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Rhetoric and Revolution

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Malcolm X's speeches and the emphasis on speech in the events leading up to the Black Power movement were good examples of the role of rhetoric and it's connection to activist-driven social movements. For instance, in Malcolm X's phrase 'Ballot or Bullet', we see how publics are motivated towards collective consciousness. The phrase used is brief, is parsimonious, but more importantly, forces the audience to think about the inevitability of revolution.

Similarly, Malcolm X at holds the Democratic Party responsible for the continued subjugation of the Black population. Once again, we see the power of rhetoric in this context, when he calls the Democrats 'Dixiecrats'. The term Dixiecrat is used to describe members of the States' Rights Democratic Party of the Southern US. This party was a segregationist party that emerged out of the Democratic Party, and gained control of the Southern factions of the Democratic Party.

For sure, the reason for the Black Power advocates and Malcolm X to be regarded as a threat was the threat of disruption and violence that they always promised. However, once again, we see the role of the symbolic in communicating the material threat. The rhetorical simplicity of 'Ballot or Bullet' underlies the simplicity of the argument of the oppressed. A right to self-governance or violence.

While listening to the clips, I was reminded of the phrases used during the early years of the Cultural Revolution. What is interesting is that during a period of crisis, what is defined as beautiful, or poetic also changes. For instance, the phrase, 红色恐怖万岁 (roughly translated as "Long live the Red Terror") was used to galvanize a generation. The translation does not capture the poesis of the phrase here. In this context, the 'terror' was what was exalted, made to be the object of desire. In Malcolm X's phrase, the beauty lies in the fact that both the options: bullet or ballot, are equally accessible. Of course, beautification of violence makes a lot of people uncomfortable; but in the face of decades of economic exploitation and segregation, the possibility of rebalancing oppressive social forces can pull a lot of weight.

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