The Dead Are Arising: The Life of Malcolm X

by Les Payne

Several white male supervisors, for example, were confronted directly for harassing female employees by patting their backsides. ‘“Suppose I was pulling this stuff with one of your women,’” Wilfred remembers asking the sexual predators. ‘“What would you think?’ And they would go and apologize.” In other cases, Wilfred noticed that when Negroes came due for raises or promotions, they, unlike whites, were targeted for intimidation that was staged by management, he concluded, to forestall their advancement. After observing yet another such worker, a delivery truck driver, being dressed down by management in the store, Wilfred levelheadedly confronted the white manager. ‘“Why don’t you leave this man alone?’ I said. ‘You know good and well that he deserves his raise. You’re trying to intimidate him so he won’t ask for it.’ So they went on and gave him the raise.”