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• The Murder of Malcolm X; The Effect on Black America (FCN Webcast)

NEW YORK (FinalCall.com) - Five men who once called one another “Brother” until the unfortunate split between Minister Malcolm X and his teacher, the Most Honorable Elijah Muhammad, came together May 20 for a panel to honor Al Hajj Malik El Shabazz, set the record straight and embrace each other for the first time in 40 years.

Hosted by the Black Studies Program at the City University of New York (CUNY), the “Memories of Malcolm X By Those Who Knew Him” panel discussion was part of the Third Annual Symposium on Institutional Building in Harlem, entitled “The Malcolm X Legacy: A Global Perspective.” Dr. Leonard Jefferies, head of the program, moderated the event, describing it as an effort to regain power to define our history. “This is an historic occasion,” bellowed Cheikh Omar Abu Ahmed, who organized the panel, which also included Minister Benjamin Karim, Abdullah H. Abdur-Razzaq (James 67X), Dr. Abdul Alim Shabazz and Minister Abdul Akbar Muhammad (Larry 4X).

All five men spoke of Min. Malcolm with admiration, the Honorable Elijah Muhammad like a father and the Nation of Islam (NOI) as the institution that nurtured their manhood. The most startling information shared was Mr. Razzaq’s declaration that neither Norman 3X Butler (now Muhammad Abdul Aziz) nor Thomas 15X Johnson (now Khalil Islam) were in the Audubon Ballroom the day of Min. Malcolm’s “public execution.” Both men denied involvement in the murder of Min. Malcolm on February 21, 1965, yet each served over 20 years for the crime.

Although many academics participating in the symposium described the break between the gifted Min. Malcolm and the NOI in terms of a student outgrowing a jealous teacher and his narrow-minded doctrine, all five presenters on the panel at CCNY expressed their view, that the events that led up to his assassination was a result of J. Edgar Hoover’s CIA war on the rise of a “Black Messiah.” It was a diabolical plot that was orchestrated from within and without the NOI that caused bloodshed and divided a family, they all suggested.

“The NOI didn’t kill Malcolm,” declared Mr. Razzaq. “He was easy to kill. They could have just sat in a car and waited for him to come home,” he said. “Who refused to let him land in France? Who tried to poison him in Eygpt?” he asked the crowd.

“The CIA,” the crowd answered.

Mr. Karim assured the audience that all of the men who were responsible for the execution paid with their lives, except for one, evidently referring to Talmadge Hayer, the only one of the three men convicted of the murder to confess. Mr. Hayer also testified during the two-month trial that neither Mr. Aziz nor Mr. Islam was involved in the deadly plot.

The first order of correction—his name, insisted Cheikh Omar. “His name is Al Hajj, not El Hajj. He was named (Malik Shabazz) by the Honorable Elijah Muhammad in 1959. Stop calling him Malcolm. Give him the respect he is due. Call him Al Hajj or Min. Malcolm,” he implored.

Min. Akbar shared his elation over Mr. Razzaq’s earlier statement, as well as the joy in embracing him. “He was my lieutenant,” Min. Akbar recalled later, “and we loved each other.”

Mr. Razzaq agreed. “Bro. Larry (Min. Akbar) was inherently decent. I was surprised to see that 40 years later nothing had changed,” Mr. Razzaq shared later. “I can remember when I became the circulation manager of Muhammad Speaks. Bro. Larry sold 600 copies of one edition. That is when I recommended him to Min. Malcolm for the Minister’s Class,” he recalled.

Min. Akbar discussed the brilliance, discipline and dedication to the Cause that Min. Malcolm demonstrated, and also attacked the spin doctors whom he accused of trying to twist the famed spokesman’s legacy, bury the significance of the Hon. Elijah Muhammad’s impact on Black progress in America, and blame Minister Louis Farrakhan for his death.

He said he could not understand how a man who spent 10 years building his reputation as Minister of Mosque No. 7, could have his legacy limited to the last 349 days of his life, which were spent in Africa and the Middle East. He pulled out a New York Times Arts Section highlighting events in the city honoring Min. Malcolm, which also referred to him as a “civil rights giant.”

He then showed the audience a book entitled, “Louis Farrakhan,” which is distributed to public schools, yet “deals more with Min. Malcolm than Min. Farrakhan and drops the seed that Min. Farrakhan was responsible for the murder of Malcolm X,” he charged. He opened the book to a picture of Mr. Razzaq, who was identified by another name, and pointed out the inaccuracy of the book’s claim that Mr. Razzaq was gunned down in the bloodbath that followed the execution of Min. Malcolm. When asked, no one in the room said they had seen the book before.

Another correction on history the panelists made was that Min. Malcolm and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. had a meeting. According to Mr. Razzaq, the two giants were at a public meeting at the same time.

“Malcolm said he would like to shake King’s hand, so I made it happen,” he explained, noting, however, that Dr. King did meet with the Honorable Elijah Muhammad. Four months later, Dr. King was assassinated. “They never talk about that meeting,” he pointed out.

With a renewed brotherhood, the panelists exchanged numbers at the end of the program. Min. Akbar shared later that he has lived with a “broken spirit” since the tragic events that led to murder and the subsequent 40-year split between members of the Nation who labored together and loved each other. He said the reunion was beautiful.

The modestly attended symposium was one of many functions that kicked off the commemorative exhibition, “Malcolm X: A Search For Truth,” that will be showcased at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture/ The New York Public Library May 19 to Dec. 31. The exhibition includes a collection of personal and professional papers and memorabilia of Min. Malcolm that was rescued from auction in 2002.