GREENSBORO, N.C. — Two prominent Black voices in the Civil Rights Movement shared the same desire for equal rights but had two very different ideas on how to achieve it.
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X were assassinated for their beliefs as they pushed for the advancement of African Americans.
Malcolm X died on February 21, 1965. Dr. King was assassinated 54 years ago on April 4, 1968.
Communications expert Odell Bizzell has studied Dr. King and Malcolm X for decades, including their speeches, delivery, and how they lived their lives. He developed a presentation about their impact and how if alive what their messages would be today.
"They would teach us to know ourselves and also know the system," said Bizzell. "They would teach us to speak more eloquently and often to the powers that be and they would teach us to collaborate."
Within the presentation, Bizzell breaks down how leaders today can do those things to move any agenda that they have forward.
"It's not just about race, it's not about economics but it's about a lot of different things that we all want to do within our own communities and organizations," Bizzell said.
Bizzell's presentation talks about the similarities and differences in the two leaders' approaches and he uses those things to inspire future generations to press forward. One way he says is to understand what's most important and combine resources.
"We have more power, more reach potential than Dr. King and Malcolm X ever could as far as numbers go. It's just that we have to use it more to empower and less to entertain and that's the biggest takeaway," said Bizzell.
Bizzell is continuing this conversation with a free online discussion on Monday, February 21, 2022, at 1 p.m. You can find that information, here.