After Malcolm’s dad died, his mom was diagnosed as mentally ill and was sent to an insane asylum. Malcolm then moved to New York City, New York, to live with his older half-sister, Ella, while in New York, he joined a gang, the gang members called him Detroit Red because of his reddish hair (Biography.com Editors). Malcolm was an activist who fought against racial injustice. Malcolm thought it was important to fight against racial injustice because he thought people shouldn’t be discriminated against because of their skin color (Mamiya). While Malcolm was in prison for robbery, Malcolm converted to Islam and joined the Nation of Islam (The Nation of Islam was an African American movement with elements of Islam mixed in). When he was released from prison he officially joined the Nation of Islam and helped lead it along with its leader, Elijah Muhammad. Malcolm X had a few rallies at the time and helped recruit many people to the Nation of Islam which got him the position of minister of Boston Temple No.11 (Malcolm X’s