An intriguing but uneven essay on the enduring influence and image
of Malcolm X, by the author of Reflecting Black (not reviewed).
Dyson (Communications Studies/Univ, of North Carolina, Chapel Hill)
prefaces his book with an arresting anecdote about leading a
Malcolm X seminar at Brown University, where he publicly scolded
black male students who imposed a "racial litmus test" to claim for
themselves exclusive rights to Malcom's legacy (i.e., "because I'm
black, poor, male and angry, I understand him better than you").
Had Dyson drawn more frequently on classroom experiences, this book
might have been energized. He first briefly sketches Malcolm's life
and thought (avoiding lionization by noting his harsh attitudes
toward women) and the complexity of his political evolution away
from the Nation of Islam and black nationalism. Next comes a long
assessment of the "uncritical celebration and vicious criticism"
that mark so many books on Malcolm; Dyson identifies "four
Malcolms" that emerge from these assessments: hero/saint; public
moralist; victim and vehicle of psychohistorical forces; and
revolutionary socialist. He then analyzes Malcolm's role in the
resurgence of black nationalism, noting that his defiance has been
adopted by tappers and other disaffected black youth. However,
while calling for a "new progressive black politics," Dyson doesn't
analyze the role of the Nation of Islam or of black leaders like
the Rev. Al Sharpton on the contemporary black political scene. His
next chapter, on masculinity in 1990s black film, strays somewhat
from his subject; more interesting is his take on Spike Lee's
Malcolm X, which Dyson considers hagiographic but also "often
impressive...richly textured and subtly nuanced." The book
concludes with a heartfelt meditation on how to make the best use
of Malcolm's legacy. Dyson calls for a more complex debate on the
state of black males, suggesting that Malcolm's message of
self-discipline and self-love might be redemptive. Not as rich as
Joe Wood's collection, Malcolm X: In Our Own Image (not reviewed),
but useful for serious students. (Kirkus Reviews)
Twenty years after his assassination, what is it about Malcolm X's life and words that speaks so powerfully to so many?
In Making Malcolm, Michael Eric Dyson probes the myths and meanings of Malcolm X for our time. From Spike Lee's film biography to Eugene Wolfenstein's psychobiographical study, from hip-hop culture to gender and racial politics, Dyson cuts a critical swathe through both the idolization and the vicious caricatures that have undermined appreciation of Malcolm's greatest accomplishments.
A rare and important book, Making Malcolm casts new light not only on the life and career of a seminal black leader, but on the aspirations and passions of the growing numbers who have seized on his life for insight and inspiration.
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