African Revolutionary Writers, Part 2b
Malcolm X
In this speech (“By Any Means
Necessary”, attached), Malcolm X recalls the formation of the Organisation of
African Unity (OAU) and how inspiring it was to him. The speech goes on:
“So we have
formed an organization known as the Organization of Afro-American Unity which
has the same aim and objective-to fight whoever gets in our way, to bring about
the complete independence of people of African descent here in the Western
Hemisphere, and first here in the United States, and bring about the freedom of
these people by any means necessary.
“That's our
motto. We want freedom by any means necessary. We want justice by any means
necessary. We want equality by any means necessary.”
The phrase “by any means necessary” is repeated
throughout the speech, and it ends:
“We declare
our right on this earth to be a man, to be a human being, to be respected as a
human being, to be given the rights of a human being in this society, on this
earth, in this day, which we intend to bring into existence by any means
necessary.”
Other speeches of Malcolm X
include (these are links to PDF downloads): “The Ballot or the Bullet”;
“Message to the Grassroots”;
and “Confronting White Oppression”.
You can also find videos of Malcolm X on YouTube, and MP3 files of his
speeches.
Malcolm X, a great revolutionary
leader of his people, and an inspiring orator, (Barack Obama tries to fake
Malcolm X’s style) was gunned down in 1965.
Reading these speeches
confirms the close and active relationship that remained between the struggling
masses in Africa and in America.
·
The above serves to
introduce the original reading-text: Excerpts from the Speech Founding
the OAAU, Malcolm X, 28 June 1964.
