Quick Facts
- NAME: Betty Shabazz
- OCCUPATION: Educator, Civil Rights Activist, Nurse
- BIRTH DATE: May 28, 1934
- DEATH DATE: June 23, 1997
- EDUCATION: Tuskegee University, Brooklyn State College School of Nursing
- PLACE OF BIRTH: Detroit, Michigan
- PLACE OF DEATH: New York City, New York
- Maiden Name: Betty Dean Sanders
- AKA: Betty X
- AKA: Betty Shabazz
Best Known For
Betty Shabazz is best known as the wife of African-American nationalist leader Malcolm X, who was assassinated in New York City in 1965.
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Betty & Coretta - Trailer (1:56)
Angela Bassett - Remembering MLK
Angela Bassett, who stars as Coretta Scott King in the Lifetime Original Movie, "Betty & Coretta," remembers and honors Martin Luther King. "Betty & Coretta" premieres Saturday, February 2nd 8/7c.
Mary J. Blige - Remembering MLK
Mary J. Blige, who stars as Betty Shabazz in the Lifetime Original Movie, "Betty & Coretta," remembers and honors Martin Luther King. "Betty & Coretta" premieres Saturday, February 2nd 8/7c.
Betty & Coretta - Trailer
Focusing on the extraordinary women behind the two men who would change history, "Betty & Coretta" tells the similar true stories of Coretta Scott King , wife of Dr. Martin Luther King and Dr. Betty Shabazz, wife of Malcolm X.
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Play NowBetty Shabazz. (2013). The Biography Channel website. Retrieved 03:28, May 25, 2013, from http://www.biography.com/people/betty-shabazz-38339.
Betty Shabazz. [Internet]. 2013. The Biography Channel website. Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/betty-shabazz-38339 [Accessed 25 May 2013].
"Betty Shabazz." 2013. The Biography Channel website. May 25 2013, 03:28 http://www.biography.com/people/betty-shabazz-38339.
"Betty Shabazz," The Biography Channel website, 2013, http://www.biography.com/people/betty-shabazz-38339 [accessed May 25, 2013].
"Betty Shabazz," The Biography Channel website, http://www.biography.com/people/betty-shabazz-38339 (accessed May 25, 2013).
Betty Shabazz [Internet]. The Biography Channel website; 2013 [cited 2013 May 25] Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/betty-shabazz-38339.
Betty Shabazz, http://www.biography.com/people/betty-shabazz-38339 (last visited May 25, 2013).
Betty Shabazz. The Biography Channel website. 2013. Available at: http://www.biography.com/people/betty-shabazz-38339. Accessed May 25, 2013.
In 1995, Shabazz’s daughter Qubilah was prosecuted for hiring an assassin to kill Farrakhan. Farrakhan reached out to the family to defend Qubilah, prompting a public reconciliation between Shabazz and Farrakhan.
Death
While Qubilah attended a rehabilitation program, she sent her 10-year-old son, Malcolm, to stay with her mother in New York. On June 1, 1997, Malcolm set a fire in Shabazz’s apartment. Shabazz suffered severe burns and died on June 23, 1997. Malcolm Shabazz was sent to a juvenile detention for manslaughter and arson.
Betty Shabazz is buried beside her husband at Ferncliff Cemetery in Hartsdale, New York.
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