HARLEM WEEK 2015: This Was Malcolm X’s Harlem – a Home Base, Place of Learning and a Continual Source of Inspiration
BY A. PETER BAILEY NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Tuesday, August 11, 2015, 11:28 PM
When I first moved to Harlem in June 1962, I must admit to doing so rather grudgingly because of all the horror stories I had heard and read about the uptown Manhattan neighborhood.
What motivated me to move there, despite my apprehension, was an opportunity to live in a rent-controlled, eight-room apartment on 142nd St. between Lenox Ave. (now Malcolm X Blvd.) and Seventh Ave. (now Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Blvd.) for an unbelievably low rent.
The day after moving in, a friend and I, instead of unpacking, decided to walk down Lenox Ave. to get a real feel of the neighborhood. When we reached 116th St., we saw a crowd gathering.
“What’s going on?” we asked.
“Malcolm X is going to speak,” were told.
At that time I had only heard vaguely about Brother Malcolm, mostly that he was some kind of bogeyman who called white people “devils” and who advocated violence. We decided to stay and hear what he had to say.
By the time he finished speaking some three hours later, I had become a Malcolmite and have remained one to this day. I had never heard race relations dealt with such clarity, passion and authenticity. I also found out that I was wrong about Harlem. Brother Malcolm had convinced me that Harlem was not a “hopeless ghetto,” as often depicted by most whites and, unfortunately, too many blacks. Rather, it was a diverse community of African-Americans, Latinos, and black folks from everywhere. It was no accident that Harlem was the place that provided an operational base for Brother Malcolm.
It was there that he had access to the well-stocked source of knowledge known as the African National Memorial Bookstore. Its owner, Lewis H. Michaux, called it the “House of Common Sense” and the “Home of Proper Propaganda."”
Michaux once said that on several occasions, he closed the store at night and left Brother Malcolm inside reading and studying.
That could only have happened in Harlem, which also provided Brother Malcolm with access to another valuable source of knowledge: the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture.
It was also in Harlem that Brother Malcolm met and interacted with giants such as Adam Clayton Powell Jr., John Henrik Clarke, John Oliver Killens, James Baldwin, Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee, Jackie Robinson, Percy Sutton, Michaux, Joe Roberts, one of the founders of HARLEM WEEK and many thousands of receptive Harlemites. And Harlem’s Hotel Theresa became the headquarters for his black nationalist group, the Organization of Afro-American Unity.
Harlem, because of its history — which included being the base of operations for Marcus Garvey, another great black leader — was the most appropriate site in the entire country in which to launch such an organization.
When Fidel Castro came to Harlem in 1960 and held numerous meetings with world leaders, it was in that same hotel. And Brother Malcolm was among those invited to meet with the Cuban president.
With conveniently located Harlem as his base, Brother Malcolm had ready access to airports, from which he flew to Africa and other places to advance his goal of internationalizing the struggle against white supremacy and for human rights in the United States. Harlem also provided him with ready access to the United Nations for meetings with supportive diplomats from Africa and other nations.
When Brother Malcolm wanted a quiet place to dine with aides and supporters, it was often in Harlem’s 22 West Restaurant.
When he walked through Harlem’s streets, he was greeted warmly by most Harlemites —who knew he was the real deal, and that he was, to use an old-school term, a “race man” to the core of his being.
Harlem will be forever grateful and proud that it was the base of operations and a place of learning and inspiration for one of the great black men of the 20th century.
A BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION
An array of international performers and celebrities will mark the 90th anniversary of Malcolm X's birth on Harlem Day, Aug. 16, on the main stage at W.135th St. and St. Nicholas Ave. Family members of the late leader will receive HARLEM WEEK’s Basil A. Paterson Award. Activities will take place from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m. Visit harlemweek.com.
Tuesday, August 11, 2015, 11:28 PM
When I first moved to Harlem in June 1962, I must admit to doing so rather grudgingly because of all the horror stories I had heard and read about the uptown Manhattan neighborhood.
What motivated me to move there, despite my apprehension, was an opportunity to live in a rent-controlled, eight-room apartment on 142nd St. between Lenox Ave. (now Malcolm X Blvd.) and Seventh Ave. (now Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Blvd.) for an unbelievably low rent.
The day after moving in, a friend and I, instead of unpacking, decided to walk down Lenox Ave. to get a real feel of the neighborhood. When we reached 116th St., we saw a crowd gathering.
“What’s going on?” we asked.
“Malcolm X is going to speak,” were told.
At that time I had only heard vaguely about Brother Malcolm, mostly that he was some kind of bogeyman who called white people “devils” and who advocated violence. We decided to stay and hear what he had to say.
By the time he finished speaking some three hours later, I had become a Malcolmite and have remained one to this day. I had never heard race relations dealt with such clarity, passion and authenticity. I also found out that I was wrong about Harlem. Brother Malcolm had convinced me that Harlem was not a “hopeless ghetto,” as often depicted by most whites and, unfortunately, too many blacks. Rather, it was a diverse community of African-Americans, Latinos, and black folks from everywhere. It was no accident that Harlem was the place that provided an operational base for Brother Malcolm.
It was there that he had access to the well-stocked source of knowledge known as the African National Memorial Bookstore. Its owner, Lewis H. Michaux, called it the “House of Common Sense” and the “Home of Proper Propaganda."”
Michaux once said that on several occasions, he closed the store at night and left Brother Malcolm inside reading and studying.
That could only have happened in Harlem, which also provided Brother Malcolm with access to another valuable source of knowledge: the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture.
It was also in Harlem that Brother Malcolm met and interacted with giants such as Adam Clayton Powell Jr., John Henrik Clarke, John Oliver Killens, James Baldwin, Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee, Jackie Robinson, Percy Sutton, Michaux, Joe Roberts, one of the founders of HARLEM WEEK and many thousands of receptive Harlemites. And Harlem’s Hotel Theresa became the headquarters for his black nationalist group, the Organization of Afro-American Unity.
Harlem, because of its history — which included being the base of operations for Marcus Garvey, another great black leader — was the most appropriate site in the entire country in which to launch such an organization.
When Fidel Castro came to Harlem in 1960 and held numerous meetings with world leaders, it was in that same hotel. And Brother Malcolm was among those invited to meet with the Cuban president.
With conveniently located Harlem as his base, Brother Malcolm had ready access to airports, from which he flew to Africa and other places to advance his goal of internationalizing the struggle against white supremacy and for human rights in the United States. Harlem also provided him with ready access to the United Nations for meetings with supportive diplomats from Africa and other nations.
When Brother Malcolm wanted a quiet place to dine with aides and supporters, it was often in Harlem’s 22 West Restaurant.
When he walked through Harlem’s streets, he was greeted warmly by most Harlemites —who knew he was the real deal, and that he was, to use an old-school term, a “race man” to the core of his being.
Harlem will be forever grateful and proud that it was the base of operations and a place of learning and inspiration for one of the great black men of the 20th century.
A BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION
An array of international performers and celebrities will mark the 90th anniversary of Malcolm X's birth on Harlem Day, Aug. 16, on the main stage at W.135th St. and St. Nicholas Ave. Family members of the late leader will receive HARLEM WEEK’s Basil A. Paterson Award. Activities will take place from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m. Visit harlemweek.com.
No comments:
Post a Comment