Exercise: Explore Your Preconceptions

When Malcolm and Martin finally looked each other in the eyes and shook hands, they both had been prominent figures in the struggle for Black Freedom at national and global levels for a decade. These two young men had learned about each others’ philosophies from news outlets and other public forums, and certainly through mutual friends and other activists. However, they had not talked to one another. Not even one time. I imagine each man held some accurate and inaccurate notions about the other.

Before you experience the play or read any further, take time to record what you already know about Malcolm X or Martin Luther King. Consider…

• What do you know?

• Where did you gain that knowledge? At home? school? place of worship? television? books? movies?

• What would you like to know about them, their lives or the time period in which they lived?

• If you know very little about either man, why do you think that education is absent?

Exercise: Self-Determination

Historian James Cone suggests that Malcolm X and Martin Luther King represent two sides of all African Americans. On the one hand, "Malcolm represents that fire, that fight, that refusal to let anybody define who we are” while Martin represents “our desire to create a society for all people defined by nonviolence love and care for all people in the society." Based on your current knowledge and experiences, would you agree with that statement? Why or why not?

As larger than life leaders in American history and culture, what would you say each man represents in our shared American story?

The One and Only Meeting

Leading up to March 26, 1964 when the two men met in Washington D.C., Malcolm X had been attempting to meet with Martin Luther King to no avail. Malcolm had completely separated from the Nation of Islam and was transforming his work nationally and globally to unite people throughout the African diaspora and to petition the United Nations to review the United States for crimes against humanity for its treatment of African Americans. King had become the globally recognized leader of The Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) but also the personification of civil rights work done by other prominent organizations such as the NAACP led by Roy Wilkins, Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) led by James Farmer, National Urban League led by Whitney Young, the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters led by A. Phillip Randolph, and the Student Non-violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) chaired by John Lewis.

Both men had come to the United States Senate Building to witness the Senate debate on civil rights legislation that had failed while John F. Kennedy was alive, but had been reintroduced and recently passed the House of Representatives. Ultimately, the act would pass the Senate in mid-June despite a 54-day filibuster by senators who opposed racial equality.

The Civil Rights Act of 1964 bans unequal voter registration requirements, segregation in education and the public sphere, and employment discrimination. To learn more about its impact today, visit A Look Back: Civil Rights Act of 1964 | U-M LSA Center for Social Solutions (umich.edu).

According to historian Peniel Joseph, author of The Sword and the Shield: The Revolutionary Lives of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King, Jr., “King’s presence among the spectator’s gallery added a buzz of excitement to the proceedings.” Meanwhile, “Malcolm X’s presence in the Senate gallery…stoked fear, surprise, and bewilderment among journalists and spectators.” The FBI considered both men among the most dangerous people in America, worthy of constant surveillance and investigation, but King’s presence in D.C. working with government leaders was more common. This was Malcolm X’s first time visiting Senate as he was transitioning into being a more directly influential force on policy-making.

Although their brief encounter looks like happenstance, Malcolm had been seated in the back of King’s press conference and had instructed his assistant to make certain he knew which door King would exit so Malcolm could intercept King at the end of the press conference. You will see a short bit of footage of their brief encounter in the clip below.

View the Clip:

As with any information you consume, ask yourself who is telling this story? What might be their purpose? How does their knowledge and background influence the storytelling? What are the untold stories?