Malcolm X

Born: 19 May 1925 Birthplace: Omaha, Nebraska Death: 21 February 1965 (assassination) Best Known As: Assassinated leader of the 1960s black power movement Name at birth: Malcolm Little In prison for burglary, Malcolm Little adopted the Black Muslim faith and became a minister of the Nation of Islam upon his release in 1952. As Malcolm X, he was a charismatic advocate of black separatism who rejected Martin Luther King, Jr.'s policies of non-violence. Following a 1964 pilgrimage to Mecca, Malcolm X converted to orthodox Islam, took the name El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz and broke with the Black Muslims, who purportedly shot him to death in Harlem in 1965. The Autobiography of Malcolm X was published after his death in 1965 and became a best-seller; the book was co-written by Alex Haley, later the author of Roots... X's widow, Betty Shabazz, died on 23 June 1997 after being severely burned in an apartment fire set by her 12-year-old grandson... Actor Denzel Washington played Malcolm X in the 1992 Spike Lee movie X.