FBI File on Malcolm X

How to search the collection

The collection is contained on 4 rolls of film in approximate chronological order. A print guide accompanies this collection that includes Roll Notes, and while not a complete inventory of the files, these notes provide a list of specific documents that may be especially worthwhile to researchers. While these documents along with others from the FBI have been released under the Freedom of Information Act, according to the guide, “certain documents or portions of documents have been deleted by the FBI pursuant to provisions of that legislation.”
Some documents of this collection may also be viewed at http://foia.fbi.gov/foiaindex/mccarthy.htm

Guides

The collection is contained on 10 rolls of microfilm and is accompanied by a print guide that provides some description of the contents (“Roll Notes”). The documents were filmed in the order they were received from the FBI and are in approximate chronological order (though the FBI did not index documents). While these files have been released under the Freedom of Information Act, “certain documents or portions of documents have been deleted by the FBI pursuant to provisions of that legislation”. Also, the Roll Notes, while not a complete inventory of the files, “is an indication of the types of material or specific documents that may be particularly worthwhile for research” From the Introduction of the print guide to the collection
Some documents of this collection may also be accessed (in PDF format) at: http://foia.fbi.gov/foiaindex/malcolmx.htm

excerpt from Roll Notes:

Section 1 Roll 1, 0003-0121
1953-1955
Subject of security investigation due to Communist ties
Communist Party Activities
Activities with Muslim Cult of Islam (MCI)
Background and Arrest Record