The Autobiography of Malcolm X continues to be relevant 55 years later.

Google reveals list of prominent black history makers

Google recently caused an uproar on Black Twitter in a good way, by airing a commercial announcing a most searched list of Black History makers. Among those who are on the list of who are researched the most are:

Tap dancer: Gregory Hines

Tennis player: Serena Williams

WWII airmen: The Tuskegee Airmen

Abolitionist: Frederick Douglas

Ballerina: Misty Copeland

Athlete: LeBron James

Autobiography: Malcolm X

The Autobiography of Malcolm X was written by Roots author, Alex Haley, and published posthumously. These writings on the life of the man born Malcolm Little, almost never made it to print, because the initial publication of the book was initially cancelled.

Doubleday's loss is the gain of Grove Press

Alex Haley and Malcolm X first met in 1959, when Haley wrote a Readers Digest article about the Nation of Islam. The two met again when Haley interviewed Malcolm in 1962 for Playboy. In 1963 Haley was asked by the Doubleday publishing to write a book on the life of Malcolm X. After obtaining permission from Elijah Muhammad, Malcolm and Haley began their collaboration. Malcolm X was said to have been critical of Alex Haley because he was a Christian, lived a middle-class life, and had given twenty years of service to the United States Military.

When Malcolm X was assassinated on February 21, 1965, Doubleday, who had paid him a $30,000 advance, reneged on the deal out of fear for the safety of their employees. Grove Press published the autobiography on October 29 of that same year and the New York Times review described it as "brilliant, painful, and important. This can be credited to Haley, who made two significant edits. He noticed that Malcolm was talking more about Elijah Mohammed than himself, and was overtly anti-Semitic. He left out the hate speech and added more about the life of Malcolm Little.

Sales through the years

According to the New York Times, The Autobiography of Malcolm X sold 600,000 copies in 1967 and 800,000 in 1968. The Times reported that the book entered its 18th printing by 1970, and that six million copies o had been sold by 1977. The Autobiography experienced an increase in sales and returned to the best-seller list during the 1990's with book sales increasing 300% between 1989 and 1992. This was due in part, to the publicity surrounding Spike Lee's film Malcolm X, staring Denzel Washington, which was released in 1992. There are no recent total sales figures listed but The Autobiography of Malcolm X is said to have sold at least five million copies at some point.

Missing chapters comes to light

In 1992, attorney Gregory Reed purchased the original manuscripts of The Autobiography of Malcolm X for $100,000 at the sale of Alex Haley's Estate. These manuscripts included three missing chapters, titled "The End of Christianity," "Twenty Million Black Muslims," and"The Negro." These were the chapters that Alex Haley and other editors omitted from the original text because they were considered controversial. In these writings, Malcolm X proposed the establishment of a union of African American civic and political organizations. Some believe this project might have led members of both the FBI and the Nation of Islam to attempt to silence Malcolm X. In July 2018, the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture acquired the missing chapter titled "The Negro", for $7,000 at an auction. Later that same year, these manuscript pages were put on display in the lobby of their library.

Family tragedy continues

Since his passing and in spite of the popularity of the book, the Shabazz family has continued to experience tragedy and untimely death. In January 1995, 30 years after the assassination of Malcolm X, his daughter Qubilah Shabazz was arrested for plotting the murder of Louis Farrakhan. She was afraid that Farrakhan would target her mother who was outspoken in her belief that the Nation of Islam leader was behind her husband's death. While Qubilah was in prison, her mom cared for her 10 year old son also named Malcolm. In 1997 the 12 year old set fire to his grandmother's apartment and Betty Shabazz died three weeks later from her injuries. In 2013, 28 year old young Malcolm was murdered in Mexico.

The Autobiography of Malcolm X can be purchased online through Amazon, Walmart, Target, and second sale sights. You might also be able to find a copy in your local library. The Google revelation that this story is being sought indicates that there are those who enjoy seeking history and or want to learn more about the life of Malcolm Little who changed his name to Malcolm X.

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