$36M FOR WRONGFUL CONVICTION
No copyright restriction known. Staff photographer reproduction rights transferred to Library of Congress through Instrument of Gift.
The City of New York and the State of New York (combined) will both pay a total of $36 million dollars to Muhammad Abdul Aziz and the late Khalil Islam’s survivors.
Khalil Islam passed away at the age of 74 in 2009. The five men arrested and accused of killing Malcolm X were Mujahid Abdul Halim (aka Thomas Hagan), Muhammad A. Aziz (aka Norman 3X Butler), Khalil Islam (aka Thomas 15X Johnson), Talmadge Hayer and William Bradley123.
Muhammad A. Aziz (aka Norman 3X Butler) was arrested five days after the assassination of Malcolm X and spent 20 years in prison12 Khalil Islam (aka Thomas 15X Johnson) was arrested on March 3, 1965 and spent 22 years in prison12 Mujahid Abdul Halim (aka Thomas Hagan) was shot in the leg by a security guard, held and beaten by the crowd, and was arrested at the scene1 Talmadge Hayer was arrested fleeing the ballroom with a clip from a handgun used in the killing2 William Bradley was not among those arrested2.
Malcolm X was a very controversial man.
The leader of The Nation of Islam at the time, was Elijah Muhammad who had brought Malcolm into The Nation of Islam Organization and put him on a pedestal, but Malcolm did not appreciate being referred to as the “number 2 man” and broke ranks with the Nation of Islam.
Fidel Castro and Malcolm X met on September 19, 1960, at the Hotel Theresa in Harlem12. The meeting was arranged by Malcolm X and lasted for about 15 minutes1. Fidel however would spend an additional four hours at the United Nations speaking about the ills of capitalism and colonialization and promoting the Russian leader Kruschev.
The two leaders discussed a range of topics, including the struggle against imperialism and racism1. The meeting was held in the hotel’s Audubon Ballroom1.
The meeting was controversial at the time because of the political climate of the Cold War and the United States’ hostility towards Cuba3. The U.S. government was concerned about Castro’s visit to New York City and his speech to the United Nations General Assembly3. The meeting between Castro and Malcolm X was seen as a provocation by many in the U.S. government3.
This is true American History about a horrific miscarriage of justice that went on for decades against the men arrested and accused of murdering Malcolm X. Leaders of the City of New York, the State of New York and the New York Police Department conspired and colluded against these five men for decades by repeatedly obscuring exculpatory evidence (which existed since the day of the murder).
Much of this conspiratorial activity between the New York governments was based in racism and a lot of it was based in the established power politics of the day. In those days, white men did whatever they could get away with when it came to people of color. This was especially true in the case where a person of color would gain attention and notoriety such as when Fidel Castro stayed at the Theresa Hotel in Harlem while preparing for his 4-hour speech at the United Nations General Assembly in 1960123. While he was there, he received many notable visitors including Malcolm X2, Langston Hughes3, and Nikita Khrushchev1.
1. americasquarterly.org 2. nydailynews.com 3. nps.gov 4. history.com 5. fidelcastro.cu 6. bbc.com
The NYPD and both the City of New York as well as the State of New York leaders hid crucial material that would have exonerated these men decades earlier. Instead of granting the men a fair trial, the authorities held firm for decades until the Innocence Project and other organizations helped clarify and confirm that the DNA and other details of the case could not have happened in the way the authorities had reported them. Unfortunately, the case was not clarified for decades.
