(RNS) — A century ago, Malcolm Little, who became the Muslim leader and human rights activist known as Malcolm X, was born.
Members of his family, community leaders, and business owners are marking the birthday of the Nation of Islam leader on Monday (May 19) at the event “The 100th Birthday Celebration of El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz, Malcolm X” at the Malcolm X & Dr. Betty Shabazz Memorial and Educational Center. The center is housed in what was once the Audubon Ballroom in New York City, where Malcolm X delivered his last message before being assassinated there 60 years ago.
Earlier in the day, his daughter, Ilyasah Shabazz, and other relatives are set to join the Rev. Al Sharpton, president of the National Action Network, and New York City Mayor Eric Adams at a centennial commemoration at the NAN House of Justice in New York.
“Malcolm was taken from us 60 years ago, but his legacy has only grown over that time,” Sharpton said in a statement. “He challenged the systems that prevented many Black Americans from accessing basic services, and fought until his final day for Black empowerment. As we mark 100 years since his birth this Monday, it is crucial we keep the torch he lit alive to ensure Black Americans have their seat at the table, the ability to speak and the ability to lead.”
Here are five resources that reveal more about Malcolm X’s life.
In this May 16, 1963, file photo, civil rights leader Malcolm X speaks to reporters in Washington, D.C. (AP Photo/file)
RELATED: New York Narratives tour centers Muslim experiences, history in the city
“The Three Mothers: How the Mothers of Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, and James Baldwin Shaped a Nation,” by Anna Malaika Tubbs, published by FlatIron Books, 2021
This book chronicles motherhood through the lenses of Alberta King, Louise Little and Berdis Baldwin and provides little-known details about their lives surrounding faith, discipline and sacrifice.
Author Anna Malaika Tubbs researched these women who birthed, influenced and guided Malcolm X and the other two civil rights leaders on paths that led them to become so influential.
At the time of the book’s release in 2021, she told RNS, “There are letters where Malcolm X writes to his brother, when he’s thinking about converting to the Nation, and says his mother was the one who taught him Islam from the beginning.”
“Genius: MLK/X,” National Geographic television series, on Hulu and Disney+, 2024
This eight-part series depicts the lives of Malcolm X, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and their wives and details how faith and family played significant roles for the men known for their work in pulpits and protests.
The cast and crew of the series said their aim was to portray these larger-than-life figures as human beings who grappled with doubt and fear as they faced death threats and other pressures before each was ultimately assassinated at age 39.
The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., center left, and Malcolm X speak after King’s press conference at the U.S. Capitol about the Senate debate on the Civil Rights Act of 1964. (Photo by Marion S. Trikosko/Library of Congress/Creative Commons)
“We are telling the story of these two — actually, really four — four great people and icons, and we wanted to go beyond the T-shirt and really get to their humanity,” Gina Prince-Bythewood, who co-produced the series along with her husband, told RNS at a premiere event in 2024. “And the way you do that is to do research and really dig beyond what most people know.”
“Malcolm Lives! The Official Biography of Malcolm X for Young Readers” by Ibram X. Kendi, published by Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 2025
“Malcolm Lives!” — a new book released May 13 — brings Malcolm X’s history to life for elementary and middle school readers. Author Ibram X. Kendi, worried about the erasure of Black history, wrote the book to connect children, particularly young Black readers, to Malcolm X’s racial justice fight and ideas.
“There are a lot of people around the world who read the autobiography of Malcolm X when they were in high school or college, and it really transformed them,” Kendi said in a conversation with Sharpton on MSNBC. “It allowed them to really see racism squarely. … So why can’t our young people learn about Brother Malcolm when they’re in elementary school, or even middle school, and they become transformed then?”
The book draws from notes, letters and exclusive documents lent by Malcolm X’s estate.
“Malcolm X,” a movie directed by Spike Lee, 1992
Starring Denzel Washington, the 1992 biopic retraces the life of Malcolm through his troubled childhood between Boston and New York City, his conversion to Islam in prison and his rise as a Nation of Islam leader in the 1960s.
The movie also captures Malcolm X’s life-changing Hajj pilgrimage in Mecca, with scenes shot in Saudi Arabia.
Washington’s performance earned him an Oscar nomination for best actor. “When we were doing that film, we weren’t seeing Denzel, we were seeing Malcolm,” director Spike Lee told Newsweek’s Kevin Powell in a recent interview.
“Blood Brothers: Malcolm X and Muhammad Ali,” Netflix documentary, 2021
Malcolm X, left, and Muhammad Ali in New York, March 1, 1964. (AP Photo/Jack Kanthal)
Through conversations with Muhammad Ali’s and Malcolm X’s relatives, the documentary, directed by Marcus A. Clarke, dissects their brief but consequential friendship.
From their meeting at a Nation of Islam rally to their fallout after Malcolm X left the Nation while Ali remained, the two men influenced each other’s fights. Upon meeting with Malcolm X, the boxing champion became outspoken about racial segregation in the United States.
“They were from two different worlds, but it was destiny that they would meet; three short years, that they would spend in their lives,” said Ilyasah Shabazz, Malcolm X’s daughter, in the movie’s trailer.
The documentary includes conversations with Rahaman Ali, Ali’s brother, and his daughter, Maryum Ali. It also features Sharpton and activist Cornel West.