New Biography Accuses Newark Man of Slaying Malcolm X

Malcolm X is wheeled out of the Audubon Ballroom in Washington Heights (Credit: Library of Congress)

A radical and comprehensive new biography of Malcolm X published today names a Newark man as his main assassin. "Malcolm X: A Life of Reinvention," written by the late Columbia professor Manning Marable, asserts that 72 year-old Mustafa Shabazz killed Malcolm X, and that two out of the three men who were arrested had nothing to do with the crime. Shabazz, through his lawyer, told the Star-Ledger that "there's nothing to support this."

While researching the book, Marable spoke with members of Newark Mosque 25 about their ties to Shabazz and his involvement in the killing, which has been "an open secret" for years. The Times reports that the book also claims that a former NYPD detective states that authorities "stood back" instead of protecting Malcolm X when it became clear that threats on his life were serious. "They had the mentality of wanting an assassination" because he was seen as a "dangerous rabble-rouser."

Marable, who died unexpectedly on Friday from a long bout with a pulmonary disease, saw the book as his crowning achievement in an illustrious career. In it he argues that Malcolm X exaggerated his brushes with the law to illustrate Islam's power of redemption, hid an "early homosexual relationship with a white businessman," and held secret meetings with the PLO and the KKK. One historian gives credence to the NYPD's complicity, saying the book suggests "he was a subversive figure, trying to undermine the best interests of the U.S. government."