Gary to rename street for '60s civil rights leader Malcolm X

GARY, Ind. (AP) - The city of Gary is renaming a street to honor controversial 1960s civil rights leader Malcolm X.

Mayor Karen Freeman-Wilson said one of her last acts in office will be issuing an executive order to rename Virginia Street as Malcolm X Boulevard.

She said Malcolm X emphasized, particularly towards the end of his life, 'œhow much those who struggled and those who were under-served and underprivileged had in common.'ť

'œHe emphasized how poor people, people of color, and others who were disenfranchised politically and economically had a lot more in common, and that we needed to fight together on behalf of change. That really is a message that is applicable today, just as it was in the 1960s and late 1950s when people were struggling for basic human rights. Here today, how racially divided we are troubles me,'ť Freeman-Wilson told The (Northwest Indiana) Times.

Malcolm X, a Muslim minister who broke away from the Nation of Islam in 1964, was assassinated Feb. 21, 1965 at the age of 39 by three Nation members during a speaking engagement in Manhattan.

She said she will issue the Malcolm X order on Dec. 20. It will take effect July 1 because street signs and addresses will need to be changed.