Malcolm X and Mauthausen

Anti-Semitism, Racism, and the Reception of Malcolm X in the Austrian Muslim Youth

Abstract

Malcolm X has an enduring significance in his political-religious youth activism for the Austrian Muslim Youth (Muslimische Jugend Österreich, MJÖ), the largest Muslim youth organization in Austria. This essay presents and summarizes findings in previous studies regarding the influence of Malcolm X in hip-hop culture and among young people in Austria in the 1990s, who founded a lasting social movement in 1995. The essay also discusses the lasting relevance of Malcolm X for a new generation of leaders in the MJÖ, who are annually paying tribute to him by discussing his life during the US-imported Black History Month. Based on my analysis of these events and in-depth interviews with the organizers, the essay discusses how Malcolm X was understood by young people of a religious youth organization.