolm states, "This was my first really big step toward self-degradation: when I endured all of that pain, literally burning my flesh to have it look like a white man's hair. I had joined that multitude of Negro men and women in America who are brainwashed into believing that the black people are "inferior," - and white people "superior"..." (Haley 56). My research taught me that Black women and men tried really hard to fit the "white standard." This quote from Malcolm shows how he tried to do the same. Although he wears the conk for years, he is unhappy with the pain he suffered, just to look like a man of a different race. I hope that Malcolm learns to accept who he is and his background, and hopefully, he will not degrade himself like this at further points in the book.