A Tribute in Loving Memory of the Late Malcolm X... [caption title]

[N.p., likely Harlem, 1965. Very good.. Photo-illustrated broadside, 11 x 7.25 inches, printed in black and red on glossy paper. Minor surface wear, light diagonal crease, some unobtrusive indented writing. A wonderful tribute to African-American leader Malcolm X following his assassination in 1965, authored by a friend of his, Lewis H. Michaux, a legendary Harlem bookseller. Lewis H. Michaux (1895-1976) opened his National Memorial African Bookstore on Adam Clayton Powell Boulevard at 125th Street in 1930, and operated with increasing success for the next forty-four years, during which time the store became a center of African-American literary life in New York City. According to Michaux's obituary, his bookstore hosted book-signing parties for the likes of Joe Louis, Eartha Kitt, Louis Armstrong, and Langston Hughes, and often welcomed luminaries such as Kwame Nkrumah, W.E.B. DuBois, Nikki Giovanni, and Malcolm X as customers. Michaux was known for his strong Black nationalist beliefs, serving as the leader of African Nationalists in America, and lending his support for Marcus Garvey's back-to-Africa movement. He was also a fierce advocate for reading and self-improvement; the sign over his store read, "Knowledge is power; you need it every hour. Read a book." Michaux's legend lives on long after his death. In 2012, he was the subject of an award-winning "documentary novel" entitled No Crystal Stair, composed in the form of a scrapbook which is "full of diary-like chronological entries written in the voice of Michaux, his family, and those who frequented the store."

In the present work, Michaux authors an acrostic poem honoring his late friend and customer Malcolm X. The poem is printed in the lower half, below the title and a striking photographic portrait of Malcolm. The poem begins, "M. Emits his magnitude the message he left behind" and ends with "X. Projects the xray vision beyond the sands of time." Other parts describe Malcolm as courageous, adroit, a bold leader, and a martyr. As far as we know, this is the only memorial of Malcolm X from a bookseller following his assassination, and given that Michaux and Malcolm were friends, the text carries additional impact. OCLC records just a single copy of this broadside, at Temple. (Inventory #: 6015)