“In the past, the greatest weapon the white man has had is his ability to divide and conquer” — Malcolm X

The legacy of human rights advocate Malcolm X, a.k.a. El Hajj Malik El Shabazz, will be commemorated internationally this Friday, his 98th bornday anniversary. In New York City, filmmaker Spike Lee will be the keynote speaker at the Malcolm X & Dr. Betty Shabazz Center, and is commemorating the 30th anniversary of his “Malcolm X” movie. To RSVP livestream, go to: https://www.facebook.com/events/259441323123852/.

The 58th annual pilgrimage to Ferncliff Cemetery (Hartsdale, NY), where Malcolm’s and his wife Betty’s bodies are interred, leaves at 10 a.m. Friday morning. People start gathering at 125th Street and Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Blvd. at 9 a.m. The December 12th Movement’s annual “Shut’em Down” economic boycott of all businesses along 125th Street runs from 1-4 p.m.

Of Malcolm’s many contributions to the African diaspora, assisting the local lost and found Americanized-Africans in relearning their true heritage is one of the most significant ones. It helped in remedying the traumas caused by centuries of psychological, physical, and spiritual enslavement here in the wilderness of North America.

RELATED: Forever Malcolm X!

“Who taught you to hate the texture of your hair? Who taught you to hate the color of your skin…to such extent you bleach, to get like the white man? Who taught you to hate the shape of your nose and the shape of your lips? Who taught you to hate yourself from the top of your head to the soles of your feet? Who taught you to hate your own kind? Who taught you to hate the race that you belong to, so much so that you don’t want to be around each other?” — Malcolm X, during his “Who taught you to hate yourself” presentation in Los Angeles, May 5, 1962.

Whether as a progressive Muslim minister delivering weekly sermons at the Nation of Islam’s Temple #7 (then at 102 W. 116th Street), or as a fiery street-corner orator at African Square (125th Street/7th Avenue intersection), or from in front of Lewis Michaux’s African National Memorial Bookstore (125th Street/7th Avenue), he courageously spoke truth to power, inspiring many of those who witnessed him.

“Malcolm X was strong medicine,” TV journalist Gil Noble once noted at a City College of New York (138th Street and Convent Avenue) Malcolm X conference. “Many people were scared to say what he said in public. They only said those things behind closed doors.”

Malcolm X was an advocate for Black empowerment, often urging those watching to “do for self” and encouraging them to manage the businesses, education, politics, and socializing in their own communities. He also recommended that local citizens form rifle clubs and organize groups to “police the police” to minimize police brutality.

He used his Garveyite upbringing, as well as Nation of Islam training, to share inspirational messages that motivated people to build their own Black families and communities. Due to his success, he helped heighten awareness about both groups.

“A race of people is like an individual man; until it uses its own talent, takes pride in its own history, expresses its own culture, affirms its own selfhood, it can never fulfill itself.” — Malcolm X

Many people were reconnected to their African roots through his efforts, thus their self-esteem was raised immensely.

In recent years, Malcolm X Day has been observed nationally more commonly, with Berkeley, California, doing so since 1997; Illinois since 2015; and in Missouri since 2019.

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Since returning to the Yankees lineup from a hip sprain on May 9, AL MVP Aaron Judge has been the spark for a struggling team. Slugging four home runs and hitting .320 with a 1.295 OPS, Judge has looked like his reigning American League MVP self over his previous seven games going into last night’s game versus the Toronto Blue Jays on the road. 

During that span, the Yankees split four games against the Tampa Bay Rays and had gone 5-2 since the return of Judge as of Tuesday, including a 7-4 win over the Blue Jays on Monday night in Toronto to raise their record to 24-19. The Yankees fell to .500 (15-15) on May 1 by losing to the Cleveland Guardians 3-2, their fourth loss in a row. 

The turnaround began with outfielder Harrison Bader making his season debut on May 2 after missing due to injuring his oblique during spring training. Bader has provided much-needed offensive help, going 14- 42, hitting three home runs, and driving in 11 RBIs while batting .333 before being in the third spot and playing center field in the second game of the Yankees’ four-game series against the Blue Jays on Tuesday. 

Other Yankees have also caught fire at the plate, such as first baseman Anthony Rizzo, who was  hitting .379 with 11 RBIs and three home runs in his previous seven games heading into Tuesday. Rookie shortstop Anthony Volpe had increased his average to .267 and had three homers and eight  RBIs. 

Going 6-2 from May 8 through May 15 and gaining 2.5 games in the AL East- leading Rays signals that the Yankees are gaining their footing. The Yankees will play a three-game series this weekend on the road against the Cincinnati Reds.

RELATED: Yankees and Mets face internal and external challenges

Meanwhile, the Mets have not been consistently productive at the plate or in their pitching rotation. They went 2-2 in Washington versus the Nationals in a four-game series that began last Friday and concluded on Monday. The Mets were 16th in Major League Baseball in batting at .241 when they hosted the Rays at Citi Field on Tuesday and were 18th in OPS (on base plus slugging) at .705. Their pitching was equally lagging as their ERA of 4.69 ranked 24th out of MLB’s 30 teams. 

Top of the rotation starters Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander—future Hall of Famers—are still trying to gain their form as appointed aces while Kodai Senga, in his first season in the MLB after coming over from Japan, was scheduled to start last night, taking a 4-2 record and 4.14 ERA into the game. 

The Mets were 4-9 over their last 13 games before Tuesday’s game and already had been shut out seven times this season. They were shut out eight times all of last season. There should be some changes coming soon, specifically with how well infield prospects Mark Vientos and Ronnie Mauricio have been performing for the Mets Triple-A affiliate Syracuse.

Mauricio was hitting .420 with eight RBIs and a 1.144 OPS and Vientos was hitting .261 with four homers, 12 RBIs, and a .917 OPS at the start of this week. While Mauricio and Vientos wait their turn, the Mets will host the Guardians in Queens for three games tomorrow through Sunday, then head to Chicago for three against the Cubs Tuesday through Thursday.

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If Game 1 of the NBA Western Conference Finals on Tuesday night between the No.1 seed Denver Nuggets and No. 7 seed Los Angeles Lakers portends how the remainder of the series will unfold, it may be an epic best-of-seven clash between two teams featuring some of the basketball’s all-time greats—LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and Nikola Jokic—bringing brilliant resumes to the battle.

Jokic was other-worldly in the Nuggets’ 132-126 Game 1 win at home. Jokic, also endearingly known as Joker, unleashed his boundless skills, as the 7-foot-tall center finished with 34 points, 21 rebounds, and 14 assists.

Davis’ numbers were also colossal. The 6-foot-10-inch forward had 40 points and 10 rebounds. James’ greatness is taken for granted as his 26-point, 12-rebound, nine assists night of work was standard for him.

There were other impactful contributions from players on both teams. Nuggets guard Jamal Murray scored 31 points, and Lakers guard Austin Reaves scored 23 and dealt eight assists. The Nuggets dominated much of the game and took a commanding 72-54 halftime lead, but the Lakers chipped away in the next 24 minutes and were trailing by just 129-126 with 45 seconds left when James missed a potential game-tying 27-foot jumper.

RELATED: The Nuggets and Lakers move closer to a clash in the West

“Yeah, it took us a half to get into the game,” James said, “and that was pretty much the ballgame right there. They punched us in the mouth to start. I know the game is won in 48 minutes, but they set the tone in 24 minutes and we were playing catch-up for the next 24.”

Lakers head coach Darvin Ham put the ball in James’ hands and wore out the Nuggets defense with high pick-and-rolls, targeting Murray and leaving Denver head coach Mike Malone’s disjointed group scrambling. Malone and his staff will have to determine how they will counter a formula the Lakers are certain to employ in Game 2 tonight in Denver.
“I’d rather clean things up after a win in the Western Conference finals than after a loss, so I will take it,” Malone said. “But [there is] much work to do.”

Like Malone, Ham is approaching the long series pragmatically.

“Thank God it’s the best-of-seven and it’s not the NCAA Tournament,” Lakers coach Darvin Ham said. “It’s the first to four. We’ll be OK, trust me.”

The series moves to Los Angeles for Game 3 Saturday night, and Game 4 on Monday.

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