Activist and ex-wife of Malcolm X, Betty Shabazz, aka Betty X, aka Betty Dean Sanders was possibly born on May 28th, 1934…apparently, her birth records were lost, but this seems to be the most likely date. She met the Muslim minister and human rights activist Malcolm X at the National of Islam temple in Harlem, started going to his services, and eventually converted to Islam in 1956, changing her surname to “X” to represent the loss of her African ancestry. In 1958, she married Malcolm X, and subsequently, they both left the Nation of Islam and became Sunni Muslims. After the assassination of on February 21, 1965, Shabazz went on to raise her six children alone.

In 1969, Shabazz completed an undergraduate degree at Jersey City State College, followed by a doctoral degree in higher-education administration at the University of Massachusetts. She then accepted a position as an associate professor of health sciences at New York’s Medgar Evers College.

In the 70s & 80s she soent much of her time volunteering. In 1975, President Ford invited her to serve on the American Revolution Bicentennial Council. Shabazz served on an advisory committee on family planning for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. In 1984, she hosted the New York convention of the National Council of Negro Women. Shabazz became active in the NAACP and the National Urban League

She worked as a university administrator and fund-raiser until her death.