William Jordan

Prof Montrie

The Civil Rights Movement: From Pacifist to Militant

Through the 1950s and 60s there were many contributing factors that effected the evolution of

civil rights movement, from pacifism to the rise of black militancy. In this tumultuous period of American

history there were many individuals, organizations as well as global and national events; all of which had

both negative and positive effects on the movement. The civil rights movement—as it advanced through

the 1950s and 60s—demonstrates a profound social progression in American history: whereas the 1950s

were a time when activists vied for non violent measures to create change, the 1960s differed as

activists became more militant and aggressive in their contributions to the movement.

Initially, to understand the origins of the civil rights movement, one should take into

consideration the history of the US during the 1950s. After WW2, the national ethos of the 1950s was

supportive of right wing dominance over American culture and opposition to the influence of the Soviet

Union. More often than not, US politicians sought to maintain a strong right wing political structure.

Both U.S. politicians and citizens expressed stark opposition towards racial integration and social

equality in the south. Nonetheless, amidst a hostile world teeming with racism, civil rights activists chose

not to use violent methods; their ideal path to attain civil rights was non-violent protest and civil

disobedience. For activists this method was more effective than violent aggression or the pursuit of

litigation in court, because it displayed the inequalities on a national platform was they actually were in

American society. Through the 1950s activists were well aware of the racism that existed in the south,

and maintained to keep non-violence as their primary approach to attain civil rights.

The main detractors of the civil rights movement were white supremacists. Hate groups such as

the Ku Klux Klan and the White Citizens’ Council acted against the civil rights movement with violent

behavior and racist ideology. To the white supremacist, ideas such as social equality and integration

were not only disruptive towards their ideals, but also something which threatened the future of white

America. Many white racists spread the notion that an integration of white and black culture would

result in the existence of a “mongrel race.” They feared that through social interaction, the future would

usher in racially mixed people. Beatings and assaults on African Americans were very frequent in the

1950s. What greatly instigated these racial assaults was the taboo of black men intermingling with white

women. One such example was the Kissing Case, when two African American children violated the “Anti-

miscegenation law” of North Carolina by playing a kissing game with a white girl. Such cases gave a

motive for white supremacists to fulfill their cause.

As a reaction to such hatred, the civil rights movement brought forth many organizations which

espoused non-violent methods. For one, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored

People (NAACP) is a civil rights group which uses the courts as a means to achieve racial equality--one

such instance of this being Thurgood Marshall’s challenge to reverse the landmark decision Plessy v

Fergusson. By the 1950s, activist groups had little influence on a local level especially in rural areas of

the south; thus NAACP members used their connections with the media to depict their struggle

nationwide. The media till this day is an effective tool for minority leaders to bring national awareness to

their plight. On a nationally recognized level they could gain more sway, which is why the media was and

still is to this day so vital for their cause. Daisy Bates, a leading civil rights activist who mentored the

‘Little Rock Nine,’ used her influence as a NAACP member and writer for the Arkansas State Press to

publicize abuses of the supreme courts’ desegregation rulings of Brown v Board of Education. As an

NAACP member, Bates helped draw national attention to the issue of desegregation in Arkansas’ school

system. This led to a mass media gathering in Little Rock, to cover the event and portray in real life how

governor Orval Faubus, crassly used the National Guard to prevent black students from entering Little

Rock Central High School.

For the NAACP and other activists, there was the challenge of facing the manner of how

mainstream America would react to integration. Frequently, the reactions were harsh; many African

Americans were ostracized for merely being members of the NAACP. For instance, local white leaders in

Monroe, North Carolina petitioned for civil rights leader Robert F. Williams and a colleague of his, Dr.

A.E. Perry to leave town because they led a local chapter of the NAACP. As the NAACP became more

influential many people even labeled it as communist to subvert its appeal and influence amongst

Americans.

The non-violent phase of the civil rights movement demonstrates how African Americans, under

the overwhelming circumstances of racism, insisted on pursuing change through non-coercive means—

whether it be by using the media, challenging court decisions or civil disobedience such as sit ins or

peaceful protests. In the eyes of many activists such as Bayard Rustin and Dr. Martin Luther King,

violence would only “begets more violence.” Such leaders supported pacifism as interpreted in

Christianity; these men were proponents of Afro-Christianity. Many African Americans felt they could

only achieve social, political and economic liberation through the tenets of Jesus Christ as applied to

American society. The purpose of non-violent resistance was to not only create change in the social

order, but to also demonstrate a lifestyle that entirely revolved around peace. Christianity served as a

model for many activists including Martin Luther King, who before his assassination urged Americans to

form a “beloved community”; a community that would live through such religious principles as “love

your enemy.” Dr King told his followers to even “love the unlovable” and that there is a social gospel to

act upon—not as a way to merely attain racial equality, but to form a way of life that would contribute

to a world without violence.

Other civil rights groups which espoused the principles of non-violent resistance were those

such as the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), in which Dr. King was the first president.

Another group was the Fellowship of Reconciliation (FOR). FOR was a group that opposed not only

domestic issues such as racial segregation but also issues including “nuclear arms and war.” The leaders

of FOR used the example of the Montgomery Bus Boycott as a symbol of progress for the civil rights

movement. It was the aim of such groups to bring forth change in a judicial way—namely a Supreme

Court decision to end racial segregation and enable voter registration for African Americans. The group

‘Student Non Violent Coordinating Committee’ (SNCC) and the ‘Congress of Racial Equality’ (CORE) were

other organizations which strongly endorsed non-violence. The SNCC was an organization that began in

the 1960s to integrate students into the civil rights movements. Students from northern universities

became a crucial part to the movement as their knowledge and social status gave more credibility to the

cause. Another reason why white students especially were called to join the movement was to gather

the attention of the media; particularly in the event that a white student got hurt or killed, which would

quickly attract national media coverage whereas an African American death would hardly reach local

newspapers. Student organized committees not only served as heralds of peace against white racism:

they drew in attention from all corners of the US.

As white racist violence against African Americans increased, non-violent resistance continued

to persist through the civil rights movement. Adherents to the cause like Bayard Rustin struggled for

absolute pacifism. Rustin even admonished Dr. Martin Luther King when the leader of the SCLC armed

himself with bodyguards to prepare against impending white supremacist attacks. King’s decision to arm

himself—although necessary—created an image of hypocrisy to many adamant followers of non-violent

resistance. Although proponents of non-violent resistance were against aggression, their principles did

not encourage one to remain complacent or inactive. The non-violence movement supported civil

disobedience through such events as sit-ins and boycotts. Boycotts like the ‘Montogomery Bus Boycott’

were instrumental for the civil rights movement. By this event alone, activists such as Rosa Parks and Jo

Ann Robinson were able to put pressure on the government to change the laws of segregation.

What also inspired the civil rights movement with respect to non-violent resistance was the

global influence of Mohandas Ghandi. Ghandi’s ideas served not only as a model for India, but also any

place where civil rights were marginal. Through his concept of ‘ahimsa’—the Hindu term for non-violent

resistance—Ghandi was able to liberate his people from the perils of British colonialism. Activists in

America viewed his work with much respect. Dr. Martin Luther King considered Ghandi to be so

important as to even equate him with Jesus, saying “Christ gave us the goals, Ghandi gave us the

tactics.” Ghandi’s stance towards peaceful resistance was so profound that without even “raising a fist”

he was able to reshape an entire nation.

In similarity to the civil rights movement, Ghandi aimed his philosophies toward the lower class

members of society; whether they were the ‘untouchables’ or the men and women who worked in the

fields and lived on the unpaved streets of India. Likewise, in America there was also a grassroots

element within the civil rights movement. In the 1950s the first activists were mainly teachers, scholars

and preachers, but as the movement progressed it expanded towards local working class people in poor

black communities. Activism also began to reach out to people through schools, creating an inspiration

for many future intellectuals who would continue the civil rights movement in the decades to come. The

civil rights movement greatly appealed to African Americans of lower and middle class status since it

was those people who mostly required it.

Moreover, global events such as the rise of communism were very important to the civil rights

movement. As communism was appealing to the proletariat of Russia, it also appealed to many poor

African Americans. The tenets of communism, whether it was social and economic equality, collectivism

or the denial of the power of one person to exploit another for profit, enchanted a great number of

Americans during the 1950s and 60s. However, a growing fear spread throughout the US as many

people labeled civil rights groups as communist usurpers simply because many of their constituents

identified with socialist principles. Many Americans blamed the NAACP as being sympathetic to

communist agendas. Additionally, Americans viewed certain court decisions such as Brown v. Board of

Education as a mark of “socialist infiltration.” To many white supremacists the pursuit of racial equality

and integration was nothing short of a socialist attempt to undermine capitalism. In many events

throughout US history, protestors and activists were accused of being communist. One particular protest

event in the mills of Union Country North Carolina, demonstrates how Americans labeled civil rights

advocates as communists, accusing them of “race mixing” and “social overthrow.”

At the height of the cold war, many Americans believed much of the social disorder of the time

was an orchestration of communist figures; namely people who were attempting to subvert the United

State’s position in the cold war. To combat against communism the government began the inquisition

known as McCarthyism. This inquisition granted the government the legal basis to inquire about

suspect people, specifically those who fit the communist stereotype: vocal people who urged to support

social equality were a prime target; even white people who were “polite amongst African Americans.”

The FBI launched many investigations against supporters of racial equality. The anti-communists of

Congress were the architects behind these investigations. Representatives such as Martin Dies of Texas

and John Rankin and James Eastland of Mississippi were both staunch anticommunists and ferocious

opponents of the civil rights movement.

The anti communism shaped by the government shows how political leaders in the 1950s and

60s merged their struggle against communism with their obstruction towards civil rights. The

government was at the same time an overseer in the cold war and detractor to the civil rights

movement. Its use of the FBI to weaken the movement is evidence that certain political figures acted

directly against any progress of civil rights. Even FBI director J. Edgar Hoover was racist when he said

that white women were “threatened by black men” at home during World War Two (referring to white

men leaving their families behind to fight abroad.) The FBI proved to be obstructive to the civil rights

movement by targeting the Social Workers Party: the FBI branded the group as communist. Other

instances include the time when the FBI accused Robert F. Williams of kidnapping when he kept a white

couple in his neighborhood in order to save them from potential mob violence.

In addition to how the cold war affected communism, the cold war was integral to the civil rights

movement as well. The visitation of Fidel Castro in Harlem in 1960 was a big turning point because it

brought forth the notion of cold war politics directly into the heart of black America. In a time when the

racism of the south differed from the liberal idealism of the urbanized north, Castro’s visit—although it

was before his official alignment with the Soviet Union-- did very much to bifurcate American politics

into left and right; especially with regards to the movement as mainstream Americans already believed

it to be undermining the status quo and peddling to the left. With the presence of Castro and other

communists also came sympathy for communist nations. Activists such as Robert F. Williams used the

Cuban revolution as a similar template to black liberation; questioning America’s role as a “beacon for

freedom.” Activists were using the volatile nature of Cuban politics as a parallel to their own dilemma.

Cuba endorsed the idea of “racial egalitarianism” at a time when blacks in the south could not even

drink from ‘white’ water fountains. When activists used Cuba as an example it hurt US legitimacy in

social politics and its status in the Cold War.

Furthermore, in the 1960s as blacks became disillusioned towards America’s ideal claims of

liberty and equality, violence was growing more rampant in the south. Through his own experience and

upbringing in Monroe, North Carolina, Williams called for black militancy. Notably, this militancy was not

all racially motivated as Williams received much help from white liberals. In its infancy black militancy

was not entirely built on the idea of going to war with white America, as it was a tool to allow the Black

community to assert itself against white supremacists. Williams was very instrumental in the rise of

black militancy. His book Negroes with Guns portrayed his own struggle against white supremacy in

Monroe. William’s life created a template for other black youths. Negroes with Guns was so

inspirational that by the year of its distribution in 1962, critics claimed that it “laid the groundwork for

the Black Power movement.” Although this single work was not the sole contributing factor to the Black

power movement, it certainly was influential. Huey Newton of the Black Panther Party for Self defense

considered it the “single most important influence of his life.”

Black Power became one of the most compelling aspects of the civil rights movement in the

1960s and it remains relevant still to this day. Black Power was a militant reaction to the oppression and

brutality of white supremacy in America. This part of the civil rights movement existed because of the

contributions of such men as Huey Newton and other black leaders including Malcolm X and Robert F.

Williams. Whereas Williams played a key role in the conceptualization of Black Power, other leaders

such as Huey Newton created a more pragmatic approach by organizing rallies and events that themed

against white America. The US government was very weary of the rise of black power. In an attempt to

undermine its influence and respectability amongst black communities, the White House employed the

FBI and COINTEL programs against key members.

Underlying themes to the black power movement related to self defense, black pride, economic

equality and the protection of black women. One event in the south that ignited fuel for the black power

movement was the Lynching of Mack Charles Parker in 1959. Parker was a twenty three year old black

man accused of raping a white woman in Mississippi. Three days after he was accused, Parker was

dragged out of his cell, beaten and then shot to death by an angry mob that mysteriously attained the

keys to his cell. His body was found ten days later bloated and barely identifiable. Angered by the callous

treatment of Parker, civil rights proponents began to reject pacifism and embrace militancy. Another key

event which triggered the cause was the 1959 gang rape of a black woman from Florida A&M University

in Tallahassee. The woman, who survived the terrifying ordeal, was even badgered by a defense

attorney who tried to convince the jury that she derived pleasure from the crime. As a result of such

brutal events, Blacks were tired of non-violence and became more aggressive. When CORE tried to

establish a non-violent sit in at Florida A&M, very few students showed up because they felt non-

violence would not suffice; hence non violence was in decline and black militancy was on the rise.

The Civil Rights movement was a struggle on behalf of many activists to change the US for better

equality, basic human freedoms and the sovereignty of the black community. Although the non violent

phase of the movement did not effectively put a stop to the prevailing violence of white supremacy, it

did shape the overall consciousness of Americans as well as bring changes to the legal system. Through

the 1950s and 60s, as global and national events continued to mold the political and social realm of the

US, activists grew reluctant to support non-violence and thus turned to other methods of empowerment

such as militancy. Although its beginnings were pacifist, the mass violence and turmoil of the 1950s and

1960s led to a mounting rise of black militancy in the civil rights movement: A condition that still exists

in America today.