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Nowhere did this threat of violence loom greater than in New York, which boasted the largest black population in the nation. In fact, the city’s police department had recently claimed to have uncovered a black vigilante group, the “Blood Brothers,” that had been posing as a gun club. Their aim, according to the police, was to spill blood and incite violence. Many people, including those in the media, were searching for clues as to what would happen next, and Malcolm X was thought to be an important resource. Noted for his willingness to approach controversial subjects that more moderate civil rights leaders usually avoided, he had gained the trust of America’s urban blacks. He was not a man tomince words, and he was not afraid to hammer away with his demands for changes in American society.

Two African American boys playing in vacant lot strewn with debris, West 91st Street, New York City. Malcolm X’s fiery brand of activism gained national attention in the early 1960s, as he criticized the segregation and discrimination of American society that kept many black families living in poverty.

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C I V I L R I GH T S L E A D E R S : MA LCO L M X