...The Ballot or the Bullet “The Ballot or the Bullet”, the name itself does not leave something to the imagination. It catches our attention and makes us react without even uttering another word. Malcolm X knew this well and that’s what made him such a charismatic figure in the civil rights movement of the sixties. Malcolm X delivered this speech at the height of the civil rights movement, just one month prior Dr. Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech was delivered. X was trying to go after a different group of people within the same group (African-Americans), he knew that many people didn’t embrace the peaceful nature of Dr. King’s rallies and knew he could capitalize on the moment. Congress had done very little to further the civil rights movement with any piece of legislation, and the African-American population was growing frustrated. That frustration fueled Malcolm X to deliver “The Ballot or the Bullet”, invoking a sense of emergency amongst African-Americans to act now. 1964 was an election year and Malcolm X used this to further fuel his movement, “when all the political crooks will be right in the community, with all their false promises which they don’t intend to keep (X, 1964). Malcolm X made it very clear that he was not asking the black man to throw caution to the wind with statements such as “I’m not anti-Democrat, I’m not anti-Republican, and I’m not anti-anything. I’m just questioning their (white politicians) sincerity and some of the strategy...
Words: 1615 - Pages: 7
...The Ballot or the Bullet Analysis Jasmine Grant Jackson State University By Any Means Necessary! (Malcolm X) Malcolm X was born Malcolm Little in Omaha, Nebraska on May 19, 1925. His father, Earl Little, was an outspoken Baptist minister and avid supporter of Black Nationalist leader Marcus Garvey. Earl’s civil rights activism prompted death threats from the white supremacist organization Black Legion and the KKK, forcing the family to relocate twice before Malcolm’s fourth birthday. Regardless of the Little’s efforts to get away from the Legion, in 1929, their Michigan home was burned to the ground. Two years later, Earl’s body was found lying across the town’s trolley tracks. Police ruled both incidents as accidents. Malcolm’s mother, .Louise suffered emotional breakdown several years after the death of her husband and was committed to a mental institution, while her children were split up among various foster homes and orphanages. In Malcolm’s late teens he began to drift into the life of petty crime and was convicted on burglary charges. He was to serve 10 years of prison but was granted parole after seven. During his sentence he was converted to the Nation of Islam under the “Great” Elijah Muhammad. He became very active in the Nation and his great talents as a leader moved him to the number two spot in the Muslim organization. In 1964, he withdrew from the Nation upon the knowledge of Muhammad’s...
Words: 1562 - Pages: 7
...Shantee McKay Professor Eaddy English 105 10th, November 2014 Equality for All or None at All "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere," a quote from Martin Luther King Jr. before he was assassinated in 1968. There has been a trending epidemic on white on black crime beginning from the Emmett Til case in 1955 and stretching to the Mike Brown case of 2014. It seems white men have taken the law into their own hands and have not been prosecuted to the fullest extent. Some are even saying we are living in a new Jim Crow era. Majority of white men want to continue to control African Americans, they don’t see any value in us and they fear equality in all aspects. There are three propositions that can be used in order to gain justice for the way white men treat Africans Americans. Those three include becoming more educated, unifying and fighting back in order to decrease the violence and become contributing members of society. Education is the key to success and respect in America's society. High schools across the country strive for high graduation rates along with a high percentage of their students to pursue higher education. Looking at recent years, dropout rates have increased significantly in African American communities. Our parents and grandparents fought for our rights to education, beginning with the Brown vs. The Board of Education case in 1954. Before this African Americans weren't allowed the same education as white people. African Americans are...
Words: 914 - Pages: 4
...The piece that is being used for this assignment is a speech by Malcolm X titled, “The Ballot or The Bullet.” The whole speech can be found here, although a few segments of the speech will be used, http://www.edchange.org/multicultural/speeches/malcolm_x_ballot.html. The first logical fallacy found in this speech is one that appeals to emotion. To be specific, this quote appeals to the fear of the audience who listened to it. In paragraph 3, Malcolm X stated, “Whether you're educated or illiterate, whether you live on the boulevard or in the alley, you're going to catch hell just like I am. We're all in the same boat and we all are going to catch the same hell from the same man. He just happens to be a white man.” This is an example of the appeal to fear fallacy because of the fact that Malcolm X stated that no matter who you were, you were going to be affected negatively by the same person. In this case, he was using the fallacy as a way to worry the crowd about the upcoming elections in that year. Because of this, he is increasing the prejudice, or...
Words: 704 - Pages: 3
...His tactics, although controversial, have motivated millions to fight for their rights. His speech, The Ballot or the Bullet, is directed at African Americans and encourages them to stand up for their rights and vote. Malcolm then goes on to state that if this is not enough they may have to resort to violence. He uses rhetoric early on in an attempt to unite all African Americans. He states, “Whether you’re educated or illiterate, whether you live on the boulevard or in the alley, you’re going to catch hell just like I am. We’re all in the same boat and we all are going to catch the same hell from the same man.” This is an emotional appeal that aims to unite people on one common ground and make them forget about their in-differences. Malcolm then exposes democrats as liars and shows that even though they have full control of the Senate and House, they still...
Words: 1421 - Pages: 6
...Essay on “The Ballot or the Bullet” by Malcolm X In 1960’s America, the Civil Rights Movement was divided. Both sides sought change for the black community but by different means, and to different ends. They were all frustrated and fed up with the oppression with which they were forced to live. Today we especially remember two iconic figures as a representative of each side. The two great civil rights leaders of the 1960’s, Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X, held diametrically opposed political philosophies. King was a pacifist, in the tradition of Gandhi before him. Malcolm X was a radical, who advocated for violence. Both, however, shared a common goal—real freedom for African Americans. Malcolm X’s speech, “The Ballot or the Bullet,” was a direct response to Martin Luther King Jr.’s famous “I Have a Dream” speech of a month before. The speech is directed at Americas black population. At this point in history black people in America often belonged to the country’s lowest social- and economic group. This meant that a large part of the black community had little to no education. Malcolm X adjusted his rhetoric accordingly. In Malcolm X’s attempt to reach and address this part of society he used different types of language. His use of negative connotations is an example of the low style language which appears in his speech. He used these connotations when he for example referred to white people as “crackers”. “The Ballot or the Bullet” is Malcolm X’s equivalent of...
Words: 819 - Pages: 4
...Malcolm X’s The Ballot or the Bullet speech was ranked 7th as one of the most prominent speeches in America. On April 3,1964 in his speech The Ballot or the Bullet, civil rights activist Malcolm X suggested that black nationalism should be the philosophy of all African American people. Malcolm X supported this suggestion by using examples of how they have been mistreated to convert them to that philosophy. Malcolm X’s purpose is to persuade the black population to unite, exercise their right to vote and take action if they are robbed their civil rights. Malcolm X uses a commanding tone with the African American people to make them feel angry about what has been done to them and to persuade them that fighting back is the solution. Malcolm X...
Words: 1246 - Pages: 5
...April 3rd 1964. It was on this day that a string of words strutted into the air, welded together to become one of the most empowering speeches ever presented to mankind. The words flooded from the mouth of activist and minister Malcom Little, better known as Malcom X. With the use of several techniques, Malcom X is able to create a striking speech that is remembered by many and replicated by few. The speech of black oppression fighting for rights. “The Ballot or The Bullet.” Reading between the lines of the words of the speech can reveal Malcom X’s brilliant scheme and intelligent structure. With the use of alliteration, anaphora, allusions, parallelism, a strong rigid tone, accusations, wise diction and the defacing of other strategies, X captures the attention of the audience and consistently persuades them that they are part of the solution. “Whether you're educated or illiterate, whether you live on the boulevard or in the alley, you're going to catch hell just like I am. We're all in the same boat and we all are going to catch the same hell from the same man.” Here he establishes that he is fighting for the same cause as the audience, that they are all together in the same boat which tunes into the audience’s emotion. Once the emotional...
Words: 732 - Pages: 3
...words, through your body language and through your emotions is what makes it great. Martin Luther King Jr made a change in boycotting black society, Abraham Lincoln abolished slavery and Emma Watson opened the UN’s eyes on the oppression that women face every day. But I’m not going to talk about them. Rather than a passive speaker a more aggressive speaker. Malcolm X. A former minister for the nation of Islam and a black rights activist. Malcolm X’s speech the Ballot or the Bullet, educated and motivated the black community in the states, of the harsh lives they live and...
Words: 852 - Pages: 4
...Malcom X, in the speech The Ballot or the Bullet, invokes an emotional reaction within the audience by using the word “trapped.” Malcom X vocalized the fear African Americans feel by stating, “So we’re trapped, trapped, double-trapped, triple-trapped. Any way we go, we find that we’re trapped. Any kind of solution that someone comes up with is just another trap. The white aristocratic society African Americans are surrounded by leave them economically cornered. Malcom X reinforces the idea that African American’s feel trapped within their own community by using repetition. Malcom X reiterates the words “trapped” and “we” to reinforce the idea that the African American community is being affected as a whole. The word “we” emphasizes that they...
Words: 309 - Pages: 2
...Malcom X, in the speech The Ballot or the Bullet, invokes an emotional reaction within the audience by using the word “trapped.” Malcom X vocalized the fear African Americans feel by stating, “So we’re trapped, trapped, double-trapped, triple-trapped. Any way we go, we find that we’re trapped. Any kind of solution that someone comes up with is just another trap” The white aristocratic society African Americans are surrounded by leave them economically cornered. Malcom X reinforces the idea that African American’s feel trapped within their own community by using repetition. Malcom X reiterates the words “trapped” and “we” to reinforce the idea that the African American community is being affected as a whole. The word “we” emphasizes that Africa...
Words: 378 - Pages: 2
...------------------------------------------------- The Ballot or the bullet Malcolm X Cory Methodist Church Cleveland, Ohio April 3, 1964 Garret Feucht COM 250 – Prof. Heins 10/29/15 Garret Feucht COM 250 – Prof. Heins 10/29/15 (Daniels, 2014) The Ballot or the Bullet is the title of one of the many speeches given by human rights activist Malcolm X. In his speech he focuses on the oppression of the African American, and how African Americans are able to stand up against the illegal segregation. Malcolm also focuses on the African American’s right to vote, and how effective each vote actually is. He also warns the government that if he and his people are not able to vote that they may have to take up arms. The Ballot or the Bullet is among one of Malcolm’s most famous speeches being ranked at number seven in a Top 100 list of speeches in the 20th century. (News, 2008) On May 19, 1925 Malcolm Little was born to parents Earl and Louise Little the fourth of seven children. Born in Omaha, Nebraska the Little family shortly after moved to Milwaukee, Wisconsin and then to Lansing, Michigan to avoid any further harassment from the Ku Klux Klan. In 1929, just four years after Malcolm was born, the LIttle family house was burned down. This was no accident it was believed to have been burned by members of the Black Legion. At the age of six Malcolm’s father passed away in an automobile accident. Rumors spread that Earl had been murdered by white racists. His mother believed...
Words: 2232 - Pages: 9
...Why is it important to vote? voting is more important than the bullet. I think that is a really strong quote and i really like it because it has a sequences like jail or they could take you to court . That is why it is important to vote be cause we have a right to. “The ballot is stronger than the bullet.”-Abraham Lincoln. This quote means One of the reasons not to vote is some presidents are for bad stuff. One president was voting for abortion. And other bad stuff like really really bad stuff. But I personally like voting. Well kinda. Sometimes. The reason you should is because it is a honer. Some people don’t take it as a honer. But i do but i am not saying it you shouldn’t vote i think we should. Everybody...
Words: 1617 - Pages: 7
...his tremendous speaking ability. His monumental speeches impact the thoughts and shape the ideals of many activists that advance in the fight for social justice. In Homer’s The Odyssey and Malcolm X’s “The Ballot or the Bullet”, both heroes convey great strength in their battles through Odysseus’s surviving the hurricane sent from Poseidon, Malcolm X’s clear portrayal of the injustices in America, and both heroes willingness while staying persistent and achieve justice. Homer conveys Odysseus’s strength through his survival of the hurricane from Poseidon. For example, while Odysseus struggles to stay alive during the storm, “he’d not forget his craft-- he lunged after...
Words: 1033 - Pages: 5
...Rhetorical Analysis: The Ballot or the Bullet The two great civil rights leaders of the 1960’s, Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X, held diametrically opposed political philosophies. King was a pacifist, in the tradition of Gandhi before him; Malcolm X was a radical, an advocate of violence. Both, however, shared a common goal—real freedom for African Americans. Malcolm X’s speech, “The Ballot or the Bullet,” was a direct response to Martin Luther King Jr.’s famous “I Have a Dream” speech of a month before. Malcolm X, once associated with the Black Panthers, and a member of the Black Muslim movement, wrote “The Ballot or the Bullet” not only as a response to Martin Luther King Jr.’s pacifism, but because he was frustrated with white dilly-dallying in reaching a decision on black rights in America. Political debate had reached an impasse, and Malcolm wanted to make it clear that if the Congress couldn’t come to a decision, black Americans would take matters into their own hands. He did not share Martin’s pacifist inclinations, and he promised a violent seizure of civil rights. An examination of Malcolm X’s speech will reveal that it is one of the most powerful speeches ever written. It is, in every respect, the equal of Martin’s “I Have a Dream” speech. It is eloquent, it is memorable, and it is poetic. Its tone, unlike Martin’s conciliatory speech, is militant. He appeals to the emotions of his young audience, rousing them to anger; and in the same breath, strikes...
Words: 1064 - Pages: 5
