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From Civil Rights to Smethwick: Why was Malcolm X in the West Midlands?
Malcolm X’s name resonates down the decades – Kanye West, Jay-Z, Frank Ocean and Ice Cube reference him in their music – and many others. Movies have been made about him – lots, big-name stars like Denzel Washington playing the lead.
The man who rejected his childhood surname because of its slavery connotations is still one of the biggest names from 60s America - and still divides opinion.
So why was this superstar of civil rights in the UK? And why Smethwick – a small industrial town seemingly a million miles away from the segregation and racism of the USA?
As part of Black History Month, Newsbeat has been finding out.
Edited and Produced by Woody Morris
Narrated by Levi Jouavel
