Childhood.

Malcolm Little was born to a father who was both a preacher and a follower of the black nationalist Marcus Garvey. His father died in mysterious circumstances when Malcolm was young, and after his mother was placed in a mental institution in Michigan, Malcolm, at age fifteen, dropped out of school to live with his half sister in Boston. After a criminal career on the streets on Boston and New York, he was arrested and was sentenced to ten years in prison for robbery.

Nation of Islam.

While in prison Malcolm came into contact with the writings of the Honorable Elijah Muhammad, leader of the Nation of Islam, often called the Black Muslims. Malcolm was converted and replaced his "slave name" of Little with the letter X. After his release from prison in 1954 he joined Muhammad and quickly proved his ability as a preacher...