"We didn't land on Plymouth rock, the rock landed on us."

Malcolm X was an African-American Muslim who became a member of the Nation of Islam after a spending time in prison. The Nation of Islam ‘fought for a state of their own, separate from one inhabited by white people’. Malcolm soon became the spokesman for the Nation of Islam and began spreading the message of African-American separatism.
I have chosen a video showing a clip of Malcolm X giving his ‘Ballot or Bullet’ speech given on 3rd April 1964 in Cleveland Ohio, to demonstrate his promotion of separatist ideas:



Throughout the speech Malcolm emphasises the idea of African-Americans being separate and independent from American society. Near the beginning of the clip he states “We are African and we happen to be in America. We’re not American.” This implies that, although they are living in America as African-American citizens, they are in fact separate from America because of their ethnicity. This concept is understandable given the unequal and unfair treatment that African-Americans have endured at the hands of white Americans and ‘W.A.S.P’ culture, however unlike other Civil Rights speakers of the time, such as Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X celebrates this and promotes the idea of black separatism.
He goes on to say “We are people who formally were Africans who were kidnapped and brought to America… our forefathers weren’t the Pilgrims. We didn’t land on Plymouth Rock, the rock was landed on us.” This famous statement again emphasises the differences which separated – and to an extent still separate – white and black American society. Making reference to the Pilgrims in turn draws attention to the values and ideologies which are associated with them and the founding of America, such as freedom and opportunity. Stating that African-Americans did not land on Plymouth Rock suggests therefore that they are not entitled to the freedoms and opportunities that America is founded upon. By stating that the rock was landed on them reinforces this, suggesting that they have been victims of America and its ideology. This is again emphasised when he states “We were not brought here to be made citizens. We were not brought here to enjoy the Constitutional gift that they speak so beautifully about today.”
The clip finishes with Malcolm stating that “Our unwanted presence; the fact that we are unwanted is becoming magnified in all of American preachments today.” This again emphasises the fact that as African-Americans they are not wanted in America, and are therefore separate from America.
Throughout the clip Malcolm X continually emphasises the differences between white and black American society and the degree to which African-Americans are different and outside of American society, with white Americans being the enemy. By emphasising this concept of separatism he is celebrating it. Malcolm X was unlike any other Civil Rights campaigners of the time, including Martin Luther King Jr., who often praised America and encouraged assimilation as opposed to separatism.