X Marks The Spot
I wonder what it is I can say about El Hajj Malik El Shabazz that hasn’t been said about him by other great poets and writers in the past. I’m really not sure but I hope I can add on to the legacy with some words that will enable his memory to forever last.
In a lot of folks eyes he was nothing but an upstart, a rebel. Somebody trying to rip the already shredded racial fabric in this country on every level; but what he was, was a man who took his time when he spoke his mind. He was never afraid to look in those blue eyes and let him know he was the devil.
Maybe it was the X that made them vexed; as opposed to going by the last name that his birth certificate shown he would rather use the X and let his name remain in the state of the unknown. Or maybe he was an emissary sent to conquer ignorance, a disease in which he refused to be an accessory and would do all he could for you and I by any means necessary.
Back in the day a lot of us accused him of being too back. What the hell is that? Why didn’t we understand he was one who didn’t shuffle his feet, lower his gaze or bend his back. That he was a man who loved his people and only wanted to enlighten us with actual facts so we could stand on our own two and live right and exact.
Even his fiery were met with trepidation because of the way he expressed his frustration about the miseducation and the humiliation suffered by a people who on their backs help build this nation. I think people wanted him to be more passive and turn the other cheek or even watch what he saying and the way in which he would speak. I’m glad he didn’t because that was one of the thing that made him so unique.
Even amongst all that hate and not too many brothers got to travel from country to country meeting with Kings and different heads of state. And even when circumstances concerning his life were spinning out of control at an alarming rate, helping our people was first and foremost even with all he was dealing with and on a daily basis he had to contemplate.
Then when all the thread began to unravel and he was left with just one strand, his life came to an abrupt end at the hands of another blackman. To me it seemed to be a plan concocted by the man all because he chose to make a stand and even in the face of adversity he never ran.
All Bro Minister did was simply tell the truth. He was thought to be subversive and sinister but in actuality he was sent to administer a much needed booster shot of reality. I guess that was the only way to extinguish the flame of a man that was blazing a mighty trail that was hot. So that’s why for me as leaders go, in my mind, my heart I’ll never forget you because X will always mark the spot.
Conscious Elements
Cipha Publishing © 2k1
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