m became associated in a gang and sold and used drugs, and was involved in many other criminal activities. His gang "career" ended when he got into some trouble due to a bet with the gang leader. Since the gang wanted Malcolm killed, Malcolm hid for a while. Soon, Malcolm decided to rob a house which he heard had a lot of valuables in it. Soon one night, he robbed the house, but was caught later. Malcolm was charged with burglary and sent to prison for a maximum of eight years of which he served six. This was a turning point in Malcolm's life. While in prison, Malcolm educated himself and became interested in the teachings of Elijah Muhammad. Malcolm spent his time in jail educating himself and learning more about the Nation of Islam (later known as the Black Muslims). Their belief, which was contrary to Martin Luther King Jr.'s, mainly to was to segregated whites and blacks. The Nation of Islam wanted to establish a separate Afro-American homeland in the U.S. and believed that the white person is "the Devil" who wanted to enslave all non-whites. The Nation of Islam also strictly followed the Islamic belief. When Malcolm was released from prison after in 1952, he joined a temple in Detroit, and took the name Malcolm X. He took the name X because his present last name was the last name of the slave master who freed their slave and since the slave didn't know who their ancestors were, and therefore didn't know their real last name, they often took up the last name of their master. Many Muslims kept the name "X" because in math, "X" is represented as an unknown variable like their real last name. A person was to keep the name "X" until God himself gave them a "holy name"(Encarta 2). Soon after his release from jail, Malcolm worked for his oldest brother who managed a furniture store. While working, he also gave many speeches, and went "fishing"(fishing is when someone stands out on a sidewalk and hand out brochures and explained about the...
