Malcolm X: Blue-eyed Devil (2)

For a while when I was reading Malcolm X I had no idea how I could possibly relate to anything in Malcolm's life. When I started to get to the part about whites being the devil I became pretty disgusted and frustrated that we even had to read this book. What made me even more mad was the fact that they kept referring to blue-eyed, blonde haired, white devils. "Conducting the class was a tall, blond, blue-eyed (a perfect "devil") Harvard Seminary student" (Haley 193). That is what Malcolm said about a man who lectured to a class that he was in and as soon as Malcolm walked into the room he didn't like him. This led to Malcolm's questioning him about things like whether Paul and Jesus were black or white just to embarrass him. Isn't this the same kind of discrimination that Malcolm spent his life preaching against? How can someone feel so strongly about something yet be such a hypocrite while he serves as an example of the people he calls "devils"?

This connected directly to me and while it made me feel more hatred toward Malcolm and people who followed him, it was also able to open my eyes a little bit to the way that many black people feel. People judge them and make assumptions about who they are as a person based solely on the way they appear.

Not to repeat what Mattessich said to me, but we are going to Harlem next week on our field trip. So, how are many of the people there going to see me? Times have changed and not as many blacks are discriminated against, but many people still have racist feelings so what's to say that people in Harlem won't still see me as a devil? The way that I would feel walking among a crowd of black people is the same as the way blacks feel walking among whites. If someone can tell me where the difference between these two examples of discrimination lies, I'd love to hear it. There is nothing that I can do to change my eye and hair color because just like the color of your skin, it has to do with genetics. Sure I could dye my hair or get colored contacts, but I don't see why I would have to. This is just like the way Malcolm talks about how blacks conked their hair; he also felt that blacks should not be forced into changing their appearance and being ashamed of who they are. So again, where is the difference?

People talk about reverse racism, but if you actually think about it how can there be a such thing? The definition of racism doesn't state that racism is only the discrimination against blacks. Racism is racism, so the negative way that Malcolm began to see any white person is the same as the way he claims whites have viewed him.

Definition