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What happened during Malcolm X’s pilgrimage to Mecca in 1964?
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Malcolm X
Prominent figure in the Nation of Islam Malcolm X, 1965.
In 1964, following his departure from the Nation of Islam, Malcolm X undertook the hajj—the traditional Islamic pilgrimage to the holy city of Mecca.12
During this pilgrimage, he experienced a significant transformation in his beliefs, leading to a second conversion in which he embraced Sunni Islam. Upon adopting this orthodox faith, he took the name el-Hajj Malik el-Shabazz. This experience prompted him to renounce the separatist views he had previously held while part of the Nation of Islam, and he began to advocate that the solution to racial issues in the United States could be found through the teachings of orthodox Islam.21