ABSTRACT
The life and philosophy of Malcolm X have been thoroughly examined - from young scholar to street hustler and criminal to prisoner; from Nation of Islam minister to El Hajj Malik Shabazz the founder of the Organization of Afro-American Unity (OAAU) and Muslim Mosques Incorporated. His ideas have been embraced by myriad political actors ranging from Nelson Mandela to Clarence Thomas. Like Marcus Garvey and Elijah Muhammed of the Nation of Islam, Malcolm X once said that he believed that ‘the best solution is complete separation with people going back home to own African homeland’. Another milepost in Malcolm X’s ideological development, and a result of trips to Africa in 1964, was his recognition of the inconsistency of black control of black communities. The OAAU adopted the ideology and structure of the mass-based nationalist political parties which led countries such as Ghana, Guinea, Tanzania and Kenya, among others to independence.
