By attending any of the Black History Month events, even those that have already taken place, you may earn 3 extra credit points. What I want you to do to earn those points is attend the event, of course, and then post a response (or comment) on this blog post. In that response, I want you to give a brief description of the event you attended and then briefly reflect on how it relates to Malcolm X. You should be able to do this in two paragraphs or so. Some events would be easier to relate than others. For example, I know some of you went to hear Rep. Bakari Sellars. If you did, you might reflect on what Malcolm X might have thought of Mr. Sellars and some of the things he said. I realize you are just now learning about who Malcolm X was and what he stood for, so it is ok if you delay posting your response until you have digested more of the Autobiography. In terms of events, this would also include the film based on Tim Tyson's book, "Blood done sign my name." Regarding that film, you may see it when you get a chance, but there is a group going to the opening this Friday at 7:30PM at the Hollywood 20 theater on Woodruff Rd. in Greenville.
I realize that 3 points does not sound like much, but it is early in the semester and there will probably be more such opportunities. Also, I hope you will be able to attend more than one such event, even if you can only get some extra credit points for one of them.
I may be posting some lecture notes on the Autobiography later this week, so we don't get too far behind. As it stands now, we are almost up to Chapter 7. I will also post a reminder for those who volunteered to read one of their journal entries in class next week.
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For Black History Month, I attended several of the events, but the one that impacted me the most in relation to Malcolm X was the black history month book club. The book we read was called The Pact and was written by three friends who made a pact in high school to go to college and become doctors. This story made me think of Malcolm X because it demonstrates conditions similar to those that Malcolm X was caught up in before he faced jail time. Growing up, these three men faced (and sometimes gave into) the temptation to sell drugs for easy money and get caught up in the violence of their rough neighborhoods. For both the characters from the book and Malcolm, jail was the wake-up call to turn their lives around. Whereas Malcolm found reform in religion, the three friends were able to rely on each other for the support to change their lives.
The major difference between the men in the book and Malcolm X is the times they live/lived in. Malcolm did not have opportunities to advance himself with dignity. The young men in the book were able to get scholarships to become doctors and build a life that not only equalled that of whites, but warranted true respect not derived from white paternalism. As young men, the authors expressed feelings of hate for whites as they had never had any good experiences with them. Much like Malcolm, they were able to learn from encounters with whites that not all were bad. Fortunately, they learned early enough to benefit from their experiences.
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