Rise of militancy in the Civil Rights Movement - Malcolm X, Black Power, Black Panters, Nation of Islam

CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT: MALCOLM X, BLACK POWER, BLACK PANTHERS, NATION OF ISLAM

Malcolm X

1.       Malcolm X was initially part of the Nation of Islam and he increased support for Black Muslims.

a.       Malcolm X explained that following his trip to Mecca in 1964, he saw Muslims of different races interacting as equals. He came to believe that Islam could be the means by which racial problems could be overcome

2.       In a 1964 debate on civil rights in Washington, Malcolm stated “I’m here to remind the white man of the alternative to Dr. King.”

a.       (In his later life) Malcolm X claimed to put forward the extremist views in order to make King’s demands more acceptable to the white population.

3.       Organization of Afro-American Unity

drew attention to ghettos early . made black nationalism appealing to  angrier young generation of black youth

Black Power

“Black Power”: African-Americans should create their own base of political, economic and social power independent of – and separate from – whites. (origins of this movement is disputed)

4.       The civil rights movements of 1954-65 effected change in South, but did little for the ghettos of the North, Midwest and West. (example: highlighted by the ineffectiveness of King’s Chicago Freedom Movement).

a.       In January 1966, the SCLC under King attempted to start a movement in Chicago ghettos against segregated housing. The movement was poorly organized and there was a lack of clearly defined issues. Rioting began in the summer, accruing over $2 million in damage, and King had lost control of the situation.

                                                   i.      The Black Power movement contributed to the decline of King because King’s leadership had brought little positive change to the economic situation to blacks living in the ghettos of the North and West.

5.       The SNCC made a shift in favour of the Black Power movement:

a.       The SNCC organized the Black Freedom Movement in Mississippi (1961-4) to combat violent racism in the area. Three young activists (two who were white) were murdered by white segregationists.

                                                   i.      The lack of federal protection caused the SNCC to become far more militant and this contributed to the disintegration of the civil rights coalition.

                                                 ii.      This made the ‘Black Power’ movement of violent but immediate action more appealing to the SNCC compared to the slow progress of non-violent protest.

b.      In 1965, the SNCC found a new leader in Stokely Carmichael. Carmichael advocated ‘Black Power’.

                                                   i.      New leadership supported Black Power because of the slow progress of non-violent protest, as had been seen in the Mississippi Freedom Movement.

                                                 ii.      This contributed to the shift of traditional non-violent activist groups towards more aggressive and militant actions.

6.       CORE made a shift in favour of the Black Power movement:

a.       In July 1966, CORE announced its endorsement of ‘Black Power’. By the summer of 1968, whites were excluded from CORE’s membership.

                                                   i.      (Analysis for CORE and SNCC shift) The most enduring impact of the movement was to create a division within the civil rights movement between traditional black organisations that emphasised co-operation with  whites and those that demanded a more radical approach

                                                 ii.      (Analysis for CORE and SNCC shift) Black Power provided a focus for those who questioned the ideals of peaceful change in co-operation with whites, were disillusioned with the continuation of racism after the legal victories of 1964 and 1965, and wanted a more radical policy. 

7.        During the five summers of 1964-8, US ghettos erupted into riots. In the first riot at Watts (LA), over $40 million in damage was done to white businesses.

a.       This was a result of increasing dissatisfaction. Blacks felt that King and the SCLC (who organized the Chicago Freedom Movement in 1966, insignificant results) and NAACP did not understand the needs of ghetto life because economically, the blacks’ situation had not improved (though laws were secured, they still lived in poverty).

8.       Ultimately ‘Black Power’ contributed to the demise of the civil rights movement.

a.       New leadership in notable groups like CORE and SNCC could not live up to their successor’s standards—for example, CORE’s James Farmer played a vital role in sit-ins and freedom rights, but the new Floyd McKissick achieved very little.

                                                   i.      Slow but positive change as a result of non-violent protests shifted to no change at all under aggressive ‘Black Power’ Movements.

                                                 ii.      However it could be argued that the Civil Rights Movement (non-violent) would have lost momentum regardless of the presence of a militant rival, because once the successes of the South stopped, success in the North would never be achieved because of the unsolvable ghetto problem.

b.      No positive economic change resulted in the ghettos from Black Power movements.

c.       Clayborne Carson. In struggle: SNCC and the Black awakening of the 1960s (1966).
“black power militancy led to decline in the ability of African Americans to affect the course of American politics.”

                                                   i.      Ghetto rioters and armed Black Panthers helped to decrease the white sympathy that had been a key to progress for the non-violent civil rights activists.

‘Black Power’ organizations

Nation of Islam

9.       Since the NOI focused on black separatist movements, some of their specific aims included: return to Africa or a separate black state in the Deep South.

a.       These aims were unrealistic. They alienated white supporters and elicited hostility from the white population.

b.      However, NOI followed nationalistic ideals of the Black Power Movement and appealed to blacks because it positively promoted black culture and identity.

10.   The NOI newspaper Muhammad Speaks had a weekly circulation of 600 000 by mid-1970s.

a.       Blacks who were not members but sympathetic to the NOI found comfort and inspiration to their message of separatism and self-defence.

11.   Of the more aggressive black activist groups, the NOI had high membership--almost 100 000 in 1960.

a.       The NOI was successful in gaining supporters because of emphasis on cultural identity, black nationalism, separatism and self  improvement.  It provided an alternative to ‘white man’s’ Christianity.

12.   Initially supported by Malcolm X but he left in 1964.

Black Panthers

13.   The Black Panthers was established with the help of the SNCC in 1966. It was led by Huey Newton and Bobby Seale.

a.       This rise of more aggressive groups that demanded a more radical approach resulted from the Black Power Movement.  Their manifesto was radical and nationalistic and this won the support of blacks who resented slow progress by non-violent movements.

b.      This was responsible for the declining support for King.

14.   Seale and Newton were heavily influenced by Malcolm X, and Communists like Che and Mao.

a.       The advocacy of socialism led to declining support and influence of the Black Panthers (by the 1970s). Such talk was alienating and inappropriate in capitalist America during the time of Cold War.

15.   Philip Sheldon Foner, The Black Panthers speak (2002).
“The Black Panther Party... provided discontented African-American youth an alternative to self-destructive despair."

a.       The  group gained strong initial support because it addressed the dissatisfaction of those in the North facing poverty in the ghettos and no change.

b.      Though little was done to bring about positive economic change in the ghettos, groups like the Black Panthers (who supported Black Power) was initially successful amongst the ghettos because they appealed to nationalism amongst blacks and the need for immediate action.

                                                   i.      However, the Black Panthers could never deliver this and support significantly declined by the 1970s.

Clayborne Carson. In struggle: SNCC and the Black awakening of the 1960s (1966).
“black power militancy led to decline in the ability of African Americans to affect the course of American politics.”

Nigel Young, An infantile disorder?: the crisis and decline of the New Left (1977).
"By 1967, the Black Power movement was no longer a continuation of the Civil Rights Movement, nor even a successor to it."

Philip Sheldon Foner, The Black Panthers speak (2002).
“The Black Panther Party... provided discontented African-American youth an alternative to self-destructive despair."

What impact did ëBlack Powerí have on the civil rights movement?

Answers should define Black Power, and trace  its emergence to the continuation of racism after the legal victories of 1964 and 1965, and to disillusion with the ideal of peaceful change in co-operation with whites.  The most enduring impact of the movement was to create a division within the civil rights movement between traditional black organisations that emphasised co-operation with  whites and those that demanded a more radical approach: e.g.  Black Panthers and Nation of Islam; Malcolm X.

Evaluate the impact of Black Power on the civil rights movement in the United States during the second half of the 1960s.

In 1966 Stokely Carmichael advocated that the civil rights movement redefine itself by the concept “Black Power”, by which he meant that African-Americans should create their own base of political, economic and  social power independent of  – and separate from – whites. Evaluation of impact could include use of some of the following: Black Power provided a focus for those who questioned the ideals of peaceful change in co-operation with whites, were disillusioned with the continuation of racism after the legal victories of 1964 and 1965, and wanted a more radical policy.  It led to a schism in the movement; many whites turned against the civil rights movement.  It highlighted that the movement had not brought economic improvements to many African-Americans, particularly in the North; it increased cultural awareness among many African-Americans.  It also meant that the issue of civil rights now included de facto segregation and discrimination in the North and West. Answers are likely to refer to the Black Panthers, Black Muslims and Malcolm X, but do not expect all the above.

For what reasons, and in what ways, did the Civil Rights movement in the United States  become more radical between 1965 and 1968? 

For what reasons:  some African Americans argued that racist attitudes and institutions were  too deeply entrenched in American society for integration to work.  Despite the Civil Rights  Acts of 1964 and 1965, young African Americans, particularly in the North, were losing  patience with the slow progress toward equality and the continued violence against their  people by white extremists.  The Kerner Commission, a federal investigation of the riots of  the mid sixties, agreed with them.  It concluded that racism and segregation were chiefly  responsible and that the United States was becoming “two societies, one black, one white –  separate but unequal.”  The issue of civil rights had spread far beyond de jure segregation  practised under the law in the South and  now included de facto segregation and  discrimination in the North and West.

·         One  of  these  groups was  the Black  Panthers  Party  for  Self­Defence. Unlike  previous Civil Rights  organizations,  the  Black  Panthers  demanded  immediate  equality  for  all  blacks, including  increased  and  fair  employment  opportunities,  exemption  from military  service  in Vietnam,  health  care  and  educational  services. Whereas Malcolm  X  had  merely  preached revolution,  the  Black  Panthers  prepared  for  war.    Their  extremism  and  willingness  to  use violence alienated and threatened many moderate whites in the North. The federal government also  perceived  the  Panthers  as  a  threat  and  cracked  down  on  the  group  between  1968  and 1969, effectively dissolving the organization. 

In what ways:   the civil rights movement changed from the early sixties emphasis on  integration and non violent tactics to a more radical movement  in the late sixties and early  seventies with emphasis on cultural identity, black nationalism, separatism and self  improvement.  Examples of the first phase of Civil Rights:  Martin Luther King’s leadership  and philosophy, sit-ins, freedom rides; the March on Washington (1963); March to Alabama  (1965).  Examples for the second phase:  Black Muslims and Malcolm X’s advocacy of self- defence using black violence to counter white violence.  Black Power and the Black Panthers;  race riots which erupted in black neighbourhoods of major cities from 1964 through 1968.