Excerpts

A police official approached Malcolm X and told him bluntly that he would have to move his people away from the hospital.Malcolm refused, saying that the members of the Nation of Islam were standing peacefully, within their constitutional rights, and harming no one. The police officer looked at the men standing in ranks, and walked away. Malcolm sent one of the men into the hospital to check on the condition of Hinton.The crowd behind the formation was growing more restless and more police were summoned. Soon there were two lines of men facing each other, one white, the other black. The policemen were not sure of what was happening. The men of the Nation of Islam were motionless.The police official returned to Malcolm and told him that the crowd behind his formation was shouting at the police and acting in a manner that he could not tolerate.Malcolm said that he would control the members of the Nation of Islam, and that the rest of the crowd was the problem of the police official. Again, the police official backed off.The man that Malcolm had sent into the hospital returned. He told Malcolm the doctors had assured him that Hinton was getting the best care possible. Malcolm signaled the formation of men and they moved silently away.That night and the next morning the community was filled with talk of "the Muslims," and how they had confronted the police. The police talked about the incident as well and wondered exactly what challenge the Muslims presented to them and exactly who was this man who called himself Malcolm X. Excerpted from By Any Means Necessary by Walter Dean Myers All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.