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IWDM Study Library
IWDM on Malcolm X

By Imam W. Deen Mohammed

This man converted while he was yet in prison doing a prison term, 14 year sentence. And having correspondence with Elijah Muhammad, the leader of the Nation of Islam from prison through his brother, his oldest brother, Wilfred. I recall the Honorable Elijah Muhammad being aware of him in prison and excited about his return. He was due to be released soon, excited about him coming out and joining the leadership of the Nation of Islam. The Honorable Elijah Muhammad was told by Wilfred, the brother, the eldest brother, brother in Malcolm's family, that Malcolm was sharp, sharp. He was sharp, and he was very devoted to the teaching of the Honorable Elijah Muhammad. And that he had nothing but time in prison and that his brother had given him everything that the Honorable Elijah Muhammad was saying currently. Every current thing that the Honorable Elijah Muhammad was emphasizing or talking about was given to Malcolm. Malcolm is the second person that I know that came directly from prison as a Minister into the ministry. He arrived at the Honorable Elijah Muhammad's house. The Honorable Elijah Muhammad met him and introduced him and said, "This is a young man that's going to really help me in my work." And he introduced him as his Minister.
Interviewer:
Are you surprised that his charismatic appeal endures even today?
Imam WD Mohammed:
No, I'm not. I'm not surprised because he was definitely perhaps the most articulate spokesman for the Black nationalists, Black nationalists. People who were Black nationalists, African-Americans who were Black nationalist or either influenced by Black nationalism, Black nationalists, teachers like Garvey and others. Malcolm was the most articulate and most effective speaker. He produced the most. He was able to attract the attention of our people on all levels, youngsters, uneducated and well-educated. So my opinion of him, that he was the most exciting figure to join Black nationalism, not only black Muslims.
Interviewer:
We saw a picture just a little while ago of a young WD Mohammed and Malcolm speaking on a rostrum as if you had some insights that you were sharing there.
Imam WD Mohammed:
Yes, we would often have comments or share concerns just before he was about to speak. Malcolm, if he had the Honorable Elijah Muhammad near him, he would've been conferring with the Honorable Elijah Muhammad, you see? But if I was there, he would want to be near me and he would bring certain things to my attention that he felt maybe a little bit uncomfortable about, that he was going to be dealing with when he spoke. And usually it was of a religious context, what he would be bringing to me, Islam or either something of the Bible or the Qur'an that he wanted to include in his talk for effect, for ultimate effect. And he was asking me did I think it, did it fit properly or could I suggest something else to him. Sometimes he would ask me to suggest something else to him.
Interviewer:
There are those who believe that Malcolm went through three very distinct phases in his life, certainly his life as a hustler.
Imam WD Mohammed:
Yes.
Interviewer:
And then his life as a very militant and vocal spokesman for the Nation of Islam. And then there was that part of him that changed after he returned from Mecca.
Imam WD Mohammed:
Yes sir.
Interviewer:
What was that all about?
Imam WD Mohammed:
Well, to me, and I know a lot of people would differ, even a lot of Muslims, especially what we call immigrant Orthodox, so-called Orthodox Muslim, they would differ with me, many of them. But to me, the real Malcolm was the Malcolm number two, was number two, the second Malcolm, the Malcolm that was converted from the streets of Harlem to join the ministry of the Honorable Elijah Muhammad. To me, that is the Malcolm. That's Malcolm. It was that Malcolm that became very popular, attracted the attention of the black community, Civil Rights movement, attracted attention of Black nationalists all over, even in Africa. He attracted attention of Africans and attracted attention also of the media because he was such an articulate and sharp witted representative of the Nation of Islam. He was number two man, right after the Honorable Elijah Muhammad. To me, that is the Malcolm. That was a Malcolm that grew a new mind, new aspirations. And the Malcolm that we see in this third phase is a desperate Malcolm, though a Malcolm that came into universal focus when he embraced Islam and embraced all people.
Interviewer:
But that second Malcolm admittedly, was the one that whites feared most.
Imam WD Mohammed:
Yes. In fact, I had a white reporter tell me right after I became the leader for the Nation of Islam. He said, well, he said, do you know Malcolm scared us? And I said, well, I can understand it. He said, and your father mystified us. So, you're right. Malcolm was feared. He was feared because he could articulate and ignore, he could pass, get around certain kind of esoteric things in the teachings of Islam that enabled him to be attracted to more people in the American public. He even had whites attracted to him. Young whites, young militant whites was attracted to Malcolm's language.
Interviewer:
Tell me more about this second Malcolm.
Imam WD Mohammed:
The Second Malcolm, he was a Malcolm that gave new spirit to the Nation of Islam, especially to the Fruit, the men of the Nation of Islam, to that military militant group we called the Nation of Islam's FOI or Fruit of Islam. Those who were responsible for going out and seeing that the publication was distributed, got into the hands of the people in the streets. Those men who saw that the Nation of Islam was protected, its facilities were kept clean and everything. And actually who went through physical drill too, as a way of disciplining their minds better. Some people think that we actually was trained in an army, no, not that kind of army. It was, the physical drill was to help us discipline our mind and discipline our spirit so we'll be able to carry out the orders and disciplines of the Nation of Islam better and to be fearless and to have a kind of resoluteness about ourselves and kind of a soldier image in the public's eye for promotion of the Nation of Islam and for carrying out the responsibilities of the Nation of Islam.
Interviewer:
But it also appeared that it was. it is a certain survivalist mentality. I mean, we talked a little while ago about Malcolm's intellectual ability.
Imam WD Mohammed:
Yes.
Interviewer:
That being the most fearful part of his repertoire.
Imam WD Mohammed:
Certainly, certainly
Interviewer:
Of weapons. And there again, his seeming message to even to children today is that you must arm yourselves with education in order to understand who the enemy is.
Imam WD Mohammed:
Yes. And yes, he was a supporter of education, a promoter. He promoted interest in education and that our youth should stay in school. He would even go and visit the Muslim schools and he would address the students and encourage them to learn more, to study harder, prepare themself. But also, Malcolm was a kind of political figure too. He wanted to be in the public's eye promoting not only the Nation of Islam's business and newspaper and things like that. and most of all, it's discipline. It's discipline. But he wanted to also be seen as someone who'd offered a better argument than the Civil Rights leaders were offering, you see. He wanted to be seen as one who could deal with the white man better than our Civil Rights leaders were dealing with the white man, you see? And he was very good at convincing Muslims, African-American or black Muslims and Black nationalists that he was that man, you see. So, we see him not only as a religious leader, but also as a Black nationalist leader. And I think that clearly says it- Black nationalist leader and a religious leader.
Interviewer:
In talking with his widow, Dr. Betty Shabazz, she indicates that Malcolm knew that there was trouble, that he was walking in troubled times towards the end of his life. Was there anything that said to you that he may have had a certain clairvoyance to what was going to happen to him?
Imam WD Mohammed:
Yes. I recall when yet both of us were in the Nation of Islam and working that he was aware that the national staff in Chicago was trying to hurt his relationship with the Honorable Elijah Muhammad. So, he was aware of that early. And when I say early, I mean this happened like in 60 or late 59, he became aware of that. At least he brought it to my awareness. And by 1962 or so, things got real serious. Things got real serious. Started to get real serious. He felt that the Nation of Islam staff was fearing his popularity and was envious of his popularity, envious of the attention that he was getting from the media and his presence on the college campuses. And they thought with some, I think, credit or justification, because when I look at it, I see that it really could have been, was a problem that the Nation of Islam was becoming less known and less important than Malcolm, the person Malcolm.

So, they used this to get certain leaders, National secretary, the Assistant to the Supreme captain who happened to be my brother, Elijah Muhammad Jr. who was well meaning he meant well. And for that matter, maybe John meant well, I don't know. And key persons in the regions of the United States who were Captains of the Nation of Islam. Those persons were working together under mainly John Ali's influence, the National secretary's influence to discredit Malcolm with the Honorable Elijah Muhammad. And they were pretending that it was in the interest of the Nation of Islam and in the interest of the Honorable Elijah Muhammad. But I know for a fact that a few of them, I don't care to name all of them to you, were very jealous. And they're very envious of Malcolm's relationship with the Honorable Elijah Muhammad, the freedom that he had in the Nation of Islam and outside in the public, and the success that he was realizing for himself and for the Honorable Elijah Muhammad and the Nation of Islam.

They were jealous and were envious. And some of them had began to be bitter inside. And they were acting out of bitterness and jealousy and resentment to discredit him. And they finally damaged his reputation enough. And by buzzing in the Honorable Elijah l Muhammad's ear so often that it caused the Honorable Elijah Muhammad to begin to suspect Malcolm. And everybody has weaknesses. So, Malcolm definitely would occasionally do something that he didn't do quite correctly, or he did something that the Honorable Elijah Muhammad was not pleased with. So, he could have been forgiven for those things if the Honorable Elijah Muhammad had not been conditioned to suspect that he was trying to take over the Nation of Islam.
Interviewer:
There's a movie that's going to come out in November directed by Spike Lee.
Imam WD Mohammed:
Yes.
Interviewer:
A lot of African-Americans are going to be looking at this.
Imam WD Mohammed:
Oh yes, I'll be among them.
Interviewer:
If this movie is to successfully portray the life of Malcolm X, what's it going to have to do?
Imam WD Mohammed:
It's going to have to deal with Malcolm's conversion to Islam from prison, him accepting Islam while he was yet finishing his sentence in prison for crimes as a hustler or as a person who hustles the streets of Harlem. And it has to deal with him as a bright youngster who had a bright intellect, a sharp intellect, and a lot of energy and a lot of aggressiveness, a lot of courage. It's going to have to deal with him as an exceptional intellect and a warm and cordial personality who gave all that love and all that intellect to the Honorable Elijah Muhammad and said, use it as you want to Elijah Muhammad. Use it as you want to Messenger of Allah. And the Honorable Elijah Muhammad used it. And Malcolm became a great figure to articulate Black nationalist interests and also Black Muslim interests in America. And I'm using that expression, Black Muslim.
Imam WD Mohammed:
I don't buy it, I don't like it. The Honorable Elijah Muhammad never said it was correct, but he used it. He said, "We can benefit from using it." So, I prefer to call us African-Americans or just Muslim, African-American Muslims or Muslims, but we were called Black Muslims. And that's what Malcolm represented. And he represented us so well. He represented the Nation of Islam's basic concerns and interests so well. The schools, the businesses he was pushing the businesses. Businesses started to grow tremendously after the Honorable Elijah Muhammad got Malcolm in the leadership. Not only businesses, our press came as a result of Malcolm's private work in his home, working in one office, producing a paper by himself. He would get clippings from all over the country. He knew how to get in contact with brothers and sisters who was able to clip information for him and send information to him, and he was producing a paper by himself. The National staff envied that, and they saw him doing too much, and they took even the paper from him and he had nothing to do with the paper thereafter. So, if they want to do justice by him and present him, they have to present him as the young man who came with all of the natural resources and with the exceptional intellect and ambition, and joined the Honorable Elijah Muhammad and put the Nation of Islam on the map for the Honorable Elijah Muhammad.
Interviewer:
It will be a catastrophe if what happens?
Imam WD Mohammed:
If he's presented as the Malcolm that nobody would've known. That's as the hustler in Harlem. That would be a catastrophe. And also, if he's presented as a man who had that kind of life, and then suddenly he differed with the Nation of Islam upon the new awakening in Mecca. And if it closes like that, that still would be a great tragedy because none of us want to be Muslims just to embrace all Muslims. We have a special need to be Muslims. We want to be Muslims because we believe Muslims answer needs in our life as a once deprived people and as a people now who think we are deprived or think we don't have opportunity. We think Islam changes that attitude for us and make us have faith in ourself, new faith in ourself and new faith in progressing or seizing opportunity in America.

And I don't think Malcolm in his mind, in his normal mind, and when I say normal mind here, I mean he became desperate. And to me, that wasn't the normal Malcolm. He was a desperate Malcolm. Desperate to save his life, desperate to avoid assassination, desperate to avoid having his house bombed, his family, killed his children killed. That was a desperate Malcolm in my opinion. And that was the Malcolm that made Hajj, a desperate Malcolm. And there were Muslim figures in Arabia, I'm sure. And there were those here, Dr. Shawarbey, the Professor Abraham, these people, Ibrahim Izzadeen. These people were very influential people in the Islamic world. And they knew of Malcolm's separation. And I think their intention was good, I believe. I think they said, well now Malcolm is not, has nobody with him, nobody to direct him, nobody to coach him. The Honorable Elijah Muhammad was his coach.

Now we have an interest in him. We think he'll make even a better leader than Elijah Muhammad for Muslims. So, we are going to coach him. We are going to be his guardians now, you see. So, they came in and they also were influencing what he had to say when he returned from Hajj. So that was a desperate Malcolm and a Malcolm that perhaps was saying what he had to say because some outside Muslims had promised him support and because he believed that it would never be an opportunity for him again to be spokesman for the Nation of Islam.
Interviewer:
Are you concerned that there are young people out there who will take this movie as the gospel on Malcolm X?
Imam WD Mohammed:
Reading the material? Yes, I am. Because there's a tendency in the public to see a movie and just react to it. We don't question it. We don't question whether it's true to life report, reporting, or not. You'd be surprised. I was in the movie once and I saw youngsters who were of the age to know better. And even a grownup was among them. And they were believing that the violence that was taking place on the screen was actually happening and it was nothing but Hollywood. So, we'd be surprised to see the ignorance that's in society. And there is the danger that if Spike Lee doesn't, if he didn't take special care to protect our youngsters from the wrong imaging of Malcolm, a negative image, an image that will contribute to their self-destruction, feed their desire for self-destruction, or an image that will glorify the Harlem pimp, you see, or the hustler, that could do great danger. Or projecting him as one who trusted physical weapons more than he trusted the weapon, preference of his wits, his intellect, would be falsely presenting Malcolm. And that image of Malcolm also could be real trouble in our streets, in our streets if our youngsters would latch onto that.
Interviewer:
The one phrase that seems to get played more than any other about Malcolm X is his by any means necessary.
Imam WD Mohammed:
Yes.
Interviewer:
What does that mean?
Imam WD Mohammed:
When Malcolm spoke like that, he was doing two things. He was trying to appeal to the more militant African-Americans, men, the more militant African-American men. And he was also trying to say to the white man, what we are asking for is reasonable. If we can't get it, what we'll do, you might not like. That was his strategy. It was a strategy. Malcolm would use scare tactics you know. And doesn't mean that he was prepared. Malcolm was never prepared to arm black men and form an armed rebellion in this country. Malcolm knew that that wouldn't work in this country. The Honorable Elijah Muhammed said they went to war against themselves. The Civil War. So, Malcolm understood that. In fact, I heard, I saw Malcolm face at the dinner table when the staff was there. I saw Malcolm's face when the Honorable Elijah Muhammad said that in his face, the way he smiled and he reared back, said, well, he was agreeing with the Honorable Elijah Muhammad. It would just be ridiculous to try to arm ourselves and fight, fight in this country. It's a different situation altogether. We could cause a lot of trouble certainly. In fact, it's been tried. We could cause a lot of trouble. We get a lot of attention to ourselves, but we'd lose that battle with the white man. He has so much more artillery. It's impossible. And if the South couldn't win a war against the North, then how could the blacks win, win a war against the North and the South with weapons? It just wouldn't be possible. It would just bring about a lot of unnecessary loss of life for us. So we bought that then, and we still buy that now. And today, circumstances are greatly different. Opportunity. The law, there's no laws of the segregated laws. There is no separate courts. One court in the South and one in the North. We don't have that anymore. And we have leaders that can influence the attitude toward race in this country from the whites and from the blacks that are as free as anybody in this country. In fact, we are freer than the bigots. Americans, they don't like to hear, majority of Americans, we don't like to hear from bigots anymore.

So, we live in a new reality though, and it's unthinkable that we would think that we could win a physical war or arm ourselves and force the white man into surrendering to some of our demands or something like that. It wouldn't work. It would just harden white people against us even much more.
Interviewer:
As you recollect Malcolm and juxtapose it against today's reality, what is the one thing you would like to say to African-Americans young and old?
Imam WD Mohammed:
Yes, that Malcolm, first of all, was a moral man. That he believed in moral decency and he didn't believe in a tit for tat, or copying the bad ways of his enemy. He admired excellence even in his enemies, the whites that were against us having equality in this country or equal opportunity in this country. If he saw excellence in them, he admired them for that. He admired them for that while he condemned them for their racism. I wish they would know that Malcolm. I wish they would know the big warm smile of Malcolm and how he could just instantly win you over as a friend and become your friend and how he would be concerned about for your family. So, you got children, how are they doing? Are they in school? I wish they knew that Malcolm. That was the Malcolm that was the foundation for the Black nationalist spokesman that the Honorable Elijah Muhammad eventually realized.
Interviewer:
Imam WD Mohammed, thank you very much.
Imam WD Mohammed:
Thank you.
Interviewer:
For this interview. If you'll sit right there, we'll get some TV shots and we'll let you go about your business. Just take about five more minutes of your time.
Imam WD Mohammed:
Okay.
Interviewer:
Well, that was a lot of fun.
Imam WD Mohammed:
It was. Yeah, reminiscing the past. It is heavy. It's serious, but it's also fun, as you say.
Interviewer:
And it sounds like that as you reminisce, you have pulled away those kernels that are wonderful and still very, what's the word? Amicable to his memory.
Imam WD Mohammed:
Well, thank you. I am, I am. That's the way I feel. I feel I am. And it has benefited me so much to have known and lived with those people, especially Malcolm.
Interviewer:
You sound like you liked that guy.
Imam WD Mohammed:
I did very much.
Interviewer:
That's why this love affair with him has yet to die.
Imam WD Mohammed:
Yes. I think we have, the new love affair has to die because to me it's shallow, it's not a deep thing. It has no depth. It's just an image that we are attracted to now. An image of a man standing with a carbine rifle, or image of a man that was quick to cut the white man for cutting us, for denying us something. And that's not enough. That's not enough. We don't need any more negativism. And we need something that will condition us to see our progress in America, and be conscious of it and appreciate it and see opportunity now in this country. There's a book by, perhaps you're aware of that book, it's by a professor out there in California. His name is Shelby Steele. Yes. On race. And he brings this out so clearly and so effectively, that we are missing so much opportunity in America because we just won't stop thinking of ourselves as victims.
Camera person:
Don, can I get you talking for a minute, please?
Interviewer:
Sure. No, I think you're absolutely right. I think that we see desperation for so long. We see the bottom side of the barrel for so long that you can't see any other side.
Imam WD Mohammed:
That's right.
Interviewer:
And it is a question of conditioning. Conditioning ourselves to see another side. As you said, it's easy for us to see Malcolm as that man with the carbine.
Imam WD Mohammed:
That's right.
Interviewer:
And the man who vilified white people.
Imam WD Mohammed:
Right.
Interviewer:
But as you said, it is a new day.
Imam WD Mohammed:
It is a new day. It definitely is. And I'm happy to be still alive here.
Camera person:
Yeah. Reverse question.
Interviewer:
No, there won't be any reverse question. Just actually no, don't do that. Don't do that.



