Historians must use a particular lexicon (the vocabulary of a person, language, or branch of knowledge) to create a historiography that is objective, fit into a consisted canon of thought, as well as, challenge learners to examine the historical moment in the context in which it took place. Learning some of the vocabulary necessary to frame the scope of historical production is necessary. Terms such as: praxis, historiography, historicity, continuity, ideological framework, discourse, consciousness/historical consciousness, contextualizing, transitioning, and reorienting/realigning are some of the words that will allow you to focus your writing and reading of history.

 

Read the article, “EL-Hajj Malik EL-Shabazz: the Continuity and Legacy of a Critical Africana Human Rights Consciousness”

Using the vocabulary above summarize the article. Explain the concept the author is trying to communicate. Why do you think it is important to know about Malcolm X?

Why is Malcolm X important to America and particularly, African American history? Malcolm X died in Feb 1965, however, there are still new books written about his life and new movies are being made.

On Netflix, the documentary Who Killed Malcolm X and Blood Brothers continue to shape public memory and historical consciousness of Malcolm X’s life.