In prison, he joined the nation of islam, adopting the name malcolm x to symbolize his unknown african ancestral surname while discarding the white slavemaster name of 'little ' , and after his parole in … Malcolm rejects the surname little as a slave name given to his family by white oppressors, and he becomes known as malcolm x. dismayed that the nation of islam is not attracting more Malcolm x was a prominent african american leader and civil rights activist known for his advocacy for black empowerment and human rights.