Becky Beyer
Mr. D’Aquila
APUSH
15 August 2008
Malcolm X Essay
On April 3, 1964, while delivering a speech entitled ‘The Ballot or the Bullet’ in
Cleveland, Ohio, Malcolm X said, “Sitting at the table doesn’t make you a diner, unless
you eat some of what’s on that plate. Being here in America doesn’t make you an
American. Being born here in America doesn’t make you an American (“The Ballot or
the Bullet” 9).” This simple yet powerful statement reverberated through the thoughts of
thousands, possibly even millions, across America. With due consideration, it can be
taken as a portrayal of the basic beliefs of Malcolm X. As shown in The Autobiography
of Malcolm X, he spent a great deal of his life fighting for the rights of his fellow African
Americans. Whether it was through giving speeches for the Nation of Islam, or merely
speaking of his own personal beliefs, Malcolm X constantly tried to illuminate the
repressed, and in his opinion mind washed, to the fact that all who reside in America
should have equal rights and liberties. Through this statement, he was saying that until
all citizens are equal in the eyes of the American government, as well as the public, and
are treated accordingly, those who are being repressed are not truly Americans.
With this quote, it seems that Malcolm X was saying that though one may live in
America that does not necessarily make them an American. The image of a diner sitting
at a table, but not eating, is clearly supposed to be a representation of the black man
living in America. For decades they were denied their basic human rights, and even after
the abolishment of slavery, racism persisted, leading to the creation of an entire group of
people who were considered equal only in the technicalities of politics. For example, in
an attempt to create the image of equality, the fourteenth amendment to the constitution
was passed, stating, among other things, “All persons born or naturalized in the United
States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the
state wherein they reside (“Citizenship” 1).” This well-intentioned but misguided attempt
towards creating equality did nothing more than give people the right to label themselves
citizens. It did nothing to actually help the repressed within the United States, because it
did nothing to help guarantee them the rights and liberties that should have come with
their citizenship. Owing to the fact that the equal possession of these rights and liberties
is the foundation of what makes up America, it seems painfully true that if denied them,
one cannot truly consider them self American. The picture of the black man watching
others eat while having nothing on his own plate is also clear in Malcolm X’s
autobiography. He recalls learning early on in Lansing that “success” for a black man is
waiting tables, and many don’t even achieve that (Haley 5). This is symbolic of the fact
that the black community is invited to the table only to serve, not eat. In other words,
they are present in America to serve the white man, not to be themselves American. This
seems to be the true essence of the quote.
In evaluating this quote, it is necessary to understand American social, political,
and economic history. During the life of Malcolm X, much was going on that led to the
belief that blacks were not really Americans. Though on paper it said that all who were
born and lived in America are citizens, it was not seen in daily life. For example, the Jim
Crow laws allowed for the segregation and mistreatment of the African American
community. By making legal separate schools, bathrooms, water fountains, etc., the Jim
Crow Laws added to the image that the black community within the United States was
not really Americans (“Jim Crow Laws” 1). Also adding to this idea was the fact that
most within the black community were incapable of achieving the “American dream”, or
the hope that the next generation will have more success and money than the previous
one. Each successive generation saw the same amount of hardship, failure, and racism
imposed upon them. Although the hope for economic success was there, the possibility
to achieve it seemed highly unlikely, owing to the fact that most remained uneducated
and incapable of finding a decent job, making them feel that without these opportunities,
they weren’t truly Americans. This was also during the era of such people as Martin
Luther King, Jr., who were advocating for the fight for equality through non-violent
means. The American public watched as this man, and many more, were met with anger,
and often violent and untimely deaths, just because they spoke up for the rights of the
African American community to be treated as Americans. The fact that this caused so
much furor added to the feelings of inferiority. Overall, it seems apparent that the actions
of the government and the general public of the time greatly influenced the feelings of the
African Americans to the point that they didn’t even believe themselves to be Americans.
Many things in Malcolm X’s own personal experiences led him to draw the
conclusion that he was not truly an American. He saw the windows of his childhood
home broken by the Ku Klux Klan. He saw his family’s next house in Lansing,
Michigan, burned down by another white supremacist group. He saw his father killed by
white men who opposed his political and religious stances. He saw his family cheated
out of their rightful money, eventually helping to push them into debt. He witnessed his
own mother become clinically insane, driven there, seemingly, by the white government
(Haley 1-23). This violence and mistreatment that ruled his life from a very young age
are no doubt what helped to lead him to the idea that being black meant you were
inferior, which he speaks of many times throughout his autobiography. In school, when
he told his teacher Mr. Ostrowski that he wanted to be a lawyer, he was scoffed at, and
told “that’s no realistic goal…” due to his race, while all of his white classmates were
encouraged to pursue their dreams (Haley 38). Malcolm later ended up hustling on the
streets of Boston and New York, struggling to survive, and was eventually put in prison
on burglary charges (Haley 41-153). Through all of his struggles in his life leading up to
his imprisonment, one of the few common threads was that Malcolm X was never given
the chance to live a good life as a true American because of his race. His realization of
this is undoubtedly what led to him stating that simply being here in America doesn’t
make you an American, because though he lived here all his life, no one ever treated him
with the respect he deserved, or gave him the rights and liberties he was due as a citizen
of the United States, essentially never treating him as an American.
Overall, it was an accumulation of things that led to Malcolm X saying, “Sitting at
the table doesn’t make you a diner, unless you eat some of what’s on that plate. Being
here in America doesn’t make you an American. Being born here in America doesn’t
make you an American.” He witnessed the cruelty suffered by those who weren’t white
first hand. He saw that the black community had no chances to live a good, fair, equal
life while the white community continued to treat them as servers, who were invited to
the table but not allowed to eat from it. And from this, he was smart enough to realize
that while they were denied the possibility to live the quintessential American life as
defined by the white community, those who were being repressed could not truly call
themselves Americans. But perhaps most importantly, he had the courage to speak out
about it, and encourage others to fight for their right to be American. Whether he went
about it the “right” way or not doesn’t really matter. What matters is that by telling the
black community that they weren’t American, he inspired them to fight to become so, and
that is what this quote, and Malcolm X in general, is truly about.
Rebecca, great 1st APUSH essay. Good intro and thesis. It is clear and
provides focus for body. Good OI support and support from novel.
Mechanics are sound and nice writing style. You fully addressed prompt.
Well-crafted essay. Nice job! Glad you are taking this course!
Works Cited
"Citizenship." U.S. Citizen and Immigration Services. 14 Aug. 2008
<http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/menuitem.eb1d4c2a3e5b9ac89243c6a754
3f6d1a/?vgnextoid=96719c7755cb9010vgnvcm10000045f3d6a1rcrd&vgnextchan
nel=96719c7755cb9010vgnvcm10000045f3d6a1rcrd>.
"Jim Crow Laws." About.com. 14 Aug. 2008
<http://afroamhistory.about.com/od/jimcrowlaw1/jim_crow_laws.htm>.
X., Malcolm, Alex Haley, and M. S. Handler. Autobiography of Malcolm X. New York:
Broadway Books, 1998.
X., Malcolm. "The Ballot or the Bullet." Ohio, Cleveland. 14 Aug. 2008. World History
Archives. 14 Aug. 2008 <http://http://www.hartfordhwp.com/archives/45a/065.html>.