While in prison, Malcolm's introduction to the Elijah Muhammad's teachings forces him to reflect on his own past experiences. Why do those experiences persuade him to join the Nation of Islam? What, in Malcolm's experiences, draws him to an activism more militant than the nonviolent activism of Martin Luther King Jr?

Malcom suffered the dissolution of his family as a consequence of white violence. His father was killed by white men, and he was taken away from his mother and placed in a foster home when she proved unable to bear the strain of providing for all her children after the her husband's death. It must be noted that the insurance company argued that her husband had comitted suicide in order to avoid paying her what she was due. At school, he was disencouraged from pursuing a career in law, since it was "no realistic goal" according to one professor. We can see how at every turn, white people and white society destroyed his chances of a happy, healthy life. This made him believe that black Americans could not expect anything from white Americans.