Malcolm X’s Legacy

1971

Malcolm X helped inspire the Black Power Movement.

Malcolm X inspired many future leaders of the Black Power Movement. But his own history with Black nationalist movements was rooted in his family’s past. Malcolm X’s parents, Earl and Louise Little, had been active members of Marcus Garvey’s Universal Negro Improvement Association, an economic self-sufficiency and Black solidarity movement. Malcolm X went on to embrace these ideas, emphasizing the need for self-defense in the face of racial violence. These philosophies, in turn, became foundational to the Black Power Movement of the 1960s and 1970s.

After his death, many Black Power organizations commemorated Malcolm X’s impact and legacy. This button, from the Organization of Afro-American Unity, commemorates his birthday, May 19, as Malcolm X Day.