Malcolm X: Boston

“I’m for truth, no matter who tells it. I’m for justice, no matter who it is for or against. I’m a human being, first and foremost, and as such I’m for whoever and whatever benefits humanity as a whole.”

“So early in my life, I had learned that if you want something, you had better made some noise.”

The Roxbury residence at 72 Dale Street was home to human rights activist and Muslim leader Malcolm X from 1941 to 1942. He lived there with his half-sister, Ella Little-Collins, who acted as guardian to 16-year-old Malcolm X after his father was found dead, presumably the victim of a white supremacist organization in Michigan, and his mother suffered a mental breakdown. During his time in Boston, Malcolm X worked odd jobs, including as a Parker House Hotel busboy and as a New Haven Railroad worker. In 1942 he left Boston, living in Michigan for a few months before moving to New York City.

In addition to his famous Autobiography of Malcolm X, he is best known for his speeches and other public appearances on behalf of the Nation of Islam and human rights.

His former residence, though not open to the public, was excavated and mapped in 2016 by the City of Boston and the Fisk Center for Archaeological Research at UMass Boston. The historic Parker House, now the Omni Parker House Hotel, embraces its literary history as a visitor will see in its lobby. The hotel is located at the corner of School and Tremont Streets.