In these speeches, consider that King says "1963 is not an end, but a beginning," while Malcolm X states in his 1964 speech that it could be "the year of the ballot or the bullet." Although Malcolm X and King are leaders of the civil rights movement, how are their purposes and points of view different?

In these speeches, consider that King says "1963 is not an end, but a beginning," while Malcolm X states in his 1964 speech that it could be "the year of the ballot or the bullet." Although Malcolm X and King are leaders of the civil rights movement, how are their purposes and points of view different?

Both speeches, "1963 is not an end, but a beginning" and "The Ballot or the Bullet," attempt to motivate Americans to bring about a change in society and win equal rights for African Americans throughout the nation. However, while King wants to help African Americans attain these civil rights through peaceful means, Malcolm X asks his followers to resort to violence, when necessary, to achieve freedom and equality.

King says "1963 is not an end, but a beginning,"

King's speech "1963 is not an end, but a beginning," is from the point of view of a fellow African American who seeks civil rights and will not rest until the African American community achieves equal rights in the United States, but only through nonviolent methods. He states that African Americans will keep striving for freedom, but at the same time, he encourages the African American community to not indulge in any wrong or violent deeds. Moreover, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. had a dream. His dream was that one-day whites and blacks could live together in equality. King and his rhetoric of idealism are what come to mind for most people when they think about the civil rights movement. King became the symbol of nonviolent protest that had come to the fore in Montgomery. Inundated with speaking requests and interviews, and beset by threats of violence, King become a national celebrity both for what he accomplished and how. "Our use of passive resistance in Montgomery," King told TIME, "is not based on resistance to get rights for ourselves, but to achieve friendship with the men who are denying us our rights, and change them through friendship and a bond of Christian understanding before God."

To admirers on the political right, King's core virtue appears in his devotion to America's founding principles in their essential universality—a devotion that, along with his Christian faith, inspired him to become America's preeminent apostle of moral and political "colorblindness." To those on the left, King's virtue appears rather in his commitment to an expansively egalitarian conception of justice, yielding not only his tireless agitation against formal segregation, but also his increasingly radical critique of U.S. inequality in both racial and socioeconomic dimensions.

What is really the Core of Martin Luther King's Vision? Dr. King did not speak in terms of tolerance. His ideal was love as he says: "Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that." (Strength to Love, p. 51) Yet, in current discussions of race relations the word love is seldom mentioned. Dr. King insisted love was the dominant or critical value by which we could overcome racial strife. The love he spoke of was a biblical love, one that is unconditional, unselfish and seeks the absolute good of another party. That kind of love is a tough love, one that confronts wrong and injustice with the truth -- absolute truth as decreed by an all-powerful God and enables the individual to love their enemy.

But there is another famous civil rights leader who had some very different ideas than King. Malcolm X was the leader of the more radical civil rights movement in the early 1960's. Perhaps no speech better exemplifies X's stance on civil rights than the "The Ballot or the Bullet" speech of 1964.

Malcolm X states in his 1964 speech that it could be "the year of the ballot or the bullet."

While Malcolm X states in his 1964 speech that it could be "the year of the ballot or the bullet" also attempts to encourage the African American community to revolt against destructive inequality, but he advocates using force and violence when necessary. Malcolm X is undoubtedly one of the most prominent spokesmen of the Civil Rights era. His tactics, although controversial, have motivated millions to fight for their rights. His speech, The Ballot or the Bullet, is directed at African Americans and encourages them to stand up for their rights and vote. He then goes on to state that if this is not enough, they may have to resort to violence. He uses rhetoric early on in an attempt to unite all African Americans.

Also, the speech outlines X's opinions on integration, African Americans' role in government and the community, and how to bring about social change. The world was changing in the 1960's, and it is important to remember that this change was not always as Dr. King's rhetoric portrayed it, for every shard of light also casts a shadow. That shadow is Malcolm X and "The Ballot or the Bullet.

The target audience for this speech was the entire African American population of America. Malcolm X knew that for his ideas to succeed that African Americans had to unite and work together. This would prove very difficult because X was a separatist, which made it difficult for his message to carry over to integrationists. The agents of change for this speech were the African Americans all over the nation. This trait is unique to this speech because the agents of change for most speeches are usually government officials or people of power.

However, "The Ballot or the Bullet" sought to empower the common African American. It was through the combined efforts of the common man that social change would come. Speaker's Goals X's goal for this speech was to persuade the audience to take action into their own hands and bring about social change. He wanted to inspire the audience to rely on themselves rather than politicians in Washington and the corruption that the white government had shown them. X wanted to initiate action and then maintain that action.

He wanted an entire movement to begin that would bring about change. This speech would explain how this was all possible and also instill his beliefs within the audience. Analysis of Speech and Rhetorical Strategies "The Ballot or the Bullet" began with Malcolm X's attempt to connect with his audience. He began by greeting both friends and enemies because, "I just can't believe everyone in here is a friend and I don't want to leave anybody out" (X, 1964). In this way, X identified with the audience members that are coming in with some inertia.

He wanted to let those opposed to him know that he knew they were there and he would address them. After this brief nod toward his opposition, X announced what was to come next for the civil rights movement. X said that the future, "... points toward either the ballot or the bullet" (X, 1964). X skillfully grabbed the attention of the audience with this one phrase. The ballot symbolized the right to vote, a thing that was denied to them for so long. The bullet symbolized something else. It symbolized the dark side of the civil rights struggle.

It symbolized the desire of the African American population to retaliate for the mistreatment of their people. With this opening statement, X captured the audience's attention and never let them go. X then told the audience to take a step back from what he just said and listen to what he had to say about himself and the speech he was going to give. X told the audience that he was not there to talk about the Muslim faith or make any connection between the civil rights movement and his religion. By doing this, Malcolm X had accomplished two things.

First of all, he had immediately shown that what he was going to talk about that evening was a universal problem and one that did not require any kind of religious conversion. This is a key difference in this speech as compared to some that X made when he was still involved with the Nation of Islam. Secondly, X identified with his audience by doing this. X talks about Christians, Muslims, and all other types of religions working together and putting aside their differences to fight for their rights. This was an attempt to unify the audience and it was successful in that respect.

Finally, by immediately moving away from the phrase, "The ballot or the bullet," X continued to hold everyone's attention. They wanted to know what he was talking about and they were hanging on every word. X then made a brief count of the social injustices that had been committed against African Americans. He used repetition of the phrase, "...at the hands of the white man" (X, 1964). This repetition was meant to build up the passion that the African Americans in the audience felt against whites. However, X used great tact by then saying, "Now, in speaking like this it doesn't mean that we're anti-white..."(X, 1964).

Martin Luther King was well aware that although the civil rights movement had provided a focus on racism and discrimination, what had been accomplished thus far was not nearly enough to solve all of the problems the United States had in these areas. He was looking forward to a time when people would be judged by "the content of their character," rather than the color of their skin, but he knew that marches and demonstrations and even the civil rights legislation that would come in 1964 were not going to completely solve the problem. Hundreds of years of slavery and a South that was so resentful after the Civil War that it legislated specifically against black people made it clear to him that it was going to be a long road. What followed bore out how right he was. For example, as recently as the 1960s, it was illegal for a black man and a white woman to marry in Virginia. Even today, with an African-American president, we are not living in a post-racial world. Research suggests that while people are better at concealing their racism, it is alive and well. Martin Luther King understood very well that his era was just a beginning. 

Concerning ethics, X's speech has a unique morality. It advocates retaliation and separatism. This is not really an ethical message today because our society is proud of integration, though the idea of separatism is not necessarily an unethical one. As for the message of retaliation, after the numerous injustices that the African Americans had suffered, the idea of retaliation is justified and could be argued as an ethical stance. Therefore, X's message was an ethical one, though perhaps not so much so as defined by whites at the time.

X's speech was one that appealed to the passions of the African American that had been held down by the weight of the white man's false promises. He eloquently delivered this speech in a way that, although perhaps not as aesthetically pleasing as Dr. King's speech, captivated the audience and proved that it had aesthetic value. Finally, X's speech had one major effect: the passing of the 1964 Civil Rights. Dr. King's speech is often credited with making a push for this legislation, but X's speech certainly contributed to the passing of this bill.

X was much more an extremist figure than Dr. King. Extremist rhetoric helps legitimize the moderates of a movement, and therefore X's speech made the argument for integration seem that much more attractive to those in Congress. "The Ballot or the Bullet" was responsible for the passing of one of the most crucial bills in the history of African American's battle for civil rights. X's speech meets all the criteria for a successful speech and because of that it is remembered today.

Conclusion

Malcolm X's "The Ballot or the Bullet" provided the civil rights movement with definite goals and means of achieving them. X had set the tone for the future and delivered an ultimatum to those that opposed African Americans' rights. The full effect that X would have had on the history of America will never be known due to his assassination about a year after this speech. Although we cannot know what might have been, we know this: Malcolm X's "The Ballot or the Bullet" helped shape the civil rights movement and the legislation responsible for African American equality in America.

Short Summary of Similarities and Differences Between Malcolm X And Martin Luther King

Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. were both known as civil right leaders in the 1960's. Both men had a different perspective on civil rights and how civil rights should be won. Both men also had strong beliefs on religious and followed on through that path in different ways. Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X had several differences and several comparisons and had a big impact for the people of The United States. Martin Luther King Jr. was known as a Baptist Minister and also Civil Rights Activist. King, had a huge impact on race relations in the United States around the 1950's. Martin Luther King Jr. was known for equality and human rights for African Americans. On December 1, 1955 Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on the bus and was arrested. Therefore, Activists coordinated a bus boycott that had continued for 361 days and elected Martin Luther King Jr. to be the protest leader and also the official spokesman leader.

Martin Luther king Jr. had become successful with the boycott that other civil right activist in ministers had founded the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) this was known as a group achieving full equality for African Americans through a nonviolent protest. King, worked with a few civil rights and religious groups who helped organized the March on Washington. This was for jobs, and freedoms. This was to help shed the light on African Americans injustices. Around 1964, The Civil Rights Act was passed. Martin Luther King Jr. was most famous for his speech, "I Have a Dream" his speech was called for peace and equality that many would consider a masterpiece. On April 4, 1968 King was assassinated. King will always be remembered for his speeches. On the third Monday during the month of January is a U.S. holiday to honor him. King, had a vision of changing the world in a positive way.

The difference between Martin Luther King jr. and Malcolm X was king was a Baptist and Malcolm was an African American Muslim.