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The Ballot Or The Bullet Rhetorical Analysis

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Since the day Africans were taken captive and forced into slavery, they have been struggling to gain freedom and equality for their people. From the 1900 to the 2000’s this fight for freedom and equality is truly distinguishable. Powerful speeches by these African Americans who advocated for Civil Rights show the impactive emotions they felt throughout their endeavor to gain equal rights, people like W.E.B. Du Bois, Malcolm X, and Mary Church Teller. These powerful speeches and articles brought about great hope and zeal for the fight for African American independence.

W.E.B. Dubois would eventually emerge as a founder of the NAACP, a leading human rights activists and the most important African American intellectual of the 20th Century. However …show more content…
His tactics, although controversial, have motivated millions to fight for their rights. His speech, The Ballot or the Bullet, is directed at African Americans and encourages them to stand up for their rights and vote. Malcolm then goes on to state that if this is not enough they may have to resort to violence. He uses rhetoric early on in an attempt to unite all African Americans. He states, “Whether you’re educated or illiterate, whether you live on the boulevard or in the alley, you’re going to catch hell just like I am. We’re all in the same boat and we all are going to catch the same hell from the same man.” This is an emotional appeal that aims to unite people on one common ground and make them forget about their in-differences. Malcolm then exposes democrats as liars and shows that even though they have full control of the Senate and House, they still will not help out the African-Americans. “They come to our black neighborhoods giving the hope of false promises.” Yet another motivational tactic used to help unite an uprising. His statement about Uncle Sam is interesting as he tries to claim that Uncle Sam’s hands are dripping with the blood of the African American. Malcolm then calls Uncle Sam a hypocrite and how he stands as the leader of freedom, yet African Americans are not free. Providing a negative image to the country his people dwell in does not seem to me to be the best …show more content…
Malcolm X refuses cooperation, which is a must for successful negotiation and instead believes that a certain supremacy exists and they can go above the current system in place. It takes us back the title, The Ballot or the Bullet. He seems to feel that if the ballot fails, then violence is the only alternative. This is not the case as it would just provide a negative image for his people and deter success. Most understand he wants to motivate his people but the cost and damage he is willing to take would in the end provide no means to an end and just harm his people even

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