Speech at the Audubon Ballroom Quotes
Shmoop will make you a better lover...of quotes
ALL QUOTES POPULAR BROWSE BY AUTHOR BROWSE BY SOURCE BROWSE BY TOPIC BROWSE BY SUBJECT
Source: Speech at the Audubon Ballroom
Speaker: Malcolm X
We didn't land on Plymouth Rock. The rock was landed on us.
Context
This line was spoken by Malcolm X in a speech at the Audubon Ballroom in Washington Heights, NY (March 29, 1964).
When Malcolm X says "the rock landed on us," he's not talking about Dwayne "the Rock" Johnson delivering the People's Elbow.
No, Malcolm X is talking about something even more painful than a wrestling maneuver. He's talking about slavery, and how Africans didn't choose to sail over to the United States—that they were "brought here against [their] will." This might be the ultimate rock vs. hard place battle.
Where you've heard it
You heard this when Denzel Washington paraphrased it as Malcolm X in the 1992 film Malcolm X. Of course Denzel got the role.
Pretentious Factor
If you were to drop this quote at a dinner party, would you get an in-unison "awww" or would everyone roll their eyes and never invite you back? Here it is, on a scale of 1-10.
Add seven points to pretentious factor if you're white.