Malcolm X: A Life of Reinvention by Manning Marable

A good number of people I know have several books about Malcolm X. As much information that we have between us, there is still a great deal about Malcolm that we know about. Much of the information outside of the autobiography as told to Alex Haley deals with Malcolm's life before he entered the Nation of Islam (NOI) and the two and half years after his departure from the NOI. We know very little about his tenure in the NOI, his relationship with his family, and the details of his trip abroad. Manning Marable covers so much grown in his extensive “A Life of Reinvention.”

I cannot recall in my lifetime a book that garnered so much attention before it was even released. While there is much in this book to cause a headache for several people who knew Malcolm personally, I find that the focus on the more personal details of Malcolm's life that we had no clue about are trivial. Marable covers so many things about Malcolm that are important to his ideological evolution. Instead Marable does four important things that we do not see in other books about Malcolm.

Marable extensively covers Malcolm's time in the NOI. It is until recently that Louis Farrakhan admits how important Malcolm's tenure in the NOI was. Marable through letters Malcolm wrote to Elijah Muhammad, interviews with long standing NOI members as well as Farrakhan, and access to NOI archives that no other scholar even know about, was able to detail his travel itinerary, speaking engagements, and interactions with the NOI and those outside of it. Before this book, only Karl Evanzz was able to produce anything of value through FBI papers released through the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). Even during this time, we see Malcolm develop friendships with several prominent leaders that would prove extremely valuable later.

We learn through Marable that within a year of Malcolm's release from prison, that there were several high ranking officers in the NOI who began to covet Malcolm's meteoric rise. There were members of the NOI who were upset over this young Turk's power and access to Elijah Muhammad. Indeed, everyone knew that Malcolm's relationship to Muhammad was second only to his sons. It is no doubt that Malcolm's work in the NOI helped this organization grow in stature and power. His departure gravely wounded the NOI. So forces within the NOI were conspiring to destroy Malcolm very early. Marable also points out how Malcolm traveled throughout the country to settle disputes and hold court on many members of the NOI who broke the rules. Malcolm was harsh in disciplining the members of the NOI. This also helped build more animosity towards him from several low ranking members who had no recourse for appeal.

Marable maps out through several chapters the work between Haley and Malcolm on the autobiography. In my opinion, its the second most important part of the book. It is one that none of the critics of the book even acknowledge. It is clear that Haley's motives were purely financial. Haley saw a virtual cash cow. Marable points out that the book began late in Malcolm's life and there was so much going on. Haley had trouble trying to summarize much of Malcolm's ever changing ideology during that time. It was Haley's intentions that Marable finds troublesome. In the end, Malcolm never saw the final product. It was originally slated to be published by Doubleday but was dropped since Haley kept missing deadlines and demanding more time and money. Malcolm's assassination also seemed to much for Doubleday. Haley was right, it was a cash cow.

What we didn't know about the process of this book is that Malcolm wanted his part of the profits to go directly to the NOI. Outside of the advance, Malcolm did not ask for any money for his family. Despite his economic hardships during and after the NOI, Malcolm wanted to ensure that he was loyal to Muhammad even after his departure. In the autobiography, Malcolm wanted to make clear that his ideological evolution came as a result of Elijah Muhammad.

Thirdly, Marable details Malcolm's second and third trips abroad. It is during these trips that Malcolm develops the contacts that helped shape his world view. During these travels we see how the U.S. Government begin to see Malcolm as a target. Malcolm develops relationships with heads of state and revolutionary leaders in Asia and Africa. Abroad, Malcolm defiantly condemns the U.S. Role in maintaining colonialism in several countries. Publicly, Malcolm becomes a thorn in the side U.S. Foreign policy. Malcolm develops relationships with the expatriate community throughout the world. During this period, many see Malcolm becoming an international leader. Many also see him as representative of the plight of African Americans in the United States more so than anyone else.

Finally, Marable gives a blow by blow account of the events leading up to Malcolm's assassination. Marable clearly calls for reopening of the case. He also questions the FBI's and the NYPD's complicity in Malcolm's assassination. This is probably the most important detail in the book. Two men, Norman 3X Butler and Thomas 15X Johnson were wrongly accused and convicted. The four other assailants were never tried. Many of the informants for the FBI and NYPD were never revealed. Marable presents more than enough evidence to call for a full reinvestigation. There were forces in the NOI, FBI, and NYPD that were indirectly and directly involved in this assassination and all should be bought to justice.

There is one fatal flaw in Marable's account and two minor ones. Marable does not detail Malcolm's first trip abroad in 1959 on behalf of the NOI. This is really no fault of Marable since many vital records from the NOI were destroyed or lost. When it comes to accusation that Haley was an informant for the FBI or an agent for the CIA, as many have claimed during the years, Marable does not provide any evidence to substantiate these claims. Most important is that Marable tries to summarize Malcolm's ideological trajectory as liberal democrat. He paints Malcolm as this reformer who saw some redemption in the U.S. Political system. While any biographer will try to paint his or her subject through their own lens, there is enough information about Malcolm to see that this viewpoint is wrong.

It was Marable's “W.E.B. DuBois: Black Radical Democrat,” that made me change my view of DuBois. Marable's last book did nothing to change my view of Malcolm. If anything, Marable humanizes Malcolm. He describes Malcolm as human as anyone of us. In the end, Marable maintains the dignity and respect that we always had for Malcolm. The book is truly a labor of love. While critics may lambast Marable for revealing several intimate details about Malcolm's life, there is so much that Marable reveals about him that are simply amazing and more gratifying. If anything, Marable strengthens our love towards the hero and sets a standard on how we view freedom fighters. He urges us to see them as painfully human and as flawed as we might see a family member. Marable asks us to see Malcolm as a product of his times and as someone who seized the moment. In the end, Malcolm still walks away the hero we have either wanted to wanted to be.