Malcolm Little was born Malcolm Little but became known as Malcolm X. Malcolm's dad was killed by white people, so Malcolm was placed in a foster home and went to jail for breaking and entering. He read a lot of books in prison on black history. When Malcolm was in prison, he became a member of the Nation of Islam. After he left the nation, a couple of members from it shot him. His prison time was important because, if he never got arrested, he probably would not have become a member of the Nation of Islam.