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New American Gazette: Transcript of King, Parks, and
Montgomery Forum
Moakley Archive and Institute
www.suffolk.edu/moakley
Title: The New American Gazette: Coretta Scott King, Rosa Parks, and Leola Brown
Montgomery at Ford Hall Forum.
Recording Date: 12 February 1988
Item Information: The New American Gazette: Coretta Scott King, Rosa Parks, and Leola
Brown Montgomery at Ford Hall Forum. Ford Hall Forum Collection, 1908-2013 (MS113.3.1,
item 0068) Moakley Archive, Suffolk University, Boston, MA.
Digital Versions: audio recording and transcript available at http://moakleyarchive.omeka.net
Copyright Information: Copyright © 1988 Ford Hall Forum.
Recording Summary:
This episode of the New American Gazette featured the remarks of Coretta Scott King, Rosa
Parks, and Leola Brown Montgomery from the Conference on Women and the Constitution. The
conference was convened by former First Ladies Betty Ford, Pat Nixon, Rosalyn Carter and
Lady Bird Johnson on February 12, 1988 to celebrate the US Constitution and the contributions
that women have made to the country’s founding document. Coretta Scott King, an activist and
civil rights leader, urged women to become the moral vanguard for a more compassionate,
humanitarian world society. Sharing experiences from the struggle for civil rights and
desegregation, Rosa Parks and Leola Brown Montgomery discussed their groundbreaking
accomplishments in seeking justice and equality for all people. The radio program is introduced
by Barbara Jordan an American lawyer, educator and politician who was also a leader of the
Civil Rights Movement.
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Transcript Begins
ANNOUNCER: From Alumni Auditorium in Northeastern University in Boston, the Ford Hall
Forum presents the New American Gazette, with your host, Barbara Jordan.
BARBARA JORDAN: One year ago more than 300 academics, government officials, activists
and private citizens met for a two-day meeting in Atlanta to reflect on the unique contributions
that women have made to our country’s founding document. The Conference on Women and the
Constitution was convened by former First Ladies Betty Ford, Pat Nixon, Rosalyn Carter and
Lady Bird Johnson to celebrate the US Constitution. Coretta Scott King urges women to become
the moral vanguard for a more compassionate humanitarian world society.
[00:01:00]
At the conference, in which I was honored to participate, we saluted women who not only rocked
the cradle but rocked the boat, women who rewrote the laws, waged the debates and campaigned
for equality throughout the Constitution’s 200-year history. As the women’s movement emerged
to the forefront to of the nation’s consciousness, its leaders were quick to adopt methods and
activities used with success by the Civil Rights Movement.
Few are better qualified to speak with authority on the legacies of these two movements for
social change than today’s guest on the New American Gazette. As a longstanding Civil Rights
activist and president of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change,
Coretta Scott King continues her husband’s devotion to human rights. In addition, Mrs. King
leads a broad coalition of religious, labor, business, civil and women’s right organizations to
educate and lobby for full employment and economic opportunity for all.
[00:02:23]
Today, Mrs. King speaks of the courage and commitment necessary in working for equality.
Predicting that women will lead the great freedom movements into the next millennium, Coretta
Scott King urges women to become the moral vanguard for a more compassionate humanitarian
world society.
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[00:02:48]
Painting broad brush strokes for a bold, new vision of the world, while reviewing the legacies of
the past, is Coretta Scott King.
[Applause]
CORETTA SCOTT KING: To all of the distinguished persons on the dais here, to all of you
distinguished ladies and gentlemen in the audience today, let me say what a great privilege it is
for me to participate in this conference which has been so successful. But you brought us
together at a very important time in our nation’s history. And you’ve brought together a
remarkable group of leaders and scholars who have dedicated their lives to the protection and
extension of women’s rights under the Constitution. And I’m truly proud to be a part of this
coming together.
[00:04:20]
From the early days of the Republic, women have spoken out for equality. Women like Abigail
Adams understood that freedom was an indivisible ideal instead of an elitist privilege.
Continuing this tradition into the 19th century, Lucretia Mott was a major force in launching the
abolitionist, feminist, and peace movements in this country. Freedom has always been an
indivisible goal for all right-thinking Americans. It is clear, however that the Civil Rights
Movement profoundly influenced the explosion of feminist thought and action that began in the
late 1960s and early 1970s.
The movement inspired a broad range of freedom struggles and lent a new legitimacy to the
constitutional rights of protests and the moral obligation of civil disobedience of unjust laws. The
movement was not only about rights for black citizens. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964
provided a powerful tool, provided a powerful tool women could use to fight sex discrimination
in hiring and promotion on the part of private employers, employment agencies, and unions.
[00:06:02]
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The movement was also a direct challenge to McCarthyism and the climate of fear and
oppression that was consuming the soul of this nation. And I recall when we went to
Montgomery in 1955 it was the height of the McCarthy era. And what we did in Montgomery
was against the law, to boycott a business, to stand up and protest the way we did. Those of us
who lived back than and who were active understand how difficult it was to have accomplished
what we did accomplish in Montgomery at that particular time.
The movement showed millions of Americans that you can indeed. You must defy authority
when that authority is in the wrong. We must also remember that women were among the most
courageous and dedicated civil rights workers, beginning with Mrs. Rosa Parks, to Johnnie Carr
and to Viola Liuzzo, Fannie Lou Hamer and many others who paid the highest price in the black
freedom struggle; women who could be found in the front lines of every campaign from
Montgomery to Memphis. Let’s be clear that all of these women were great feminists because
they stood up for freedom. And they were not about to be turned around. [Applause]
Not even by threats, or violence, and other forms of intimidations. The Civil Rights Movement
reminded America of the promise of equality that has been dishonored by generations of racism
and paternalism. No one knows better than I do that there was some male chauvinism in the
movement.
[Laughter]
[00:08:31]
And even today I occasionally have to straighten out some of my male colleagues.
[Laughter]
But once people start talking and thinking and organizing for freedom there is no end to it. But
let me say that my husband did encourage me to be actively involved. And I was actively
involved throughout the whole struggle. He even encouraged me at times when I really just
didn’t figure out how I could do it and really take care of the family and the children the way
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they should be taken care of. He said when it was critical, get somebody else. Find somebody.
As a matter of fact there are some women here who are in the, who were in that delegation that
went to the 17-nation disarmament conference in Geneva in 1962.
[00:09:33]
And when I told Martin that I had received this invitation from Women Strike for Peace. And we
had just had a talk. And he was getting ready to get started in Birmingham, it started the
mobilization. He said, “Well, now I’ve been traveling so much and you’ve been traveling. So
you are going to have to stay home for a while with the children because they’re being
neglected.” He often projected his own sense of guilt and neglect onto me.
[Laughter]
And of course I said, “No problem.” But then a week or so later I got this invitation and I took it
to him as I always did. I always cleared everything with him. He said, “You should do that.
That’s important.” I said, “Well, what about the children?” “Well, get someone to stay with
them.”
[Laughter]
[00:10:31]
But you can’t be truly nonviolent as Martin was and as I seek to be and separate your—as Martin
said, your moral concerns and decide that some things you’re going to be nonviolent and some
things you’re not. It’s either you’re non-violent or you’re partially non-violent. And it is an
evolutionary process. So I feel that people on the basis of conscience should have an exemption.
And the question is who decides that. But we fought the battles of supporting those young men,
brave young men in those days, back in the late forties.
And I always saw the connection between the peace and justice issues as being indivisible. And
so when Martin said, “You need to be there,” because we were going to talk to the Russians and
the United States delegations about a test ban treaty. Because many of the women, 50 American
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housewives were very upset about the fact that the babies milk was being poisoned by the
continuing nuclear testing
[00:11:50]
And so I went on that trip. And from that point on then I became the family spokesmen on peace
issues and the rallies in New York and Washington. And I marched and I spoke on platforms.
And so unfortunately, and I don’t brag about it, I was the only woman most times and certainly
the only black. And about 1967 when Martin said, you know, “I can no longer be silent on this
issue because silence is betrayal.” And I think some people misunderstood what he was talking
about. It was a matter of conscience for him.
And every issue that he dealt with in the Civil Rights Movement was elevated to a moral issue.
And that’s not what we are about today. And I think that’s where we have fallen short in terms of
achieving some of our goals. Because it’s political. What’s expedient, you know, what works?
But somehow when the great gains have been made throughout history, it has been those people
who had the courage to stand on their convictions and do what conscience tells them is right to
do, that makes the difference. And I think women are more prone to follow their consciences.
[00:13:03]
And that’s why it’s important that we have women in high places of decision-making throughout
our country at every level, in the corporate board rooms and the highest levels of government.
Even we envision the day when Geraldine Ferraro can be president of the United States.
[Applause]
It is important to appreciate that the Civil Rights Movement influenced the women’s rights
struggle. But it is even more important that we recognize that women and minorities must build
and strengthen the coalition for civil and human rights if we are to make real the promise of the
Constitution. Our brother Justice Thurgood Marshall, as he eloquently criticized the
Constitutional Convention of 1787 for protecting slavery and for not providing the franchise for
women.
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[00:14:17]
This has ruffled the feathers of some of the proponents of unbridled constitutional boosterism.
Some people apparently feel that blacks and women should join in a critical celebration of a
document that protected the slave trade and denied women their democratic rights. But Justice
Marshall tells it like it. Our criticism of the un-amended Constitution is not intended to be
divisive. Instead we want to insure that common generations understand the importance of
protests and dissent in making the Constitution a document, which all freedom-loving people can
be proud of.
Just as the Civil Rights Movement helped enforce the reconstruction amendments, the women’s
rights movement is needed to enforce the spirit and letter of the Nineteenth Amendment. We still
have a way to go, however, before we can say that the Constitution is working for all Americans.
In recent years we have seen a dramatic increase in the number of black elected officials. But
black office holders are still less than two percent of all elected officials, even though we are
more than twelve percent of the population.
[00:15:36]
Women are also severely underrepresented in American political life. It has been said again and
again. Today women are about 53 percent of the population of the United States. Yet, even
though women are a majority of American voters, we hold only one out of every seven elected
offices in the nation. It’s clear that not enough women are running for office and not enough are
voting at all. Black women who suffer a burden of double discrimination, the lack of political
representation in national and higher state level elected office is almost total.
It seems hard to believe that in 1988 along one black women sits among the 535 members of the
United States Congress. And that isn’t an indictment on me and all of the other black women as
well as our white sisters and brothers.
[Applause]
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[00:16:42]
One of the reasons why it’s hard to get elected is because you’ve got to raise a lot of money. And
it becomes incumbent upon those of us who cannot actually do the job to support others in
financial ways to help make it happen. Although black women, or about seven percent of the
population, when you only have one in the Congress of 535, that says a lot about where we need
to concentrate our efforts. Black women hold less than one half of one percent of all elective
offices in America.
Now we’ve made progress and that’s tremendous. But we still have a long way to go. If black
women were fairly represented in Congress we would have about 30 black women in the US
House of Representatives. We don’t even have 30 black women or men in the House of
Representatives. We would have seven women serving as US Senators. Well, you know, those of
you who are knowledgeable, we’ve got about one or two, one.
[00:18:16]
I mean it’s like two now. You know, I know it’s been almost an all-male club for a long time.
The Senate is a very powerful body, you know, and it’s hard for women to get there. But we
need some women there, more women to join those two. If we were fairly represented as black
women, we would have three or four black women governors instead of none. Seven black
women would be mayors of the nation’s 100 largest cities instead of none, although we have
some women in some of the smaller cities.
If America is to fulfill the promise of the Constitution we will need many more women of all
races holding elective office. Let us resolve that there will be more women office holders
because we are going to take the responsibility to make it happen.
[Applause]
[00:19:24]
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We’re going to mobilize all our voter registration and get-out-the-vote campaigns in every major
city in the nation until the women of the nation are fairly represented at every level of federal,
state, and local government.
[Applause]
To help rectify this injustice, we have to make a greater effort to campaign more vigorously for
election law reforms and to take full advantage of existing laws. This means utilizing every
possible opportunity to set up voter registration tables in our churches, temples and schools, at
cultural events, in our places of employment as well as unemployment and welfare offices, and
other social service agencies. The variety of creative voter registration tactics we can employ is
limited only by our imaginations. As women we’ve come a long way in the last decade but we
still have a lot of work to do to make sure that issues of concern to women are placed squarely in
the forefront of the national debate—affirmative action, quality, affordable child care, the equal
rights amendment, the civil rights restoration act, parental leave, and so many other forms we
care about will be voted on in the Congress in the months ahead.
[00:20:49]
The women of the 1980s and 1990s have an historic mission in a very real sense. It was the
mission of Black Americans during the Civil Rights Movement, not merely to obtain our
freedom but to expand democracy for all Americans in the same way it is the mission of women
not only to improve their own circumstances but to advance the values of caring and compassion
in American society and throughout the world. The women of America have time and again
demonstrated a remarkable capacity for overcoming hardship and adversity.
We are more than equal to the historic struggle that lies ahead and we look to the future with
courage and commitment because our cause is just. Let the word go out from Atlanta that in
1988 we will organize ourselves as never before. And nobody is going to turn us around.
[Applause]
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[00:21:55]
So let us encourage more women to run for public office and let us encourage those who prefer
to work behind the scenes to become super star campaign managers and super star deputy voter
registrars. And we must remember, however, that voter registration and get out the vote
campaigns are only one part of political empowerment. We must also become more aggressive
lobbyists to advance our legislative interests.
We need a clearly defined legislative agenda and we have to build and strengthen legislative alert
networks so that every women’s and minority organization in America is quickly informed when
Congress is ready to act on bill we are concerned about.
[00:22:42]
In addition to greater political empowerment we have to start thinking about a more systematic
approach to coordinating our economic power. Women’s groups especially should join together
and form a nationwide, selective patronage council that will help inform and to support those
who support us. Every week women make consumer choices involving countless millions of
dollars. Imagine what could happen if we began to coordinate consumer choices on the basis of
corporate social responsibility.
[Applause]
And we do this as part of our struggle for greater economic empowerment. And we need to be
become more active in organizing stockholder’s campaigns and play a greater role in trade
unions and other progressive groups, which can join us in coalitions for common goals.
[00:23:44]
We need to do all these things, not only to improve the living standards of women and our
families but because we have an historic mission to put things right in America, we have
something special and unique to contribute to this country and the world. Something that arises
out of the joy and suffering of our collective experience as women. We have a strength and a
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tenacity and a gift for nurturing and compassion, which has been finely honed and tempered in
our struggle to raise families in a sexist society.
And let me put it this way. If the women of America don’t lead the struggle against poverty,
racism and militarism, then we must ask who will. We can send women of conscience, ability,
and integrity to the halls of power in Washington, D.C. and in our state and local governments if
we pick up the ballot and use the power. If we exercise our rights and responsibilities as citizens
and as consumers with all the compassion and wisdom of womanhood. We not only will win the
struggle against racism and sexism, we just might save this nation from its pending appointment
with Armageddon.
[Applause]
As we struggle for political and economic empowerment we must make sure the women become
the moral vanguard for a more compassionate and humanitarian world community. We must
advocate a vision of a world where starvation will not be tolerated. We must lead the way to a
world where no child lives in fear of a nuclear holocaust or suffers the ravages of war and
militarism. We must project a bold, new vision of a world where valuable resources are no
longer squandered on the instruments of death destruction but are creatively harness for
economic development and opportunity. This is the ultimate mission of black women in politics.
[00:26:05]
And I believe that after two centuries of struggle we are on the right road to making the
Constitution work for all Americans and that women will be leading the great freedom
movements as we move into the new millennium. Make no mistake about it, we will face
increasing resistance in the years ahead because political and economic power are never
surrendered without conflict and struggle.
But we are more than equal to the historic struggle that lies ahead and we look forward to the
future with courage and commitment because our cause is just. Women are getting organized as
never before. And again, nobody is going to turn us around.
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[Applause]
[00:26:56]
If we, the women of America sow the seeds of political and economic empowerment, in the not
too distant future, we will reap a bountiful harvest from freedom from sexism, racism and
militarism. And when that day comes, my sisters and brothers, the morning stars will sing
together and the children of God will shout for joy. And with this faith and in this spirit together
we shall overcome.
[Applause]
[You’re listening to Coretta Scott King on the New American Gazette.]
[Applause]
[Pause]
[00:28:03]
BARBARA JORDAN: On December 1, 1955 a black woman riding a segregated bus in
Montgomery, Alabama refused to move to the back of the bus when asked to make way for a
white passenger. The subsequent arrest of Rosa Parks dramatized southern segregationist laws to
the nation and served as a pivotal event in the Civil Rights Movement. The resulting
Montgomery bus boycott began four days later and lasted 13 months. Today we meet women
whose uncommon deeds and courageous beliefs have earned them the title: heroines of
constitutional change.
Sharing experiences from the struggle for civil rights are Rosa Parks and Leola Brown
Montgomery. Moderating a panel of heroines of constitutional change is Christine King Farris,
Vice President of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change.
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[Applause]
[00:29:35]
CHRISTINE KING FARRIS: We’re very fortunate to have in person those who made these
changes in our great country in our Constitution becoming a reality. Today then we will start
with Mrs. Leola Brown Montgomery. Her daughter Linda Brown Smith could not be with us
today. But, of course, the mother, Mrs. Leola Brown Montgomery for bringing that suit of the
Brown v. Board of Education.
LEOLA BROWN MONTGOMERY: Thank you.
CHRISTINE KING FARRIS: And so at this time Mrs. Montgomery will share with us. We
are so happy to have you.
[00:30:25]
LEOLA BROWN MONTGOMERY: Thank you, Ms. Farris. I’d like to say I’m very pleased
to be here. It makes me very happy to be on this program. I participated in many commemorative
activities but this one is very important because it focuses in on women. And we know we’re
most important [laughter] especially since women have played a key role in the history of
country, both behind the scenes and in taking the lead. You look around and you see how far
we’ve come. But we still have a long way to go.
For example, the participation of minorities in this conference would not have been possible 40
years ago. At the same time, from Georgia to New York, from Michigan to California, reported,
racially motivated incidents make us aware that we also have a long way to go.
There are a lot of misconceptions about the Supreme Court decision of 1954, Brown versus the
Board of Education. On misconception is that this was the first attempt to use the legal system to
desegregate schools. In 1946 Heman Sweatt was denied admission to the University of Texas
Law School and took his case all the way to the Supreme Court.
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[00:31:50]
In Sweatt versus Painter, Mr. Sweatt became the first black student to attend law school at the
University of Texas at Austin. There were also many other, similar cases.
The second misconception is for some is where the case took place, simply because Topeka is in
Kansas and Kansas was not and is not known for having a large minority population. Also,
because in most written texts this case is referred to as Brown versus Board of Education, instead
of Brown versus the Topeka Board of Education. A lot of people may not even know where
Topeka is. But that’s where it began.
After the Civil War, blacks who migrated to Kansas, full of the promise and equal opportunities
faced separatism in restaurants, employment, public accommodations, recreation, theaters, and
ultimately in education. In 1949 the population of Topeka was around 80,000. Of this number
there were about 6,500 blacks.
[00:33:06]
The black citizens of Topeka faced the same challenges as blacks any place else in the United
States and were most incensed by the system that their children encountered to get an education.
There were only four black elementary schools in Topeka. There were many more elementary
schools for white children all within walking distance of their homes. Whereas many of the black
children lived nowhere near the schools that they had to attend and had to be bused several miles.
I consider Plessy versus Ferguson to be a forerunner of Brown versus the Board of Education
because that doctrine was justification used by school boards across the country to educate our
children in separate and unequal facilities. Although it was the premise that it was separate and
equal and that was not so.
[00:34:03]
In 1949 the Topeka chapter of the NAACP and their attorneys met with black parents to make
plans for each family to try to enroll in the white school nearest their homes. My husband, the
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late Reverend Oliver L. Brown and I were willing participants because there were many
evenings when he would return home from his job, he would find me almost in tears because our
daughter Linda, who was then six years old would only get halfway to the school bus stop, which
was seven blocks from our home, and because of the cold she would have to return.
For a six-year old child waiting on a school bus that was sometimes 30 minutes late in the kind
of weather that we have in in Kansas was just too much to bear and too much for parents to
tolerate. Bus transportation was not even provided for our kindergarteners. So an elaborate
system of carpooling was establishing within the black community. Sometimes Linda would
return home and tears would be frozen on her face.
[00:35:10]
Even in warm weather, whether walking to the bus stop was hazardous because the children had
to walk through the busy and dangerous switching yards or the Rock Island Railroad and cross a
busy avenue. In September of 1950, 12 black families had agreed to attempt to enroll their
children in the schools nearest them. I remember the morning my husband took Linda by the
hand and took her over to the white school, which was only four blocks and attempted to enroll
her there.
He was told by the school principal that it was not his personal feelings but the policy of the
school board. And that made it impossible to enroll her there. After trying to enroll our children,
these 12 sets of parents who tried this, and being turned down, we went back to the NAACP and
a case was filed in the federal court in February 1951. The case was argued in federal district
court and it was decided in favor of the board of education. And it segregated elementary
schools.
[00:36:24]
The funny thing about Topeka was that the secondary schools were always integrated, junior
high, and high school. That is to say classes were integrated. But all activities and social events
were segregated. There were black football and basketball teams within the school; also white
football teams and basketball teams. Class parties were separate and held in different rooms.
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In Topeka the issues was not so much integrating the elementary schools to improve the quality
of instruction but rather then inaccessibility of the neighborhood schools. We lived only four
blocks from one of the elementary schools for white children. My children played with white and
Hispanic children all summer. Yet when fall came they had to be separated to attend school. And
the children didn’t really understand. They questioned me many times, “Why is this so?”
[00:37:21]
And my daughter wanted to know why she could not go with her friends. And I told her, “Dear,
it’s the color of your skin. They won’t let you go to that school.” Which she couldn’t
comprehend, a child six years old. During the local court battle, there was very definite division
within the black community. There were those who felt this action was long overdue. And there
were those who expressed concern about upsetting the balance of things, which they feared could
lead to job loss and threats of violence.
The local school board, which somehow believed itself to be above reproach mailed threatening
letters to the black teachers. I have one such letter here that I’d like to read in your hearing.
Dear Ms. Buchanan,
Due to the present uncertainty about enrollment next year in schools for Negro children,
it is not possible at this time to offer you employment for the next year. If the Supreme
Court should rule that segregation in the elementary schools is unconstitutional our
board will proceed on the assumption that the majority of people in Topeka will not want
to employ Negro teachers next year for white children. It is necessary for me to notify you
now that your services will not be needed for next year. This is in compliance with the
continuing contract law. If it turns out that segregation is not terminated, there will be
nothing to prevent us from negotiating a contract.
You will understand that I am sending letters of this kind to only those teachers of the
Negro schools who have been employed during the last year or two. It is presumed that
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�MS113.0068 Transcript
even though segregation should be declared unconstitutional, we will have need for
schools for Negro children and we would then retain our Negro teachers to teach them.
I think I understand that all of you must be under considerable strain. And I sympathize
with the uncertainties and inconveniences, which you must experience during this period
of adjustment. I believe that whatever happens will be ultimately, will ultimately turn out
to be the best for everyone concerned.
Sincerely,
Wendell Godwin, Superintendent of Schools
Now this was some of the things that we had to endure during that time.
After the unsuccessful attempts in federal court an appeal was made to the United States
Supreme Court under the guidance of the NAACP’s legal staff, headed by the now Honorable
Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall.
[00:40:12]
At the Supreme Court level, the case was consolidated with similar cases from Clarendon
County, South Carolina; Prince Edwards County, Virginia; and New Castle County, Delaware.
And argued in terms of the psychological damage brought about by segregation in public
education. Experts from the psychiatric community examined whether or not segregation served
to break a youngster’s morale and block the development of a strong, positive self-concept so
essential to educational progress.
During that time my husband, the Reverend Oliver Brown, well his name was Oliver at that time,
Oliver Leon [?] Brown was called into the ministry and received his first assignment to St.
Mark’s AME Church in Topeka, Kansas. Exactly one year later I was home doing the family
ironing and listening to the radio. At 12 noon there was a flash and the regular program was
interrupted for an important announcement. That announcement was the Supreme Court’s
decision on ending segregation was unanimous. Unanimous.
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�MS113.0068 Transcript
[Applause]
I was overwhelmed and could hardly wait for the children and my husband to get home that
night so I could relay the news. When they came home I told them the news jubilantly and there
was much happiness, rejoicing, tears, embracing, and prayers. That night our family attended a
rally sponsored by the NAACP. Linda did not immediately benefit from the Supreme Court’s
decision because in the fall of 1954, she entered junior high school, which was already
integrated. However, her two younger sisters, Terri and Cheryl were able to attend integrated
elementary schools. Integration in that city that fall went very smoothly. It seemed as though
black and whites had been going to school together for years.
[00:42:23]
My family never suffered any abuse and racial strive or received any threatening phone calls
unlike that, which was suffered in many cities in other parts of the country. I think we were very
lucky.
It was at this time after the decision was handed down that the Constitution of these United
States became a living document to me because without the Fourteenth Amendment it might not
have been possible to seek legal recourse to overturn a legal ruling such as Plessy versus
Ferguson; paving the way for black people and other minorities and women to seek due process
of law. Brown One was the original decision of 1954. Brown Two reflected the 1955 Supreme
Court mandate that clarified what was meant by “with all deliberate speed.”
[00:43:17]
Many of you are well aware that we were back in Topeka during the fall of 1986, which is being
call Brown Three which is still in litigation. It has not been settled. As unfortunate as this may
seem, this sends a message that we can never become complacent. We must keep examining our
options, taking steps to ensure that the barriers of continued racism doesn’t erode the progress we
have made. It is in this country’s best interest not to enter into a fourth decade since Brown,
struggling with a definition of, “with all deliberate speed.”
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�MS113.0068 Transcript
There are many places still in these United States that do not understand the mandate or simply
mean to ignore it. But we must press on to make it known and to have it enforced throughout this
century. Thank you.
[Applause]
[00:44:35]
CHRISTINE KING FARRIS: Thank you very much, Mrs. Montgomery. We’re moving now
to the mother of the Civil Rights Movement, Mrs. Rosa Parks.
[Applause]
Let me just give you a bit of background about Mrs. Parks. It was in 1955 in December, actually
that she was working as a seamstress in a local department store that this well-known bus
confrontation occurred. She was riding home after work on December the first of that year when
she and three other blacks were asked to rise and move to the back of the bus to give places to
the white rider. And of course, you know, that Mrs. Parks refused and the rest is history.
[Laughter]
[00:45:38]
And at this time I am happy to present to you the mother of the Civil Rights Movement, Dr. Rosa
Parks.
[Applause]
ROSA PARKS: Thank you so very much, Ms. Farris and to Ms. Montgomery, and Ms. Lewis
Tucker, Mrs. King, and all of us who are here assembled, friends of freedom and seekers of
justice and equality for all people. And, of course, this women’s conference has been and is very,
very great. It does show the power of women and what we can do if we could make our minds
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�MS113.0068 Transcript
that we are going to be unified and work together. We have had a long history of, as they say,
male chauvinism, and I had my part also in some instances. And I want to tell Mrs. Montgomery
that was a very wonderful presentation that she made. And she revealed so many things I did not
know about Brown versus the Board of Education case.
[00:47:11]
I was the secretary of the Montgomery branch of the NAACP and Attorney Thurgood Marshall,
of course, was a special counsel. And if I recall, well I have to depend on my memory, I didn’t
make a prepared speech that he went to the Supreme Court a number of times with this case—
not this case but to abolish racial segregation in the public schools. And it was in 1954, just as
Mrs. Montgomery spoke, I did get the news about this decision being handed down.
And I felt, I think, for the very first time that there was opportunity for young people to get an
equal education. I had already met Dr. Martin Luther King in early in the summer shortly after
he came from Georgia. And Mrs. King, I had heard her beautiful voice on occasion at some
recitals and some programs. But I didn’t know them personally well enough to try to involve
them in my youth counsel workshop.
[00:48:41]
So I went on anyway with what we had. And in the midst of this, I tried to get the election
notices out for the senior branch and get together this workshop and hold my job at Montgomery
Fair coming up to the Christmas holidays. I worked very hard. Sometimes I didn’t even sleep at
all. Sometime I would just lie down for an hour and get right up. Sometimes I didn’t even go to
bed.
But I was still in the struggle and trying my best to find a way out of the dilemma that we were in
because it was being much oppressive or just too much so for the youth. And mind was always
on youth because they could look at TV and they could know what was happening in other
places, and other people were doing things. So I tried to keep them encouraged in Montgomery.
And along with Mr. E.D. Nixon who wanted to find a litigant for this case, as it started with my
arrest.
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�MS113.0068 Transcript
[00:49:59]
And again I had to go back to the December 1, 1955 after I had finished my day’s work and
boarded the bus and found one vacant seat. The back of the bus was very crowded with people
standing all the way up to where I was sitting. And I don't know today why someone happened to
leave that seat unless they saw me get on the bus and decided they wouldn’t sit there. I don’t
know.
And it was just one of those incidents that when I, along with the other three people, and I
wonder sometime if it would have been different if four of us had gone to jail instead of one. But
of course they wanted to stay safe and it didn’t matter to me what happened. Because I felt that I
had endured much too long this oppression, this humiliation, or down right insult to me as a
woman, and also as a passenger. That if I continued I would just not protest that it would be not
in the best interest for me as an individual or us as a people.
[00:51:22]
And incidentally, I do want to mention that this same driver as I boarded the bus, I looked in his
face and I remembered him as one who had evicted me from the bus as far back as 1943. When
he—I didn’t even try to sit down, even though there were some vacant seats and I noticed the
black folks were all the way to the back standing up. So I walked straight back and went there to
find a place to stand.
And just about the time I stood up he looked back and told me to go to the back door. And I told
him I’m already on the bus and I don’t see any need of getting out of the bus, going back around
to get to the back door. So when he did that he rose from his seat and escorted me out of the bus
and I had to find another way home. I don’t remember now whether I walked the rest of the way
home or rather I caught another bus.
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�MS113.0068 Transcript
But it was in the winter time and it was kind of late and it was getting dark early. When people
asked me why did I wait until that day I can always say that I didn’t wait to that day to protest. I
had been protesting a long time.
[00:52:35]
But it was on December 5, 1955 that people decided, when they heard of my arrest that they
would remain off the buses. And it was the very fact that when people remained off the buses
and didn’t ride on December 1st and they had the mass meeting at the Holt Street Baptist Church
that same evening, everything was falling into place. And I was wondering what was going on.
So I was very happy to know, first of all, that I had the fortitude to remain where I was and not
give in. And the fact that this driver insisted on swearing out a warrant against me instead of just
having me off the bus and going on by because the policeman was somewhat reluctant to take
me to jail. And on Monday morning when I went to trial, the buses were empty. And we were
happy about that. And people were walking.
[Applause]
[00:53:46]
People were walking in the street, young and old. Just it seemed that they just had a new spirit
and they were walking straight. And I saw on Eyes on the Prize how they were walking. I
suppose all of you have seen that. You see how people were walking in Montgomery. They had a
new step, holding their heads up and looking brave and smiling. So didn’t anyone look like they
were downhearted at all even though they were walking.
And shortly after my trial was over there began the Montgomery Improvement Association
because not too very long after that the NAACP was outlawed in Alabama. And it took some ten
years for them to be declared a legitimate organization again. So in Montgomery we had the
NAACP. In Tuskegee there was the Tuskegee Civic Association. Birmingham there was the
Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights. So every organization that got together, doing
the same thing with the same people but not under the name of the NAACP.
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�MS113.0068 Transcript
[00:54:56]
Even though the NAACP remained a strong support in many ways but we just could not hold
meetings and be an organized branch.
I could go on and on but I’ll try to make this a little bit more brief and let you know that when
the carpools were set up we had a transportation system in Montgomery under the leadership of
Reverend Sims and Mr. Lewis there and others. They had dispatches in places. And it was very,
very great to have such a system. At the churches, various churches, sometimes several churches
at one night when they would be people singing and praying and shouting and rejoicing over our
freedom. Because we were indeed free as to the transportation system. So we could not continue
and did not at that particular time continue with implementing the Supreme Court decision on
public schools but we were together in that manner.
[00:56:24]
And the attention was from Montgomery throughout the country and in other countries, too. And
today if you go to Montgomery you will not only find everything integrated, no public signs.
And on the buses you will not only find blacks driving the bus but we have black women as well
who are driving the buses in Montgomery, Alabama.
[Applause]
And as long as the boycott law was considered illegal and there was so many incidents that I
cannot name but I certainly would advise all of you to want know more about what Montgomery
was is to read Stride Toward Freedom, Dr. Martin Luther King’s first book. And I’m so happy to
know that we have the Martin Luther King Center for Social Change, Center for Nonviolent
Social Change. And Mrs. King is carrying on very strongly. She has five very fine young people
and a sister and their families. It’s just great to know that we, those of us who cared for Dr.
King’s philosophy, that we have not given up, we will not give up, but we will continue as long
as life lasts. Thank you.
[Applause]
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�MS113.0068 Transcript
ANNOUNCER: You’ve been listening to the New American Gazette with this week’s guest
Coretta Scott King, Rosa Parks, Leola Brown Montgomery, and Christine King Farris. This
program was recorded at the Women and the Constitution Conference in Atlanta on February 12,
1988 by the Carter Center of Emory University and the Jimmy Carter Library. The New
American Gazette was produced for the Ford Hall Forum by Deborah Stavro. Post-production
engineer is Roger Baker.
Funding for the New American Gazette is provided by Digital Equipment Corporation and Bank
of Boston. The programs are produced in cooperation with the nation's eight presidential
libraries, the National Archives and Northeastern University.
Join us again for the New American Gazette.
END OF RECORDING
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24
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The New American Gazette: Coretta Scott King, Rosa Parks and Leola Brown Montgomery, Ford Hall Forum [transcript]
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12 February 1988
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This episode of the New American Gazette featured the remarks of Coretta Scott King, Rosa Parks, and Leola Brown Montgomery from the Conference on Women and the Constitution. The conference was convened by former First Ladies Betty Ford, Pat Nixon, Rosalyn Carter and Lady Bird Johnson on February 12, 1988 to celebrate the US Constitution and the contributions that women have made to the country’s founding document. Coretta Scott King, an activist and civil rights leader, urged women to become the moral vanguard for a more compassionate, humanitarian world society. Sharing experiences from the struggle for civil rights and desegregation, Rosa Parks and Leola Brown Montgomery discussed their groundbreaking accomplishments in seeking justice and equality for all people. The radio program is introduced by Barbara Jordan.
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New American Gazette: Transcript of Stokely Carmichael
Forum
Moakley Archive and Institute
www.suffolk.edu/moakley
Title: New American Gazette: Stokely Carmichael’s speech, “Black Power” at Ford Hall Forum.
Recording Date: 21 February 1991
Item Information: The New American Gazette: Stokely Carmichael’s speech, “Black Power,”
at Ford Hall Forum. Ford Hall Forum Collection, 1908-2013 (MS113.3.1, item 0010) Moakley
Archive, Suffolk University, Boston, MA.
Digital Versions: audio recording and transcript available at http://moakleyarchive.omeka.net
Copyright Information: Copyright © 1991 Ford Hall Forum.
Recording Summary:
Stokely Carmichael, a leader in the civil rights struggle and chairman of the Student Non-Violent
Coordinating Committee, appeared at Boston's Ford Hall Forum in 1966 advocating for the
Black Power movement as a means to reclaim Black Americans’ history and identity. This forum
was rebroadcast in 1991, with an introduction by Donald Stewart, as part of the New American
Gazette radio program.
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�MS113.0010 Transcript
Transcript Begins
INTRODUCTION: From Boston, the Ford Hall Forum presents the New American Gazette
with guest host Donald Stewart
DONALD STEWART: Black power. These were the words that guided Stokely Carmichael as
a civil rights leader in 1966. To the man who stood in the forefront of the black power
movement, black power meant black Americans gaining political and economic control over
their lives and their communities. He urged blacks to reject the values of white middle class
America, reject integration, and called for meeting violence with violence.
[00:00:55]
Integration, he taught, was simply an effort to allow blacks to enter the white community from
which they had been excluded with no regard for the existence of merits of the black community.
He called for the development of the black community as a functional, honorable segment of the
total society with its own culture, identify, life patterns and institutions.
[00:01:18]
Born in Trinidad, Stokely Carmichael came to the United States at the age of eleven and was
raised in Harlem. Turning down scholarships to white universities, he received a bachelor's
degree in philosophy from Howard University in 1964. In 1966, at the age of 25, he was named
chairman of the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee, also known as SNCC. "I
believe," he said, "SNCC is trying to lay the foundation for a revolution because reform
movements will not solve the socioeconomic problems facing us." Stokely Carmichael played a
key role in shifting SNCC's orientation from peaceful integration to black liberation.
Leaving SNCC in 1968, to join the Black Panthers, he resigned as that organization's prime
minister in 1969, citing irreconcilable philosophical differences with Eldridge Cleaver. Stokely
Carmichael, known today as Kwame Ture, resides in Guinea and travels to this country,
lecturing to student groups on the issues of revolution and blacks returning to Africa.
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�MS113.0010 Transcript
This week, the New American Gazette takes you back to October 1966 as the chairman of the
Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee, Stokely Carmichael, called for blacks to reclaim
their history and identity through black power.
[00:03:06]
STOKELY CARMICHAEL: Thank you very much. It is indeed an honor and a pleasure to be
in Boston. We were surprised to hear the protests. We thought that new Bostonians carried on the
traditions of the old Bostonians, rivaling the days of the old Transcendentalists, Wendell Phillips
and Thoreau and Emerson and Parker. You ought to remind your new friends in Boston that the
right of free speech has been something that old Bostonians have always fought for, especially in
halls. [applause] We're grateful that some people still have the spirit to allow for free speech. A
test for free speech is whether or not you can hear that which you want to hear least and tolerate
it.
We usually only need one person to incite wherever we go. But since we were coming to Boston,
we wanted to introduce the program's secretary of the Student Non-Violent Coordinating
Committee who's in the audience, Mr. Cleve Sellers. [applause]
[00:04:17]
We had an article appear in the New York Review of Books. We wanted the title to be "Power and
Racism." The publishers wanted it to be "What We Want." And we didn't have any power, so we
lost. And that was the first speech that we had prepared for the Ford Hall Forum. Since that time,
it's been around quite a number of places; it's been reprinted. And we didn't want to use it again
because we wouldn't want to be branded as being intellectually lazy. It's not that we have
anything against being intellectual, but laziness has been with us too long. Trying to fight those
stereotypes.
[00:04:56]
So there's a new article, which will appear in the Massachusetts Review in the next quarter. And
we're going to read that one tonight. We're not too good at reading articles– [audience
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�MS113.0010 Transcript
interruption] The reason you can't hear well is because, you've got to understand, the CIA has got
to get first priority. [laughter/applause]
But we're going to try and read articles because we find out that when we go to intellectual
places that people have a tendency to believe that because one is an activist he cannot also be a
thinker. And we don't think that that's necessarily true. One can be both an activist and a thinker.
Some of the most brilliant thinkers in the country are the best activists that I know. They work in
SNCC. [laughter]
One of the most pointed illustrations of the need for Black Power, as a positive and redemptive
force in a society degenerating into a form of totalitarianism, is to be made by examining the
history of distortion that the concept has received in national media of publicity. In this debate –
and a debate which we have not been in on – as in everything else that affects our lives, blacks
are dependent on, and at the discretion of, forces and institutions within the white society which
have little interest in representing us honestly.
[00:06:28]
Our experience with the national press has been that where they have managed to escape a
meretricious special interest in "get whitey" sensationalism and race-war mongering, individual
reporters and commentators have been conditioned by the enveloping racism of the society to the
point where they are incapable even of objective observation and reporting of racial incidents,
much less the analysis of ideas. But this limitation of vision and perceptions is an inevitable
consequence of the dictatorship of definition, interpretation and consciousness, along with the
censorship of history that the society has inflicted upon the blacks and, consequently, itself.
Those words are so big, it took me all night just to do the first paragraph. [laughter]
[00:07:22]
Our concern for black power addresses itself directly to this problem, the necessity to reclaim our
history and our identity from the cultural terrorism and depredation of self-justifying white guilt.
To do this, we shall have to struggle for the right to create our own terms through which to
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�MS113.0010 Transcript
define ourselves and our relationship to the society, and to have these terms recognized. This is
the first necessity of a free people, and the first right that any oppressor must suspend. The white
fathers of American racism knew this –instinctively it seems – as is indicated by the continuous
record of the distortion and omission in the chronicles of their dealings with the red and black
men.
[00:08:11]
In the same way that Southern apologists for the Jim Crow society was established in the 1870s
after the effort to reconstruct the South, along the lines of true political democracy was
subverted, have so obscured, muddied and misrepresented the record of that period so that it is
almost impossible to determine what really happened. Their contemporary counterparts are busy
doing the same thing with the recent history of the civil rights movement.
That's for the press. I didn't want to leave them out.
[00:08:43]
In 1964, for example, the National Democratic Party, led by Lyndon Baines Johnson and Hubert
H. Humphrey, cynically undermined the efforts of Mississippi's black population to achieve
some degree of political representation. Yet, whenever the events of that convention are recalled
by the press, one sees only that version fabricated by the press agents of the Democratic Party. A
year later, the House of Representatives, in an even more vulgar display of political racism, made
a hollow mockery of the political rights of Mississippi's blacks when it failed to unseat the
Mississippi delegation to the House which had been elected through a process which
methodically and systematically excluded over 450,000 voting-age blacks, almost one-half of the
total electorate of the state of Mississippi.
[00:09:39]
Whenever this event is mentioned in print, it is in terms which leaves one with the rather curious
impression that somehow the oppressed black people of Mississippi are at fault for confronting
the Congress with a situation in which they had no alternative but to endorse Mississippi's racist
political practices.
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�MS113.0010 Transcript
[00:09:59]
I mention these two examples because, having been directly involved in them, I can see very
clearly the discrepancies between what happened and the versions that are finding their way into
general acceptance as a kind of popular mythology. Thus, the victimization of the blacks takes
place in two phases – first, it occurs in fact and deed; then, and this is equally sinister, in the
official recording of those facts.
[00:10:27]
The black power program and concept which is being articulated by the Student Non-Violent
Coordinating Committee and the Congress of Racial Equality, and a host of community
organizations in the ghettoes of the North and South has not escaped that process. The white
press has been busy articulating their own interpretations and criticisms of their own creations.
I'm reminded of a line in one of Mr. Dylan's folk songs – "Come you liberals and do not criticize
that which you cannot understand."
For example, while the press had given wide and sensational dissemination to attacks made by
figures in the civil rights movement – foremost among which are Roy Wilkins of the NAACP
and Whitney Young of the Urban League – and to the hysterical ranting about black racism by
the political chameleon that now serves as Vice President, it has certainly failed to give accounts
of the reasonable and productive dialogue which is taking place in the black community and in
certain important areas in the white religious and intellectual community.
[00:11:31]
A national committee of influential Negro Churchmen affiliated with the National Council of
Churches, despite their obvious respectability and responsibility, had to resort to a paid
advertisement to articulate their position, while anyone shouting the hysterical yappings of
"black racism" got ample space. Thus, the American people have gotten at best a superficial and
misleading account of the very terms and tenor of this debate. I wish to quote briefly from the
statement by the National Committee of Churchmen which I suspect that the majority of
Americans have not seen. This was a paid advertisement that was taken on by several Negro
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�MS113.0010 Transcript
churchmen. Its statement appeared in the New York Times, the July 31st issue. I'd like to quote a
great deal of the statement because I think it's vitally important.
[00:12:22]
We, an informal group of Negro churchmen in America are deeply disturbed
about the crisis brought upon our country by historic distortions of important
human realities in the controversy about black power. What we see shining
through the variety of rhetoric is not anything new, but the same old problem of
power and race which has faced our beloved country since 1619. The conscience
of black men is corrupted because, having no power to implement the demands of
conscience, the concern for justice in the absence of justice becomes a chaotic
self-surrender. Powerlessness breeds a race of beggars. We are faced now with a
situation where powerless conscience meets conscienceless power.
That's important. I'd like to repeat that:
[00:13:11]
We are faced now with a situation where powerless conscience meets
conscienceless power threatening the very foundations of our Nation. We deplore
the overt violence of riots, but we feel it is more important to focus on the real
sources of these eruptions. These sources may be abetted inside the ghetto, but
their basic cause lies in the silent and covert violence which white middle class
America inflicts upon the victims of the inner city.
In short, the failure of American leaders to use American power to create equal
opportunity in life as well as law, this is the real problem and not the anguished
cry for black power.
Without the capacity to participate with power – i.e., to have some organized
political and economic strength to really influence people with whom one
interacts – integration is not meaningful.
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America has asked its Negro citizens to fight for opportunity as individuals,
whereas at certain points in our history what we have needed most has been
opportunity for the whole group, not just for selected and approved Negroes.
We must not apologize for the existence of this form of group power, for we have
been oppressed as a group and not as individuals. We will not find our way out of
that oppression until both we and America accept the need for Negro Americans,
as well as for Jews, Italians, Poles, and white Anglo Saxon Protestants, among
others, to have and to wield group power.
[00:14:42]
Traditionally, for each new ethnic group, the route to social and political integration into
America's pluralistic society has been through the organization of their own institutions with
which to represent their communal needs within the larger society. This is, simply stated, what
the advocates of black power are saying. The strident outcry, particularly from the liberal
community, that has been evoked by this proposal can only be understood by examining the
historic relationship between the black power structure and the white power structure in this
country.
Blacks are defined by two forces – their blackness and their powerlessness. There have been
traditionally two communities in America – the white community, which controlled and defined
the forms that all institutions within the society would take; and the black community, which has
been excluded from participation in the power decisions that shaped the society, and has
traditionally been dependent upon, and subservient to, the white community.
[00:15:44]
This has not been accidental. The history of every institution of this society indicates that a major
concern in the ordering and structuring of the society has been the maintaining of the black
community in its condition of dependence and oppression. This has not been on the level of
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individual acts of discrimination between individual whites against individual blacks, but as total
acts by the white community against the black community.
This fact cannot be too strongly emphasized – that racist assumptions of white superiority have
been so deeply ingrained in the structure of the society that it infuses its entire functioning of the
society, and is so much a part of the national subconscious that it is taken for granted and is
frequently not even recognized. Let me give an example of the difference between individual
racism and institutionalized racism, and the society's response to both.
[00:16:41]
When unidentified white terrorists bomb a black church and kill five black children, that is an act
of individual racism which is widely deplored by most segments of the society. But when in that
same city, Birmingham, Alabama, not five but 500 black babies die each year because of a lack
of proper food, shelter and medical facilities, and thousands more are destroyed and maimed
physically, emotionally and intellectually because of conditions of poverty and deprivation in the
ghetto, that is a function of institutionalized racism.
[00:17:21]
But the society either pretends it doesn't know of this situation, or is incapable of doing anything
meaningful about it. And this resistance to doing anything meaningful about conditions in that
ghetto comes from the fact that the ghetto is itself a product of a combination of forces and
special interests inside the white community, and the groups that have access to the resources
and power to change that situation benefit, politically and economically, from the existence of
that ghetto.
[00:17:55]
It is more than a figure of speech to say that the black community in America is the victim of
white imperialism and colonial exploitation. This is in practical economic and political terms
true. It is a truism. There are over 20 million black people comprising ten percent of this nation.
They, for the most part, live in well-defined areas of the country – in the shanty-towns and rural
black belt areas of the South, and increasingly in the slums of Northern and Western industrial
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cities. If one goes into a black community, whether it be in Jackson, Mississippi, Cambridge,
Maryland, Harlem, New York, or Roxbury, one will find that the same combination of political,
economic, and social forces are at work.
[00:18:43]
The people in the black community do not control the resources of that community, its political
decisions, its law enforcement, its housing standards; and even the physical ownership of the
land, houses, and stores lie outside the black community. It is white power that makes the laws,
and it is violent white power in the form of armed white cops that enforces those laws with guns
and nightsticks. The vast majority of blacks in this country live in these captive communities and
must endure these conditions of oppression because, and only because, they are black and
powerless.
[00:19:20]
I do not suppose that at any point the men who control the power and resources of this country
ever sat down and designed these black enclaves, and formally articulated the terms of their
colonial and dependent status, as was done, for example, with the Apartheid policy in South
Africa. Yet, one cannot distinguish between one ghetto and another. As one moves from city to
city, it is as though some malignant racist planning-unit had done precisely this – designed each
one from the same master blueprint. And indeed, if the ghetto had been formally and deliberately
planned, instead of growing spontaneously and inevitably from the racist functioning of the
various institutions that combine to make the society, it would be somehow less frightening.
The situation would be less frightening because, if these ghettoes were the result of design and
conspiracy, one could understand their similarity as being an artificial and consciously imposed
quality, rather than the result of identical patterns of white racism which repeat themselves in
cities as distant as Boston and Birmingham.
Without bothering to list the historic factors which contribute to this pattern – economic
exploitation, political impotence, discrimination in employment and education – one can see that
to correct this pattern will require far-reaching changes in the basic power relationships and the
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ingrained social patterns within the society. The question is, of course, what kinds of changes are
necessary, and how is it possible to bring them about?
[00:20:57]
In recent years the answer to these questions, which has been given by most articulate groups of
Negro leaders and their white allies, the liberals of all stripes, has been in terms of something
called "integration." According to the advocates of integration, social justice will be
accomplished by "integrating the Negro into the mainstream institutions of the society from
which he has been traditionally excluded." It is very significant that each time I have heard this
formulation it has been in terms of "the Negro," "a Negro," "Ralph Bunch, "the individual
Negro" [applause], rather than in terms of the black community.
[00:21:47]
This concept of integration had to be based on the assumption that there was nothing of value in
the black community and that little of value could be created among blacks, so the thing to do
was to siphon off the "acceptable" Negroes into the surrounding middle-class white community.
Thus, the goal of the movement for integration was simply to loosen up the restrictions barring
the entry of Negroes into the white community. Goals such as public accommodation, open
housing, job opportunity on the executive level –which is easier to deal with than the problem of
semi-skilled and blue collar jobs which involve more far-reaching economic adjustments – are
quite simply middle-class goals, articulated by a tiny group of Negroes who have had middleclass aspirations.
Now, the press has been helpful in interpreting some of the things that we were doing in SNCC.
They have said that SNCC was busy integrating a couple years ago and that we were talking
about the beloved community, about changing hearts and that we've now changed. And there's
nothing more nonsensical than any of that statement. No one in SNCC ever left their homes to go
and sit next to James Clark. We went to render Mr. Clark impotent over our lives. And that needs
to be understood. [applause]
[00:23:12]
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I think that needs to be understood. We were fighting against white supremacy. We were not
fighting to sit next to white people. We were fighting against white supremacy; we wanted to get
rid of all the Wallaces and the Eastlands the other people in the North, too, when I come home.
But the papers often call it a movement for integration. That was never our idea at any rate.
[00:23:44]
There were several other respectable Negroes, however, who were articulating a position of
changing the hearts of people in the country. I think that's an admirable deed, I really do. I think
that Dr. Martin Luther King, for example, is one of the greatest men in this country. He's got a
compassion that I think very few men in this country have. But when I sit and look at a picture of
Lyndon Baines Johnson and I think what a job he will have of teaching him how to be nonviolent in Vietnam. [applause]
[00:24:25]
This limited class orientation was reflected not only in the program and goals of the civil rights
movement, but in its tactics and organization. It is very significant that the two oldest and most
respectable civil rights organizations have constitutions– I have a block to using that word
[laughter/applause]; that is because I can only say three-fifths of it. [laughter/applause] However,
within their written documentations of these two respectable civil rights organizations, they have
been barred and prohibited them from partisan political activity.
CORE [Congress of Racial Equality] once did, but changed that clause when it changed its
orientation toward black power. But this is perfectly understandable in terms of the strategy and
goals of the older organizations. The civil rights movement saw its role as a kind of liaison
between the powerful white community and the dependent black community. The dependent
status of the black community apparently was unimportant since it was – if the movement was
going to be successful – going to blend into the white community anyway. We made no pretense
of organizing and developing institutions of community power in the black community, but
appealed to the conscience of white institutions of power. The posture of the civil rights
movement was that of the dependent, the suppliant. The theory was that without attempting to
create any organized base of political strength itself, the civil rights movement could – by
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forming coalitions with various liberal pressure organizing groups in the white community,
liberal reform clubs, labor unions like Mr. Reuther, church groups, progressive civic groups, and
at times one or other of the major political parties – influence national legislation and national
social patterns.
[00:26:38]
I think we all have seen the limitations of this approach. We have repeatedly seen that political
alliances based on appeals to conscience and decency are chancy things, simply because
institutions and political organizations have no consciences outside their own special interests.
The political and social rights of blacks have been and always will be negotiable and expendable
the moment they conflict with the interests of our allies.
[00:27:07]
If we do not learn from history, we are doomed to repeat it, and that is precisely the lesson of the
Reconstruction period. Black people were allowed to register, vote, and participate in politics
because it was to the advantage of powerful white allies to promote this. That's people who talk
about the populist movement all the time. This was the result of a white decision, and it was
ended by other white men's decision when it became politically astute– politically expedient,
rather – when it became politically expedient for whites to get rid of the blacks, they just got rid
of them in the populist movement. And we don't want to be in the position this time around
where they can just get rid of us when the political winds change. We want to be able to be
organized independently to have something to say about that.
[00:28:04]
But this was a result of white decisions and it was ended by other white men's decisions before
any political base powerful enough to challenge that decision could be established in the
Southern black community. Thus, at this point in the struggle, blacks have no assurance – save a
kind of idiot optimism and faith in a society whose history is one of racism – that if it were to
become necessary, even the painfully limited gains thrown to the civil rights movement by the
Congress will not be revoked as soon as a shift in political sentiments should occur.
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[00:28:34]
The major limitation of this approach was that it tended to maintain the traditional dependence of
blacks, and of the movement. We depended upon the good will and support of various groups
within the white community whose interests were not always compatible with ours. To the extent
that we depended on the financial support of other groups, we were vulnerable to their influence
and domination.
A lot of supporters of the civil rights movement used to read the New York Times, you know. I'm
always looking to see how often we get paid advertisements in the New York Times condemning
black power.
[00:29:12]
Also, the program that evolved out of this coalition was really limited and inadequate in the long
term and one which affected only a small, selected group of Negroes. Its goal was
to make the white community accessible to "qualified" Negroes and presumably each year a few
more Negroes armed with their passports – a couple of university degrees – would escape into
middle-class America, adopt the attitudes and lifestyles of that group, and one day the Harlems
and the Watts would stand empty. [applause] And this, of course, would be hailed a tribute to the
success of integration.
[00:29:56]
This is simply neither realistic nor particularly desirable. You cannot integrate communities, but
you assimilate individuals. Even if such a program were possible, its results would be, not to
develop the black community as a functional and honorable segment of the total society, with its
own cultural identity, life patterns, and institutions, but to abolish it – the final solution to the
Negro problem.
[00:30:31]
Karl Marx said that the working class is the first class in history that ever wanted to abolish
itself. If one listens to some moderates and respectable civil rights leaders, one would believe the
Negro race was the first race that wanted to abolish itself. The fact is that what must be abolished
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is not the black community, but the dependent colonial status that has been inflicted upon it. The
racial and cultural personality of the black community must be preserved, and the community
must win its freedom while preserving its cultural integrity. [applause] This is the essential
difference between integration, as it is currently practiced, and the concept of black power.
ANNOUNCER: You're listening to Stokely Carmichael on a special edition of the Ford Hall
Forum's New American Gazette.
STOKELY CARMICHAEL: What has the movement for integration accomplished to date?
The Negro graduating from MIT with a doctorate will have better job opportunities available to
him than even to Lynda Bird Johnson. [laughter] But the rate of unemployment in the black
community is steadily increasing, while that in the white community decreases. More educated
Negroes hold executive-type jobs in major corporations and federal agencies than ever before,
but the gap between white income and black income has almost doubled in the last 20 years.
[00:32:16]
More suburban housing is available to Negroes, but housing conditions in the ghetto are steadily
declining, while the rent is increasing for the rats and roaches that live with us. [applause]
While the infant mortality rate of New York City is at its lowest rate ever in the city's history, the
infant mortality rate of Harlem is climbing.
[00:32:43]
There has been an organized national resistance – national, not Southern – national resistance to
the Supreme Court's order to integrate the schools, and the federal government has not acted to
enforce that order. Less than fifteen percent of black children in the South attend integrated
schools; and black schools, which the vast majority of black children still attend, are increasingly
decrepit, overcrowded, under-staffed, inadequately equipped and funded.
[00:33:17]
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It's apparent to me that one of the things that this country has been able to do with its gigantic
propaganda machinery is to always focus attention on six, ten, twelve or maybe fifty little black
children trying to integrate a white school. And after going through mobs of big, white men who
stamp, crush, beat them, they finally make it into the schools, are allowed to sit down with the
children of the parents who just beat them up. And people hail this as a victory. And two days
later, after the white country now is entirely shocked – because this has no effect on black people
in the ghetto – the President sends the FBI, the National Guard, the state troopers, the policemen
and Martin Luther King armed with non-violence. [applause]
[00:34:09]
We are not concerned with those six percent; we are concerned with the 85-90 percent who still
live in black schools that nobody talks about. That's who we're concerned about. And we think
the country ought to face the reality that they're going to live in those schools. And we're not
concerned about white schools, we just want better schools. [applause]
This explains why the rate of school dropouts is increasing among black teenagers, who then
express their bitterness, hopelessness, and alienation by the only terms they have – rioting. And
they're not so different from Americans, you know, because we express ours through bombing.
Ask Ho Chi Minh, he'll tell you. [applause]
[00:34:59]
As long as people in the ghettoes of our large cities feel that they are victims of the misuse of
white power without any way to have their needs represented – and these are frequently simple
needs: to get the welfare inspectors to stop kicking down our doors in the middle of the night, the
cops from beating our children, the landlord to exterminate the rats in our home, and the city to
collect our garbage – we will continue to have riots. These are not the products of black power,
but of the absence of any organization capable of giving the community the power, the black
power, to deal with its problems. [applause]
[00:35:39]
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SNCC proposes that it is now time for the Black Freedom movement to stop pandering to the
fears and anxieties of the white middle class in the attempt to earn its good-will, and to return to
the ghetto to organize these communities to control themselves. This organization must be
attempted in Northern and Southern urban areas, as well as in the rural black belt counties of the
South.
[00:36:04]
The chief antagonist to this organization is, in the South, the overtly racist Democratic Party,
and, in the North, the equally corrupt big city machines. The standard argument against
independent political organization is, "But you're only ten percent." Ask Mr. Spivak about that.
[00:36:29]
I cannot see the relevance of this observation, since no one is talking about taking over the
country, but taking control over our own communities. The fact is that the black population, ten
percent or not, is very strategically placed because – ironically– of segregation. What is also true
is that blacks have never been able to utilize their full voting potential of our numbers. Where we
could vote, the case has always been that the white political machine stacks and gerrymanders
the political subdivisions in black neighborhoods so that the true voting strength is never
reflected in political strength. Would anyone looking at the distribution of political power in
Manhattan, ever think that blacks represented sixty percent of the population there?
[00:37:18]
Just as often, the effective political organization in black communities is absorbed by tokenism
and patronage, the time-honored practice of giving certain offices to selected Negroes. The
machine thus creates a little machine, which is subordinate and responsive to the white
community. The black political leaders are really vote deliverers, more responsible to the white
machine and the white power structure than to the community they allegedly represent. Thus, the
white community is able to substitute patronage control for audacious black power in the black
community.
[00:37:58]
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This is precisely what Johnson tried to do even before the Voting Rights Act of 1966 was passed.
The National Democrats made it very clear that the measure was intended to register Democrats,
not Negroes. The President and top officials of the Democratic Party called in almost 100
selected responsible Negro leaders from the Deep South. Nothing was said about changing the
policies of the racist state parties, nothing was said about repudiating such leadership figures as
Eastland, Barnett, Wallace, and Talmadge. What was said was simply, "Go home and organize
your people into the local Democratic Party. Then we'll see about poverty money and
appointments."
[00:38:45]
Incidentally, poverty money in the South is handled by the same racists who were there prior to
1966. They have a new thing now; they use it to have black people be dependent upon on them.
In the past, if a black person registered to vote, he could lose his job and be run off from the land.
Now if he registers to vote, he can lose his Head Start job.
[00:39:12]
We must organize black community power to end these abuses, and to give the black community
a chance to have its needs expressed. A leadership which is truly responsible – not to the white
press and power structure, but to the community – must be developed. A leadership which will
recognize that its power lies in the unified and collective strength of that community. This will
make it difficult for the white leadership group to conduct its dialogue with individuals in terms
of patronage and prestige, and will force them to talk to the community's representatives in terms
of real power.
The single aspect of the Black Power program that has come into the most criticism is this
concept of independent organization. This is represented as third-partyism which has never
worked, or a withdrawal into Black Nationalism and isolationism. Or, to some, more or less
intelligent people, reverse racism.
[00:40:07]
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If such a program is done, it will not have the effect of isolating the black community but the
reverse. When the black community is able to control local office, and negotiate with other
groups from a position of organized strength, the possibility of meaningful political alliances on
specific issues will be increased. That is a rule of politics and there is no reason why it should not
operate here. The only difference is that we will have the power to define the terms of these
coalitions.
[00:40:38]
The next question usually is, "So, can it work? Can the ghettos be in fact organized?" The answer
is that this organization must be successful, because there are no viable alternatives – not the
War on Poverty, which was at its inception limited to dealing with effects rather than causes, and
has become simply another source of machine patronage. Integration is meaningful only to a
small chosen handful of accepted Negro people in our community.
[00:41:05]
The revolution in agricultural technology in the South is displacing the rural black community
into Northern urban areas. Both Washington, DC, Newark, New Jersey, and Gary, Indiana, now
have black majorities. The inner city in most major urban areas is predominantly black. And with
the white rush to suburbia, blacks will in the next three decades control the heart of our great
cities. These areas can become either concentration camps, with a bitter and volatile population
whose only power is the power to destroy, or organized and powerful communities able to make
constructive contributions to the total society.
[00:41:45]
Without the power to control our lives and their communities, without effective political
institutions through which to relate to the total society, our communities will exist in a constant
state of insurrection. This is a choice that this country will have to make. Not ours.
I want to thank you very much. [applause]
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DONALD STEWART: Stokely Carmichael will shortly be questioned. First, we hear from
Dean Clarence Q. Berger, who is tonight's moderator.
CLARENCE BERGER: Let's start with this section over here. Yes, sir.
[00:42:32]
The questioner says that you wish to substitute black values for white values in the community,
and asks what some of these values might be.
[00:42:45]
STOKELY CARMICHAEL: Number one, I've been a little bit concerned about a term that
white society has been throwing in our face. It's called illegitimate children – "you have too
many illegitimate children." There are no illegitimate children. All children are legitimate; they
come out the same way. [applause]
[00:43:08]
Now, there may be something called illegal children in the sense that they're run in conflict to the
norms or mores of the society, but that since we are in a college campus area and we must talk
frankly, we know that abortions can stop illegitimate children. And that's where we find a large
percentage of them, as a matter of fact, on the college campuses.
[00:43:30]
So we want to reject the idea that a child be castigated because his mother and father weren't
married. Because you don't know if mine were. It's none of your business. That's one we want to
reject. We want to develop and keep that within our community there's always been an idea of a
child is a child is a child. Those are very simple things.
But when you speak about that, you speak overall about the fact that anything that black people
have produced in this society they're made to be ashamed of. For example, we used to have
something called rhythm and blues. You now call it rock and roll. [applause] And we were made
to be ashamed of it until the Beatles legitimized it and gave it back to us.
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[00:44:20]
The second thing, for example, is that we have cultural values within black society that are
looked down upon as animalist or savagery or uncivilized. For example, I think– as a matter of
fact, I know that James Brown has as much musical genius as does Brahms, Bach and Mozart
put together. [applause] Because he has the ability to externalize something that is very internal
and that when he does that, even if your name is Lyndon Baines Johnson, if you're hearing him,
you've got to tap your feet.
[00:44:59]
So we have to develop and embrace these things we are ashamed of and keep running from, and
that has to do with the fact that we are black and that everything we read is white, what is
beautiful is white. And whatever is bad is black. And we have to develop a new concept of value
based on the fact that we are black and that our noses are broad, our lips are thick, our hair is
nappy, but we are beautiful. And we are beautiful in our blackness. We cannot be like Dick and
Jane, and even their little white dog Spot. [applause]
CLARENCE BERGER: The question is, how do you account for the growing white backlash
in the country and what can be done to counteract it?
[00:45:51]
STOKELY CARMICHAEL: We start from different assumptions. I think yours is fallacious. I
don't believe there's anything called a white backlash in this country. This country is racist. I
think that when people move to destroy racism, then racists move to defend it. For example,
black people knew that they could not live in Cicero [IL]; white people knew that black people
could not live in Cicero. But when some Negroes got smart with a civil rights bill in their back
pocket and thought they could walk into Cicero, the whites had to remind them that they could
not. That is no white backlash; it's black people pushing harder to destroy racism. So I don't see
any white backlash. [applause]
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There is one other point to substantiate; that is that I'm told that I'm responsible for causing
several political upheavals in this country. [laughter] Based on that, we've been– I just started to
read the Harris polls. I never paid them much mind, but since SNCC has become so powerful,
we're going to run the chairman for presidency in 1968. I figure we've got to win.
[00:47:02]
In Maryland, a man by the name of Mahoney won over the issue of occupancy, open occupancy,
and his slogan was, "a man's home is his castle." He was against open occupancy. And he won.
And all the political astute analysis in the daily columns said that Stokely Carmichael was
responsible for that. They didn't even say that the District of Columbia is now all black because
white people ran to Maryland to get away from black people. And did they think those same
white people will now vote for black people, to move them out of Maryland into Virginia?
[applause]
CLARENCE BERGER: If part of your goals are to develop black culture, black unity, why do
you spend time addressing predominantly white audiences?
[00:48:01]
STOKELY CARMICHAEL: I don't spend most of my time addressing predominantly white
audiences. We do talk to white audiences because we feel they're people. Sometimes. [laughter]
But secondly, we feel that the problem of racism exists within the white community. And we feel
that white people individually inside that community may feel trapped by the institutions of
racism, and that many of them really want to move to destroy racism. I think a lot of them are
trapped. But in order for that to be done, they must start working inside the white community to
tear them down. I think that we need those type of white people to be stimulated to do that.
[00:48:43]
I also feel that black people in this country only have power within the black community, not
within the white community, and that there is a need for white people to start moving inside the
white community establish different institutional structures. We also feel that white people ought
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to have a right to hear both sides of the story. And while most of them just read Time magazine
and the New York Times, we thought they ought to have a chance to hear our side.
CLARENCE BERGER: The lady says, do you anticipate the possibility of the whole emerging
black power movement becoming hysterical in certain situations? And if so, is there any
provision within the structure of SNCC to contain such hysterical manifestations?
STOKELY CARMICHAEL: Well, we're not for containing anybody, number one. And
number two, I'm not too sure that that hasn't been done by the white press, blown out of
proportion, and by other people who started debating the issue. We do not see that as a
possibility. We think that there's going to be violence in the major cities anyway. And that's
already started. There has been violence in major cities in this country before – after World War
I and during the 1940s. Across the country. And I think the push is going to be harder because
black people are going to push for the things they have to have. And if there's no way for them to
redress their grievances, then they will take it out in violence.
[00:50:11]
We do hope that the programs that we articulate will be able to organize black people to push for
the changes that they want. We might add that wherever we've been working, we've been able to
produce programs and to organize black people to work for that change. It is only where there
have been no organizations organizing people that they've erupted in violence.
CLARENCE BERGER: The question was that– [OMISSION]
[00:50:39]
STOKELY CARMICHAEL: Since in most other minority groups in the country – i.e., the
Greeks, the Italians, the Poles – there is a culture within that community. And since black people
have been cut off from culture in Africa because they've been told that Africans were all savages,
do we now think that we can develop a culture for black people that they will be proud of, and
the middle class would embrace this culture that has developed or will they run away from it?
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�MS113.0010 Transcript
[00:51:15]
I remember in Sociology 101 that [laughter] culture was defined as anything manmade. And to
say that black people have no culture or that they're culturally deprived is to deny their very
existence. Black people have culture. [applause]
I do believe that, in terms of the hookup with Africa and the feeling of the middle-class Negroes
out of the community, that there are several issues that we can talk about. Number one is, I think
that to be successful in this country is to be anti-black; or, some people say to be anti-poor. Well,
since most black people are poor, it's sort of puts us in the same category. So what happens is
that every time a Negro becomes successful, he takes a job with IBM, Wall Street, Madison
Avenue, or teaches at Harvard University, to prove to white people that he's just as good as they
are and he runs away from the ghetto; he becomes ashamed of it. I think that's what the Negro
middle class does. They can't embrace the culture that we have because they think that we have
too much rhythm anyway. [laughter/applause] So it's a question of how they can get oriented to
accepting what they've been running away from – chitlins and James Brown. [laughter]
[00:52:46]
Now, the question about Africa is very important because we have to develop a new
consciousness in terms of hooking up with Africa. We have to realize that we are oppressed in
this country because we're black, and for no other reason. So our destiny is hooked up with
people of the same color who are oppressed around the world by the same whites because they
are black. And that works psychologically against us.
[00:53:14]
When I was a boy, I used to go to the movies to see Tarzan. And Tarzan used to get up and fight
and he was proper, he was white and English, Anglo Saxon, and he spoke very well – [yells like
Tarzan]. [laughter] I was proud of Tarzan's beautiful articulation and his superiority in speaking.
[laughter] And I was always disgusted at the little black savages who came around [chants] and
throwing spears. [laughter] And they would always be throwing spears at Tarzan. Whenever
Tarzan got in trouble, I'd say, "Tarzan, kill the savages, kill the beast, beat up those little black
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�MS113.0010 Transcript
people! Kill me because those are my ancestors." [applause] That is precisely the psychology
that was operating in my mind.
Now we understand that Tarzan is back on the scene these days, and we're urging our little black
children that when they see Tarzan, yell for the chiefs to beat the hell out of that white man and
send him back East. [applause] And tell him that when he goes back to Europe to take all this
companies that exploit us with him. [applause]
CLARENCE BERGER: The questioner points out that the Peace Corps is sending large
numbers of young, white volunteers to Africa. In your judgment, what is their purpose there?
[00:54:54]
STOKELY CARMICHAEL: I want to make an analogy between the modern Peace Corps
people and the missionaries. [applause] I want to explain that I don't believe that missionaries are
bad people. I thought for the most part they were good, earnest and well-intentioned people who
thought they were doing their best, and they just fell into a scheme of exploitation, which made it
good to have them around.
[00:55:29]
For example, the missionaries went to Africa on the assumption that black people were
uncivilized and that they were savages, and that they were going to carry out Mr. Kipling's
strong points of the white man's burden. Their mistake was that the white man's burden had to be
preached in Europe, not Africa.
[00:55:48]
But at any rate, they went to Africa with Bibles. Africans had land. When they left, they had the
land and we still have the Bibles. I think that they felt that that was the price that we had to be
charged for civilizing us and giving us culture.
I think those people themselves meant well, but that they were used to continue to exploit black
people. What the Peace Corps does is that it teaches people how to learn English and to read and
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�MS113.0010 Transcript
write and build houses. I think that what underdeveloped countries need are technical skills –
how to build industrial plants inside their nations so they can convert the raw materials that they
have and get the products themselves, rather than have to send them to the United States or put
them on the market, the world market, which is controlled by the United States. And then have to
sell it back to them.
[00:56:55]
If the Peace Corps people really wanted to do something to benefit those countries, then they
should teach them technical skills. That's what Mr. Nkrumah was trying to do in Ghana.
[applause]
[OMISSION]
Thank you. [applause]
[You've been listening to a special edition of the New American Gazette. Stokely Carmichael
was recorded at Jordan Hall in Boston on October 16, 1966.
The New American Gazette is produced for the Ford Hall Forum and directed by Deborah
Stavrow. Post-production engineer is Brian Sabo.
This program is produced in cooperation with the nation's presidential libraries, the National
Archives and Northeastern University.
Funding for the New American Gazette is provided by Houghton Chemical Corporation of
Boston. For over 60 years, a major marketer of organic chemicals and automotive antifreeze
products.
Additional funding is provided by Metropolitan Life Foundation, helping to create an informed
citizenry through public affairs programming.
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�MS113.0010 Transcript
If you'd like a cassette of this program, send a check for $12 to the Ford Hall Forum, 271
Huntington Avenue, Suite 240, Boston, Massachusetts, 02115. That's the Ford Hall Forum, 271
Huntington Avenue, Suite 240, Boston, Massachusetts, 02115.]
END OF RECORDING
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27
�
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Ford Hall Forum Collection, 1910-2013 (MS113)
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The Ford Hall Forum Collection documents the history of the nation’s longest running free public lecture series. The Forum has hosted some the most notable figures in the arts, science, politics, and the humanities since its founding in 1908. The collection, which spans from 1908 to 2013, includes of 85 boxes of materials related to the Forum's administration, lectures, fund raising, partnerships, and its radio program, the New American Gazette.<br /><br />The digital files are being moved to: <a href="https://dc.suffolk.edu/fordhall">https://dc.suffolk.edu/fordhall</a>
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The New American Gazette: Stokely Carmichael's speech "Black Power" at the Ford Hall Forum [transcript]
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02 February 1991
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Carmichael, Stokely, 1941-1998
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Stokely Carmichael, a leader in the civil rights struggle and chairman of the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee, appeared at Boston's Ford Hall Forum in 1966 advocating for the Black Power movement as a means to reclaim Black Americans’ history and identity. This forum was rebroadcast in 1991, with an introduction by Donald Stewart, as part of the New American Gazette radio program.
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MS113.3.1/0010
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Black history
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The Ford Hall Forum Collection documents the history of the nation’s longest running free public lecture series. The Forum has hosted some the most notable figures in the arts, science, politics, and the humanities since its founding in 1908. The collection, which spans from 1908 to 2013, includes of 85 boxes of materials related to the Forum's administration, lectures, fund raising, partnerships, and its radio program, the New American Gazette.<br /><br />The digital files are being moved to: <a href="https://dc.suffolk.edu/fordhall">https://dc.suffolk.edu/fordhall</a>
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The New American Gazette: Sandra Day O'Connor and Mary King [audio recording]
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This episode of the New American Gazette features the remarks of Sandra Day O'Connor and Mary E. King at the Conference on Women and the Constitution. It was convened by former First Ladies Betty Ford, Pat Nixon, Rosalyn Carter and Lady Bird Johnson on February 12, 1988 to celebrate the US Constitution and the contributions that women have made to the country’s founding document. 'O'Connor, the first woman appointed to the U.S. Supreme Court, discussing some of the significant leaders and milestones in the struggle of American women for equal protection and opportunity under the U.S. Constitution. Author and activist Mary King urges women to seek political self-determination by asking, "Where to from here?" She further contends that the women's movement and the civil rights movement merged to form a powerful bond.
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PDF Text
Text
Transcript of Angela Davis Forum
Moakley Archive and Institute
www.suffolk.edu/moakley
Title: Angela Davis: Organized Struggle Against Racial and Political Repression,” at Ford Hall
Forum.
Recording Date: 05 October 1975
Item Information: Angela Davis: Organized Struggle Against Racial and Political Repression,”
at Ford Hall Forum. Ford Hall Forum Collection, 1908-2013 (MS113.3.1, item 0014) Moakley
Archive, Suffolk University, Boston, MA.
Digital Versions: audio recording and transcript available at http://moakleyarchive.omeka.net
Copyright Information: Copyright © 1975 Ford Hall Forum.
Recording Summary:
Transcription of a Ford Hall Forum that featured political activist Angela Davis discussing the
work of political organizations, such as the Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression, to
combat the systemic racial oppression of African Americans in the United States. She details the
failings of capitalism and the perceived rise of fascism in the US. Davis also discusses Boston’s
racial struggles including the crisis surrounding the desegregation of its public schools.
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�MS113.0014 Transcript
Transcript Begins
FRANK FITZMORRIS: From Boston, the Eastern Public Radio Network presents the Ford
Hall Forum, coming to you from Alumni Auditorium at Northeastern University.
Good evening, I'm Frank Fitzmorris, welcoming you to the first meeting of the 68th season of
Ford Hall programs, America's oldest forum of public opinion. Tonight's speaker, activist Angela
Davis.
In just a moment, Forum president Emmanuel Gilbert will introduce Angela Davis for tonight's
talk, titled: “The Organized Struggle Against Racist and Political Repression.”
Now here's Ford Hall president Emmanuel Gilbert.
[00:00:41]
EMMANUEL GILBERT: Just before we get into the main segment of our meeting tonight,
there are a couple of minor announcements. I ask you to bear with me. First of all, I'd like to
express the Ford Hall Forum's appreciation to Northeastern University for making this facility
available to us, and for extending themselves in so many ways to make the meetings possible.
Secondly, I have two regulations to hopefully enforce. One is from Northeastern University, and
that's to ask you to please refrain; there'll be no smoking in the hall. It also says no eating, but I
don't see anybody eating, so I think that's no problem at all to worry about.
[00:01:20]
The second announcement is from the Ford Hall Forum. We would like to ask that there be – I
notice a lot of cameras here in the hall – that there be no flash photography at all. [laughter] If
you're going to take pictures, I hope your equipment is such and your skills are such that you can
operate by whatever light is in the hall. It's a matter of difficulty for the speaker if he or she is
constantly interrupted by the flashing of lights. So I ask you please to bear with us on that.
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�MS113.0014 Transcript
[00:01:56]
And the second part of that is, there are no tape recordings to be made. The program is broadcast,
as you well know, and so it's public in that extent. But many of our speakers have requested that
recordings not be made by members of the audience because they have other utilization for their
speech, and these get bootlegged and one thing and another and published elsewhere.
So enough for the announcements. Please bear with us.
Now, greetings and good evening, and welcome to the opening session of our 68th annual season
of the Ford Hall Forum. I'm Emmanuel Gilbert, president of the Forum, and your moderator for
this evening.
[00:02:32]
Now, I mentioned this is our 68th consecutive year. This makes us the oldest continuously
operated public forum in the United States. It's been a lean couple of decades for public forums.
They've had all kinds of problems, many have ceased operation; all of them, this one included,
have had great financial problems. And so, many have fallen by the wayside. So in view of that,
this makes our continued existence, and indeed judging by the audience tonight and the record
numbers of members that we have, it's a most unusual bit of longevity for a forum of this kind.
[00:03:14]
I suppose there are many reasons why this is so, but there are two reasons I'd like to call to your
attention tonight because I think they're most pertinent. One is that the Forum assiduously seeks
out different points of view – some popular, some unpopular, occasionally some bland.
[laughter] But we look for different points of view.
Secondly, all of our speakers who come know that they're here to come and express a point of
view. That's the first half of that commitment to the evening. And the second half is that they
must answer questions from the hall and, in effect, they must defend that point of view. These
are two very basic premises under which the Ford Hall Forum operates.
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�MS113.0014 Transcript
[00:03:59]
Now, in a free, open, democratic society, these seem very simple, very basic, and not at all
difficult to understand. And yet, because of these two basic reasons for existence, we've had
some troubles, some troubles lasting for a full 68 years, because nobody really subscribes to this
business of freedom of speech and expression when it pertains to the other point of view.
[00:04:25]
You program somebody from the left and immediately the forum is attacked by people from the
right saying they should not have had this forum. You program somebody liberal, you hear from
the conservatives, and vice versa. You program a women's libber and you hear from the male
chauvinists, who don't identify themselves as such, but they complain. [laughter] There is no
point of view I think that we've ever had that hasn't been attacked, or the Forum hasn't been
attacked for presenting it.
Now, we reject this notion of being opposed to letting a valid point of view being heard and
questioned here from the audience. We seek different points of view and we defend their right to
be heard and to present themselves and to be challenged by the audience.
[00:05:15]
Now, our speaker tonight is an example of this pattern. Miss Angela Davis has been called many
things – a radical, a revolutionary, a murderess, a menace to society – all kinds of things. And
we've heard from people who aren't particularly enamored of any of these descriptions and who
have resented the fact that she's here tonight. Of course, we've had many laudatory calls and
letters and people delighted that she's here to grace the Forum platform. But we've also had
memberships canceled, and funds, which would have come to the Forum, diverted because we
offer her this platform.
[00:05:54]
Nevertheless, that's what the Forum is all about. And we're proud to present her here at the Ford
Hall Forum, regardless of what anybody, in this room or outside, thinks of her views. She's here
to express her views and to defend them. You are here in the hall to hear what she has to say and
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�MS113.0014 Transcript
to make her defend them if you don't agree with them. As I said, that's what the Forum is all
about. I think this will give us at least another 68 consecutive years.
And so, ladies and gentlemen, here to tell you her views on the organized struggle against racist
and political opposition, and to answer your questions, I'm proud to present Miss Angela Davis.
[applause]
ANGELA DAVIS: Well, first of all, I'd like to thank the Ford Hall Forum for giving me this
opportunity to address you this evening. I'm speaking on behalf of many people, black, brown,
red, yellow and white, who are involved in the struggle to end racist and political repression.
And this evening I want to focus my remarks in general around the issue of racism and the issue
of repression.
[00:07:41]
But let me begin by relating an incident which happened on the way from the airport a little
while ago. Those of you who have come out of Logan Airport have probably seen that huge
billboard that says "Welcome to Boston, the Cradle of Liberty." It all began here. [laughter]
Well, as we drove into the city, we passed another sign. This sign said "White Power KKK."
And of course, you don't need me to tell you that Boston is a city with some very serious
problems at this moment. And probably it's no comfort to you to realize that the problems facing
this city are the same as those plaguing urban centers all over the country – high rates of
unemployment, deterioration of public services, unbelievable rates of inflation, and a total
inability of the municipal governments to begin to provide just and humane solutions to these
problems. This is becoming the normal status of cities all over the country these days.
[00:09:16]
And as we sit here this evening, enormous numbers of working class men and women find
themselves demoralized, unemployed, hungry. And what kind of a response do they receive
when they attempt to get help from federal and state officials that we're supposed to be able to
count on to represent our interests? Just recently right here in the state of Massachusetts, there
was a cutback to the tune of about $678 million in the welfare budget; $22 million cut in the area
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�MS113.0014 Transcript
of mental health; $6.2 million from youth services and daycare; and a $9.5 million slash in the
area of public health. And all of this is going on when the rate of unemployment in the state is
absolutely incredible. The last figure I saw was more than ten percent. And this is what's
happening all over the country, indeed.
Now, our President has been talking about his better idea. [laughter] What is Mr. Gerald
Secondhand Ford's better idea? To veto one bill after another that would create jobs for working
people, to veto one bill after another that would give increased aid to educational programs that
are so sorely needed by the youth of this country. From no section of this country's leadership
have we seen the attempt to formulate any policy that would be designed to offset the effects of
this economic crisis, the effects of this economic crisis on the masses of people in this country.
[00:11:28]
I think it's important that we understand the significance of this crisis. It's not the same kind of
cyclical crisis that capitalism is supposed to be able to weather eventually. It's a general crisis in
the whole system of capitalism. A general crisis that has features that are permanent and
irreversible rather than just temporary.
Consider the concrete effects of this crisis. Do you know there was recently a study done at the
University of Pennsylvania, I think. It was discovered that among black teenagers, particularly
black teenagers who are female, young black women, the rate of unemployment is something
like 65%. And not only is unemployment 65%, but these are young people who not only cannot
find a job today, but they don't have the prospect of finding a job any time in the near future.
And that means that a whole generation, a whole generation of young black people is growing up
without ever having had the experience of being able to find and hold down a job.
[00:13:11]
Now, in the absence of any significant policies to meet the needs of our people at this time of
crisis, those who are in control of the wealth, the masters of monopoly in this country and their
administrative and legislative assistants in the White House and on Capitol Hill, are devising the
most hideous policies of repression known to humanity since the most terrible and most
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�MS113.0014 Transcript
frightening days of Hitler. And when I say that fascism is becoming an increasingly dangerous
menace to the people of this country, I'm not exaggerating. I use the term fascism after much
consideration.
[00:14:21]
Policies are developed by ruling circles in this country which have racism as their core and the
dissolution of the unity of working people as their intent. These policies are attempting to not
only impose the burden of this crisis on the shoulders of working people, and particularly black
people and other people of color, but they attempt to destroy the very unity that's necessary in
order to fight back against those policies, against this crisis, this crisis which is created by the
gluttony of monopoly for ever-increasing profits – a gluttony that was denied satisfaction by the
people of Vietnam, the people of Mozambique and Angola, the people of Guinea Bissau, and a
gluttony which has been bitterly fought in other countries throughout Africa, throughout Asia,
throughout Latin America.
What is happening is that this greed for profits – and I don't think any one of us could deny that
the basic motivation of the capitalist system is profits – this greed for profits is being turned
upon, even more severely, the working class of this country as it is being increasingly denied
abroad. I think that we must see the recent incidence of violence and racist hysteria here in this
city and other cities across the country surrounding the use of busing to desegregate the school
system within the context of what is being– of the defeats that are being inflicted upon the
capitalist system throughout the world.
[00:17:00]
We have got to see the issue of busing as an instrument through which the ultra right in this
country is hoping to gain a mass political base, a base that could very well lay the groundwork
for fascism. You see, all this shouting about the rights of parents to send their kids to any school
they choose cannot hide the fact that the hysteria surrounding these issues was whipped up by an
organization that calls itself, what is it, ROAR? And ROAR apparently is a coalition of the Nazi
Party, the Ku Klux Klan, the John Birch Society. And it enjoys the active support of the most
notorious racist in this country George Wallace.
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�MS113.0014 Transcript
[00:18:04]
Now, oftentimes I think we fail to understand the dynamics of what is going on in that fight
against school desegregation. We fail to see the incredibly profound racism that is at the core, not
so much in the attitudes of those people who are going out and doing all of that dirty business,
but what is being encouraged by the ruling class in this country. Just recently I was reading a
book, re-reading a book by W.E.B. Du Bois, one of the greatest scholars this country has known.
The book was written in 1935. It's called Black Reconstruction. And in one section he was
attempting to understand what all of those lynch mobs were about. And at that time, of course,
lynching was taking place at an extremely rapid pace all over the South; and not only in the
South, but in places like Pennsylvania as well.
He describes the lynch mobs in a very vivid and, I think, a very revealing manner. And I think
we can learn a lesson about what's happening here in this city, and what's happening in
Louisville, from the words of Dr. Du Bois:
"Before the wide eyes of the mob is ever the shape of fear. Back of the writhing, yelling, crueleyed demons who break, destroy, maim and lynch and burn at the stake, is a knot, large or small,
of normal human beings, and these human beings at heart are desperately afraid of something. Of
what? Of many things, but usually of losing their jobs, being declassed, degraded, or actually
disgraced; of losing their hopes, their savings, their plans for their children; of the actual pangs of
hunger, of dirt, of crime. And of all this, most ubiquitous in modern industrial society is that fear
of unemployment. It is its nucleus of ordinary men that continually gives the mob its initial and
awful impetus. Around this nucleus, to be sure, gather snowball-like all manner of flotsam, filth
and human garbage, and every lewdness of alcohol and current fashion. But all this is the
horrible covering of this inner nucleus of fear."
[00:21:33]
And I think that many of those people who have participated in those demonstrations organized
by ROAR truly fit the description that W.E.B. Du Bois has given of those participants in the
lynch mobs of the first part of this century. They are indeed afraid. Many of them are
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unemployed. Many of them don't know where the money is coming to pay the rent at the end of
the month. Many of them go into a supermarket and can't afford to buy food for decent meals to
satisfy their children. And I think that the government of this country and those who wield
economic power in this country understand that, understand that. And therefore, they do
everything within their power, both subtly and in a blatant manner, to encourage these poor
people to explode their frustration in the faces of young black children who have only tried to get
a decent education. They understand that if these white working class people who are victims of
this crisis that we are all experiencing today are brought to a point where they will focus their
frustrations, their discontent against black people, then they'll forget all about the fact that they
really should be struggling against the Rockefellers and against the Hughes, against the
monopolies of this country. They should be fighting for their jobs. They should be fighting not
against black children, but for a decent education for their children and black children alike.
[applause]
[00:23:59]
I don't feel that it is accidental that at this point in the history of this country we are seeing these
outbreaks and explosions in Boston, that we're seeing them in Louisville and in California. In the
state of California, where I'm living at this moment, white people can get together and run out of
town every single black person. This happened in a place called Taft, California, several months
ago. All the black people who lived and studied in that city were run out.
[00:24:45]
It's no accident that you read in the dailies in this country full-page spreads on the Ku Klux Klan
that describe them as if the initials KKK stood for Kindly Knitting Klub, or something like that.
A number of months ago I read an article in the San Francisco Chronicle entitled, "Women's
Liberation in the Ku Klux Klan." [laughter] And that's funny, but at the same time it's very
frightening. Why is it frightening? Because when you see an organization, a racist, reactionary,
fascist organization such as that, legitimized to a certain extent by the mass media, that makes it
much more palatable, not only to those people who should be struggling against racism, but to
potential converts. And in a sense, it's an open invitation to white people to join the Ku Klux
Klan. I'm sure there are many white people who read those articles who say, Well, you know, if
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the Chronicle or if the New York Times can write such a sympathetic account, then they can't be
that bad. So it wouldn't be such a disgrace to associate myself with the Ku Klux Klan.
[00:26:17]
And I think that if you were able to examine the membership list of the KKK, you would
probably discover that it is rapidly increasing, and probably Boston is the place which can claim
the largest membership in the Ku Klux Klan at this moment, this cradle of liberty. This is where
it all began.
I think that white people must be aware of the way in which racism historically, and especially
today, is not only used as an instrument with which to oppress and continue to hold in bondage
millions of people of color in this country, but it's an instrument that's used against the masses of
white people as well. It's an instrument which is used by the ruling circles in this country to
confuse and confound and divide and prevent the understanding on the part of the masses of
white people in this country that their role is to stand side by side with black people and Puerto
Ricans and Chicanos, Asians, Native American Indians, and fight against an enemy which
oppresses all of us.
[00:28:14]
There are many faces in which this fascist pattern is revealing itself today. It's revealing itself in
ways that often aren't perceived by us as such. And I think that it's important to understand that
fascism doesn't usher itself onto the scene with a blare of trumpets. It insinuates itself slowly,
sometimes imperceptibly. It insinuates itself into our lives with the erosions of one democratic
right after another.
[00:29:07]
And let me give you an example of what I'm talking about. How many of you recognize the
name San Quentin Six? Are there any of you present this evening who know what I'm referring
to when I say the San Quentin Six? Have you been following the course of the trial? I don't
know, I haven't been able to read the newspapers in the Boston area. Has the trial been covered?
Well, of course, for those of you who don't know about the San Quentin Six, this is the trial of
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six black and Latino prisoners which stems from the killing, the murder of George Jackson. And
when I say murder, I'm talking about something that will definitely be proved beyond a
reasonable doubt during the course of this trial.
[00:30:20]
The San Quentin Six are charged with a whole string of crimes, clearly, in my opinion, as a
result of the efforts of the California prison authorities to cover up their responsibility for, and
complicity in the murder of George Jackson. The conditions under which this trial is taking place
are absolutely incredible. And so incredible that when you enter that courtroom, you have the
impression of experiencing a nightmare, and you think that this must be Germany in 1933 and
not the United States of America on the verge of celebrating its Bicentennial.
[00:31:22]
Let me try to describe for you what it is like to attend the trial of six black and Latino men who
were supposed to be presumed innocent. And let me point out, too, that this trial is being held in
the very same courtroom in Marin County where I attended many hearings during the time I was
in jail a number of years ago. The courtroom looks a little bit different now though.
[00:31:51]
In order to get into that trial – and it's supposed to be a public trial – you must go through first
one metal detector. And then you walk over to a podium like this and a policeman stands behind
it and you give him your driver's license. He copies your name and your address, and all of the
information. Then you pose for a police photographer who takes your picture, like you're being
booked into the local county jail. After that, you're frisked by hand, and if you happen to have a
natural, like mine for example, a matron, in an extremely degrading manner, attempts to run her
fingers through your hair. Then you go through another metal detector. Now you have to do all
of this just to get into the courtroom!
Once you get into those courtroom, you discover that the courtroom is divided in half by a
bulletproof shield, a bulletproof wall, plexiglass shield. The spectators are on one side; the
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participants in the trial are on the either side – the judge, the jury, the defendants and the lawyers.
Armed guards stand along the walls of the courtroom.
[00:33:24]
And if this were not already enough, when you look at the defendants, at the brothers, you
discover that they are draped in chains – chains around their waist, their wrists chained to their
waist, their feet are shackled to the floor. And if you get a glimpse of them being brought into the
courtroom, they're brought in by San Quentin guards on leashes, neck cuffs, chains attached to
the neck cuffs.
[00:34:00]
How is it possible? How it is possible for any one of those twelve jurors to feel that someone
must already think they're guilty. Someone must think they're violent. Someone must think
they're dangerous. Otherwise all of this paraphernalia wouldn't be necessary. How can they
possibly receive a fair trial under those conditions?
It's a very strange feeling. It's hard to even convey to you what this is all about. The bulletproof
shield is made out of plexiglass, as I pointed out. It's dark and murky, and it's very thick, so it
tends to distort the faces of the people on the other side.
Oh, I'm sorry. Is everyone able to hear me?
[00:35:08]
As I was saying, the plexiglass tends to distort the faces of the people on the other side. And you
sit there and you watch this judge, who incidentally was Ronald Reagan's financial campaign
manager and was appointed by him afterwards. And you see this man, who has done everything
within his power to set the stage for a conviction of the San Quentin Six. You see him screaming
something out at the lawyers and he moves and his face becomes all distorted and grotesque.
And you really feel that this is a nightmare; it can't possibly be happening.
[00:35:50]
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But it is happening. And it's important for all of us to understand what that means for our lives.
It's not only that the rights of six black and Latino men are being violated in a grotesque and
fascist manner. It's that our rights are also being violated. If they can try these people under those
conditions, that means that any one of us might be charged one day and might be tried under
those conditions, and a conviction would be ensured, you see.
It's very important for us to understand the relationship between the attack on the rights of those
people who are suffering most under the repression that has revealed itself all over the country.
And the potential effect it will have on you and your responsibility to get involved in the
struggle, to push it back before it engulfs all of us.
[00:36:59]
I get sometimes very disturbed and very upset when I don't see masses of people fighting back
against the kind of open and blatant manifestation of repression. I get upset because I know that
there was a time when I was behind those walls and when I realized that my conviction would
also be ensured, it would be guaranteed if large numbers of people, black people, white people,
Puerto Ricans, Chicanos, Asians, Indians, working people, students, ministers, women activists,
political activists, if people in general did not respond and fight back, not only because of what
was happening to me, but what might happen to them tomorrow.
[00:38:06]
In the state of North Carolina, which is probably the most repressive state in this country today,
there are scores of political activists behind walls. There are high school students who are in
prison facing 20-year, 40-year terms because they struggled for black studies programs,
struggled to have the birthday of Martin Luther King celebrated on their high school campuses.
I'm not exaggerating, I'm not exaggerating. Reverend Ben Chavis and his nine co-defendants,
eight black men who were high school students in 1971 and a white woman who was an activist
in the women's movement, they are facing terms of from 10 to 34 years as a result of the
struggles they waged against the racist policies of the school system in North Carolina.
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And I hope that many of you have already heard about the case of Reverend Ben Chavis and the
Wilmington Ten. Because you see, if they can imprison a minister, if they can put a minister in
prison for the rest of his life as a result of his efforts to translate his beliefs, his religious beliefs
into practice, then what can they do to those of us who are talking about organizing masses of
people to build a revolutionary movement so that we can usher into being a society that truly will
respond to the needs and reflect the dreams and aspirations, not of a few greedy capitalists, but of
the masses of people in this country.
[00:40:12]
I think that all of us have a responsibility to participate in this struggle to turn back this fascist
monster that's growing and growing every day. We have to fight against the passage of Senate
Bill 1, which is literally a blueprint for fascism, literally. And I would urge all of you to try to
find out about this bill and read what its provisions are – the death penalty for treason; the
imprisonment of people who advocate the overthrow of the government, of the United States of
America; the refusal to permit demonstrations within sight or sound of a courthouse. All kinds of
provisions are included in this Senate bill.
[00:41:33]
We must struggle, I think, to free the woman, the Puerto Rican woman who is not only the
longest held political prisoner, along with her comrades, in this country, but in the entire Western
hemisphere. Lolita Lebrón has been in prison for over 20 years as a result of her determination to
fight the colonial subjugation of her people in Puerto Rico by the United States government. She
has been offered parole many times, but the conditions of that parole are that she not participate
in any activities, nor associate with any people involved in the movement for Puerto Rican
independence.
[00:42:35]
We must struggle to free a young black man in Florida, who has been sentenced to death as a
result of a frame-up rape charge. And I mention this because I think that it's very important for us
to understand that the victory that was won by Sister Joan Little as a result of the widespread
support she received all over this country must also extend to black men who are the victims of
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the same kind of racism that was inflicted on Joan Little when she was raped by a racist jailer.
You see, historically the use of the rape charge has been used in the very same racist manner
against black men as the rape of black women has been interwoven into the history of our people
in this country.
Perhaps you remember the Scottsboro Boys. Perhaps you remember Emmett Till, who was found
at the bottom of the Tallahatchie River because he had been accused of smiling at a white
woman; a 14-year-old black boy from Chicago who went to Mississippi to visit his relatives.
[00:44:14]
There's a man by Delbert Tibbs who was recently sentenced to death in Florida as a result of a
frame-up rape charge in which he was accused by a young white woman of having raped her and
having killed her companion. To just give you an idea of the incredible inconsistencies in that
case which are, in my opinion, proof beyond any doubt that he's innocent, she described her
attacker at first as a dark-skinned man with pock marks on his face. Delbert Tibbs is very lightskinned, he has a very clear complexion. But she took the stand during the trial and said that his
complexion had lightened several shades since the time she had seen him and had been raped by
him. I mean, I could go on and on; he wasn't anywhere near the incident. He was 275 miles away
when it happened. He was traveling through Florida. He's a novelist and he was trying to gather
material for a novel about the South and was hitchhiking and happened to be picked up by the
police. He was an unknown black man and the easiest victim, the easiest scapegoat for that racist
hysteria that was generated as a result of this woman's contentions that she had been raped.
[00:45:52]
I don't want to spend very much more time speaking because I know that many of you
undoubtedly have questions that you'd like to ask and it's getting late. So let me conclude with
first a poem and then a quotation from a great figure of black history in this country. The poem
was written by Brother Delbert Tibbs, recently, as he sits on death row in Florida. And it's called
"A Poem."
[00:46:44]
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I need a poem, I need a poem, a master poem.
Once and for all I need a poem to destroy poetry and break these iron bars.
A poem to make stars weep, need a poem, a poem
for troubling the sleep of the chained,
Some words and strikes of magic to be heard through all the world.
[00:47:24]
I hope there are those of you who will leave this evening determined that we, the people of this
country, united and strong, can truly become those strikes of magic that Brother Tibbs is seeking.
If we are truly, honestly, sincerely interested in defending our rights and our liberties, our lives,
and the lives of those who at this point in the history of this country are suffering for all of us,
those who are doing all of the suffering – the Delbert Tibbs, the Wilmington Ten, the San
Quentin Six, the Lolita Lebróns – then we must recognize that we must struggle.
[00:48:23]
As Frederick Douglass said in 1857, "If there is no struggle, there is no progress. Those who
profess to favor freedom and yet deprecate agitation want crops without plowing up the ground.
They want rain without thunder and lightning. They want the ocean without the awful roar of its
many waters. Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and it never will. Find out
just what any people will quietly submit to. Find out just what any people will quietly submit to
and you will have found the exact measure of injustice and wrong which will be imposed upon
them, and these will until they are resisted with either words or blows or with both."
Thank you. [applause]
EMMANUEL GILBERT: Thank you very much, Miss Davis. And now, we will enter the
second portion of our program, the questions from the floor. For the benefit of those of you who
are here for the first time, may I ask that you raise your hand if you have a question and I will
acknowledge them. I'll try and go around the room and give some kind of a distribution to the
questioners. And then, direct your question, please, to me. I will repeat them so it can be picked
up by the radio microphone, and then Miss Davis will answer the questions.
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Let's start on this side of the room first. Yes, sir? Will you please stand? No, the gentleman in the
back there, would you please stand?
AUDIENCE QUESTION: Miss Davis, if the actions of ROAR in Boston are simply
manifestations, as you claim, of the ruling circles of the United States, how then would you
explain the determined effort of the government at the city, state and federal level through their
police power to ensure the safety of schoolchildren in Boston?
[00:51:08]
EMMANUEL GILBERT: The gentleman asked if you would attempt to explain the combined
efforts of city and state marshals to ensure the safety of the children and the desegregation
problem if, as you claim, the actions of ROAR are behind it all and not particularly meaningful.
[00:51:31]
ANGELA DAVIS: I remember an incident which took place last year having to do with the
President of the United States of America. At the time that the school desegregation was ordered,
there were appeals that were directly made to Mr. Ford to immediately send federal troops to
guarantee the safety of the schoolchildren who would be attending the newly desegregated
schools. At that time, Mr. Ford made a statement on national television before millions of people
in this country. He made a statement to the effect that he disagreed with the court decision. Do
you remember that? He said he disagreed with the decision, the order with respect to
desegregation. And so what if he disagreed with it? Anyone who has read a civics book, even a
fourth grade student knows that the way in which the government in this country is supposed to
function has to do with the division powers, and that the executive has no right to overrule
decisions of the judiciary, but, rather, is supposed to execute those decisions.
[00:53:11]
Now, not only did he not order that troops, federal troops be brought in– and see, I think that
could have headed off the whole thing before it even exploded, you see. But by making the
statement that he disagreed with the court decision, he was saying "right on" to all of those
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reactionary and racist forces that tried to whip up this hysteria in Boston. And I think that
President Ford's statement, more than anything else in this country, is what was responsible for
all of that racist violence here in Boston. [applause]
[00:53:58]
AUDIENCE QUESTION: Miss Davis, I'm confused about what you're talking about, the main
issues here tonight. You came here to talk about racism and oppression. Along in your speaking
several times you linked capitalism with fascism. Now I'm a student, and I seek truth, and I seek
knowledge. I've always been caught and I've always learned through my own experiences–
EMMANUEL GILBERT: What is the question, please? [laughter]
AUDIENCE QUESTION: How is capitalism, which is known as a free market, free economy,
means individual rights, i.e.; and fascism, which is known under the facade of individual
freedom but is controlled by one controlling factor – take one instance, Italy–
EMMANUEL GILBERT: Will you please ask the question?
AUDIENCE QUESTION: yes. I'm confused as to how you link capitalism and fascism
together. It seems to be a contradiction in terms.
EMMANUEL GILBERT: The gentleman asked how you link capitalism and fascism together
in your talk.
[00:54:53]
ANGELA DAVIS: Maybe next week he would like to come and deliver a lecture here.
[laughter] But let me seriously try to respond to that question. First of all, I think that it's very
clear that capitalism is not an economy-based freedom or liberty. Are you listening to me? You
don't appear to want to even hear the answer.
AUDIENCE QUESTION: [inaudible] because all throughout the history of man, capitalism–
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ANGELA DAVIS: All right, he says that I've already turned him off. I am trying to explain to
you.
EMMANUEL GILBERT: You've had your question. Now let her answer.
[00:55:43]
ANGELA DAVIS: First of all, capitalism may indeed be a system which allows certain people
certain liberties and certain freedoms. But I think that unfortunately those people constitute the
very smallest minority in this country. They constitute the Rockefellers, the Duponts, the
Hughes, the corporations. I could name them probably if had about five minutes, less than that, I
could name all of those corporations that control the vast majority of the wealth in this country.
[00:56:20]
Now, what does it mean in general for working people? They say that working people are free.
That's true, they're free to get a job and make some money. But what actually happens? What are
the inner dynamics of exploitation? See, because when you talk about capitalism as an
exploitative system, that is not, in my opinion, a moral judgment about capitalism, it's a
descriptive term. And it's very interesting how, with the development historically of capitalism,
the whole character of the labor of working people underwent a transformation. If you are a
worker and you go and work on the assembly line at an auto plant, for example, you aren't paid
for the work that you do. You aren't paid for the work that you do. You aren't paid for building
those cars. You are paid for your ability to work. You're paid for your labor power. And those of
you who have studied Marx Das Kapital will understand that distinction.
[00:57:41]
You're paid by the capitalist so that you will be able to come back and work the next day. How is
it that all of these thousands, billions and billions of dollars of profit would come about if it
didn't have something to do– I mean, Rockefeller, with all of the money that he has, has he ever
done an honest day's work in his life? He sits in a– who does all of that work? It has to be
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coming from somewhere. And working people simply are not compensated for what they
produce. Working people are paid just enough to survive.
[00:58:24]
Marx makes that very clear when he says that instead of being paid for their labor, instead of
being paid for what they produce, they are paid for their labor power, their ability to work. And
that means that the capitalist owes the worker – and these are written in to the dynamics of
capitalism – only enough in order for that worker and his or her family to survive.
[00:58:51]
Now, going on to the question – and I'm not going to speak very much longer – the question of
the relationship of fascism and capitalism. You see, I think that fascism is a reaction, a response
of a capitalist ruling class. When the drive for profit becomes so severe that the rights of people,
not only in terms of their economic rights, must be severely violated, but they must be prevented
from struggling, prevented from organizing for movements for their freedom.
And if you look at what's happening across the globe, capitalism is being rejected more and more
and more by ever-greater masses of people in this world. First of all, you have to consider that
one-third of the people, one-third of the people who inhabit this globe live and are building
socialist societies. That's one third; I mean, that's one-third of all the people in the world. And
then if you look at Africa, if you look at Asia, if you look at Latin America, you discover that
those countries that have received, and fought for, achieved their independence recently have
understood there's no way in the world that they're going to be able to respond to the needs of the
people of their country if they continue to adhere to the imperialism, if they continue to be a part
of the imperialist order, if they continue to try to talk about building capitalism. They understand
that capitalism is exploitative inherently. And it only is able to function in the interest of a very
small minority of people.
[01:01:00]
What did the people of Guinea Bissau do when they proclaimed their independence? They said
they were going to build a socialist society. What were the people of Vietnam fighting about?
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They were fighting about their right to build socialism. What was the struggle in Chile all about?
And why did not only the fascists inside Chile respond so violently and with the bloodiest coup
of this recent period? Why did people like Kissinger join them? Why did ITT join them? Why
did the Pentagon join them? Because they understood, first of all, those people who voted to
enter upon a socialist revolutionary process understood what they wanted. They said, for
example, We don't believe that Kennecott Copper and Anaconda Copper have the right to come
here and force us to slave in these mines and then take the profits that we make for them and put
it in their pockets 3000 miles away. They said that they felt they had the right to utilize the
products of their labor, the resources of their land in order to satisfy their needs to build schools,
to build housing, to have free medical care. I mean, those kinds of basic things.
[01:02:28]
Capitalism can't do it because it's not profitable. It's not profitable to have free childcare centers.
Nobody makes any money off of free childcare centers. That's why you don't see this society
responding to the needs of its people. It's not profitable to have free healthcare for everyone. It's
not profitable to have free education.
One more point. And that point is that at a time when it becomes increasingly difficult for
capitalism to function smoothly as a system, to function while putatively respecting the
democratic rights of the citizens of the country in question, at this particular point in the history
of capitalism, it is not possible. Because working people are more and more conscious; black
people, people of color are more and more conscious of the need to struggle for liberation. And
then the response, the desperate response becomes a fascist response. And that is the fascist
kernel that I think exists in this country today in which we must struggle against if we do not
want it to grow like a cancer and mushroom into a full-blown capitalist system.
EMMANUEL GILBERT: I would suggest to the audience that they attempt to confuse our
speaker by keeping their questions clear, curt and concise. She will no doubt retaliate by making
her responses tight and terse and taut. [laughter] Okay, from the center of the room. Yes, miss.
[01:04:25]
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AUDIENCE QUESTION: You speak as if there is a conspiracy, a definite, constructed
conspiracy, which is bad. This consists of the fractious racists. How does your position differ
from the claims made on the left that there is a conspiracy? What proof do you have that there is
a real conspiracy any more so than the ones on the left say there is a communist conspiracy?
EMMANUEL GILBERT: The questioner makes the point that the left or the right, they both
contend they're a conspiracy. How do you document your claims?
[01:05:03]
ANGELA DAVIS: Well, let me ask you something. Did you by any chance see the Watergate
hearings? [laughter/applause] Have you by any chance been following the Senate select hearings
on the intelligence community? Have you by any chance heard that not too long ago there was a
test in the subways of New York City to determine just how swiftly and effectively it would be
possible to saturate the subway system of New York City with poison gas? Yeah, didn't you all–
you mean that in this cradle of liberty the newspaper didn't report that this was one of the results
of one of the hearings that took place? Well, I don't think I have to go any further. I could give
you many, many, many, many more examples of that conspiracy. But I don't think I need to go
any further. Do I?
AUDIENCE MEMBER: No!
EMMANUEL GILBERT: Miss Davis, can I usurp a questioner's prerogative and ask, if this is
proof, if this capitalist press, which obviously must be suspect, reports it, what proof is that of
any fact? [laughter/applause]
[01:06:37]
ANGELA DAVIS: Well, I'm not sure whether that's meant to be a philosophical question as to
how we go about obtaining our knowledge about reality. But I think that we can be sure that
what we have learned so far is probably not the truth, in the sense that it's just the tip of an
iceberg. I think we can be sure that the problems with having to rely on the capitalist press have
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22
�MS113.0014 Transcript
to do with their covering up many of the things that we need to know in order to really
understand what is happening in this country. And they've tried to cover it up.
[01:07:34]
I can remember, a number of years ago, we used to say there was a conspiracy against the Black
Panther Party because we thought that we could see the evidence in those attacks that took place
in city after city after city, places where Mark Clark and Fred Hampton were murdered as they
lay sleeping in their beds and a situation was created so that it would appear as if they had been
the ones to do the shooting and the police had been defending themselves. And we said that was
a conspiracy because the facts pointed to that. It's only now, of course, a number of years later
that, as a result of an investigation, it has come out that there was indeed a conspiracy that was
led by J. Edgar Hoover and that involved police departments all over this country to destroy the
Black Panther Party. [applause]
AUDIENCE QUESTION: I've noticed a movement from Boston and they go by the name of
Tactical Police [Force]. I asked somebody what they were about and someone told me they were
here to help desegregate the schools. Now, that answer didn't make too much sense to me. I'd
like to know what you think about that.
EMMANUEL GILBERT: The Tactical Police allege that they're here to help the youngsters
get to school, to desegregate the schools. That answer didn't make much sense. She asked you to
comment on that aspect.
[01:08:57]
ANGELA DAVIS: Well, you see, I mentioned, I think, during the course of my remarks that
there were many, many more examples of what I called an increasingly fascist pattern in this
country. And one of them is the proliferation of special counterinsurgency forces and police
departments all across the country. The tactical police incidentally in police departments
throughout the country have been trained by the FBI. In California, there was recently – and we
read this in the bourgeois press – that the FBI came out and trained special sectors of the police
departments of Los Angeles, San Francisco, and a lot of small towns in the Bay Area.
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�MS113.0014 Transcript
[01:09:54]
The special weapons and tactical squad– you all probably see that TV program that's called
SWAT. You know, most of you've seen that, haven't you? Well, see, I was incidentally
personally present at the debut of SWAT in Los Angeles. Do you know when that took place,
when they first were utilized by the police department? To attack the Black Panther Party. They
maintain that they had a warrant to deliver to a member of the Black Panther Party and they
came to deliver this warrant with the force of 600 policemen, led by the SWAT squad. They had
a helicopter. They had dynamite. They had machine guns. They had bulletproof vests. This was
in order to deliver a warrant. And they proceeded to destroy the offices and to wound –
fortunately no one was killed – many of the people who were inside.
AUDIENCE QUESTION: I don't think it's necessary to defend the need for revolution. The
question is, when's the next time you're going to be in Boston and be in Roxbury where you don't
have to defend revolution and you don't have to have questions asked about the need. [applause]
EMMANUEL GILBERT: The gentleman asks, when are you going to be in Boston next and
in Roxbury with a less hostile audience?
[01:11:40]
ANGELA DAVIS: I think the point that the brother makes is very important. Because black
people and people of color in this country know that something has to be done. They know that
we can't live this way very much longer. When you walk in the streets of Harlem on a
Wednesday afternoon and you see the streets just as crowded as they would be on a Sunday
afternoon because all of those people are not able to get work, you know that something has to
change. And when you've experienced hundreds of years of racism in this country, and when you
know that the only way we've survived, the only way we've made it to where we are now is
through struggle. Like Frederick Douglass said in 1837, that's the only way we've been able to
make it this far.
[01:12:39]
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�MS113.0014 Transcript
I think though, to further answer, I'm probably going to be in Boston some time soon. This is the
first trip I've made in about a year, but I probably will be back. And you can be sure that I will
visit with my sisters and brothers in Roxbury. I think it's important for white people in this
country to understand that if they stand idly by while black people, people of color are maimed
and murdered and subjugated to death, then it's going to happen to them as well. [applause]
Let me remind you of that statement that was made by that Protestant theologian who emerged
after the defeat of fascism, what did he say? He said, "First they came for the communists, but I
wasn't a communist, so I did nothing. And then they came for the Jews, but I wasn't a Jew, so I
did nothing. Then they came for the trade unionists, but I wasn't a trade unionist, so I did
nothing." He went all the way down the line and he said, "And finally they came for me. And
when I looked around, there was nobody left to help." [applause]
AUDIENCE QUESTION: In connection with your feeling that fascism has insidious ways of
insinuating itself among us, I wonder if you could comment on the increasing romanticism of
organized crime, particularly among the middle class.
EMMANUEL GILBERT: Could you comment on the increased popularity or fascination held
by organized crime, particularly among the middle class?
ANGELA DAVIS: I think that such movies as The Godfather are probably descriptive not only
of organized crime, but of the ruling class in this country. I mean, crime has always been a part
of the ruling class.
[01:15:07]
Let me just give you an example. All of these illegal contributions that were made by these
corporations, wasn't that crime? Not only crime in the sense of making illegal contributions and
thus buying the presidency, but crime in the sense of an attack on the democratic rights and
liberties of all the people in this country. Richard Nixon wasn't elected by a mandate. His
presidency was bought for him.
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�MS113.0014 Transcript
[01:15:49]
And then what happens? It's important to continue down the line and ask yourself what happens
to these criminals, these ruling class criminals. Do they go to prison? I've been in three jails and I
never saw a person who wasn't poor, regardless of what color they were. Those ruling class
criminals who do end up going to jail, well, they go to these country club prisons like
Allenwood, where they can play golf and play tennis and ride horses.
But you see, it's the class question, that's the point. It's the class question, and working class
people are the ones who are the victims, always.
AUDIENCE QUESTION: Would you care to comment on a new system that seems to be
evolving, where the worker would own, participate in the direct management of a corporation or
a company, would take over the assets of a company and would therefore avoid changing the
bureaucracy in a fascist democracy for the bureaucracy that has existed in a communist state. It
would be like going from somebody who, quote, knew what was good for us in a democracy to
somebody in communism. Would you please comment on the direct ownership of assets by the
individuals employed by a firm.
EMMANUEL GILBERT: The question has to do with the emerging partner of direct
ownership of the assets of a corporation by the workers. Would you comment on what this
trend's implications happen to be?
[01:17:47]
ANGELA DAVIS: I'm not sure whether I understood the other part of the question. And I don't
know whether or not you're posing that as an alternative to socialism. But first of all, I think that
it is important for working people to fight for gains in all areas, on all levels. It's important for
black people, people of color to struggle around all of the manifestations of racism and to
attempt to win victories, knowing of course, realizing that the victories that we win today will be
significant in the last analysis only to the extent that they assist us in moving toward a final
victory which, in my opinion, must be a revolutionary victory, which must mean the overturning
of the capitalist system in this country.
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�MS113.0014 Transcript
[01:18:40]
And there is a pattern to demand worker participation. And that's important, although it's not the
solution, of course. Because as long as the economy is controlled by monopolies, by the
corporations, they're never going to fully respond to the needs and the interests of the people who
create the wealth.
EMMANUEL GILBERT: We have questions from the balcony. The young lady right in the
center.
AUDIENCE QUESTION: Would you please comment on the Patty Hearst? Do you make any
sense of it at all?
EMMANUEL GILBERT: The lady wants you to comment on the Patty Hearst case, and
plaintively adds, do you make any sense of it at all?
[01:19:30]
ANGELA DAVIS: Well, I'm just as confused as you are, frankly. One thing though that I
would like to comment about, if the newspapers in this country had spent half the space that they
spent on the Patty Hearst case talking about the San Quentin Six, or Delbert Tibbs, or Lolita
Lebrón, or the Wilmington Ten, then I think we would have been getting information that we
need.
It seems to me that there is an attempt on the part of the press to divert our attention from the real
struggles that need to be waged and won. See, she really doesn't have to worry that much, I don't
think. She has the whole Hearst empire behind her! [applause] What about these poor people
who don't even have the money to be able to hire a lawyer? And who find themselves in a
situation where they end up with a court-appointed, a public attorney or a public defender who's
in collusion with the judge.
[01:20:59]
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�MS113.0014 Transcript
And this is something that happens over and over and over again. When I was in jail, when I was
in jail, I met a woman who lived next door to me in the cell, in the cell next door to me. She had
been there 18 months. She'd been there 18 months on a murder charge, and she was totally
innocent. They discovered, as a result of a confession by the person who actually committed the
crime that she had nothing to do with it. And they told her that they weren't going to release her
because they were afraid that she might sue them for false arrest.
[01:21:44]
So what they did was try to make a deal with her. If she pled guilty to a lesser crime, attempted
manslaughter, they would release her with time served. But because she refused to plead guilty,
she was still in jail when I was extradited, waiting to go through a trial with a lawyer who was
appointed by the court. And I never found out what happened to her.
But this is the fate of so many thousands of poor people in this country. This is what we have to
be concerned about.
AUDIENCE QUESTION: For those of us who agree with your position, could you give us a
few more concrete ways so that we can start as individuals, tomorrow or this week.
Unfortunately, we're not organizing masses and I think we need more direction as individuals.
EMMANUEL GILBERT: It's a request for tips on what to do if they believe in your position.
[laughter]
[01:23:04]
ANGELA DAVIS: Well, no, I think that this is– I'm sorry, I'm talking about something that I'm
very serious about. Because it's a question of saving the lives of human beings. It's a question of
preventing, trying to prevent some of the violence and dehumanization that's inflicted on so
many people in this country. And I didn't come here just to throw out some ideas and have some
debates and arguments. I came here because I wanted to try to let you know what I feel is going
on. And those of you who feel inspired or motivated to get involved in the struggle, we welcome
you.
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�MS113.0014 Transcript
[01:23:51]
As I mentioned before, I am one of the co-chair people of the National Alliance Against Racist
and Political Repression. That's a national organization which we built on the foundation of the
campaign which struggled and won my freedom. I felt very concerned when I was freed, that all
of those people who came out and demonstrated and attended meetings and signed petitions and
wore buttons and bought posters for me, that those people would understand that their mission
wasn't yet accomplished. I was only one out of many, many thousands of victims of injustice in
prison in this country. And we felt the struggle had to continue.
[01:24:42]
And so, we have built a united front movement that consists of people from communists such as
myself, to people like Ron Dellums and John Conyers, who are congress people in Washington,
affiliated with the Democratic Party. It consists of ministers and other political activists, Puerto
Ricans, Chicanos, Asians, Native American Indians, white people. There is a chapter, for the
sister who asked the question in the balcony, here in Boston. And we were told that it was not
possible to distribute literature about the work of the Alliance here in the hall. But I think that
there will be some people on the outside. So if you really want to know what you can do– are
there petitions? There are petitions, for example, that some of the sisters and brothers from the
local chapter of the Alliance– incidentally, there are chapters of the Alliance in over 20, about 21
states in the country now. There are petitions for the Wilmington Ten, for the San Quentin Six.
And I think there's material on many– because I've only spoken about a very minute fraction of
the work that we're involved in.
[01:26:17]
I also want you to know that the honorarium that is being given to me for this meeting will be
used by the Alliance to print literature about the cases, to organize meetings. And we are
incidentally, for any of you who are interested in coming, having a national conference in
Pittsburgh from November 14th through 16th, the weekend of November 14th and 16th. It's going
to be at the University of Pittsburgh. I'd like to invite all of you to attend. I think there may be
some literature on the conference outside as well.
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�MS113.0014 Transcript
EMMANUEL GILBERT: Miss Davis, if there is a competing group, lest they claim equal
time in return for that plug, we'll have time for one more question. Who has the most important
question? This young lady had her hand up a long time; please.
AUDIENCE QUESTION: Mine's the most important though! [laughter]
EMMANUEL GILBERT: All right, we'll make it two questions. First the young lady, then
you'll have the second one, and that will be it.
AUDIENCE QUESTION: Which nation today, if any, is nearest to your political and social
ideal, if it exists. And if so, which country and why?
EMMANUEL GILBERT: Which nation today is closest to your beliefs politically and
socially?
[01:27:47]
ANGELA DAVIS: Well, I think that my remarks made it clear that I am a communist.
Although this evening I came to speak not on behalf of the Communist Party, but on behalf of a
united front campaign, an organization that consists of people who have all kinds of political
differences. But you see, the one thing that we have decided is that repression and racism are
things that affect all of us, regardless of how we feel about the revolution, whether we feel there
should be one, or what kind. And so, we have decided that we put our differences in the closet
for the purpose of building that unity in order to struggle against the things that affect us all.
[01:28:45]
But at the same time, I can point out that I am a communist and I support and feel aligned with
the socialist community of nations. I feel that socialism is something that, of course, is and must
be based on certain fundamental premises; namely, the transformation of the economy by placing
the means of production in the hands of the people by taking them from the hands of the
capitalist minority and placing them in the hands of the people.
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�MS113.0014 Transcript
Now, of course, in terms of the actual society that is built in all of its ramifications, that is going
to have to take place on the basis of the history of that country, the traditions of that country, the
culture of that country. And socialism has many faces in terms of what the masses of people do
in their daily lives, their culture, their traditions, their history. There is socialism in Cuba. And of
course, the history of the Cuban people is different from the history of the peoples of the Soviet
Union. And within the Soviet Union, the people of Uzbekistan, for example, who are Asian, have
a different culture and different traditions and different history than the Russians do. So there are
differences that exist from Russia, to Georgia, to Armenia, to Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and so
forth.
[01:30:35]
When we build socialism in this country, we are going to have to build socialism on the basis of
the best of the traditions and culture and history of working people in this country – black,
brown, red, yellow and white. [applause]
EMMANUEL GILBERT: And now the gentleman with the ultimate question.
AUDIENCE QUESTION: I want to just raise the name of a young man who was very renown
in athletic circles. His name is Rommie Loudd. Rommie Loudd is well known in this area. He
gave a large part of his life to an organization in this area. Went to Florida and organized a blackowned ball franchise, football. And the effrontery of an uppity black man to do this apparently
has led to– that is his analysis of what has happened to him. He is in jail in Florida now.
[01:31:34]
Now, the question I have is– and also I might mention that the Boston Globe reported recently
that there is a fund on his behalf to which people in this room and people who hear my voice all
over New England can send resources. But my question is–
EMMANUEL GILBERT: Ah, yes, I was curious. [laughter]
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�MS113.0014 Transcript
AUDIENCE QUESTION: My question is, number one, has his case come to the attention of
your organization? And if not, would your organization be willing to add his name to the list of
those about whom you're concerned. Thank you so much.
EMMANUEL GILBERT: I don't think I'll repeat that. I think you heard it as clearly as I.
Would you address yourself to it?
[01:32:16]
ANGELA DAVIS: Let me answer by saying that if the case has emerged, I'm certain that the
Florida Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression knows about it and is probably
contributing energies and talents and time to the struggle to free him. Florida is a place that is, at
this point, I think, quite well known for injustices towards black people. Two black men who
were recently released, Pitts and Lee – perhaps you've read about that – spent about 12 years of
their lives, many of them on death row, as a result of a racist conviction that took place when
someone else confessed to the crime; it was a question of a murder. Nine years ago, someone
confessed that he had committed this murder for which Pitts and Lee were convicted. Yet, it has
taken nine long years to have them pardoned by the governor of Florida.
[01:33:34]
There are cases like this all over the country, many right here in Boston. As Malcolm once said,
there is Down South, but there's also Up South and Out South, too. And I think Boston has
demonstrated better than any other place in this country that racism is not confined to a
geographical area. If we don't all begin to concretely contribute something, something, a little
time, a little energy, a little creativity to the campaign, to put an end to this racism, then we can
be sure that there won't be any question about talking about our futures and the futures of our
children and our grandchildren.
Let me thank you, since this is the last question.
AUDIENCE QUESTION: Before you go, can I just ask one question? It's not even a question.
It's a criticism towards you.
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�MS113.0014 Transcript
EMMANUEL GILBERT: No, no, no.
AUDIENCE QUESTION: Are you going to listen or are you going to let me run your show?
EMMANUEL GILBERT: No, I'm not going to listen. [simultaneous conversation] I'm sorry.
You can ask her afterward.
ANGELA DAVIS: I'm sorry, I don't understand the criticism that you have.
AUDIENCE QUESTION: Okay, one is that you're here and you're in this place. When you
first came on, you said you thank him for letting him use your auditorium. You come to the
ghetto where you belong and we give you an auditorium to speak from. The people there need
you. They don't need you. [simultaneous conversation]
ANGELA DAVIS: Brother, brother that's where–
AUDIENCE QUESTION: Down with support rule. The businessman, what you got sitting
here–
[01:35:21]
ANGELA DAVIS: Excuse me, nobody said– I'm on my way right now to a meeting where
we're going to talk about what black people and other progressive forces in this city can do to
continue to fight against this racism. But I happen to think– see, I think that it's a tactic of the
ruling class to try to make white people and black people as well feel that white people are
supposed to be racist, you know that it's inherent, that it's something that can't be changed. That's
why I read earlier that quote from Dr. Du Bois who said that people who become the unwilling
victims, the pawns, the agents of racism are doing nothing more than hurting themselves.
[01:36:16]
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33
�MS113.0014 Transcript
And see, I think that white people are going to have to pay an ever-increasing and militant role in
the struggle against racism. Maybe as a result of this meeting. Maybe as a result of this meeting
there will be some white people in this audience who will be courageous enough to go and try to
deal with some of those raw people and try to convey to other white people that they are only
hurting themselves by aligning themselves with the racist and reactionary forces in this country.
All of us need to get together and unite! [applause]
EMMANUEL GILBERT: Thank you very much.
[01:37:05]
ANGELA DAVIS: Thank you.
EMMANUEL GILBERT: Thank you very much. The meeting is adjourned.
FRANK FITZMORRIS: Tonight's Ford Hall Forum speaker has been activist and author
Angela Davis. Next week, the Forum's guest will be Jimmy Breslin, the former Boston Globe
and New York Herald Tribune columnist, now an award-winning syndicated columnist and TV
commentator. His topic will be the illusion of power. That's Jimmy Breslin, next time on the
Ford Hall Forum.
This program has come to you from Boston through the facilities of WGBH radio. Technical
supervision was by John Moran.
This is Frank Fitzmorris speaking. And this is the Eastern Public Radio Network.
END OF RECORDING
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34
�
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Ford Hall Forum Collection, 1910-2013 (MS113)
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MS113.0014
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Angela Davis speech, "Organized Struggle Against Racial and Political Repression" at the Ford Hall Forum [transcript]
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10 May 1975
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Ford Hall Forum
Davis, Angela, 1944-
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African Americans -- Civil rights
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Black history
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Ford Hall Forum
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Text
Ford Hall Forum: Transcript of MLK Forum
Moakley Archive and Institute
www.suffolk.edu/moakley
Title: Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s 1963 speech, "The Future of Desegregation,"
delivered at the Ford Hall Forum.
Recording Date: March 24, 1963
Speakers: Martin Luther King, Jr.
Item Information: Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s 1963 speech at the Ford Hall Forum,
"The Future of Desegregation," at the Ford Hall Forum. Ford Hall Forum Collection, 1908-2013
(MS113.3.1, item 0008) Moakley Archive, Suffolk University, Boston, MA.
Digital Versions: audio recording and transcript available at http://moakleyarchive.omeka.net
Copyright Information: Copyright © 1963 Ford Hall Forum.
Recording Summary:
Three weeks before he was jailed for leading peaceful protesters in Birmingham, Alabama, Dr.
King addressed the Ford Hall Forum in Boston on March 24 1963. His address, "The Future of
Desegregation," coincided with the centennial of the Emancipation Proclamation. Dr. King
called for renewed Federal efforts at desegregation, while noting that "the law cannot change the
heart, but it can restrain the heartless." The forum was rebroadcast as part of the New American
Gazette program and includes an introduction by Barbara Jordan.
�MS113.0008 Transcript
Transcript Begins
ANNOUCER: From Boston, the Ford Hall Forum presents the New American Gazette with
your host Barbara Jordan.
BARBARA JORDAN: This week the New American Gazette honors the birthday of Reverend
Martin Luther King with a rebroadcast of Dr. King’s address to the Ford Hall Forum in Boston
on March 24, 1963. Dr. King’s topic that day, “Desegregation and the Future,” reminds us of the
segregated world of 1963. It was a world in which blacks and whites couldn’t site at the same
lunch counters, use the same facilities, or ride side-by side in the front of the bus. 1963 was a
time that Dr. King called the “Border of the Promised Land of Desegregation.” On the centennial
of the Emancipation Proclamation, Dr. King called for a second Emancipation Proclamation to
end discrimination in housing and employment. Three weeks following this address, Dr. King
would be jailed in Birmingham, Alabama for leading a march protesting city-wide segregation in
stores and restaurants. Other peaceful Birmingham protesters met with police attack dogs and
firehoses which the nation witnessed on national television. Preaching reconciliation as the
highest goal of non-violence and a Christian love ethic, Dr. King’s message of non-violence was
repeated three months later in his most famous address on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.
Following the March on Washington, President Kennedy delivered a civil rights bill to Congress
outlawing segregation in all interstate public buildings, taking steps to initiate school integration,
and continuing a provision ensuring the right to vote. One year later in 1964, President Lyndon
Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act. Reminding the Ford Hall Forum audience that segregation
is a form of slavery, Dr. King conducts a broad sweep of race relations through these periods of
American history, then sets an agenda for social and economic justice for legislators, civil rights
leaders, and all Americans to undertake. How close have we come to eliminate the social,
economic, and employment injustices that Dr. King vividly brought to mind? Recalling Martin
Luther King’s vision of desegregation and the future, it’s time to ask, what has become of that
vision of justice and equality?
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REV. DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.: As we look over the broad sweep of race
relations in the United States, we notice three distinct periods. The second period represents
growth and progress over the first period and the third period represents growth and
progress over the second period. And it is interesting to notice that, in each period, there
finally came a decision from the Supreme Court of our nation to give legal and
constitutional validity for the dominant thought patterns of that particular period.
The first period was an era of slavery. This period had its beginning in 1690 when the first
Negro slaves landed on the shores of this nation. And it extended through 1862 when
Abraham Lincoln signed the immortal document known as the Emancipation Proclamation.
And throughout the period of slavery, the Negro was treated in a very inhuman fashion. He
was a thing to be used, not a person to be respected. He was merely a depersonalized cog in
a vast plantation machine. And finally in 1857, toward the end of that period, the supreme
court of the nation rendered a decision known as the Dred Scott decision which gave legal
and constitution validity to the whole system of slavery. This decision said, in substance, that
the Negro is not a citizen of the United States. He is merely property subject to the dictates
of his owner. It went on to say that the Negro has no rights that the white man is bound to
respect.
The second period had its beginning in 1863 and extended to 1954. We may refer to this as
the period of restricted emancipation. Now, in a real sense, it was an improvement over the
first period because it at least freed the Negro from the bondage of physical slavery. But it
was not at all the best period because it did not accept the Negro as a person. And, therefore,
it was very easy for the ethos of segregation to emerge as the dominate practice and theory
of this particular period. And in 1896, the Supreme Court of the United States rendered a
decision known as the Plessy v. Ferguson decision, which established the doctrine of
"separate but equal" as the law of the land. And it was this decision that gave legal and
constitutional validity to the dominant thought patterns of the second period in race relations.
But we all know what happened as a result of this period. There was always a strict
enforcement of the separate, without the slightest intention to abide by the equal. The Negro
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ended up being plunged into the abyss of exploitation where he experienced the bleakness of
nagging injustice. So something had to happen to bring about another period.
Things began to happen in the nation and in the world. And the rolling tide of world opinion
had its influence. The industrialization of the South and the concomitant urbanization had its
influence. And then something happened to the Negro. Living with slavery for many years,
many Negroes came to feel that perhaps they were inferior and perhaps they were less than
human. But then something happened to cause the Negro to reevaluate himself.
Circumstances made it possible and necessary for him to travel more—the coming of the
automobile, the upheavals of two World Wars, the Great Depression. And so his rural
plantations background gradually gave way to urban industrial life. And even his economic
life was rising through the growth of industry, the development of organized labor, expanded
educational opportunities. And even his cultural life was gradually rising through the steady
decline of crippling illiteracy. All of these forces conjoined to cause the Negro to take a new
look at himself. Negro masses all over began to reevaluate themselves. And the Negro came
to feel that he was somebody. His religion revealed to him that God loves all of his children
and that all men are made in his image; that the basic thing about a man is not his specificity,
but his fundamentum, not the texture of his hair, or the color of his skin, but his eternal
dignity and worth. And so with this a new Negro came into being with a new sense of
dignity and a new sense of self respect, and a new determination to struggle, to sacrifice in
order to be free. And with all these forces working together we saw the second period
gradually pass away.
And so today we see emerging the third period in race relations. We may refer to this as the
period of Constructive Desegregation. It had its beginning in 1954, on May 1st when the
Supreme Court rendered a decision which gave legal and constitutional validity to the
dominant thought patterns of this particular period. That decision said, in substance, that the
old Plessy doctrine must go, that separate facilities are inherently unequal, that to segregate a
child on the basis of his race is to deny that child equal protection of the law. As a result of
this decision, we have seen many developments, and we have seen many changes. To put it
figuratively in Biblical language, we have broken loose from the Egypt of slavery and we
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have moved through the wilderness of segregation, and now we stand on the border of the
promised land of desegregation. And this is where we are at this particular moment in the
period of desegregation: seeking to move ahead finally toward a truly integrated society.
The great challenge facing America at this hour is to work passionately and unrelentingly to
bring the ideals and principles of this third period into full realization. Certainly we don't
have long to do it. And I know there are those people who are constantly saying to those in
the civil rights struggle "Slow up for a while. You're pushing things too fast. Cool off." They
are saying "adopt a policy of moderation." Well, if moderation means moving on towards
the goal of justice with wise restraint and calm reasonableness, then moderation is a great
virtue which all men of good will must seek to achieve during this tense period of transition.
But if moderation means slowing up in the move for freedom and capitulating to the
undemocratic practices of the guardians of a deadening status quo, then moderation is a
tragic vice, which all men of good will must condemn. We can't afford to slow up. We have
our self-respect to maintain, but more than that, we love democracy too much, and we love
the American way of life too much, to slow up.
As you know there are approximately 3 billion people living in our world and the vast
majority of these people live in Asia and in Africa. For years they were dominated
politically, exploited economically, segregated and humiliated by some foreign power. But
today they are gaining independence. Millions and millions and millions of the former
colonial subjects are gaining independence. Can remember when we first went to Africa
back in 1957. We were happy about the fact that now independence was starting south of the
Sahara; now there were eight independent countries in Africa. But since that times more than
25 new independent countries have come into being in just a few years. Twenty-five or thirty
years ago there were only three independent countries in Africa. So Prime Minister
MacMillan was right when he said, "the wind of change was blowing in Africa." It is
blowing all over the world. As these former colonial subjects gain their independence, their
leaders are saying in no uncertain terms that racism and colonialism must go. They are
making it clear that they would not respect any nation that will subject its citizenry on the
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basis of race or color. And so in a real sense, the hour is late. The clock of destiny is ticking
out and we must act now before it is too late.
And I almost hasten to say that this isn't the only reason that we must seek to solve this
problem in America. We must not seek to solve the racial problem merely to appeal to Asian
and African peoples. We must not seek to solve this problem to meet the Communist
challenge as important as that happens to be. But, in the final analysis, racial discrimination
must be uprooted from American society because it is morally wrong. In the final analysis
of this problem must be solved because racial discrimination stands against all the noble
precepts of our Judo-Christian heritage. Segregation is wrong because it substitutes an "I-it"
relationship for the "I-Thou" relationship, and relegates persons to the status of things. And
so we must seek to solve this problem not merely because it is diplomatically expedient, but
because it is morally compelling. This is the great challenge of the hour.
Now what must we do and what must be done in the future to make desegregation a reality,
and then to move on toward a truly integrated society? And I say that because that is the
difference between desegregation and integration: desegregation is eliminative and,
therefore, has negative aspects. Segregation is prohibitive in that it prohibits individuals
from using certain facilities. Legal barriers stand before them. Desegregation eliminates
these barriers. Integration is creative in that it deals with attitudes; it is mutual acceptance. It
is genuine interpersonal and inter-group relations. So that while desegregation is a necessary
step that we must think of and deal with, we must always remember that the ultimate goal is
a truly integrated society. Now what must be done if this is to be a reality?
First, I would like the mention the need for forthright leadership from the federal
government. The government must use all of its constitutional authority to enforce the law
and to make justice a reality. And we must honestly confess that this has not always been
done. If we look back over the last ten years, we can see that the only consistent forthright
leadership has come from the judicial branch of the federal government. The judicial or
rather the legislative and executive branches have not always been forthright, have not
always been determined, and certainly have not always been consistent. But if this problem
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is to be solved, there must be a concerted effort on the part of all the branches of the federal
government. It must rise above the timid stage. It must rise above the compromising stage,
and move on toward that stage of making great moral decisions, which will certainly change
our nation in this period of transition.
Now if the government is to do its job, it must get rid of two myths that tend to get around
and are circulated all around the nation. One is what I often refer to as the "myth of time."
Now there are those who argue that the federal government cannot do anything about this
problem because only time can solve the problem. They go on to say that if we would just
be patient and nice and pray, a hundred or two hundred years from now the problem will
work itself out. Well, the only answer that we can give to the myth of time, to those who
believe in this myth,is that time is neutral. It can be used either constructively or
destructively, and at points I think the people of ill will have used time much more
effectively than the people of good will. And it may well be that we will have to repent in
this generation, not merely for the vitriolic words and actions of the bad people, but for the
appalling silence of the good people. Somewhere we must come to see that human progress
never rolls in on the wheels of inevitability, it comes through the tireless efforts and
persistent work of the dedicated individuals, who are willing to be co-workers with God.
And without this hard work, time itself becomes an ally of primitive forces of social
stagnation and irrational emotionalism. And so it is necessary to see that we must help time
and to realize that the time is always right to do right.
The other myth that is often circulated and gets back to the government is that idea that
legislation can't solve the problem of racial injustice. We have heard this idea that morality
cannot be legislated, that this problem must be solved by changing attitudes. So this must be
done through education and it must be done through religion. Legislation can do nothing
about it. Well, there is an element of truth in this. Certainly education and religion will have
a great role to play in changing attitudes. It may be true that morality cannot be legislated,
but behavior can be regulated. It may be true that the law cannot change the heart, but it can
restrain the heartless. It may be true that the law can't make a man love me, but it can keep
him from lynching me and I think that's pretty important also. In other words—(applause)—
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and so this is what we must see, that it will take education and religion to change bad internal
attitudes, but we need legislation to control the external effects of those bad internal attitudes.
And so that is the need for strong civil rights legislation now, in this session of congress.
And it is significant that a few days ago, President Kennedy went on record for the first time
since he has been in office calling for civil rights legislation, mainly in the area of voter
registration. And I think if the proposals set forth are accepted and passed by Congress,
many of the problems that we now face in the South in seeking to get Negroes registered
and voting will be solved. And there is a great deal here that will change the political
structure of the South and liberalize the political climate, and so there is a great deal that
must be done through legislation. There is a need for executive orders to continue.
Fortunately President Kennedy has signed two executive orders. One in employment
making it clear that there is not to be any discrimination in employment where government
contracts are involved and in federal agencies. Another executive order in the realm of
housing; this is a good beginning. Certainly this executive order is not strong enough. It
could be much more forthright and it could deal with the enormity of the problem in a much
more depthful manner, but at least it is a start. And this is why I have urged that President
Kennedy to sign what I have called "the Second Emancipation Proclamation." For I think the
time has come for such an order to be issued.
A hundred years ago Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation which freed
the Negro from the bondage of physical slavery. But one hundred years later the Negro is
still in slavery. The Negro still isn't free, North or South. And it is not too much to ask one
hundred years after the first Emancipation Proclamation for a Second Emancipation
Proclamation to make freedom a reality. For in a real sense segregation is a form of slavery
covered up with certain niceties of complexity. And I believe that such an executive order
would go a long, long way to set forth a sound national policy. And it would be a great
beacon light of hope to millions of disinherited people all over this nation, and all over the
world, so the federal government has a great role to play.
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I would like to mention the need for forthright leadership from the moderates of the white
South. And I would not give you the impression tonight that there are not white persons of
good will in the South. I would leave you with the idea and the fact that there are hundreds
and thousands and, I believe, millions of white people of good will in the South. But they are
silent today, and they have been silent for years because they are afraid: afraid of social,
political, and economic reprisals. God grant that something will happen, so that these persons
will rise up and take over the leadership in this tense period of transition and somehow open
channels of communication. For I am convinced that men hate each other because they fear
each other. They fear each other because they don't know each other. And they don't know
each other because they fail to communicate with each other. And they fail to communicate
with each other because they are separated from each other.
And one of the great tragedies of our time, one of the great tragedies of the South, is that in
all too many situations we are still seeking to live in monologue rather than dialogue. There
is a need for the white persons of good will to stand up in the South. We look back over the
last few months and think about the ugly and tragic things that took place in Oxford,
Mississippi, and that continue to take place in that state. One thing that we will always have
to face and remember is that Governor Barnett was able to do what he did because of the
breakdown in the power structure. And that he felt that he had the approval of the political,
the economic, and the ecclesiastical power structure. Nobody really took a stand against his
irresponsible action. Now, certainly somebody in Mississippi disagreed with that: somebody
in Mississippi disagreed with the methods and the actions and the words of Governor
Barnett. But they failed to stand up. And so there is a great need if this problem is to be
solved for forthright action and courageous action and commitment on the part of the
moderate and the white South.
Let me also mention the need for a forthright leadership and commitment on the part of
white persons of good will in the North. This is all important, for this problem is not a
sectional problem. No area of our country can boast of clean hands in the area of
brotherhood, and the estrangement of the races in the North can be as devastating as the
segregation of the races in the South. For deception can be much more frustrating that
�MS113.0008 Transcript
outright rejection; somehow indifference can be much more embittering than outright
hostility. And this is what it is necessary for everyone in the North to see. It is one thing for a
white person of good will in the North to rise up with righteous indignation when a bus is
burned in Aniston, Alabama with freedom riders or when a church is burned in Sassa,
Georgia where Negroes are seeking to learn how to register and vote, or when a courageous
James Meredith confronts a howling and jeering mob when he seeks to go to the University
of Mississippi. But it is just as necessary and important for white persons of good will in the
North to rise up with righteous indignation when a Negro cannot live in their community or
their neighborhood because of certain restrictions and agreements, or when a Negro cannot
get a job in their firm, or when a Negro cannot join a particular professional society,
academic society, or fraternity or sorority. In other words, there must be an inner
commitment on the part of the people all over this nation.
Now in the North, the twin evils of housing and employment discrimination stand out as
they do all over this country. These must be grappled with in a very significant and
determined manner. Unemployment is growing every day, and the Negro is the greatest
victim. He constitutes ten percent of the population, but 44% of the unemployed. And the
problem is being augmented even more today because of the force known as automation.
The Negro has been limited to unskilled and semi-skilled labor because of discrimination,
denied apprenticeship training. And now these are the jobs which are passing away. Now,
something must be done in order to grapple with this problem and make employment
opportunities equal and real for all people. For the Negro is still the last hired and first fired
all over the United States. And he is still at the bottom of the economic ladder. Forty-two
percent of the Negro families in America earn less than $2,000 a year, while just 17% of the
white families earn less $2,000 a year. Twenty percent of the Negro families in America
earn less than $1,000 a year, while less than five percent of the white families earn less than
$1,000 a year. Eighty-eight percent of the Negro families of America still earn less than
$5,000 a year, while just 58% of the white families earn less than $5,000 a year.
Now this problem of economic injustice must be solved if America is to be a great nation.
For you can see the problems here. If one does not have economic security·, he cannot
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adequately educate his children, he cannot have adequate housing conditions, he cannot
have adequate health conditions. And it is very easy for one to cry out that the Negro is a
criminal or that his standards are lagging. If there are lagging standards in the Negro
community, they lag because of segregation and discrimination. Poverty, ignorance,
economic deprivation, [and] social isolation breed crime whatever the racial group may be.
And it is a tortuous logic to use the tragic results of segregation as an argument for the
continuation of it. It is necessary to go to the source, to go to the root of the problem, and so
there is need for work all over the nation to deal with the problem of employment
discrimination and the problem of housing discrimination. For as long as there is residential
discrimination, there will be segregation in the public schools, segregation in recreational
facilities, segregation in hospitals, [and] segregation in churches. And this is why de facto
segregation in the North can be as crippling as de jure segregation in the South. And this
must be seen and met with vigor and determination.
I would also like to mention the need for leadership from organized religion. And I must say,
and honestly admit, that in this area the church has not done its job. It is one of the shameful
facts that we must face that in the midst of injustices all around, the church has too often
stood silently by, mouthing pious irrelevancies and sanctimonious trivialities. In the midst of
the tragic injustices of our days, the church has too often remained silently behind the safe
security of stained glass windows and so often Christians have had a high-blood pressure of
creeds and anemia of deeds. And for this reason eleven o'clock on Sunday morning, when
millions of people stand over this nation to sing In Christ There is No East or West, we find
ourselves in the most segregated hour of America. This is tragic indeed. And the most
segregated school of the week is the Sunday school.
(applause.)
Now if something isn't done about that, the church will lose its redemptive power, and
certainly its power to serve as a moral guardian of the community. If it is to have a relevant
voice, and to stand up creatively with power and spiritual strength during these days, it must
take a stand on this issue. It is good that some have become conscious of this, and I am
encouraged because more and more church bodies are taking a stand, even in the most
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difficult communities of the South. They are all too few, but they are growing, and I'm
convinced as they continue to grow the transition from a segregated to desegregated society
and finally an integrated one will be much, much smoother. And the church will be not
merely a taillight, but it will be a headlight, leading men and women on in this day and in
this age.
But after saying all of this, I must say that if this problem is to be solved—if we are to have
truly desegregated society, if we are to break down the barriers—the Negro himself must
stand up with courage and determination and a willingness to sacrifice and even suffer. He
must not stand idly by waiting for somebody else to do something for him. But he must
work for his own freedom, in this day and at this time. And there are many areas in which
we must work. Certainly we must continue to work for meaningful legislation, as I
mentioned a few minutes ago. We must continue to work through the courts; many things
have been done through the courts. I mentioned the Supreme Court's decision of 1954, and
this was a decision handed down by the highest court of the land. Many things have been
done through the Supreme Court and through federal district courts, and through Federal
Courts of Appeal. And so we must continue to work through the courts to clarify the law.
This is very important. We must continue to work to double the number of Negro registered
voters, North and South. For as I said earlier I am convinced that, if we can increase the
number of Negro registered voters, we will be able to liberalize the political climate of the
South. There are still approximately 10 million, more than 10 million, Negroes in the South.
Out of this number, almost 6 million are eligible to vote at least they are of voting age. Yet
only about a million, 500 thousand are registered to vote. You can see that is a big job ahead.
And wherever Negroes are voting in large numbers, you do see a different climate in race
relations.
I think of my own city of Atlanta, Georgia, and we have worked there a long, long time
seeking to get Negroes registered to vote. And now the Negro vote is a force in Atlanta with
almost 50,000 registered to vote. This means that no mayor can be elected in Atlanta without
the Negro vote. This means that no alderman can be elected in Atlanta without the Negro
vote, and it really makes a difference. I remember when the present mayor, a man of good
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will I'm convinced, was running for governor several years ago. He was a segregationist, he
talked about the eternality of segregation. But then when he started running for mayor, he
started talking about integration. And somebody asked him one day: why did he change? He
said, "Well, I have seen the light now." Well 50,000 votes will make anybody see the light.
(applause.)
Last year, I remember very vividly some of the students from Atlanta University and
Morehouse College and Spellman and Clark and the other schools in Atlanta went down to
attend a legislative session at the statehouse there. And they went in and went into the
balcony where the spectators were seated and they were almost kicked out and threatened
with arrest if they didn't get out immediately. But I'm happy to report to you tonight that not
only are Negroes able to sit in the balcony now at the statehouse, just a year later. But now a
Negro is sitting on the main floor helping to make the laws for a state of Georgia.
(applause.)
Now this is because of the ballot and this will be done more and more if this job of
increasing, of doubling the number of registered voters is undertaken with zeal and courage.
Then there is a need for the Negro to use his buying power to achieve a sense of dignity.
And I am not speaking of something negative now, I'm speaking of something positive. I'm
not speaking of a negative thrust to put somebody out of business, but a positive thrust to
put justice in business. And I think the time has come for the Negro to say to industries and
businesses all over this country, "If you respect my dollar, you must respect my person."
The buying power of the Negro is now more than $20,000,000,000 a year, which is more
than all the exports of the United States, and more than the national budget of Canada. It's
still far from what it should be, but at least it reveals that it is a force and it is large enough
to make the difference between profit and loss in almost any business. And we know that
there are industries and businesses all over the country practicing glaring and notorious
discrimination against Negroes in employment. And so that is a need for selective buying
programs. We have started in several cities already, and pretty soon we will be calling a
national conference to launch a nation-wide selective buying program. The procedure would
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certainly be to begin with negotiations, starting out negotiating with an industry, urging
them to change their policies and employ Negroes in more than the manual areas or the
unskilled areas. And, then, if there is a refusal, there would be no alternative but to inform
people all over this country-Negroes and white peoples of good will that this particular
business, that this particular industry, discriminates against Negroes in employment. And I
think this can be a great force for good bringing about a sort of moral balance within our
nation.
But after we do all of this—(applause)—we must supplement what is being done with nonviolent direct action. And I'd like to take just a few minutes to say something about this
method of non-violent direct action since it has been the method that is being, and has been,
used over the South-and over the country for that matter-over the last few months and for
the last few years. For I am convinced that non-violence is the most potent weapon available
to impress people in the struggle for freedom and human dignity. Now first, this method has
a way of disarming the opponent. It exposes his moral defenses; it weakens his morale and,
at the same time, it works on his conscience and he just doesn't know how to handle it. If he
doesn't beat you, wonderful. If he beats you, you develop the courage of accepting blows
without retaliating. If he doesn't put you in jail, wonderful. Nobody with any sense loves to
go to jail. But if he puts you in jail, you go in that jail and transform it from a dungeon of
shame to a haven of human freedom and dignity. Even if he tries to kill you, you develop
the quiet courage of dying if necessary without killing. And there is something about this
that the opponent just can't grasp; he doesn't know how to deal with it.
Another thing about this method is that it gives the individual a means of working to secure
moral ends through moral means. One of the great debates of history has been over the
question if ends and means. There have been those who have argued that the ends justify the
means. And this is where non-violence breaks with the philosophy that argues this, and in a
system that contends that destructive means will bring constructive ends because, in the long
run, the end is pre-existent in the means. The means represent the ideal in the making and
the end in process. And so it is wonderful to have a method that makes it possible for the
individual to struggle to secure moral ends through moral means. And then another thing
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about this approach is that it makes it possible for the individual to struggle against an unjust
system and yet maintain an attitude of active good will towards the perpetrators of that
unjust system. One centers his vision on getting rid of the evil system, and not getting rid of
the person. In other words, it becomes possible to hate segregation, and yet love the
segregationist.
Now when I talk about love at this point, I'm not talking about emotional bosh. I'm not talking
about some sentimental or affectionate response. Certainly, it is nonsense to urge oppressed
people to love their oppressors in an affectionate sense. I'm talking about something much
deeper than that, I'm talking about that force that is the supreme uniting force of life, that
force which is willing to go the second mile in order to restore the broken community, that
force which is willing to forgive seventy times seven in order to restore the broken
community, that force which somehow says that within everyman there is something of
goodness in a potential sense, and it can somehow be actualized. And this is what we
attempt to do, for we have come to see that hate is a dangerous force, hate is as injurious to
the hater as it is to the hated. The psychiatrists are telling us now that many of the strange
things that happen in the subconscious, many of the inner conflicts are rooted in hate, and
so they are saying, love or perish. Eric Fromm can say in a book like The Art of Loving that
love is the most vital force in life and there can be no personality integration without it. And
this is what I'm speaking of and this is what I'm thinking about, and I think it can be a force
in this struggle to make justice and freedom a reality. And so, in some way, as I've said so
many times before, this is what we are able to say to our most bitter opponents "We will
match your capacity to inflict suffering by our capacity to endure suffering. We will meet
your physical force with soul force. Do to us what you will and we will still love you. We
cannot in all good conscience obey your unjust laws because non-cooperation with evil is as
must a moral obligation as is cooperation with good, and so throw us in jail and we will still
love you. Threaten our children and bomb our homes and, as difficult as it is, we will still
love you. Send your propaganda agents around the nation and make it appear that we are not
fir morally, culturally, or otherwise for integration and we will still love you. Send your
hooded perpetrators of violence into our communities at the midnight hours and drag us out
on some wayside road and beat us and leave us half dead and, as difficult as it is, we will
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still love you. But be assured that we will wear you down by our capacity to suffer, and we
will continue to resist the evil system. And one day we will win our victory, but we will not
only win victory for ourselves, we will so appeal to your heart and your conscience that we
will win you in the process, and our victory will be a double victory. And this method is not
at all without successful precedent. It was used by a little brown man in India by the name of
Mohandas K. Gandhi to free his people from the political domination and the economic
exploitation inflicted upon them for years. He struggled only with the weapons of soul force,
non-injury, moral courage, and love. It has been used in a marvelous manner by hundreds
and thousands of students all over our nation. They have taken our deep groans and
passionate yearnings for freedom and filtered them in their own souls and fashioned them
into a creative protest which is an epic known all over this nation. And for all of these
months they have moved in a uniquely meaningful orbit, imparting light and heat to distance
satellites, and as a result of their non-violent, disciplined yet courageous efforts, they have
been able to bring about integration at lunch counters in almost two hundred cities in the
South as a result of the freedom rides. Segregation is almost dead in the South and almost
dead in every community that we can point to.
And so this is a powerful method. And I believe by using all of these forces and by all these
forces working together, we will be able to bring into being that new day when we have not
only a desegregated society, but also an integrated society. And if we will struggle with
nonviolence, resist with nonviolence, we will go into the new age with a proper attitude
realizing that our aim must never be to rise from a position of disadvantage to one of
advantage thus averting justice. We will not seek to substitute one tyranny for another. But
something will remind us that black supremacy is as dangerous as white supremacy, and that
God is not interested merely in the freedom of black men and brown men and yellow men,
but that God in interested in the freedom of the whole human race.
This is a challenge. Great opportunities stand before America at this hour. To paraphrase the
words of John Oxenham, "To every nation there openeth a way and ways and a way. The
high nation climbs the high way, and the low nation gropes the low, and in between, on the
misty flats, the rest drift to and fro. But to every nation, there openeth a high and a low way.
�MS113.0008 Transcript
Every nation decideth which way its soul shall go." And God grant that we here in America
will chose a high way, a way in which men will be able to live together as brothers, a way in
which every man will respect the dignity and worth of human personality, a way in which
the words of Amos will become real: "Let justice roll down like waters and righteousness
like a mighty stream," a way in which we will live out the true meaning of the Declaration of
Independence "We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal, that
:
they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights, that among these are life,
liberty and the pursuit of happiness." And, if we will follow this way, we will be able to
transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. We
may take courage and we may gain consolation from the fact that we have made strides, that
we have solved some of the problems, we have done some things in spite of the fact that
there is still much to be done. We do have that consolation behind, that we have done
something. And so I close by quoting the words of an old Negro slave preacher, who didn't
quite have his grammar right and his diction, but uttered words of symbolic profundity. His
words—worded in the form of a prayer—"Lord, we ain't what we ought to be, we ain't what
we want to be, we ain't what we gonna be. But, thank God, we ain't what we was."
MODERATOR: Dr. King would you be willing to comment on the Muslim movement and
the extent of its power?
REV. DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING JR.: Well, first let me say that while I disagree
with the philosophy of this movement, it is necessary to realize that it didn't come into being
out of thin air. It is here because certain conditions brought it into being. It is symptomatic
of the deeper unrest, of frustration, the discontent of many Negroes in America. And the
conditions of discrimination in their varied forms brought this movement into being; these
are the things that the Muslims thrive on. And it is just as important to work to get rid of the
conditions that brought this movement into being than it is to condemn the philosophy. It
may well be the fact that a movement like this is alive in 1963 in America is an indictment
on America and Christianity and democracy itself. And it means that we've got to become
more democratic and more committed to the principles of our religious heritage. Now as far
as the influence, the power of this movement, I would say that up to this point this movement
�MS113.0008 Transcript
has not appealed to the vast majority of Negroes. The best estimate would place the number
of members around 75,000. I think the FBI says about 75,000. Dr. Eric Lincoln in a recent
book on the movement says about 100,000 or a few more. But it is still a small number when
you think about the fact that there are approximately 20 million Negroes in the United
States. And I'm sure that it is true that the vast majority of Negroes have not, at this time,
come to the point of accepting this idea. I think there are many, many more than a hundred
thousand who would agree with their criticism of America society, and I do say that it is a
challenge to everybody to work harder to get rid of the problem because they are going to be
here as long as we have the problem. Groups like this will exist. It doesn't get off the ground
in communities where progress is being made in race relations; it does in communities
where you see retrogress and a great deal of frustration and the constant development of the
ghetto. So it means that it is necessary to work together to get rid of the conditions that
brought it into being as well as condemn the philosophy.
(applause.)
ANNOUNCER: You’ve been listening to a special edition of the New American Gazette. The
Revered Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was recorded at the FHF in Boston on March 24th 1963. The
New American Gazette was produced by The New American Gazette was produced for the Ford
Hall Forum by Deborah Stavro. Post-production engineer is Brian Sabo.
Major funding for the New American Gazette is provided by Digital Equipment Corporation.
Additional funding is provided by League of Women Voter’s Education Fund, a non-partisan
organization encouraging informed, active, citizen representation in government. The programs
are produced in cooperation with the nation's presidential libraries, the National Archives and
Northeastern University.
If you'd like a cassette of this program, send a check for $12 to the Ford Hall Forum, 271
Huntington Avenue, Suite 240, Boston, Massachusetts, 02115. That's the Ford Hall Forum, 271
Huntington Avenue, Suite 240, Boston, Massachusetts, 02115.
Join us again for the New American Gazette.
�MS113.0008 Transcript
END OF RECORDING
�
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The Ford Hall Forum Collection documents the history of the nation’s longest running free public lecture series. The Forum has hosted some the most notable figures in the arts, science, politics, and the humanities since its founding in 1908. The collection, which spans from 1908 to 2013, includes of 85 boxes of materials related to the Forum's administration, lectures, fund raising, partnerships, and its radio program, the New American Gazette.<br /><br />The digital files are being moved to: <a href="https://dc.suffolk.edu/fordhall">https://dc.suffolk.edu/fordhall</a>
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Episode of the New American Gazette featuring Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s 1963 speech at the Ford Hall Forum, " Desegregation and the Future" [audio recording and transcript]
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King, Martin Luther, Jr., 1929-1968
Jordan, Barbara, 1936-1996
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Three weeks before he was jailed for leading peaceful protesters in Birmingham, Alabama, Dr. King addressed the Ford Hall Forum in Boston on March 24 1963. His address, "The Future of Desegregation," coincided with the centennial of the Emancipation Proclamation. Dr. King called for renewed Federal efforts at desegregation, while noting that "the law cannot change the heart, but it can restrain the heartless." The forum was rebroadcast as part of the New American Gazette program and includes an introduction by Barbara Jordan.
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Forums (Discussion and debate)
Ford Hall Forum
African Americans -- Civil rights
African Americans -- Segregation
Black history
Civil rights
Ford Hall Forum
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The Ford Hall Forum Collection documents the history of the nation’s longest running free public lecture series. The Forum has hosted some the most notable figures in the arts, science, politics, and the humanities since its founding in 1908. The collection, which spans from 1908 to 2013, includes of 85 boxes of materials related to the Forum's administration, lectures, fund raising, partnerships, and its radio program, the New American Gazette.<br /><br />The digital files are being moved to: <a href="https://dc.suffolk.edu/fordhall">https://dc.suffolk.edu/fordhall</a>
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Transcript of a 1963 Ford Hall Forum Lecture by Malcolm X, "God’s Solution to America’s Race Problem"
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6 October 1963
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Transcript of audio from address delivered at the Ford Hall Forum by Malcolm X on October 6, 1963. Lecture entitled "God's Solution to America's Race Problem."
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tgn: 7013445
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Ford Hall Forum
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X., Malcolm,1925-1965
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Civil rights
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Lectures
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PDF Text
Text
The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Transcript of an Address to the Ford Hall
Forum, “Desegregation and the Future”
Recorded March 24, 1963
Transcript Begins:
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.: As we look over the broad sweep of race relations
in the United States, we notice three distinct periods. The second period
represents growth and progress over the first period and the third period
represents growth and progress over the second period. And it is interesting to
notice that, in each period, there finally came a decision from the Supreme Court
of our nation to give legal and constitutional validity for the dominant thought
patterns of that particular period.
The first period was an era of slavery. This period had its beginning in 1619 when
the first Negro slaves landed on the shores of this nation. And it extended
through1862 when Abraham Lincoln signed the immortal document known as
the Emancipation Proclamation. And throughout the period of slavery, the Negro
was treated in a very inhuman fashion. He was a thing to be used, not a person
to be respected. He was merely a depersonalized cog in a vast plantation
machine. And finally in 1857, toward the end of that period, the supreme court of
the nation rendered a decision known as the Dred Scott decision which gave
legal and constitution validity to the whole system of slavery. This decision said,
in substance, that the Negro is not a citizen of the United States. He is merely
property subject to the dictates of his owner. It went on to say that the Negro has
no rights that the white man is bound to respect.
The second period had its beginning in 1863 and extended to 1954. We may
refer to this as the period of restricted emancipation. Now, in a real sense, it was
an improvement over the first period because it at least freed the Negro from the
bondage of physical slavery. But it was not at all the best period because it did
not accept the Negro as a person. And, therefore, it was very easy for the ethos
of segregation to emerge as the dominant practice and theory of this particular
period. And in 1896, the Supreme Court of the United States rendered a decision
known as the Plessy v. Ferguson decision, which established the doctrine of
"separate but equal" as the law of the land. And it was this decision that gave
legal and constitutional validity to the dominant thought patterns of the second
period in race relations. But we all know what happened as a result of this period.
There was always a strict enforcement of the separate, without the slightest
intention to abide by the equal. The Negro ended up being plunged into the
abyss of exploitation where he experienced the bleakness of nagging injustice.
So something had to happen to bring about another period.
Things began to happen in the nation and in the world. And the rolling tide of
world opinion had its influence. The industrialization of the South and the
concomitant urbanization had its influence. And then something happened to the
�Negro. Living with slavery for many years, many Negroes came to feel that
perhaps they were inferior and perhaps they were less than human. But then
something happened to cause the Negro to reevaluate himself. Circumstances
made it possible and necessary for him to travel more-the coming of the
automobile, the upheavals of two World Wars, the Great Depression. And so his
rural plantations background gradually gave way to urban industrial life. And
even his economic life was rising through the growth of industry, the
development of organized labor, and expanded educational opportunities. And
even his cultural life was gradually rising through the steady decline of crippling
illiteracy. All of these forces conjoined to cause the Negro to take a new look at
himself. Negro masses all over began to reevaluate themselves. And the Negro
came to feel that he was somebody. His religion revealed to him that God loves
all of his children and that all men are made in his image; that the basic thing
about a man is not his specificity, but his fundamentum, not the texture of his
hair, or the color of his skin, but his eternal dignity and worth. And so with this a
new Negro came into being with a new sense of dignity and a new sense of self
respect, and a new determination to struggle, to sacrifice in order to be free. And
with all these forces working together we saw the second period gradually pass
away.
And so today we see emerging the third period in race relations. We may refer to
this as the period of Constructive Desegregation. It had its beginning in 1954, on
May 1st when the Supreme Court rendered a decision which gave legal and
constitutional validity to the dominant thought patterns of this particular period.
That decision said, in substance, that the old Plessy doctrine must go, that
separate facilities are inherently unequal, that to segregate a child on the basis of
his race is to deny that child equal protection of the law. As a result of this
decision, we have seen many developments, and we have seen many changes.
To put it figuratively in Biblical language, we have broken loose from the Egypt of
slavery and we have moved through the wilderness of segregation, and now we
stand on the border of the promised land of desegregation. And this is where we
are at this particular moment in the period of desegregation: seeking to move
ahead finally toward a truly integrated society.
The great challenge facing America at this hour is to work passionately and
unrelentingly to bring the ideals and principles of this third period into full
realization. Certainly we don't have long to do it. And I know there are those
people who are constantly saying to those in the civil rights struggle "Slow up for
a while. You're pushing things too fast. Cool off." They are saying, "adopt a
policy of moderation." Well, if moderation means moving on towards the goal of
justice with wise restraint and calm reasonableness, then moderation is a great
virtue which all men of good will must seek to achieve during this tense period of
transition. But if moderation means slowing up in the move for freedom and
capitulating to the undemocratic practices of the guardians of a deadening status
quo, then moderation is a tragic vice, which all men of good will must condemn.
We can't afford to slow up. We have our self-respect to maintain, but more than
that, we love democracy too much, and we love the American way of life too
much to slow up.
2
�As you know there are approximately 3 billion people living in our world and the
vast majority of these people live in Asia and in Africa. For years they were
dominated politically, exploited economically, segregated and humiliated by some
foreign power. But today they are gaining independence. Millions and millions
and millions of the former colonial subjects are gaining independence. I can
remember when we first went to Africa back in 1957. We were happy about the
fact that now independence was starting south of the Sahara; now there were
eight independent countries in Africa. But since that time more than 25 new
independent countries have come into being in just a few years. Twenty-five or
thirty years ago there were only three independent countries in Africa. So Prime
Minister MacMillan was right when he said, "the wind of change was blowing in
Africa." It is blowing all over the world. As these former colonial subjects gain
their independence, their leaders are saying in no uncertain terms that racism
and colonialism must go. They are making it clear that they would not respect
any nation that will subject its citizenry on the basis of race or color. And so in a
real sense, the hour is late. The clock of destiny is ticking out and we must act
now before it is too late.
And I almost hasten to say that this isn't the only reason that we must seek to
solve this problem in America. We must not seek to solve the racial problem
merely to appeal to Asian and African peoples. We must not seek to solve this
problem to meet the Communist challenge as important as that happens to be.
But, in the final analysis, racial discrimination must be uprooted from American
society because it is morally wrong. In the final analysis, this problem must be
solved because racial discrimination stands against all the noble precepts of our
Judo-Christian heritage. Segregation is wrong because it substitutes an "I-it"
relationship for the "I-Thou" relationship, and relegates persons to the status of
things. And so we must seek to solve this problem not merely because it is
diplomatically expedient, but because it is morally compelling. This is the great
challenge of the hour.
Now what must we do and what must be done in the future to make
desegregation a reality, and then to move on toward a truly integrated society?
And I say that because that is the difference between desegregation and
integration: desegregation is eliminative and, therefore, has negative aspects.
Segregation is prohibitive in that it prohibits individuals from using certain
facilities. Legal barriers stand before them. Desegregation eliminates these
barriers. Integration is creative in that it deals with attitudes; it is mutual
acceptance. It is genuine interpersonal and inter-group relations. So that while
desegregation is a necessary step that we must think of and deal with, we must
always remember that the ultimate goal is a truly integrated society. Now what
must be done if this is to be a reality?
3
�First, I would like to mention the need for forthright leadership from the federal
government. The government must use all of its constitutional authority to
enforce the law and to make justice a reality. And we must honestly confess that
this has not always been done. If we look back over the last ten years, we can
see that the only consistent forthright leadership has come from the judicial
branch of the federal government. The judicial or rather the legislative and
executive branches have not always been forthright, have not always been
determined, and certainly have not always been consistent. But if this problem is
to be solved, there must be a concerted effort on the part of all the branches of
the federal government. It must rise above the timid stage. It must rise above the
compromising stage, and move on toward that stage of making great moral
decisions, which will certainly change our nation in this period of transition.
Now if the government is to do its job, it must get rid of two myths that tend to get
around and are circulated all around the nation. One is what I often refer to as
the "myth of time." Now there are those who argue that the federal government
cannot do anything about this problem because only time can solve the problem.
They go on to say that if we would just be patient and nice and pray, a hundred
or two hundred years from now the problem will work itself out. Well, the only
answer that we can give to the myth of time, to those who believe in this myth, is
that time is neutral. It can be used either constructively or destructively, and at
points I think the people of ill will have used time much more effectively than the
people of good will. And it may well be that we will have to repent in this
generation, not merely for the vitriolic words and actions of the bad people, but
for the appalling silence of the good people. Somewhere we must come to see
that human progress never rolls in on the wheels of inevitability, it comes through
the tireless efforts and persistent work of the dedicated individuals, who are
willing to be co-workers with God. And without this hard work, time itself
becomes an ally of primitive forces of social stagnation and irrational
emotionalism. And so it is necessary to see that we must help time and to
realize that the time is always right to do right.
The other myth that is often circulated and gets back to the government is that
idea that legislation can't solve the problem of racial injustice. We have heard
this idea that morality cannot be legislated, that this problem must be solved by
changing attitudes. So this must be done through education and it must be done
through religion. Legislation can do nothing about it. Well, there is an element of
truth in this. Certainly education and religion will have a great role to play in
changing attitudes. It may be true that morality cannot be legislated, but
behavior can be regulated. It may be true that the law cannot change the heart,
but it can restrain the heartless. It may be true that the law can't make a man
love me, but it can keep him from lynching me and I think that's pretty important
also. In other words... (Applause) and so this is what we must see, that it will take
education and religion to change bad internal attitudes, but we need legislation to
control the external effects of those bad internal attitudes. And so that is the
need for strong civil rights legislation now, in this session of congress.
4
�And it is significant that a few days ago, President Kennedy went on record for
the first time since he has been in office calling for civil rights legislation, mainly
in the area of voter registration. And I think if the proposals set forth are
accepted and passed by Congress, many of the problems that we now face in
the South in seeking to get Negroes registered and voting will be solved. And
there is a great deal here that will change the political structure of the South and
liberalize the political climate, and so there is a great deal that must be done
through legislation. There is a need for executive orders to continue. Fortunately
President Kennedy has signed two executive orders. One in employmentmaking it clear that there is not to be any discrimination in employment where
government contracts are involved and in federal agencies. Another executive
order in the realm of housing; this is a good beginning. Certainly this executive
order is not strong enough. It could be much more forthright and it could deal
with the enormity of the problem in a much more depthful manner, but at least it
is a start. And this is why I have urged that President Kennedy sign what I have
called "the Second Emancipation Proclamation." For I think the time has come
for such an order to be issued.
A hundred years ago, Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation,
which freed the Negro from the bondage of physical slavery. But one hundred
years later the Negro is still in slavery. The Negro still isn't free, North or South.
And it is not too much to ask one hundred years after the first Emancipation
Proclamation for a Second Emancipation Proclamation to make freedom a
reality. For in a real sense, segregation is a form of slavery covered up with
certain niceties of complexity. And I believe that such an executive order would
go a long, long way to set forth a sound national policy. And it would be a great
beacon light of hope to millions of disinherited people all over this nation, and all
over the world, so the federal government has a great role to play.
I would like to mention the need for forthright leadership from the moderates of
the white South. And I would not give you the impression tonight that there are
not white persons of good will in the South. I would leave you with the idea and
the fact that there are hundreds and thousands and, I believe, millions of white
people of good will in the South. But they are silent today, and they have been
silent for years because they are afraid: afraid of social, political, and economic
reprisals. God grant that something will happen, so that these persons will rise up
and take over the leadership in this tense period of transition and somehow open
channels of communication. For I am convinced that men hate each other
because they fear each other. They fear each other because they don't know
each other. And they don't know each other because they fail to communicate
with each other. And they fail to communicate with each other because they are
separated from each other.
And one of the great tragedies of our time, one of the great tragedies of the
South, is that in all too many situations we are still seeking to live in monologue
5
�rather than dialogue. There is a need for the white persons of good will to stand
up in the South. We look back over the last few months and think about the ugly
and tragic things that took place in Oxford, Mississippi, and that continue to take
place in that state. One thing that we will always have to face and remember is
that Governor Barnett was able to do what he did because of the breakdown in
the power structure. And that he felt that he had the approval of the political, the
economic, and the ecclesiastical power structure. Nobody really took a stand
against his irresponsible action. Now, certainly somebody in Mississippi
disagreed with that: somebody in Mississippi disagreed with the methods and
the actions and the words of Governor Barnett. But they failed to stand up. And
so there is a great need if this problem is to be solved for forthright action and
courageous action and commitment on the part of the moderate and the white
South.
Let me also mention the need for a forthright leadership and commitment on the
part of white persons of good will in the North. This is all important, for this
problem is not a sectional problem. No area of our country can boast of clean
hands in the area of brotherhood, and the estrangement of the races in the North
can be as devastating as the segregation of the races in the South. For
deception can be much more frustrating that outright rejection; somehow
indifference can be much more embittering than outright hostility. And this is what
it is necessary for everyone in the North to see. It is one thing for a white person
of good will in the North to rise up with righteous indignation when a bus is
burned in Aniston, Alabama with freedom riders or when a church is burned in
Sassa, Georgia where Negroes are seeking to learn how to register and vote, or
when a courageous James Meredith confronts a howling and jeering mob when
he seeks to go to the University of Mississippi. But it is just as necessary and
important for white persons of good will in the North to rise up with righteous
indignation when a Negro cannot live in their community or their neighborhood
because of certain restrictions and agreements, or when a Negro cannot get a job
in their firm, or when a Negro cannot join a particular professional society,
academic society, or fraternity or sorority. In other words, there must be an inner
commitment on the part of the people all over this nation.
Now in the North, the twin evils of housing and employment discrimination stand
out as they do all over this country. These must be grappled with in a very
significant and determined manner. Unemployment is growing every day, and
the Negro is the greatest victim. He constitutes ten percent of the population, but
44% of the unemployed. And the problem is being augmented even more today
because of the force known as automation. The Negro has been limited to
unskilled and semi-skilled labor because of discrimination, denied apprenticeship
training. And now these are the jobs, which are passing away. Now, something
must be done in order to grapple with this problem and make employment
opportunities equal and real for all people. For the Negro is still the last hired and
first fired all over the United States. And he is still at the bottom of the economic
ladder. Forty-two percent of the Negro families in America earn less than
6
�$2,000 a year, while just 17% of the white families earn less $2,000 a year.
Twenty percent of the Negro families in America earn less than $1,000 a year,
while less than five percent of the white families earn less than $1,000 a year.
Eighty-eight percent of the Negro families of America still earn less than $5,000 a
year, while just 58% of the white families earn less than $5,000 a year.
Now this problem of economic injustice must be solved if America is to be a great
nation. For you can see the problems here. If one does not have economic
security·, he cannot adequately educate his children, he cannot have adequate
housing conditions, he cannot have adequate health conditions. And it is very
easy for one to cry out that the Negro is a criminal or that his standards are
lagging. If there are lagging standards in the Negro community, they lag
because of segregation and discrimination. Poverty, ignorance, economic
deprivation, [and] social isolation breed crime whatever the racial group may be.
And it is a tortuous logic to use the tragic results of segregation as an argument
for the continuation of it. It is necessary to go to the source, to go to the root of
the problem, and so there is need for work all over the nation to deal with the
problem of employment discrimination and the problem of housing discrimination.
For as long as there is residential discrimination, there will be segregation in the
public schools, segregation in recreational facilities, segregation in hospitals,
[and] segregation in churches. And this is why de facto segregation in the North
can be as crippling as de jure segregation in the South. And this must be seen
and met with vigor and determination.
I would also like to mention the need for leadership from organized religion. And I
must say, and honestly admit, that in this area the church has not done its job. It
is one of the shameful facts that we must face that in the midst of injustices all
around, the church has too often stood silently by, mouthing pious irrelevancies
and sanctimonious trivialities. In the midst of the tragic injustices of our days, the
church has too often remained silently behind the safe security of stained glass
windows and so often Christians have had a high-blood pressure of creeds and
anemia of deeds. And for this reason eleven o'clock on Sunday morning, when
millions of people stand over this nation to sing In Christ There is No East or
West, we find ourselves in the most segregated hour of America. This is tragic
indeed. And the most segregated school of the week is the Sunday school.
(Applause.)
Now if something isn't done about that, the church will lose its redemptive power,
and certainly its power to serve as a moral guardian of the community. If it is to
have a relevant voice, and to stand up creatively with power and spiritual
strength during these days, it must take a stand on this issue. It is good that
some have become conscious of this, and I am encouraged because more and
more church bodies are taking a stand, even in the most difficult communities of
the South. They are all too few, but they are growing, and I'm convinced as they
continue to grow the transition from a segregated to desegregated society and
finally an integrated one will be much, much smoother. And the church will b
e
7
�not merely a taillight, but it will be a headlight, leading men and women on in this
day and in this age.
But after saying all of this, I must say that if this problem is to be solved--if we
are to have truly desegregated society, if we are to break down the barriers--the
Negro himself must stand up with courage and determination and a willingness to
sacrifice and even suffer. He must not stand idly by waiting for somebody else to
do something for him. But he must work for his own freedom, in this day and at
this time. And there are many areas in which we must work. Certainly we must
continue to work for meaningful legislation, as I mentioned a few minutes ago.
We must continue to work through the courts; many things have been done
through the courts. I mentioned the Supreme Court's decision of 1954, and this
was a decision handed down by the highest court of the land. Many things have
been done through the Supreme Court and through Federal District Courts and
through Federal Courts of Appeal. And so we must continue to work through the
courts to clarify the law. This is very important. We must continue to work to
double the number of Negro registered voters, North and South. For as I said
earlier I am convinced that, if we can increase the number of Negro registered
voters, we will be able to liberalize the political climate of the South. There are
still approximately 10 million, more than 10 million, Negroes in the South. Out of
this number, almost 6 million are eligible to vote at least they are of voting age.
Yet only about a million, 500 thousand are registered to vote. You can see that is
a big job ahead. And wherever Negroes are voting in large numbers, you do see
a different climate in race relations.
I think of my own city of Atlanta, Georgia, and we have worked there a long, long
time seeking to get Negroes registered to vote. And now the Negro vote is a
force in Atlanta with almost 50,000 registered to vote. This means that no mayor
can be elected in Atlanta without the Negro vote. This means that no alderman
can be elected in Atlanta without the Negro vote, and it really makes a difference.
I remember when the present mayor, a man of good will I'm convinced, was
running for governor several years ago. He was a segregationist, he talked about
the eternality of segregation. But then when he started running for mayor, he
started talking about integration. And somebody asked him one day: why did he
change? He said, "Well, I have seen the light now." Well 50,000 votes will make
anybody see the light. (Thunderous applause.)
Last year, I remember very vividly some of the students from Atlanta University
and Morehouse College and Spellman and Clark and the other schools in Atlanta
went down to attend a legislative session at the statehouse there. And they went
in and went into the balcony where the spectators were seated and they were
almost kicked out and threatened with arrest if they didn't get out immediately.
But I'm happy to report to you tonight that not only are Negroes able to sit in the
balcony now at the statehouse, just a year later. But now a Negro is sitting on
the main floor helping to make the laws for a state of Georgia. (Applause.) Now
this is because of the ballot and this will be done more and more if this job of
8
�Increasing, of doubling the number of registered voters is undertaken with zeal
and courage.
Then there is a need for the Negro to use his buying power to achieve a sense of
dignity. And I am not speaking of something negative now, I'm speaking of
something positive. I'm not speaking of a negative thrust to put somebody out of
business, but a positive thrust to put justice in business. And I think the time has
come for the Negro to say to industries and businesses all over this country, "If
you respect my dollar, you must respect my person." The buying power of the
Negro is now more than $20,000,000,000 a year, which is more than all the
exports of the United States, and more than the national budget of Canada. It's
still far from what it should be, but at least it reveals that it is a force and it is large
enough to make the difference between profit and loss in almost any business.
And we know that there are industries and businesses all over the country
practicing glaring and notorious discrimination against Negroes in employment.
And so that is a need for selective buying programs. We have started in several
cities already, and pretty soon we will be calling a national conference to launch
a nation-wide selective buying program. The procedure would certainly be to
begin with negotiations, starting out negotiating with an industry, urging them to
change their policies and employ Negroes in more than the manual areas or the
unskilled areas. And, then, if there is a refusal, there would be no alternative but
to inform people all over this country-Negroes and white peoples of good willthat this particular business, that this particular industry, discriminates against
Negroes in employment. And I think this can be a great force for good bringing
about a sort of moral balance within our nation.
But after we do all of this, (applause) we must supplement what is being done
with non-violent direct action. And I'd like to take just a few minutes to say
something about this method of non-violent direct action since it has been the
method that is being, and has been, used over the South-and over the country
for that matter-over the last few months and for the last few years. For I am
convinced that non-violence is the most potent weapon available to impress
people in the struggle for freedom and human dignity. Now first, this method has
a way of disarming the opponent. It exposes his moral defenses; it weakens his
morale and, at the same time, it works on his conscience and he just doesn't
know how to handle it. If he doesn't beat you, wonderful. If he beats you, you
develop the courage of accepting blows without retaliating. If he doesn't put you
in jail, wonderful. Nobody with any sense loves to go to jail. But if he puts you in
jail, you go in that jail and transform it from a dungeon of shame to a haven of
human freedom and dignity. Even if he tries to kill you, you develop the quiet
courage of dying if necessary without killing. And there is something about this
that the opponent just can't grasp; he doesn't know how to deal with it.
Another thing about this method is that it gives the individual a means of working
to secure moral ends through moral means. One of the great debates of history
has been over the question of ends and means. There have been those who
9
�have argued that the ends justify the means. And this is where non-violence
breaks with the philosophy that argues this, and in a system that contends that
destructive means will bring constructive ends because, in the long run, the end
is pre-existent in the means. The means represent the ideal in the making and
the end in process. And so it is wonderful to have a method that makes it
possible for the individual to struggle to secure moral ends through moral means.
And then another thing about this approach is that it makes it possible for the
individual to struggle against an unjust system and yet maintain an attitude of
active good will towards the perpetrators of that unjust system. One centers his
vision on getting rid of the evil system, and not getting rid of the person. In other
words, it becomes possible to hate segregation, and yet love the segregationist.
Now when I talk about love at this point, I'm not talking about emotional bosh. I'm
not talking about some sentimental or affectionate response. Certainly, it is
nonsense to urge oppressed people to love their oppressors in an affectionate
sense. I'm talking about something much deeper than that, I'm talking about that
force that is the supreme uniting force of life, that force which is willing to go the
second mile in order to restore the broken community, that force which is willing
to forgive seventy times seven in order to restore the broken community, that
force which somehow says that within everyman there is something of goodness
in a potential sense, and it can somehow be actualized. And this is what we
attempt to do, for we have come to see that hate is a dangerous force, hate is as
injurious to the hater as it is to the hated. The psychiatrists are telling us now that
many of the strange things that happen in the subconscious, many of the innerconflicts are rooted in hate, and so they are saying, love or perish. Eric Fromm
can say in a book like The Art of Loving that love is the most vital force in life and
there can be no personality integration without it. And this is what I'm speaking
of and this is what I'm thinking about, and I think it can be a force in this struggle
to make justice and freedom a reality. And so, in some way, as I've said so
many times before, this is what we are able to say to our most bitter opponents
"We will match your capacity to inflict suffering by our capacity to endure
suffering. We will meet your physical force with soul force. Do to us what you will
and we will still love you. We cannot in all good conscience obey your unjust
laws because non-cooperation with evil is as must a moral obligation as is
cooperation with good, and so throw us in jail and we will still love you. Threaten
our children and bomb our homes and, as difficult as it is, we will still love you.
Send your propaganda agents around the nation and make it appear that we are
not fit morally, culturally, or otherwise for integration and we will still love you.
Send your hooded perpetrators of violence into our communities at the midnight
hours and drag us out on some wayside road and beat us and leave us half dead
and, as difficult as it is, we will still love you. But be assured that we will wear you
down by our capacity to suffer, and we will continue to resist the evil system. And
one day we will win our victory, but we will not only win victory for ourselves, we
will so appeal to your heart and your conscience that we will win you in the
process, and our victory will be a double victory. And this method is not at all
without successful precedent. It was used by a little brown man in India by the
10
�name of Mohandas K. Gandhi to free his people from the political domination and
the economic exploitation inflicted upon them for years. He struggled only with
the weapons of soul force, non-injury, moral courage, and love. It has been used
in a marvelous manner by hundreds and thousands of students all over our
nation. They have taken our deep groans and passionate yearnings for freedom
and filtered them in their own souls and fashioned them into a creative protest,
which is an epic known all over this nation. And for all of these months they have
moved in a uniquely meaningful orbit, imparting light and heat to distant
satellites, and as a result of their non-violent, disciplined yet courageous efforts,
they have been able to bring about integration at lunch counters in almost two
hundred cities in the South as a result of the freedom rides. Segregation is
almost dead in the South and almost dead in every community that we can point
to.
And so this is a powerful method. And I believe by using all of these forces and
by all these forces working together, we will be able to bring into being that new
day when we have not only a desegregated society, but also an integrated
society. And if we will struggle with nonviolence, resist with nonviolence, we will
go into the new age with a proper attitude realizing that our aim must never be to
rise from a position of disadvantage to one of advantage thus averting justice.
We will not seek to substitute one tyranny for another. But something will remind
us that black supremacy is as dangerous as white supremacy, and that God is
not interested merely in the freedom of black men and brown men and yellow
men, but that God in interested in the freedom of the whole human race.
This is a challenge. Great opportunities stand before America at this hour. To
paraphrase the words of John Oxenham, "To every nation there openeth a way
and ways and a way. The high nation climbs the high way, and the low nation
gropes the low, and in between, on the misty flats, the rest drift to and fro. But to
every nation, there openeth a high and a low way. Every nation decideth which
way its soul shall go." And God grant that we here in America will chose a high
way, a way in which men will be able to live together as brothers, a way in which
every man will respect the dignity and worth of human personality, a way in
which the words of Amos will become real: "Let justice roll down like waters and
righteousness like a mighty stream," a way in which we will live out the true
meaning of the Declaration of Independence . "We hold these truths to be self:
evident that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator
with certain inalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of
happiness." And, if we will follow this way, we will be able to transform the
jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. We
may take courage and we may gain consolation from the fact that we have made
strides, that we have solved some of the problems, we have done some things in
spite of the fact that there is still much to be done. We do have that consolation
behind, that we have done something. And so I close by quoting the words of an
old Negro slave preacher, who didn't quite have his grammar right and his
diction, but uttered words of symbolic profundity. His words--worded in the form
II
�of a prayer- "Lord, we ain't what we ought to be, we ain't what we want to be, we
ain't what we gonna be. But, thank God, we ain't what we was."
Moderator: Dr. King would you be willing to comment on the Muslim movement
and the extent of its power.
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.: Well, first let me say that while I disagree with the
philosophy of this movement, it is necessary to realize that it didn't come into
being out of thin air. It is here because certain conditions brought it into being. It
is symptomatic of the deeper unrest, of frustration, the discontent of many
Negroes in America. And the conditions of discrimination in their varied forms
brought this movement into being; these are the things that the Muslims thrive
on. And it is just as important to work to get rid of the conditions that brought this
movement into being than it is to condemn the philosophy. It may well be the fact
that a movement like this is alive in 1963 in America is an indictment on America
and Christianity and democracy itself. And it means that we've got to become
more democratic and more committed to the principles of our religious heritage.
Now as far as the influence, the power of this movement, I would say that up to
this point this movement has not appealed to the vast majority of Negroes. The
best estimate would place the number of members around 75,000. I think the FBI
says about 75,000. Dr. Eric Lincoln in a recent book on the movement says
about 100,000 or a few more. But it is still a small number when you think about
the fact that there are approximately 20 million Negroes in the United States.
And I'm sure that it is true that the vast majority of Negroes have not, at this time,
come to the point of accepting this idea. I think there are many, many more than
a hundred thousand who would agree with their criticism of America society, and
I do say that it is a challenge to everybody to work harder to get rid of the
problem because they are going to be here as long as we have the problem.
Groups like this will exist. It doesn't get off the ground in communities where
progress is being made in race relations; it does in communities where you see
retrogress and a great deal of frustration and the constant development of the
ghetto. So it means that it is necessary to work together to get rid of the
conditions that brought it into being as well as condemn the philosophy.
(Applause.)
12
�
Dublin Core
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Title
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Ford Hall Forum Collection, 1910-2013 (MS113)
Creator
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Ford Hall Forum
Language
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English
Description
An account of the resource
The Ford Hall Forum Collection documents the history of the nation’s longest running free public lecture series. The Forum has hosted some the most notable figures in the arts, science, politics, and the humanities since its founding in 1908. The collection, which spans from 1908 to 2013, includes of 85 boxes of materials related to the Forum's administration, lectures, fund raising, partnerships, and its radio program, the New American Gazette.<br /><br />The digital files are being moved to: <a href="https://dc.suffolk.edu/fordhall">https://dc.suffolk.edu/fordhall</a>
Source
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<p>View the <a href="https://dc.suffolk.edu/cgi/siteview.cgi//researchguides/11">finding aid to the Ford Hall Forum Collection</a> for more information (PDF).</p>
<p> </p>
Document
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ms-0161
Title
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Transcript of a 1963 Ford Hall Forum lecture by Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Date
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24 March 1963
Creator
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Ford Hall Forum
King, Martin Luther, Jr., 1929-1968
Description
An account of the resource
Transcript of audio from address delivered at the Ford Hall Forum by Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., in 3/24/1963 entitled "Desegregation and the Future." The top of the transcription includes the following note: "This event took place three weeks before King's incarceration in Birmingham, Alabama."
Source
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Ford Hall Forum Collection,1908-2013 (MS113)
MS 113/1.1 Folder: 38
Type
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Documents
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PDF
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tgn: 7013445
Language
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English
Subject
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Ford Hall Forum
Forums (Discussion and debate)
King, Martin Luther, Jr., 1929-1968
Rights
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Copyright Suffolk University. This item is made available for research and educational purposes by the Moakley Archive & Institute. Prior permission is required for any commercial use.
Relation
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<p>View the <a href="http://www.suffolk.edu/documents/MoakleyArchive/ms113_findingaid.pdf">finding aid to the Ford Hall Forum</a> for more information (PDF).</p>
Civil rights
Ford Hall Forum
Lectures
-
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810ef16eb8a3a978396263604c890d50
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Ford Hall Forum Collection, 1910-2013 (MS113)
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Ford Hall Forum
Language
A language of the resource
English
Description
An account of the resource
The Ford Hall Forum Collection documents the history of the nation’s longest running free public lecture series. The Forum has hosted some the most notable figures in the arts, science, politics, and the humanities since its founding in 1908. The collection, which spans from 1908 to 2013, includes of 85 boxes of materials related to the Forum's administration, lectures, fund raising, partnerships, and its radio program, the New American Gazette.<br /><br />The digital files are being moved to: <a href="https://dc.suffolk.edu/fordhall">https://dc.suffolk.edu/fordhall</a>
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
<p>View the <a href="https://dc.suffolk.edu/cgi/siteview.cgi//researchguides/11">finding aid to the Ford Hall Forum Collection</a> for more information (PDF).</p>
<p> </p>
Document
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ms-0142
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David Duke Protest Flyer, 1991
Date
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1991
Creator
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International Committee Against Racism (InCAR)
Progressive Labor Party
Description
An account of the resource
Flyer advertising a protest against David Duke's lecture at the Ford Hall forum on Thursday, March 28, 1991. Protest organized by the International Committee Against Racism (InCAR) and the Progressive Labor Party. Black and white image of KKK members, one of which is holding their head, with caption below photo: "Klansmen get what they deserve from hundreds of workers and students organized by InCAR." Transcription of flyer's text: "David Duke, "former" head of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, and currently a Louisiana State Senator, will be attempting to speak on Thursday the 28th. Duke is a racist who attempts to blame the economic problems workers face on black workers and immigrants. Duke helps the rich rulers of the U.S. "divide and conquer the working class so that they can continue with the cutbacks and layoffs. The depression and lousy conditions affect all working people. lnCAR believes in multi-racial unity in order to fight racism and fight back against the cutbacks and unemployment. We say "no free speech for fascists". We have tangled with DuKKKe before - what he and the KKK fear most is the organized strength of thousands of workers and students -- asian, latin, black and white -- determined to stop them. Please join us and bring everyone you know."
Source
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Ford Hall Forum Collection,1908-2013 (MS113)
MS 113/1.1 Folder: 358
Type
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Text
Posters
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JPG
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tgn: 7013445
Language
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English
Subject
The topic of the resource
Ford Hall Forum
Forums (Discussion and debate)
Duke, David Ernest
Demonstrations
Rights
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Copyright International Committee Against Racism (InCAR). This item is made available for research and educational purposes by the Moakley Archive & Institute. Prior permission is required for any commercial use.
Relation
A related resource
<p>View the <a href="http://www.suffolk.edu/documents/MoakleyArchive/ms113_findingaid.pdf">finding aid to the Ford Hall Forum</a> for more information (PDF).</p>
Civil rights
Ford Hall Forum
Lectures
-
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fe719bfb3e1cc4d443c346a3dbcec1d8
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers, 1926-2001 (MS100)
Description
An account of the resource
The Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers document Joe Moakley’s early life, his World War II service, his terms served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives and Senate, and his service in the United States Congress. The majority of the collection covers Moakley’s congressional career from 1973 until 2001. <br /><br />Use the <a href="https://www.suffolk.edu/-/media/suffolk/documents/academics/libraries/moakley-archive/moakley-papers/ms100_pdftxt.pdf?la=en&hash=B12D6C6C7164568D0537E426483AB65CC5DFF80D" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">finding aid</a> for a summary of the entire collection, including non-digitized materials. <a href="http://www.suffolk.edu/documents/MoakleyArchive/ms100_findingaid.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"></a>
Document
A resource containing textual data. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre text.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
DI-1158
Title
A name given to the resource
Correspondence between John Joseph Moakley and two Jamaica Plain residents regarding busing, 23-31 March 1976
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
23-31 March 1976
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Moakley, John Joseph, 1927-2001
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
tgn:7015005 (Jamaica Plain)
Description
An account of the resource
Please note that the Archives has redacted personal information such as names and street addresses from this document.
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers, 1926-2001 (MS100)
Series 03.09 Legislative Assistants' Files: General Files
Box 1 Folder 2
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Documents
Text
Language
A language of the resource
English
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
PDF
Subject
The topic of the resource
Moakley, John Joseph, 1927-2013
Busing for school integration
Civil rights
Boston (Mass.)
United States. Congress--Constituent communication
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
Copyright is retained by the creators of items in this collection, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law. This item is made available for research and educational purposes by the Moakley Archive & Institute. Prior permission is required for any commercial use.
Relation
A related resource
<p>View the <a href="http://www.suffolk.edu/documents/MoakleyArchive/ms100.pdf">finding aid to the John Joseph Moakley Papers</a> for more information (PDF).</p>
<p> </p>
Busing for school integration
Civil rights
Joe Moakley
South Boston (Mass.)
-
https://d1y502jg6fpugt.cloudfront.net/11079/archive/files/76b6e2e84105a10069d41561f30f9bba.pdf?Expires=1712793600&Signature=OXX-x4m%7Ek8qliakJtU6loZB8gTsM4YOonHjJBWYPuF6VyeOB4Or3dWWYM-9KQnF7aKbm6BnD-%7EGImkMkT7pm2VyF6S0DX4Ej5oqB3lo5mxPECEuWwWf7fAEkBU4xxboWo2MHukVKpdAxeMP7cI0tWNw6m97fh9RQwjbAG3AX7BLI8Gis%7EwLd23anwXffKETd-Gt0Fm9xuwcKWpl97PArOrOtW2BAMKYOY%7Ekc8DLC%7ExHT6ZGf3W5X2umYH8gDzcUc6Q1DW9Pnax7jrhnsDEB-%7EtnHgkFwptfCIr6aTsjT4KeYNSvmLAkxw5XOs1C3evSr1PESJ2lOfRxtQrvDJDyLTA__&Key-Pair-Id=K6UGZS9ZTDSZM
148453a73a0be1d09900544a8dbb6a97
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers, 1926-2001 (MS100)
Description
An account of the resource
The Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers document Joe Moakley’s early life, his World War II service, his terms served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives and Senate, and his service in the United States Congress. The majority of the collection covers Moakley’s congressional career from 1973 until 2001. <br /><br />Use the <a href="https://www.suffolk.edu/-/media/suffolk/documents/academics/libraries/moakley-archive/moakley-papers/ms100_pdftxt.pdf?la=en&hash=B12D6C6C7164568D0537E426483AB65CC5DFF80D" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">finding aid</a> for a summary of the entire collection, including non-digitized materials. <a href="http://www.suffolk.edu/documents/MoakleyArchive/ms100_findingaid.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"></a>
Document
A resource containing textual data. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre text.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
DI-1157
Title
A name given to the resource
Correspondence between John Joseph Moakley and the Massachusetts Black Legislative Caucus regarding busing including a list of demands, April-May 1976
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
April-May 1976
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Moakley, John Joseph, 1927-2001
Massachusetts Black Legislative Caucus
Description
An account of the resource
The letter from the Massachusetts Black Legislative Caucus discusses the attack on Theodore Landsmark and other violent incidents in Boston, and is signed by representatives Mary H. Goode, Royal Bolling Jr., Doris Bunte, Robert Fortes, Raymond Jordan, Melvin King, and Senator William Owens.
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers, 1926-2001 (MS100)
Series 04 District Issues
Box 6 Folder 61
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Documents
Text
Language
A language of the resource
English
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
PDF
Subject
The topic of the resource
Moakley, John Joseph, 1927-2012
Busing for school integration
Civil rights
Boston (Mass.)
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
Copyright is retained by the creators of items in this collection, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law. This item is made available for research and educational purposes by the Moakley Archive & Institute. Prior permission is required for any commercial use.
Relation
A related resource
<p>View the <a href="http://www.suffolk.edu/documents/MoakleyArchive/ms100.pdf">finding aid to the John Joseph Moakley Papers</a> for more information (PDF).</p>
<p> </p>
Black history
Busing for school integration
Civil rights
Joe Moakley
South Boston (Mass.)
-
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428cb5d22b4a39e58ce3b2f6052d9003
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers, 1926-2001 (MS100)
Description
An account of the resource
The Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers document Joe Moakley’s early life, his World War II service, his terms served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives and Senate, and his service in the United States Congress. The majority of the collection covers Moakley’s congressional career from 1973 until 2001. <br /><br />Use the <a href="https://www.suffolk.edu/-/media/suffolk/documents/academics/libraries/moakley-archive/moakley-papers/ms100_pdftxt.pdf?la=en&hash=B12D6C6C7164568D0537E426483AB65CC5DFF80D" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">finding aid</a> for a summary of the entire collection, including non-digitized materials. <a href="http://www.suffolk.edu/documents/MoakleyArchive/ms100_findingaid.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"></a>
Document
A resource containing textual data. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre text.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
DI-1156
Title
A name given to the resource
Letter from Massachusetts State Senator Joseph B. Walsh to John Joseph Moakley regarding a resolution related to busing proposed by Boston City Councilor Louise Day Hicks, 28 January 1975
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
28 January 1975
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Walsh, Joseph B.
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers, 1926-2001 (MS100)
Series 04 District Issues
Box 6 Folder 60
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Documents
Text
Language
A language of the resource
English
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
PDF
Subject
The topic of the resource
Moakley, John Joseph, 1927-2011
Busing for school integration
Civil rights
Boston (Mass.)
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
Copyright is retained by the creators of items in this collection, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law. This item is made available for research and educational purposes by the Moakley Archive & Institute. Prior permission is required for any commercial use.
Relation
A related resource
<p>View the <a href="http://www.suffolk.edu/documents/MoakleyArchive/ms100.pdf">finding aid to the John Joseph Moakley Papers</a> for more information (PDF).</p>
<p> </p>
Busing for school integration
Civil rights
Joe Moakley
South Boston (Mass.)
-
https://d1y502jg6fpugt.cloudfront.net/11079/archive/files/baf2ed86faf2180efd6ca6969e068b0d.pdf?Expires=1712793600&Signature=WqknlAKEkmyLjhnIeYZXpVz4fgcZ9WJdhFzewKwEQ2MdfjnQlyFSyNswovEdtU6inxhcbxtCCdt5R12kUVDUXovWeI9BPKfcEwhipoxDySVjYWnm75PGuHi1ahu1YO%7EMVvlChZRJ8KLEkMwH6OFBJHzRGwS48WbSa-A-7V-7tljc7Az%7EfkAM2SqOGRKqeEQJt9WNJuyOTzJY7YhY1g5Fu5CBJAgt1o3OQhv2D5-RzxRv7YoBgoHoOZBXTUw3ruTjVcBUAzpUkpGEWHhB8Ii-3xv67AHjjCGybKfnzgt4uLin5u8Ix%7E40BeXlXd%7EV4ocwU0LUQ7fThzUHNAj1gOdG2g__&Key-Pair-Id=K6UGZS9ZTDSZM
6b563bd8a1317c6f591251c6dc8a88f6
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers, 1926-2001 (MS100)
Description
An account of the resource
The Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers document Joe Moakley’s early life, his World War II service, his terms served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives and Senate, and his service in the United States Congress. The majority of the collection covers Moakley’s congressional career from 1973 until 2001. <br /><br />Use the <a href="https://www.suffolk.edu/-/media/suffolk/documents/academics/libraries/moakley-archive/moakley-papers/ms100_pdftxt.pdf?la=en&hash=B12D6C6C7164568D0537E426483AB65CC5DFF80D" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">finding aid</a> for a summary of the entire collection, including non-digitized materials. <a href="http://www.suffolk.edu/documents/MoakleyArchive/ms100_findingaid.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"></a>
Document
A resource containing textual data. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre text.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
DI-1155
Title
A name given to the resource
Correspondence between John Joseph Moakley and ROAR (Restore Our Alienated Rights) regarding busing, including a copy of a letter from Moakley to Senator John Tower in response to the letter from ROAR, October 1975
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
October 1975
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Moakley, John Joseph, 1927-2001
Restore Our Alienated Rights (ROAR)
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers, 1926-2001 (MS100)
Series 04 District Issues
Box 6 Folder 60
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Documents
Text
Language
A language of the resource
English
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
PDF
Subject
The topic of the resource
Moakley, John Joseph, 1927-2010
Busing for school integration
Civil rights
Boston (Mass.)
Restore Our Alienated Rights (ROAR)
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
Copyright is retained by the creators of items in this collection, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law. This item is made available for research and educational purposes by the Moakley Archive & Institute. Prior permission is required for any commercial use.
Relation
A related resource
<p>View the <a href="http://www.suffolk.edu/documents/MoakleyArchive/ms100.pdf">finding aid to the John Joseph Moakley Papers</a> for more information (PDF).</p>
<p> </p>
Busing for school integration
Civil rights
Joe Moakley
South Boston (Mass.)
-
https://d1y502jg6fpugt.cloudfront.net/11079/archive/files/2fc7cebff6bc54505f17f0b8404a5fb1.pdf?Expires=1712793600&Signature=Mcb0OM0WmjUMZ-%7EFVJTU0wB5oV6mTDvHTI3r6gWugP4F1XalKW9kXj%7EkhitQLS4WMe5SNRium%7Enuobc8ztpC2NTEn0U6iifM4g26u3bUzyBRS-BRIkyNiIHojQeG0VG7ymX7uIs4Ae2Rk7-Aui%7E6qHSsFucCrAwNifpsOAgPaTFIXlikjlQMNKZj22LlhI9i8VDB7iDHi01QC2I7U1n4VvaN0fePBxvBW-QrClZfyVOTk6NcYMT%7EqeoOdqt-SlV0wycrUEePYFg2SxX%7E6KzGxpiRebDJ8%7EFOFHFJoQNuYN92bz2uRmKQyLfmNJr62mjATEy7d8bmuON-%7E9HAAszJMQ__&Key-Pair-Id=K6UGZS9ZTDSZM
5ec013c1af4f725bcc80f2c188096e25
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers, 1926-2001 (MS100)
Description
An account of the resource
The Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers document Joe Moakley’s early life, his World War II service, his terms served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives and Senate, and his service in the United States Congress. The majority of the collection covers Moakley’s congressional career from 1973 until 2001. <br /><br />Use the <a href="https://www.suffolk.edu/-/media/suffolk/documents/academics/libraries/moakley-archive/moakley-papers/ms100_pdftxt.pdf?la=en&hash=B12D6C6C7164568D0537E426483AB65CC5DFF80D" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">finding aid</a> for a summary of the entire collection, including non-digitized materials. <a href="http://www.suffolk.edu/documents/MoakleyArchive/ms100_findingaid.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"></a>
Document
A resource containing textual data. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre text.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
DI-1154
Title
A name given to the resource
Correspondence between John Joseph Moakley and Louise Day Hicks of the Boston City Council regarding busing, December 1975-January 1976
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
December 1975-January 1976
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Moakley, John Joseph, 1927-2001
Hicks, Louise Day, 1916-2003
Description
An account of the resource
Letter from Moakley includes attached response from Bob Kastenmeier, Chairman of the Subcommittee on Courts, Civil Liberties and the Administration of Justice (of the House Committee on the Judiciary), declining to hold hearings in Boston regarding the federal court order on busing.
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers, 1926-2001 (MS100)
Series 04 District Issues
Box 5 Folder 55
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Documents
Text
Language
A language of the resource
English
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
PDF
Subject
The topic of the resource
Moakley, John Joseph, 1927-2009
Busing for school integration
Civil rights
Boston (Mass.)
Hicks, Louise Day, 1916-2003
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
Copyright is retained by the creators of items in this collection, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law. This item is made available for research and educational purposes by the Moakley Archive & Institute. Prior permission is required for any commercial use.
Relation
A related resource
<p>View the <a href="http://www.suffolk.edu/documents/MoakleyArchive/ms100.pdf">finding aid to the John Joseph Moakley Papers</a> for more information (PDF).</p>
<p> </p>
Busing for school integration
Civil rights
Joe Moakley
Louise Day Hicks
South Boston (Mass.)
-
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daf5a28d3392ff1d597bfb36fec84e3b
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers, 1926-2001 (MS100)
Description
An account of the resource
The Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers document Joe Moakley’s early life, his World War II service, his terms served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives and Senate, and his service in the United States Congress. The majority of the collection covers Moakley’s congressional career from 1973 until 2001. <br /><br />Use the <a href="https://www.suffolk.edu/-/media/suffolk/documents/academics/libraries/moakley-archive/moakley-papers/ms100_pdftxt.pdf?la=en&hash=B12D6C6C7164568D0537E426483AB65CC5DFF80D" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">finding aid</a> for a summary of the entire collection, including non-digitized materials. <a href="http://www.suffolk.edu/documents/MoakleyArchive/ms100_findingaid.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"></a>
Document
A resource containing textual data. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre text.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
DI-1153
Title
A name given to the resource
Correspondence between John Joseph Moakley and a Braintree resident regarding busing, 10-15 December 1975
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
10-15 December 1975
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Moakley, John Joseph, 1927-2001
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
tgn:2049507
Description
An account of the resource
Please note that the Archives has redacted personal information such as names and street addresses from this document.
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers, 1926-2001 (MS100)
Series 04 District Issues
Box 5 Folder 53
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Documents
Text
Language
A language of the resource
English
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
PDF
Subject
The topic of the resource
Moakley, John Joseph, 1927-2008
Busing for school integration
Civil rights
Boston (Mass.)
United States. Congress--Constituent communication
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
Copyright is retained by the creators of items in this collection, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law. This item is made available for research and educational purposes by the Moakley Archive & Institute. Prior permission is required for any commercial use.
Relation
A related resource
<p>View the <a href="http://www.suffolk.edu/documents/MoakleyArchive/ms100.pdf">finding aid to the John Joseph Moakley Papers</a> for more information (PDF).</p>
<p> </p>
Busing for school integration
Civil rights
Joe Moakley
South Boston (Mass.)
-
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20b51dcbfc37de983666e5587df52e93
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers, 1926-2001 (MS100)
Description
An account of the resource
The Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers document Joe Moakley’s early life, his World War II service, his terms served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives and Senate, and his service in the United States Congress. The majority of the collection covers Moakley’s congressional career from 1973 until 2001. <br /><br />Use the <a href="https://www.suffolk.edu/-/media/suffolk/documents/academics/libraries/moakley-archive/moakley-papers/ms100_pdftxt.pdf?la=en&hash=B12D6C6C7164568D0537E426483AB65CC5DFF80D" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">finding aid</a> for a summary of the entire collection, including non-digitized materials. <a href="http://www.suffolk.edu/documents/MoakleyArchive/ms100_findingaid.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"></a>
Document
A resource containing textual data. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre text.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
DI-1152
Title
A name given to the resource
Correspondence between John Joseph Moakley and a Boston resident regarding busing, November-December 1975
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
November-December 1975
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Moakley, John Joseph, 1927-2001
Description
An account of the resource
Please note that the Archives has redacted personal information such as names and street addresses from this document.
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers, 1926-2001 (MS100)
Series 04 District Issues
Box 5 Folder 53
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Documents
Text
Language
A language of the resource
English
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
PDF
Subject
The topic of the resource
Moakley, John Joseph, 1927-2007
Busing for school integration
Civil rights
Boston (Mass.)
United States. Congress--Constituent communication
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
Copyright is retained by the creators of items in this collection, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law. This item is made available for research and educational purposes by the Moakley Archive & Institute. Prior permission is required for any commercial use.
Relation
A related resource
<p>View the <a href="http://www.suffolk.edu/documents/MoakleyArchive/ms100.pdf">finding aid to the John Joseph Moakley Papers</a> for more information (PDF).</p>
<p> </p>
Busing for school integration
Civil rights
Joe Moakley
South Boston (Mass.)
-
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773dbdc0e10afdf15cd33f4d344769f6
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers, 1926-2001 (MS100)
Description
An account of the resource
The Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers document Joe Moakley’s early life, his World War II service, his terms served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives and Senate, and his service in the United States Congress. The majority of the collection covers Moakley’s congressional career from 1973 until 2001. <br /><br />Use the <a href="https://www.suffolk.edu/-/media/suffolk/documents/academics/libraries/moakley-archive/moakley-papers/ms100_pdftxt.pdf?la=en&hash=B12D6C6C7164568D0537E426483AB65CC5DFF80D" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">finding aid</a> for a summary of the entire collection, including non-digitized materials. <a href="http://www.suffolk.edu/documents/MoakleyArchive/ms100_findingaid.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"></a>
Document
A resource containing textual data. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre text.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
DI-1151
Title
A name given to the resource
Correspondence between John Joseph Moakley and a Westwood resident regarding busing, 31 October 1975
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
31 October 1975
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Moakley, John Joseph, 1927-2001
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
tgn:7016328
Description
An account of the resource
Please note that the Archives has redacted personal information such as names and street addresses from this document.
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers, 1926-2001 (MS100)
Series 04 District Issues
Box 5 Folder 53
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Documents
Text
Language
A language of the resource
English
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
PDF
Subject
The topic of the resource
Moakley, John Joseph, 1927-2006
Busing for school integration
Civil rights
Boston (Mass.)
United States. Congress--Constituent communication
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
Copyright is retained by the creators of items in this collection, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law. This item is made available for research and educational purposes by the Moakley Archive & Institute. Prior permission is required for any commercial use.
Relation
A related resource
<p>View the <a href="http://www.suffolk.edu/documents/MoakleyArchive/ms100.pdf">finding aid to the John Joseph Moakley Papers</a> for more information (PDF).</p>
<p> </p>
Busing for school integration
Civil rights
Joe Moakley
South Boston (Mass.)
-
https://d1y502jg6fpugt.cloudfront.net/11079/archive/files/0dbfc584a1d1e1ae8c53af674d907137.pdf?Expires=1712793600&Signature=uTe6jwioqWiS2OZYF1Aw38XjL1a%7E1dvQshGJYrLLv7-Y9glXOfMGiX7O-xUUUYzU6H3Jga0Mgey1RGH%7EU3VMvpFTnbNC06UcpJn-QO9p0tFGGqnjgJMwCVmxP-qxRFxpA76MXo6a2De-luepuPxGx6QTopj1bqdT65OQqGMTDwCULMQi%7E%7E9zFvbRuOQ0LocrBtNo57YwPe%7EqWWGTmoprmYo3BHJ3D4s5k6w0yVddJogI1cw7npjHtq02N2d8bBUz8xsN75Dbnzrc6uDeGf1mabkoxhNBz7HlNVt0Z-Fp-D80ttJkQX3FqM1LlyTZlz1K9GJvZtxsRM5xnVlwOpj4rg__&Key-Pair-Id=K6UGZS9ZTDSZM
1b9e13cb9cf7184f7e0a742bf13b660a
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers, 1926-2001 (MS100)
Description
An account of the resource
The Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers document Joe Moakley’s early life, his World War II service, his terms served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives and Senate, and his service in the United States Congress. The majority of the collection covers Moakley’s congressional career from 1973 until 2001. <br /><br />Use the <a href="https://www.suffolk.edu/-/media/suffolk/documents/academics/libraries/moakley-archive/moakley-papers/ms100_pdftxt.pdf?la=en&hash=B12D6C6C7164568D0537E426483AB65CC5DFF80D" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">finding aid</a> for a summary of the entire collection, including non-digitized materials. <a href="http://www.suffolk.edu/documents/MoakleyArchive/ms100_findingaid.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"></a>
Document
A resource containing textual data. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre text.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
DI-1150
Title
A name given to the resource
Correspondence between John Joseph Moakley and Marianne Procida, President of Mass. Citizens Against Forced Busing, Inc., 20-22 May 1975
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
20-22 May 1975
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Moakley, John Joseph, 1927-2001
Procida, Marianne
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers, 1926-2001 (MS100)
Series 04 District Issues
Box 5 Folder 53
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Documents
Text
Language
A language of the resource
English
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
PDF
Subject
The topic of the resource
Moakley, John Joseph, 1927-2005
Busing for school integration
Civil rights
Boston (Mass.)
Mass. Citizens Against Forced Busing
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
Copyright is retained by the creators of items in this collection, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law. This item is made available for research and educational purposes by the Moakley Archive & Institute. Prior permission is required for any commercial use.
Relation
A related resource
<p>View the <a href="http://www.suffolk.edu/documents/MoakleyArchive/ms100.pdf">finding aid to the John Joseph Moakley Papers</a> for more information (PDF).</p>
<p> </p>
Busing for school integration
Civil rights
Joe Moakley
South Boston (Mass.)
-
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03e4b3c67897d02391495411d6ed8bc9
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers, 1926-2001 (MS100)
Description
An account of the resource
The Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers document Joe Moakley’s early life, his World War II service, his terms served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives and Senate, and his service in the United States Congress. The majority of the collection covers Moakley’s congressional career from 1973 until 2001. <br /><br />Use the <a href="https://www.suffolk.edu/-/media/suffolk/documents/academics/libraries/moakley-archive/moakley-papers/ms100_pdftxt.pdf?la=en&hash=B12D6C6C7164568D0537E426483AB65CC5DFF80D" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">finding aid</a> for a summary of the entire collection, including non-digitized materials. <a href="http://www.suffolk.edu/documents/MoakleyArchive/ms100_findingaid.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"></a>
Document
A resource containing textual data. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre text.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
DI-1149
Title
A name given to the resource
Correspondence between John Joseph Moakley and a South Boston resident regarding busing, September 1974
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
12-26 September 1974
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Moakley, John Joseph, 1927-2001
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
tgn:7015007 (South Boston)
Description
An account of the resource
Please note that the Archives has redacted personal information such as names and street addresses from this document.
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers, 1926-2001 (MS100)
Series 04 District Issues
Box 5 Folder 52
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Documents
Text
Language
A language of the resource
English
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
PDF
Subject
The topic of the resource
Moakley, John Joseph, 1927-2004
Busing for school integration
Civil rights
Boston (Mass.)
United States. Congress--Constituent communication
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
Copyright is retained by the creators of items in this collection, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law. This item is made available for research and educational purposes by the Moakley Archive & Institute. Prior permission is required for any commercial use.
Relation
A related resource
<p>View the <a href="http://www.suffolk.edu/documents/MoakleyArchive/ms100.pdf">finding aid to the John Joseph Moakley Papers</a> for more information (PDF).</p>
<p> </p>
Busing for school integration
Civil rights
Joe Moakley
South Boston (Mass.)
-
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f3fc23ea3db9a8a32b69d7f035d070d4
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers, 1926-2001 (MS100)
Description
An account of the resource
The Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers document Joe Moakley’s early life, his World War II service, his terms served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives and Senate, and his service in the United States Congress. The majority of the collection covers Moakley’s congressional career from 1973 until 2001. <br /><br />Use the <a href="https://www.suffolk.edu/-/media/suffolk/documents/academics/libraries/moakley-archive/moakley-papers/ms100_pdftxt.pdf?la=en&hash=B12D6C6C7164568D0537E426483AB65CC5DFF80D" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">finding aid</a> for a summary of the entire collection, including non-digitized materials. <a href="http://www.suffolk.edu/documents/MoakleyArchive/ms100_findingaid.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"></a>
Document
A resource containing textual data. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre text.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
DI-1148
Title
A name given to the resource
Correspondence between John Joseph Moakley and a South Boston resident regarding busing, September 1974
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
12-26 September 1974
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Moakley, John Joseph, 1927-2001
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
tgn:7015007 (South Boston)
Description
An account of the resource
Please note that the Archives has redacted personal information such as names and street addresses from this document.
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers, 1926-2001 (MS100)
Series 04 District Issues
Box 5 Folder 52
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Documents
Text
Language
A language of the resource
English
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
PDF
Subject
The topic of the resource
Moakley, John Joseph, 1927-2003
Busing for school integration
Civil rights
Boston (Mass.)
United States. Congress--Constituent communication
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
Copyright is retained by the creators of items in this collection, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law. This item is made available for research and educational purposes by the Moakley Archive & Institute. Prior permission is required for any commercial use.
Relation
A related resource
<p>View the <a href="http://www.suffolk.edu/documents/MoakleyArchive/ms100.pdf">finding aid to the John Joseph Moakley Papers</a> for more information (PDF).</p>
<p> </p>
Busing for school integration
Civil rights
Joe Moakley
South Boston (Mass.)
-
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c4d52cc9cb5c34c23d77f8c2afb058bf
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers, 1926-2001 (MS100)
Description
An account of the resource
The Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers document Joe Moakley’s early life, his World War II service, his terms served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives and Senate, and his service in the United States Congress. The majority of the collection covers Moakley’s congressional career from 1973 until 2001. <br /><br />Use the <a href="https://www.suffolk.edu/-/media/suffolk/documents/academics/libraries/moakley-archive/moakley-papers/ms100_pdftxt.pdf?la=en&hash=B12D6C6C7164568D0537E426483AB65CC5DFF80D" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">finding aid</a> for a summary of the entire collection, including non-digitized materials. <a href="http://www.suffolk.edu/documents/MoakleyArchive/ms100_findingaid.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"></a>
Document
A resource containing textual data. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre text.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
DI-1147
Title
A name given to the resource
Correspondence between John Joseph Moakley and a South Boston resident regarding busing, September 1974
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
12-26 September 1974
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Moakley, John Joseph, 1927-2001
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
tgn:7015007 (South Boston)
Description
An account of the resource
Please note that the Archives has redacted personal information such as names and street addresses from this document.
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers, 1926-2001 (MS100)
Series 04 District Issues
Box 5 Folder 52
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Documents
Text
Language
A language of the resource
English
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
PDF
Subject
The topic of the resource
Moakley, John Joseph, 1927-2002
Busing for school integration
Civil rights
Boston (Mass.)
United States. Congress--Constituent communication
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
Copyright is retained by the creators of items in this collection, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law. This item is made available for research and educational purposes by the Moakley Archive & Institute. Prior permission is required for any commercial use.
Relation
A related resource
<p>View the <a href="http://www.suffolk.edu/documents/MoakleyArchive/ms100.pdf">finding aid to the John Joseph Moakley Papers</a> for more information (PDF).</p>
<p> </p>
Busing for school integration
Civil rights
Joe Moakley
South Boston (Mass.)
-
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348ac07b958b2404c657fcff88fd517d
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers, 1926-2001 (MS100)
Description
An account of the resource
The Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers document Joe Moakley’s early life, his World War II service, his terms served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives and Senate, and his service in the United States Congress. The majority of the collection covers Moakley’s congressional career from 1973 until 2001. <br /><br />Use the <a href="https://www.suffolk.edu/-/media/suffolk/documents/academics/libraries/moakley-archive/moakley-papers/ms100_pdftxt.pdf?la=en&hash=B12D6C6C7164568D0537E426483AB65CC5DFF80D" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">finding aid</a> for a summary of the entire collection, including non-digitized materials. <a href="http://www.suffolk.edu/documents/MoakleyArchive/ms100_findingaid.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"></a>
Document
A resource containing textual data. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre text.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
DI-1146
Title
A name given to the resource
Telegram from South Boston resident regarding busing urging John Joseph Moakley to "come back to South Boston"
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
12 September 1974
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
tgn:7015007 (South Boston)
Description
An account of the resource
Please note that the Archives has redacted personal information such as names and street addresses from this document.
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers, 1926-2001 (MS100)
Series 04 District Issues
Box 5 Folder 52
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Documents
Text
Language
A language of the resource
English
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
PDF
Subject
The topic of the resource
Moakley, John Joseph, 1927-2001
Busing for school integration
Civil rights
Boston (Mass.)
United States. Congress--Constituent communication
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
Copyright is retained by the creators of items in this collection, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law. This item is made available for research and educational purposes by the Moakley Archive & Institute. Prior permission is required for any commercial use.
Relation
A related resource
<p>View the <a href="http://www.suffolk.edu/documents/MoakleyArchive/ms100.pdf">finding aid to the John Joseph Moakley Papers</a> for more information (PDF).</p>
<p> </p>
Busing for school integration
Civil rights
Joe Moakley
South Boston (Mass.)
-
https://d1y502jg6fpugt.cloudfront.net/11079/archive/files/1b87da8e92dd224a732457e77d858a7b.pdf?Expires=1712793600&Signature=eAoHs-jEgOIXBVwXfSPPzDNhCjtOqDx14ZJB59LaJdkRI9wAp4U%7EsTfk9emTFhFhZZLcxL-y6Zx0C3CDBgDmi4VfOGejGCwhoHlHpUFuy1f0lwsDiqmA1k4Iu3Rlg5WJRKB0jWJHA5Vu3ii18OVDm3DCXYJc6e4sbkf4aKMWSdmFgCqE86CdH7MUM%7Es8nI8GvmLYgQIknJYrhcS6JUg6YSIkZbvWxHFWu9-2k5TIOvP%7EeFb3OnGOs2%7EZ3z95NN58sCUkhvkynnXLPKAt1z4n6sKHkTnrlLU4yB84sXtqpUpNM1Iqa97fpzrVW8Ln9Uu77wwjg7Pd3CfGylArha1Uhw__&Key-Pair-Id=K6UGZS9ZTDSZM
27d8dee9f3b3eb61b07094358e8de32e
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers, 1926-2001 (MS100)
Description
An account of the resource
The Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers document Joe Moakley’s early life, his World War II service, his terms served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives and Senate, and his service in the United States Congress. The majority of the collection covers Moakley’s congressional career from 1973 until 2001. <br /><br />Use the <a href="https://www.suffolk.edu/-/media/suffolk/documents/academics/libraries/moakley-archive/moakley-papers/ms100_pdftxt.pdf?la=en&hash=B12D6C6C7164568D0537E426483AB65CC5DFF80D" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">finding aid</a> for a summary of the entire collection, including non-digitized materials. <a href="http://www.suffolk.edu/documents/MoakleyArchive/ms100_findingaid.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"></a>
Document
A resource containing textual data. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre text.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Correspondence between John Joseph Moakley and a Dedham constituent regarding Judge Garrity's decision about busing for school desegregation, December 1975
Subject
The topic of the resource
Busing for school integration
Moakley, John Joseph, 1927-2001
Garrity, W. Arthur (Wendell Arthur), 1920-1999
Civil rights
Description
An account of the resource
Correspondence between Joe Moakley and constituent regarding displeasure with Judge Garrity's decision about forced busing. Also included is news clippings from the New York Times "White Pupils' Roll Drop A Third in Boston" from 15 December, 1975. Please note that the Archives has redacted personal information such as names and street addresses from this document.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Moakley, John Joseph, 1927-2001
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers, 1926-2001 (MS100)
Series 04 District Issues, Box 5 Folder 53
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
December 1975
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
Copyright is retained by the creators of items in this collection, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law. This item is made available for research and educational purposes by the Moakley Archive & Institute. Prior permission is required for any commercial use.
Relation
A related resource
<p>View the <a href="http://www.suffolk.edu/documents/MoakleyArchive/ms100.pdf">finding aid to the John Joseph Moakley Papers</a> for more information (PDF).</p>
<p> </p>
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
PDF
Language
A language of the resource
English
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Correspondence
Text
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
DI-1117
Busing for school integration
Civil rights
Joe Moakley
-
https://d1y502jg6fpugt.cloudfront.net/11079/archive/files/444b055cb3f0b76889126134c7e19201.pdf?Expires=1712793600&Signature=M3a9JOFamamsBS8dsDKUXJpddzs%7E6fCVX8MGI5se-l6ZXTwt8KLdYQEHajva2PpHYz9lQhI0wlJokcrKx2%7EbgKDgVhyNs3R3PwonMNEFdQWsYNghY3A%7Et6-6MnpSyUu8fEhskinZPcqvamYdnk26hSUNO%7EWpqLwd-53Z3xhhTiCnirbhpURc8MxmlWTrn0aC8-n1T4av6R5v%7E8K3HuaYRzCoQfEI%7Errj5nQxLWZbKW9af506YcBeHdWdY1%7E7LpcL2%7EpqxPl9NHEHl1WKyl2ePOx8vOxM1U%7EPguaoXtEYYu1lTiXTvntanioVGDlnZPG2%7EuKrVo9BvHUB1ruHzIZxrA__&Key-Pair-Id=K6UGZS9ZTDSZM
769e27124401d884cb7d7ca8652431db
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers, 1926-2001 (MS100)
Description
An account of the resource
The Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers document Joe Moakley’s early life, his World War II service, his terms served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives and Senate, and his service in the United States Congress. The majority of the collection covers Moakley’s congressional career from 1973 until 2001. <br /><br />Use the <a href="https://www.suffolk.edu/-/media/suffolk/documents/academics/libraries/moakley-archive/moakley-papers/ms100_pdftxt.pdf?la=en&hash=B12D6C6C7164568D0537E426483AB65CC5DFF80D" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">finding aid</a> for a summary of the entire collection, including non-digitized materials. <a href="http://www.suffolk.edu/documents/MoakleyArchive/ms100_findingaid.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"></a>
Document
A resource containing textual data. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre text.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Telegram from a South Boston constituent to John Joseph Moakley stating, "I protest the indignities that have been heaped upon Doctor William J Reid", December 1975
Subject
The topic of the resource
Busing for school integration
Moakley, John Joseph, 1927-2001
South Boston (Mass.)
Civil rights
Description
An account of the resource
Correspondence regarding Judge Garrity's order to have Headmaster Bill Reid transferred. Please note that the Archives has redacted personal information such as names and street addresses from this document.
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers, 1926-2001 (MS100)
Series 04 District Issues, Box 5 Folder 53
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
December 1975
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
Copyright is retained by the creators of items in this collection, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law. This item is made available for research and educational purposes by the Moakley Archive & Institute. Prior permission is required for any commercial use.
Relation
A related resource
<p>View the <a href="http://www.suffolk.edu/documents/MoakleyArchive/ms100.pdf">finding aid to the John Joseph Moakley Papers</a> for more information (PDF).</p>
<p> </p>
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
PDF
Language
A language of the resource
English
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Correspondence
Text
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
DI-1116
Busing for school integration
Civil rights
Joe Moakley
-
https://d1y502jg6fpugt.cloudfront.net/11079/archive/files/7b5a84dc16749dea7891ba23c2ffa5c0.pdf?Expires=1712793600&Signature=UIUwwB0m7lijbCBhTTKoo3KQOWkCBsVTSUAMn1FgCL5eOqWkbIdlHA6GbeDxk2wf3XaA6K4sL2g6r9I6jMcrbdvrzGrBWOherOKIgjy8HF7PXO7s16qxoGn9Osl2YgKJrVCPBD9G2M9lWtGrKd9ZLLVUfNXY5iO-HCUZohRsoudxj3lcJ12oE%7EfZRYq6LTquoLeufznzKimbSuSoJtD6L8Ld5KNdojW7qngwxWcxNC9tMha6bBLE7X53teownCEXardF5W4Z55jnd%7ENV-BBjsOLWPFKAykNZDc64o1xThBbdIzvBoz5T0td9AJyhsAG7moJolEvhZ4eLLDnxwIsKQg__&Key-Pair-Id=K6UGZS9ZTDSZM
cea31b141f8cb01210270d29eb8527ce
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers, 1926-2001 (MS100)
Description
An account of the resource
The Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers document Joe Moakley’s early life, his World War II service, his terms served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives and Senate, and his service in the United States Congress. The majority of the collection covers Moakley’s congressional career from 1973 until 2001. <br /><br />Use the <a href="https://www.suffolk.edu/-/media/suffolk/documents/academics/libraries/moakley-archive/moakley-papers/ms100_pdftxt.pdf?la=en&hash=B12D6C6C7164568D0537E426483AB65CC5DFF80D" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">finding aid</a> for a summary of the entire collection, including non-digitized materials. <a href="http://www.suffolk.edu/documents/MoakleyArchive/ms100_findingaid.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"></a>
Document
A resource containing textual data. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre text.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Telegram from a South Boston constituent to John Joseph Moakley stating, "I am appalled at Garrity's decision", 9 December 1975
Subject
The topic of the resource
Busing for school integration
Moakley, John Joseph, 1927-2001
Garrity, W. Arthur (Wendell Arthur), 1920-1999
Civil rights
Description
An account of the resource
Please note that the Archives has redacted personal information such as names and street addresses from this document.
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers, 1926-2001 (MS100)
Series 04 District Issues, Box 5 Folder 53
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
9 December 1975
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
Copyright is retained by the creators of items in this collection, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law. This item is made available for research and educational purposes by the Moakley Archive & Institute. Prior permission is required for any commercial use.
Relation
A related resource
<p>View the <a href="http://www.suffolk.edu/documents/MoakleyArchive/ms100.pdf">finding aid to the John Joseph Moakley Papers</a> for more information (PDF).</p>
<p> </p>
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
PDF
Language
A language of the resource
English
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Correspondence
Text
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
DI-1115
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
tgn:7013445
Busing for school integration
Civil rights
Joe Moakley
-
https://d1y502jg6fpugt.cloudfront.net/11079/archive/files/09e987626f6e7547894a80b2a37b8369.pdf?Expires=1712793600&Signature=sxhUuLsee9rXR6FAaPw%7EgdxmQnU9xx3IXQ4aEoetaE93IEsYPi7X%7ENoZCW%7EWN0MiQzj7javFKyRqu7DM6YRGr%7EruuDvaCSB3em8YdX-j55dy96dSMtVYFPk3f1QepE4V5I37wtSuinlsnyuypSXAxRVXzcWJN2p3lL%7EYjsoS8JwEgkMboFCY-5%7EC6mFu5xRK0lg5tCSK6RdjfapSBJ1nWhyKgK9d3qUHmyend%7EDxtKxya%7ELYE-B65tu6U-dn6Lke1-0W8v00JzrIJCm93fFWBoIc1%7EeNHc0RNDTUaoA4IrKGsIdA%7EET7V5lRAyxy7HhQPr7QPZJ8Kqk4S1eT6x3Y4w__&Key-Pair-Id=K6UGZS9ZTDSZM
7f1395d5545f8b7868a7aa0567f74b97
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers, 1926-2001 (MS100)
Description
An account of the resource
The Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers document Joe Moakley’s early life, his World War II service, his terms served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives and Senate, and his service in the United States Congress. The majority of the collection covers Moakley’s congressional career from 1973 until 2001. <br /><br />Use the <a href="https://www.suffolk.edu/-/media/suffolk/documents/academics/libraries/moakley-archive/moakley-papers/ms100_pdftxt.pdf?la=en&hash=B12D6C6C7164568D0537E426483AB65CC5DFF80D" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">finding aid</a> for a summary of the entire collection, including non-digitized materials. <a href="http://www.suffolk.edu/documents/MoakleyArchive/ms100_findingaid.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"></a>
Document
A resource containing textual data. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre text.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Correspondence between John Joseph Moakley and a Westwood constituent regarding concerns about busing, October-November 1975
Subject
The topic of the resource
Busing for school integration
Moakley, John Joseph, 1927-2001
Civil rights
Description
An account of the resource
Please note that the Archives has redacted personal information such as names and street addresses from this document.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Moakley, John Joseph, 1927-2001
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
Congressman John Joseph Moakley Papers, 1926-2001 (MS100)
Series 04 District Issues, Box 5 Folder 53
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
October-November 1975
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
Copyright is retained by the creators of items in this collection, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law. This item is made available for research and educational purposes by the Moakley Archive & Institute. Prior permission is required for any commercial use.
Relation
A related resource
<p>View the <a href="http://www.suffolk.edu/documents/MoakleyArchive/ms100.pdf">finding aid to the John Joseph Moakley Papers</a> for more information (PDF).</p>
<p> </p>
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
PDF
Language
A language of the resource
English
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Correspondence
Text
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
DI-1114
Busing for school integration
Civil rights
Joe Moakley