The X Factor

Born in Omaha, Nebraska,
Not knowing his real name;
The civil rights movement
Would catapult him to fame;

Upon leaving America
And his oppressor's prison,
He discovered Mecca
And renounced racism;

When he went back to the hell
From whence he came,
He still knew not who he was;
"Little" was not really his name;

Nor was it Smith,
Johnson or James;
Nor was it Anderson,
Thompson or Raines;

He wanted no name of slaves
Who were whipped
Had scars on their backs,
Who were treated like animals
Because they were black;

He wanted no name of slaves
Who came on ships,
Chained and shackled
below the decks;

His fathers and forefathers he never knew,
So he took the name of
Malcolm X.