African-American Odyssey Through the Reasoned and Systematic

African-American Odyssey

Through the reasoned and systematic analysis presented in Martin & Malcom & America: A Dream or a Nightmare, author James H. Cone investigates the fundamental philosophical contrasts between the ideas espoused by the Civil Rights movement's most revered leaders, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. And Malcolm X In the preface of the book, Cone identifies both King and Malcolm X as the founding fathers of "the two main resistance traditions in African-American history and culture -- integrationism and nationalism" (Preface ix). The remainder of the work comprises a comparative examination of each man's overarching belief system, with Cone relying on both King's and Malcolm X's religious background, family upbringing and social influences to contextualize their competing views and values. Cone uses the term integrationism to encompass King's overall adherence to peaceful protesting and nonviolent methods to achieve social reforms, while the term nationalism describes Malcolm X's insistence on the preservation of African identity as defined by the Black Power movement. Although the book is primarily a study in difference, Cone is able to illustrate the many underlying similarities which united Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. And Malcolm X as foils in the epic generational struggle to secure true freedom for this nation's African-American citizens.

Throughout his tragically brief life, Martin Luther King Jr. remained utterly faithful to his unique vision of nonviolence, with sit-ins, marches and other peaceful demonstrations forming the lynchpin of his Civil Rights movement. King truly believed in the redemptive power of tolerance and exhorted his supporters to respond with patience when confronted by racially motivated brutality. Cone identifies the Christian value system through which King was raised as a crucial influence in the development of his doctrine of nonviolence, citing "the integrationist values of protest, accommodation, self-help and optimism as & #8230; related to the religious themes of justice, love, obedience and hope" (22). The role of faith in forming Malcolm X's conception of Black Power is also a central focus of Cone, and the author delves deeply into the connection between Malcolm X's conversion to Islam and his increasingly hard-line stances on race relations. For Cone, the Muslim faith's call for irrevocable purity undoubtedly forms the basis of the Black Power movement's fiery reassertion of African racial identity and its leader's inherent "affirmation of blackness in opposition to America" (38).