*More than a decade after being rejected as too controversial, Malcolm X will finally receive an official day of recognition in the state where he was born, for his contributions to the Civil Rights Movement.
MSN reports the moment came via a bill that was passed March 28 by the Nebraska Legislature. The bill, introduced by Omaha Sen. Terrell McKinney — one of two Black members of the Legislature, declared the iconic leader will be recognized every May 19 in Nebraska. The state and day hold a personal connection to Malcolm X, considering he was born Malcolm Little in Omaha, Nebraska, May 19, 1925.
McKinney brought the bill to the Legislature in an effort to declare the day a state holiday but fell short of the goal. According to MSN, the failure was mainly due to objections to the more than $500,000 a year projected cost to declare a state holiday, which comes from holiday pay for state workers.
Despite the rejection, McKinney approached his objective in a different way by adding an amendment to a bill that declares Oct. 17 as Missing Persons Day. The amendment, which recognizes May 19 as El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz, Malcolm X Day, will allow Nebraska schools to highlight the former Nation of Islam leader via exercises that will be held in his honor.
The day of recognition will take place in the same year a ceremony will be held in May to observe Malcolm X’s induction into the Nebraska Hall of Fame, which occurred in 2022. A bronze bust created by Lincoln, NE artist Nathan Murray will be unveiled during the event and displayed among the busts of other inductees in the halls of the Nebraska State Capitol.
In 2023, McKinney shared his views on Malcolm X during a committee hearing on his bill, saying, “Malcolm X is one of the most fundamentally misunderstood people in American history. And perhaps the stigma around him would be extinguished if his achievements and contributions were recognized.”
That same year, Malcolm X became Nebraska’s first Black honoree into the state’s Hall of Fame upon his selection for the achievement. The selection came 15 years after Malcolm was rejected as too controversial.
Chronicling Malcolm’s history, MSN noted the legendary history maker was born the son of a Baptist preacher and still a baby when he and his family left for Milwaukee after threats from the Ku Klux Klan. After being sentenced to nearly seven years in prison after being convicted of burglary in Boston at age 20, Malcolm converted to Islam from behind bars, changing his name in the process. From there, Malcolm became a faithful follower of the Nation of Islam who ministered under the message that Black people should cast off white oppression “by any means necessary.” Years later, Malcolm departed from the Nation and renounced racial separatism. As a result, Malcolm was assassinated when gunmen opened fire on him while speaking during an event in Manhattan’s Audubon Ballroom.
Malcolm’s inclusion in the Nebraska Hall of Fame was years in the making, going back to when he was first nominated for the honor in 2004. At the time, he was passed over by a commission made up solely of white men. The group instead selected Sen. Kenneth Wherry, a mid-1900s U.S. senator who made a name for himself with his campaign to remove gay men from government posts in the 1940s and 1950s. An open-meetings violation ultimately halted Wherry’s chances of getting into the Hall of Fame.
In 2007, Malcolm X was in the running to be in the Hall but was passed over a second time. The recipient that year was a little-known botanist named Charles Bessey.
MORE NEWS ON EURWEB: Gina Prince-Bythewood & Reggie Rock Bythewood Talk New Series ‘Genius: MLK/X’ | Watch
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