GLOBAL CITIZEN SERVICE CLUBS

Transcription

GLOBAL CITIZEN SERVICE
CLUBS
Abridged Curriculum
Turning Community Concerns
Into Ongoing Citizen Action
Pennsylvania | New Jersey | Delaware
“Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, ‘What are you doing for
others?’”
- Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Global Citizen Service Clubs
Global Citizen is a non-profit organization dedicated to civic engagement
among diverse groups through volunteering, education, community
building, service learning, economic opportunity, leadership development
and dialogue. Global Citizen brings together people of all ages and
backgrounds through active citizenship and civic responsibility that result
in breaking down barriers, building understanding, and fostering ongoing,
diverse partnerships. Global Citizen Programs include the annual Greater
Philadelphia Martin Luther King Day of Service and year-round MLK365.
Issues of focus include poverty, homelessness, at-risk young people, race
relations, public health, safety, digital inclusion, veterans, energy and the
environment.
MLK365 is Global Citizen’s year-round program that promotes sustainable
civic engagement and volunteer opportunities. MLK365 includes:
– service learning curriculum
We are a small organization, but our impact is widespread. The Greater
Philadelphia Martin Luther King Day of Service is the oldest and largest
King Day of Service event in the country, engaging over 125,000 volunteers
in some 1,700 community projects in 2014. In the past, we’ve hosted events
with Vice President Joe Biden, Nobel Peace Prize winner Leymah Gbowee,
and Wendy Spencer, CEO of the Corporation for National and Community
Service. As a part of our team, you’ll make connections with leaders
throughout the nonprofit, education, and business communities.
Global Citizen was founded by Todd Bernstein, who helped Pennsylvania
U.S. Senator Harris Wofford and Atlanta Congressman John Lewis create
the National Martin Luther King Day of Service Act in 1994. In 1996,
Bernstein started the first King Day of Service in the nation in
Philadelphia.
Global Citizen Service Clubs 2
Everybody can be great. Because anybody can
serve. You don't have to have a college degree to
serve. You don't have to make your subject and your
verb agree to serve.... You don't have to know the second
theory of thermodynamics in physics to serve. You only
need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love.
-Martin Luther King, Jr.
Contents
I. Overview of Service Clubs……………………………p.4
II. What is Service?………………………………………..p.9
III. Community Needs Assessment…………………...p.19
IV. Plan Your Project……………………………………p.22
A. Where Do I Start?.................................................p.24
B. Suggested Schedule…………………………….p.26
D. Project Checklist………………………………..p.27
E. Project Ideas……………………………………...p.28
V. Service Project Reflection…………………………...p.30
VI. Service Project Wrap Up……………………………p.42
VII. Appendix……………………………………………p.44
VIII. Bibliography………………………………………p.94
I. Overview of Service Clubs
MLK365 Service Clubs
Global Citizen created the MLK365 Service Club Program, a new civic engagement
initiative, which empowers young people in Philadelphia by providing service and
leadership opportunities. MLK365 Service Clubs support service-learning throughout
Greater Philadelphia.
MLK365 Service Clubs will familiarize school-aged students with the many definitions
and incarnations of service, using the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. as a
model and springboard for ongoing community involvement. The service clubs
provide children with a variety of perspectives on service, and how each person can
make a difference in the lives of others.
The service clubs will help sharpen critical thinking and problem-solving skills by
providing leadership opportunities where students will be empowered to create
service projects to solve community problems. This program aims to inspire young
people by teaching them how to facilitate sustainable change, using the biography of
Dr. King to illustrate the process. The service clubs will give students a more
comprehensive understanding of the value and impact of service within their
communities, which they in turn may share with others.
Global Citizen partnered with EducationWorks to create a pilot program over twelve
weeks during Spring 2009, with clubs meeting four times a week in hour-long sessions.
Global Citizen staff worked with EducationWorks to further develop curricula for the
2009-2010 school year. By the end of the school year, EducationWorks will have
implemented clubs in 18 schools and serving over 900 children.
Using this program as a catalyst, Global citizen developed this curriculum for grades 7
-12. It teaches critical thinking, leadership, career enhancement, and community
involvement opportunities.
While Service Clubs are tailored to fit a twelve week trimester, leaders may
implement clubs on a daily, weekly, bi-monthly, or alternately-scheduled basis. Clubs
may span the entire school year, or be employed at summer camps, teen centers, or
custom-tailored by Global Citizen staff to fit the timeline convenient for the
prospective school or organization. The MLK365 Service Club curriculum may also be
adapted to complement issues students are already learning in the classroom or in
alternate programming. The curriculum is a springboard for club leaders and may be
altered to fit individual student group interests. Students should plan and implement
at least one substantial service project by the end of the school year or timeline.
Overview
MLK365 Service Clubs provide students with:
 A method to empower themselves through making a difference in their
communities
 A heightened awareness of Dr. King’s legacy through research projects that
enhance computer literacy and job readiness skills.
 An opportunity to break down barriers between their peers and in
Philadelphia communities at-large through service
 Leadership opportunities that extend critical thinking and planning skills
 Year-round service opportunities
Sample Timeline for MLK365 Service Clubs
(Subject to alteration: Clubs can be held on a daily, weekly,
or monthly basis and tailored to your time requirements.)
What is Service? & The Greater Philadelphia King Day of Service
 Session 1
 Share the provided information about service with students.
 Hold a discussion aimed at giving students a clear understanding of
what service is.
 Using the history section provided, review the history of the Greater
Philadelphia King Day of Service with students in preparation for
service project planning.
 Have student groups create PSAs to teach others about service and
encourage peers to participate.
 Break students into groups to complete the PSA brainstorming/
planning project.
Community Needs Assessment
 Session 2—Community Mapping Exercise: Internet & Other
 Determine which need uncovered by the Community Map Activity
students would like to meet through their PSAs.
 If a computer lab is unavailable, take a walk through your
neighborhood together to assess its needs and assets.
 Discuss specific assets and resources that could be utilized to execute
the project.
 Create a list of the assets and resources discussed.
 Discuss/Identify potential community partners.
 Create a list of community partners.
 (Inform students about materials for next week’s Session 11)
 Session 3—PSA in reference to Community Mapping Exercise.
 Now that students are familiar with their neighborhoods, allow student
groups to utilize these sessions to create and practice performing their
PSAs.
 Have student groups to present their PSAs to the rest of the club.
 (Inform students about materials for next session, Session 11)
Planning your Service Project

Sessions 4-6
 Use the Project Development Kit as a guide to create an outline/plan
for your service project.
 Have the student leader(s) ask the rest of the group to identify what
materials they will need to complete the project.
 Create a materials list.
 Outreach for project materials.
 Using the community partners list created during the community
mapping activity, outreach for community partners.
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Sessions 7-9
 Secure project materials.
 Secure community partners.
 Advertise the club’s service opportunity school and community-wide.
 Consult with Global Citizen staff.
Finalize all Plans & Implement Project
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Session 10
 Finalize project plan and review with all club members.
 Review finalized project plan with community partners.
 Review materials list and confirm that all needed materials have been
procured.
 Hold a final check-in meeting before your service project.
Session 11
 Carry out your service project.
 Complete a reflection activity at the conclusion of the project.
 Thank all volunteers and community partners onsite.
Wrap Up & Reflection
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Sessions 12-14
 Have students create and send personalized thank you letters to
community partners and additional volunteers.
 Hold a small, celebration with club members during regular meeting
hours to celebrate the success of their project.
 Send project photos and outcomes to Global Citizen staff.
 Schedule a debriefing with Global Citizen staff to share feedback,
comments and insights. Feel free to invite student leaders or other
club members to share feedback during this meeting.
Session 15
 Hold a Reflection Activity and ask students to make pledges to do
ongoing service in their communities.
Note: This is a tentative lesson plan and can be spread out over the course of an entire
year. The resource materials in the Appendix can greatly enhance the Service Club
curriculum and help teachers tailor the lessons to their specific group of students.
II. What is Service?
What is Service?
Objective:
This section is aimed at giving students a clear idea of what service is and
includes examples of celebrities who serve. Students will also learn about the
value and impact of service while having the opportunity to creatively express
what service means to them in the Public Service Announcement (PSA) activity.
Materials:
Student groups may determine what materials they will need to complete the
PSA activity.
Instructions:
Below is the suggested timeline for this section; you may further tailor this
breakdown for your group as necessary.

Sample Session:
 Before sharing the provided information for each question, ask
students the question in bold and let them respond.
 After students have responded to the bolded question, share the
provided answer.
 After reviewing all the questions with students, share your
unique view on service as an AmeriCorps member for
 EducationWorks.
 Ask students if they have any additional questions about service
and address those.
 Introduce the PSA assignment. Have student groups create
PSAs that teach others about service and encourage people to
serve.
 Break students into groups to begin the PSA project.

Sample Session:
 Allow student groups to utilize these sessions to create and
practice performing their PSAs.

Sample session:
 Have student groups to present/perform their PSAs to the rest
of the club.
What is Service? (continued)
What is Service?
Service is the act of volunteering or the giving your time to benefit your local
and/or global community.
There are many ways you can serve. For example, you could:
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Read to younger children to promote literacy
Visit an older adult living in a nursing home
Help a friend with their homework when they are struggling
Volunteer in a block or neighborhood clean up
Write letters and make cards for men and women serving overseas
Collect items for food banks and homeless shelters
Assist an elderly neighbor with chores around the house
Walk dogs at a local animal shelter
Anyone can perform service and service can happen at any time of the year. As
Dr. King once said, “The time is always ripe to do right.”
What is Service Learning?
Service learning is the combining of community service or volunteerism with
traditional educational topics such as history, science, art, and so on. Service
learning classes and clubs use traditional educational topics as a springboard to
initiate service projects that meet community needs.
MLK365 Service Clubs use the American history of Dr. King and the American
Civil Rights Movement to not only teach children about American history, but
even more so to teach them about civic responsibility and to inspire them to get
involved in their communities.
Why should I want to serve?
Volunteering and committing to service develops a person socially.
Many view community service as a punishment or something that must be
served on account of bad behavior. This is far from true; volunteering helps
people of all ages improve their social and problem-solving skills.
Why should I want to serve? (continued)
Service nurses communities back to health by lifting peoples’ spirits and giving
volunteers a personal sense of pride.
Service unites people from all backgrounds in an atmosphere that generates fun,
creativity, and teamwork. Giving back and contributing to a community or city
by cleaning up trash or painting over vandalized property demonstrates
independence, leadership, and perhaps most importantly, hope in a
community.
What sort of payback could I get from volunteering?
Although you are not paid financially for volunteering, the rewards you reap
for performing service are more valuable than you may think.
When you volunteer you develop a variety of skills while meeting new people.
The experience of working with a group of new and diverse people can later
help you when you enter the work force.
Many people take experience for granted and underestimate its significance.
The more experience you gain, the more you can serve as a resource to those
around you. You may even get the chance to become a leader of a specific
group due to the amount of experience you have.
So if you must think about the payment that you receive for volunteering, think
about the knowledge you will acquire while volunteering.
How can volunteering affect my future?
Volunteering can open up many doors for people.
While colleges are drawn to academically gifted students, they are also drawn
to students who are actively involved in community development and
environmental work.
Think of your life as a profile comprised of everything you ever did and
everything you will ever do. You should want to make this ‘’profile’’ as unique
as possible. Your profile should stand out from everyone else’s and present
your best work and accomplishments.
How can volunteering affect my future? (continued)
Volunteering can greatly enhance your personal profile. On job interviews and
college applications, a history of volunteerism often separates the good from
the great. Volunteering also exposes the individual to a wide array of potential
career choices and often allows a person to find out what impassions him or her.
Why do other people volunteer?
People volunteer to support causes they believe in. People also perform service
to raise public awareness of a particular issue.
Volunteering provides an opportunity to work with groups of people you may
not otherwise have the chance to work with.
Sometimes people volunteer to gain professional experience or further develop
their life profile.
Who volunteers?
All types of people volunteer. From everyday people to actors and musicians,
anyone can volunteer. As Dr. King once said, “Everybody can be great, because
anybody can serve.”
Saying he wanted his two daughters "to learn the
importance of how fortunate they are and make
sure they are giving back," President Barack
Obama and his family volunteered at a food
pantry near their home on the South Side of
Chicago.
Who volunteers? (continued)
Joe Jonas (American pop singer, musician, and actor)
and Demi Lovato (American singer-songwriter, musician, and actress) volunteered for Disney Parks
“Celebrating Family Volunteers” through planting
trees along with cast members from Disney’s hit TV
series.
Debby Ryan, American actress known for her roles in the
Disney hit series, “JESSE” volunteers at the Los Angeles
Mission for the homeless on Thanksgiving.
Beyoncé, Grammy Award American singer, dancer,
songwriter and actress supporting her minister Pastor
Rudy Rasmus in the America’s Second Harvest—The
Nation's Food Bank Network and the Capital Area Food
Bank.
Will Smith, American actor, producer, and rapper, and his wife, Jaden Smith, traveled to Ethiopia in support for Charity Water to bring clean
water to citizens.
Who volunteers? (continued)
Scarlett Johansson, American actress known for her role in
“Avengers” volunteered for Oxfam, a nonprofit organization
seeking justice for poverty around the world, in the north
Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.
Ian Somerhalder, American actor and
model known for his role in “Vampire
Diaries” volunteers with youth from his
foundation, ISF (Ian Somerhalder
Foundation) at Tower 27 in Santa Monica
to bring awareness to the environment.
Where can I volunteer?
Virtually anywhere. There are many types of places that you can volunteer at
including nonprofit organizations, churches or other places of faith, nursing
homes, hospitals, schools and homeless shelters, to name a few.
Organizations such as AmeriCorps and Peace Corps allow people to commit
years of their lives to service. These organizations allow volunteers to work to
address key issues such as poverty, homeless, nutrition and so on while gaining
valuable work experience.
A High School Student Speaks about Cultural Diversity and Service:
An Opinion Piece by Charmaine Barfield, Girard College, Class of 2011
My name is Charmaine Barfield and I am currently a student at Girard
College, class of 2011. I have been attending Girard College since I was in the
sixth grade. Girard College is a boarding school for students in grades 1 through
12 and it is located in North Philadelphia. I have been in a program entitled
“City Year Greater Philadelphia” since I was in the seventh grade. City Year
has opened my mind and heart to a variety of differences. I have met people
from different religious backgrounds, different races, and different cultures. In
City Year, we commit to complete 100 hours of powerful community service on
Saturdays all around Philadelphia. Diversity is something for which City Year
and Girard College have strong feelings.
I am a strong believer in cultural diversity. I believe without differences
our world would not be as good as it is. If everyone was the same we would live
boring lives and never find anything interesting about anything or anyone
because there would be no differences. Diversity is the seasoning and the world
is the meal; without seasoning, the meal would not have taste as great as it
would with the seasoning. In saying that, I encourage everyone to be aware of
the differences in our community, because our community is not one bland
meal, we have different seasonings waiting to be used. Learning about diversity
may be hard for some and easy for others, but you will never know until you
try. Never giving up is the key. If you attend a school or live in a neighborhood
that is not the most diverse, do not give up. Think in between the lines, look up
information on your own time, or join different programs. Believe it or not,
anything you join can teach you about differences; it just depends on how you
present yourself in the program.
Personally, I do not live in a diverse neighborhood, but I am still aware of
the many differences around the world. I have taken part in numerous
volunteer organizations that bring people together from all over. Serving the
community could be a good thing if you make the best out of it. Volunteering
tends to be viewed as something only older people do or something that you
must do if you get into trouble. I am a living example that shows how wrong
this statement is. I have been volunteering my time since I was twelve years old.
Every year I continue to volunteer, it builds a stronger hold to my heart, I
appreciate the different things I see people do and they different lifestyles
people live. I am 17 years old now and I still volunteer. Young people can really
make a change if we all put our minds to it. Volunteering is a way to show how
much you care about your community and it sets you apart from the crowd.
Many younger children will look up to you because you are doing something
positive, and even people older than you will be proud of you because of the
achievements you make.
It is not always easy to open up and talk to different people. As a
teenager, sometimes I just want to stick with my group of friends and not let
anyone else in, but then I realize there was a time where I did not know any of
my friends and I had to introduce myself to them and get to know them.
Getting to know them was kind of weird because I did not know anything
about them so it was introducing myself to strangers. My group of friends
started off as a small group of girls who were all similar in looks and culture,
but when I began to step out of my circle of friends, I met interesting people
who were different than the usual people I am involved with, but still have
qualities that allow us to get along with each other. The majority of my friends
have all come from my volunteering efforts in different organizations and
participating in things all around my community.
One of my favorite volunteer activities took place at South Philadelphia
High School when we did a beautification project. As a native of South
Philadelphia, I was extremely happy to do this project even though I do not
attend that school. South Philadelphia High School has been viewed as one of
the worst public high schools and no one tends to recognize the good things
that go on there. I was not working alone—it was a project put together by City
Year. We cleaned the school and painted murals and inspirational quotes on the
walls. The school became brighter and it made more students appreciate their
school. The principal of the school came to talk with us and Representative
Kenyatta Johnson also came to talk to us about the good job we were doing. I
was really happy while doing this project because I was working with my
friends and students who attend the school came out to volunteer with us.
On the day of the service, there was really bad weather, it was pouring
outside and it was chilly. As I was making my way to South Philadelphia High
School I wanted to turn around and go back home because I really do not like
the rain. However, I realized that rain or shine this was a project that needed to
be done. Even with there being a lot of rain, we still had a good turn out and
every project was completed. I was so proud to see the work that my friends
and I did. I did not even care about the fact that the weather was so bad. I was
so happy that I stayed longer then I had to in order to put on finishing touches
and help with the clean up after the project. Some of my friends who attend
South Philadelphia High School were happy to see the transformation of their
school, and when they realized it was high school students that did it, they were
extremely shocked.
Volunteering is not hard—I just think of it as time to get out and do
something. You do not always have to get paid to be active in your community
or enjoy the work you are doing. Every historical figure did some form of
volunteering in his or her time, and if you follow in these peoples’ footsteps,
you may become a significant figure in history yourself, and years from now,
children will read about you in their textbooks. The little things you do can
make you the next Martin Luther King, Jr. or the next President of the United
States, but you must put time and effort into it. Gandhi said, “You must be the
change you wish to see in the world.” This is a strong quote because it is the
absolute truth. If you want something done, you cannot sit around and wait for
it to happen, you must get up and achieve your dreams even if that means not
being with your friends all day. Achievement will come easy, but you must first
believe in yourself to know that you can make a change.
III. Community Needs
Assessment
Community Map Activity
Objective:
This activity will help students identify community needs they can address
through the service project they plan, as well as resources they could use to
make the project a success.
Materials:
To complete this activity, students will need:
 Pens or pencils
 Notebook paper
Instructions:
Below is the suggested timeline for this section; you may further tailor this
breakdown for your group as necessary.
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Session
 Share and complete the Community Map Activity provided.
We suggest that students are taken for a walk through the
community where they would like to perform service. However,
this activity may still be completed in the classroom.
 Determine which need uncovered by the Community Map Activity
students would like to meet through their service project.
 Brainstorm ideas for the club’s first service project & have students
determine which project they will carry out.
Session
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Ask students to think about which theme(s) they would like
their service project to reflect. Ask students to determine how
they will use Dr. King’s principles to make the project a success.
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Discuss specific assets/resources that could be utilized.
Create a list of the assets and resources discussed.
Discuss/Identify potential community partners/create a list
Make a list of all the tasks that the group will need to complete to
successfully execute their service project.
Have the group to vote for or designate at least one student to serve
as the “student leader” for the project.
Allow other students that will not be “student leaders” to elect the
roles/responsibilities they would like to carry out..
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Community Map Activity
Grade level: 9-12
Web Literacy: Community Mapping
Objectives: To allow students the opportunity to look at their neighborhoods’
demographics and assess what they value and/or would like to change about
their communities.
Materials:
 Computer lab with enough space for students to have their own computer or
share in pairs.
 Classroom space for post-project discussions & brainstorming
 Notepads and pencils/pens for discussion notes
Instructions:
1. Ask students to: go to socialexplorer.com
2. On the Blue tab across the top, click on “maps”
3. On the left column, click on “Census 2000 Maps”
4. Once the map appears, go to the top of the map and click on “Find”
5. Write in your address and Click “OK” to zoom to your
neighborhood (or other point of interest)
6. In the right pane under “Choose a Map”, click and scroll to “2000
Census Tract”
- Also in the right pane, you may look at the Racial, Economic,
Educational, Etc. statistics of this area.
7. Keep the same area in the pane zoomed and click on “1960 Census
Tract” in the right tab (or an earlier date).
Assessment: Discuss and Brainstorm
1. What similarities or differences did you find between the years of
demographic information?
2. What changes would you like to see?
3. Are socio-economic and/or racial lines clearly defined between
neighborhoods?
4. What would you like to see change and/or stay the same about your
community and the surrounding areas?
5. How might you initiate creating diverse partnerships in your area
through service?
Other Useful Internet Resources:
The U.S. Bureau of the Census:
http://www.census.gov/
IV. Plan Your Project
PLAN YOUR PROJECT
Objective:
Students will learn about the different aspects of project planning and
implementation. This will aid their pursuits of internships and the like.
Materials:
To plan their project, students will need:
 Pens or pencils & notebook paper
 Access to the internet (to research resources and community partners)
 Access to a phone (to reach out for resources and community partners)
Instructions:
Below is the suggested timeline for planning your club’s project; you may
further tailor this breakdown for your group as necessary.
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Sessions 4-6
 Use the Project Development Kit as a guide to create an outline/plan
for your service project.
 Have the student leader(s) ask the rest of the group to identify what
materials they will need to complete the project.
 Create a materials list.
 Outreach for project materials.
 Using the community partners list created during the community
mapping activity, outreach for community partners.
Sessions 7-9
 Secure project materials.
 Secure community partners.
 Advertise the club’s service opportunity school and community-wide.
 Consult with Global Citizen staff.
Session 10
 Finalize project plan and review with all club members.
 Review finalized project plan with community partners.
 Review materials list and confirm that all needed materials have been
procured.
 Hold a final check-in meeting before your service project.
Session 11
 Carry out your service project.
 Complete a reflection activity at the conclusion of the project.
 Thank all volunteers and community partners onsite.
WHERE DO I START?
“Whatever your life’s work is, do it well. A man
should do his job so well that the living, the
dead, and the unborn could do it no better.”
-Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
To begin planning your project, you will need to:
1. Choose a Student Leader
2. Choose a Project
1. CHOOSING A STUDENT LEADER:
There are a few different ways your club can choose a student leader.
Students that would like to lead could nominate themselves and then club
members could vote on who they feel their leader should be. Club leaders
could also designate a student leader and there can be more than one student
leader, if desired.
The Student Leader should:
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Help delegate planning duties.
Help define roles and responsibilities for all group members.
Serve as a liaison with the project site staff.
Create schedules and timelines for what needs to be accomplished
BEFORE and ON the day of the service project.
Serve as a project leader on the day of your project.
Obtain enough supplies for all volunteers.
Be flexible, encouraging, and responsible.
Encourage continued community involvement year-round.
.
Being a student leader should be a fun and rewarding experience. Please
remember that Global Citizen staff is available to assist your group with a
variety of aspects when planning your project.
WHERE DO I START? (continued)
2. CHOOSING A PROJECT
To create/choose a project, your club should:
 Reach out to community partners to facilitate the community-building
process and to identify the most pressing of community needs.
 Brainstorm project ideas with student club members.
 Brainstorm project ideas with community partners.
 Seek additional input from teachers, counselors, parents, etc.
 Consider safety issues and potential barriers for participants such as age
and physical ability.
 Identify the mission of the project and clearly define its purpose.
SUGGESTIONS TO PREPARE FOR AND START THE DAY
Before beginning the service project, welcome volunteers and talk about project
details and their successful completion. Take a few minutes to talk about Dr.
Martin Luther King, Jr., the Civil Rights Movement, and the purpose of the
MLK365 Service Clubs. Please see the Appendix section for resource materials
you may use during your welcome portion.
Suggested activities to help your group prepare could include:

Holding a discussion where everyone can share their reasons for being
involved in the service club and volunteering in the service project.
 Holding a discussion to determine what community need your service
project will meet and how you will utilize Dr. King’s principles (i.e. dignity,
respect, excellence, etc.) while working on the project.
 Holding a discussion about what you hope to gain out of the experience.
SUGGESTED SCHEDULE FOR THE DAY OF YOUR
PROJECT
Before your Service Project begins:
 Make sure all preparation work is complete
 Make sure there are enough supplies and refreshments for all volunteers
 Take “before” photos if applicable
 Smile!
At the beginning of your Service Project:
 Welcome volunteers and thank them for coming
 Review facility logistics and locations (bathrooms, exits, introductions, etc.)
 Describe the project(s)
 Review supplies: what will be used and where volunteers can get them
 Answer any questions
During your Service Project:
 Make sure your volunteers take breaks when needed
 Provide water
 Check-in with volunteers frequently to see how they are doing
At the end of your Service Project:
 Ensure that everything is cleaned up
 Facilitate reflection activity (please see the suggestions on the next page)
 Take “after” photos if applicable
 Discuss future projects
 Thank everyone for serving!
 Have refreshments on-hand
PROJECT CHECKLIST
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PRIOR TO YOUR SERVICE PROJECT
Choose a student leader
Brainstorm project ideas that would meet the needs of your community
Finalize project plans and organize volunteers
Create a schedule for the day of the project
Identify and procure the supplies you will need to complete the project.
Advertise your club’s project to the rest of the school or community
Touch base with Global Citizen staff to review your project plan
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ON THE DAY OF YOUR SERVICE PROJECT
Welcome, orient and prepare volunteers
Review schedule and service project
Make sure that volunteers have what they need
Perform the service project
Make sure volunteers take breaks and partake in refreshments
Clean up
Close the day by facilitating a reflection activity
Thank volunteers and community partners
AFTER THE DAY OF SERVICE
 Create and send thank you cards or notes to all those who supported your
project with supplies, refreshments, etc.
 Invite volunteers and community partners to continue to be involved with
your service club.
 Continue to serve by organizing additional projects. Contact Global Citizen
staff with project outcomes and ideas for future projects.
PROJECT IDEAS
Global Citizen staff is available to assist you and your service club in the
brainstorming process. Below are some project ideas to get your club started.
Projects appropriate for children (ages 6-13) with adult supervision
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Visit a senior center, veteran’s home or nursing home and sing, play
games, make food baskets, make arts & crafts
Make your own coloring book about Dr. King and the Civil Rights
Movement
Record oral histories of older adults in your community for your class
Make greeting cards for seniors, children in hospitals, or troops
Create posters celebrating the legacy of Dr. King and hang them in your
classroom
Projects appropriate for teens and adults
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Become a coach, mentor, peer mediator, or tutor
Start a neighborhood school safe corridors program
Organize a health fair or a legal clinic
Beautify a school by removing graffiti
Visit and deliver meals to home-bound seniors
Replace smoke-detectors in home-bound seniors’ homes
Have an oral history session at a senior center about Dr. King
Give blood with a group of friends
Create a computer lab for children or seniors
Food drive
Talent show for a foundation
PROJECT IDEAS (continued)
Projects appropriate for children (ages 13-18) with adult supervision
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Hosting a Fair/Festival
Objective: Students will be able to demonstrate what they have learned through
artistic activities while also strengthening their communication skills as they
meet new people. In addition, students will be able to retell history as well as
sum up what they have learned. Students will be able to do so through
participating in a fair within the school that promotes Dr. Martin Luther King’s
teachings and themes.
Example Booths:
 Students distribute t-shirts, coloring books (made by students), resources
packet (pages 281-290, 304-305, 330-346).
 Students perform a theatrical performance of various scenes that they find
inspirational (i.e. Rosa Parks refusing to give up her seat), reading of Dr.
King’s and/or Gandhi’s speeches, reading of poetry, etc.
 Health fair: distribution of health resources packet (pages 291-297), free
screening/check-up, informational sessions, etc.
 Volunteer opportunities: i.e. students give off tickets for free day of tutoring,
mentoring, coaching, etc.
 Blood drive
V. Service Project
Reflection
SERVICE PROJECT REFLECTION
Help everyone have a more meaningful service experience by planning a
reflection activity for your club’s service project. Through reflection, your
students can share their feelings about service, discuss the experience they had
serving on the day of their project and make connections between their service
and Dr. King’s life of action. Reflection is one of the most crucial parts of a
service project, in that it allows volunteers to fully process the meaning and
impact of their service.
Objective:
This section will assist your club in planning a service reflection activity and
seeks to invest students in future service involvement.
Materials:
The club leader may determine what materials will be needed to complete their
service project reflection, depending on the type of reflection activity chosen by
the student group.
Instructions:
At the end of your service project, after all supplies and work areas have been
cleaned up, gather your student group in a quiet place to complete a reflection
activity. Below are a few sample questions and activities your group could use
to reflect (feel free to encourage students to create their too):
 Ask students to discuss the following questions:
1. Why did you serve today & what is the connection between Dr.
King’s legacy and honoring him by serving others?
3. If Dr. King were alive today, what issues would concern him? How
would he react?
4. What are some ways you can continue to honor Dr. King throughout
the year?
 Encourage students to make a pledge to continue volunteering year-round.
Have students make pledge cards. Ask each student to share their pledge
with the group and hang them on a “pledge wall” or bulletin board.
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Discuss the community concern or need that your project met. Then discuss
how the group used Dr. King’s themes (i.e. action, excellence, etc.) to
complete the project.
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Ask students to create an impromptu skit demonstrating how Dr. King’s
principles apply to everyday situations.
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Create a mock newscast or actual newsletter in which participants report on
what took place at their project and how it honored the memory of Dr. King.
Below are the reflection activities used by Global Citizen at our MLK365 service
projects.
Reflection Discussion Activity
The goal of this activity is to reflect upon your volunteer service. Please think
about an issue you addressed, critique something that was discussed, and share
how the experience was beneficial. Nothing said is judged to be right or wrong
because each person’s experience is unique.
Volunteers can reflect upon the following questions:
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What community needs did your project address? What are the causes of
those needs?
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How can you make an impact on an ongoing basis and continue to address
the community needs we discussed?
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Did anything surprise you during your project? If so, what?
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Did your understanding of the community change as a result of your
participation in this project?
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How is service relevant in today’s society? What role does service play?
What role should service play?
What can you improve upon for next time?
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Quotes Reflection Activity
Quotes can be used a springboard to start thinking about what service means to
both volunteers and the community they served. The quotes on the following
page all explore the meaning of service.
Directions:
To start your discussion, pick a quote and ask your group what they think the
quote means, in particular asking members to discuss what they quote reveals
about service. Then ask members to discuss how the ideas about service from
the quote relate to what they did today as volunteers. Repeat this process with
as many quotes as possible within the 10 minute period.
Quotes Reflection Activity (continued)
Service Quotes:
“Start where you are. Distant fields always look greener, but opportunity lies
right where you are. Take advantage of every opportunity of service.”
– Robert Collier
"The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others."
- Mahatma Gandhi
"Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on earth. "
- Muhammad Ali
"Only a life lived in the service to others is worth living."
- Albert Einstein
“It is not the style of clothes one wears, neither the kind of automobile one
drives, nor the amount of money one has in the bank, that counts. These mean
nothing. It is simply service that measures success.”
– George Washington Carver
“Service is the rent we pay for being. It is the very purpose of life, and not
something you do in your spare time.”
– Marian Wright
Edelman
“I don't know what your destiny will be, but one thing I do know: the only ones
among you who will be really happy are those who have sought and found how
to serve.”
– Albert Schweitzer
“I know of no great men except those who have rendered great service to the
human race.”
– Voltaire
“If we assume that mankind has a right to survive, then we must find an
alternative to war and destruction. In our day of space vehicles and guided
ballistic missiles, the choice is either nonviolence or nonexistence.”
—Martin Luther King, Jr., “Strength to Love,” 1963
“Everybody can be great, because anybody can serve. You don’t have to have a
college degree to serve. You don’t have to make your subject and verb agree to
serve. You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love.”
–Martin Luther King, Jr., “The Drum Major Instinct,” 1968
Below you will find the reflection guide that project coordinators used to lead
their volunteers in reflection on King Day of Service, 2010.
Project Coordinator’s Guide to Reflection
Step 1: Why do we do Reflection?
We want to explain why we do a reflection at the King Day of Service.
In order to give the King Day of Service context and completion, we recommend
a period for reflection at the end of your service project. Each King Day, people
of all backgrounds and ages join together to honor Dr. King by serving others.
But, the King Day of Service is not just about service. It is about honoring,
understanding, and celebrating Dr. King’s life of turning concerns about social,
economic and political challenges and injustices into citizen action and change.
Reflection at the end of your project will give participants the opportunity to
discuss Dr. King’s legacy, what it means to them, and how we can perpetuate
the lessons he taught us.
Step 2: History
We want to show examples of ordinary people who have been creating
positive change. Please see the following stories/examples to share during the
reflection period. We have narratives that illustrate how ordinary people are
making a difference in the present or have made a difference in the past. These
examples will help folks see how ordinary people have created positive change
in the past and how they are continuing to do so now. In addition, it is
important to emphasize the ways in which people are getting involved in the
present, as we are trying to inspire our volunteers to do just that with MLK365.
Credit: Courtesy Urban Archives, Temple University Libraries, Philadelphia
GIVING THE DAY HISTORICAL CONTEXT:
In each community, the participation of youth was critical to the civil rights
movement. Whether the particular civil rights project was in central Mississippi,
south Mississippi, or in the northern section of the state, young activists were
conspicuous. In the Jackson movement of 1962-1963, the Canton project of 1963,
and the many Delta-area protests of 1962-1963, young people were among the
movement's most ardent activists. The young activists included not only college
students but high school and even some junior high school students.
Girard College is a unique site of the Civil Rights Movement. Initially formed by
an unprecedented act of American philanthropy, the school was constructed
and endowed from the fortune of Stephen Girard (1750 - 1831), a French
immigrant who was probably the richest man in America at the time of his
death. The money he left to create Girard College was the largest private
charitable donation up to that time in American history.
Although Girard's vision was uniquely focused on an entirely underserved
population at the time, it came under fire in the 1960’s when America’s
ideological ideals began to shift. The Freedom Fighters were civil rights activists
who worked to integrate Girard College. Legal challenges went to the U.S.
Supreme Court four times in the 1950s and 60s. In 1965, NAACP activist Cecil B.
Moore organized on-going pickets and protests. From May through December
the crowds at the 10-foot-high walls that surrounded Girard College ranged
from a regular band of 30 to as many as 5,000. This year, The Greater
Philadelphia martin Luther King Day of Service is honored to have some of the
original Freedom Fighters join us to educate others about the Movement, as well
as share their ongoing community involvement initiatives.
Significantly, this year’s Day of Service also marks the 45th anniversary of
Martin Luther King, Jr. speaking outside the gates of Girard College, asking for
racial inclusion beyond the College’s walls. Although bringing people together
of diverse backgrounds within Girard College’s gates would have been illegal
50 years ago, today Freedom Fighter Kenneth Salaam, aka “Freedom Smitty,”
observes that: “Dr. King’s dream is alive and in full form as the King Day
planners sit around the table from various ethnic, racial, economic and religious
backgrounds. Truly, if we are going repair our world, we need to be members of
a team that reflects the diversity of the world.”
The ways Girard College has changed over the years reflect the ways America
has changed. Like the rest of America, Girard College's reaction to societal
change has sometimes been slow, painful and difficult. The great triumph of
Girard College today has been its adaptation over time in response to changes
in American society while maintaining Stephen Girard's original mission to
educate children to become productive citizens.
ORDINARY ACTS LEAD TO EXTRADORDINARY RESULTS:
TEENS LOBBY, LABOR FOR THEIR OWN SPACE, (TAUNTON, MA.)
Taunton, Mass., seemed like a peaceful city until two incidents in spring 2008:
a brawl broke out at the mall, and a 16-year-old was killed in a gang-related
fight. Alarmed, the town's young citizens decided to act, wanting to create a
teen center to keep kids off the street. But without a budget or a building, the
idea seemed unlikely. Still, the teens, aided by Annemarie Matulis, chairwoman
of Southeastern Massachusetts Voices Against Violence, lobbied officials to let
them set up shop in an old school. On Oct. 25, that's what they did; 227
volunteers transformed the Elizabeth Pole School into a safe after-school
hangout. They moved furniture, landscaped and installed computer monitors.
"It's a place they now call their own," Matulis says.
HELPING ON THE HOMEFRONT, (BISMARCK, N.D.)
It was difficult for Marcy Kopp to get her 9-year-old grandson, Elias Gipp, out
of the house some days. Diagnosed with muscular dystrophy, Elias is bound to
a 40-pound wheelchair, and Kopp struggled to lift him and the chair out the
front door. "It's been hard," Kopp says. "He watched the children play, running
and jumping -- all the things he can't do anymore -- but he still wanted to be
outside."
On Make A Difference Day, Elias received the gift of freedom -- a wheelchair
ramp -- from volunteers of the God's Child Project North Central in Bismarck,
N.D. The organization reached out to several residents of the Standing Rock
Sioux Reservation near Solen, N.D. On Oct. 25, 2009 the group, which usually
helps the destitute in Central America, built Gipp's ramp, winterized five
homes, distributed winter clothing and refurbished the Solen Community
Center. Volunteers also threw a Halloween party for reservation youngsters.
"On the reservation, things seem hopeless," says Rose Decouteau, community
center director. "If even one child can see something other than hopelessness,
maybe they'll better their lives."
REPRESENTATIVE JOHN LEWIS AND ELWIN WILSON (for their
inspirational reconciliation after Wilson’s apology for his civil-rights era
violence against Lewis)
In May 1961, John Lewis was a 21-year-old seminary student and member of the
Freedom Riders. That was the month that Lewis was beaten for attempting to
enter the waiting area of a bus station in Rock Hill, South Carolina marked
“Whites Only.” Elwin Wilson was a part of the mob that attacked
Representative Lewis.
Forty-eight years later, in January 2009, the two men met again in Lewis’s
congressional office. Elwin Wilson apologized to Rep. Lewis and expressed
remorse for his long held hatred. Rep. Lewis accepted the apology and offered
his forgiveness without hesitation. The two men hope that their reconciliation
will inspire others who took part in Civil Rights Era violence to come forward,
and work to heal the wounds of racism in the United States.
John Lewis has been the U.S. Representative of Georgia’s Fifth Congressional
District since 1986. He grew up on his family's farm in Alabama and attended
segregated public schools. Rep. Lewis was a nationally recognized leader of the
Civil Rights Movement and has remained at the vanguard of progressive social
movements in the United States. Despite more than 40 arrests, physical attacks
and serious injuries, John Lewis has remained a devoted advocate of the
philosophy of nonviolence and collaborated with Todd Bernstein to pass Martin
Luther King Day as a national holiday.
Elwin Hope Wilson has lived in Rock Hill, South Carolina for most of his life.
He served in the U.S. Air Force, and worked as a welder and heavy equipment
operator for many years. Wilson, who took part in KKK activities, now speaks
out about racial bigotry and intolerance.
SWEARING-IN AND THE PRESIDENTIAL FORUM ON SERVICE,
BARACK OBAMA SPEAKS:
“But I also want to be honest with you: While we’ll do our best to make it easy
to get involved, the service itself won’t always be easy. People won’t always
appreciate what you’re trying to do for them. You won’t always make the
difference you had hoped for. And let’s be honest, some problems are so big, so
stubborn, that even your best efforts will only help just a little bit. They might
just help one person. They might just help one corner of a neighborhood. But
those are the efforts that matter the most. It’s through that struggle, the fact that
it’s hard, that the difference is made – not just for others, but for yourself. That’s
how you young people in particular will discover your strengths and
weaknesses and the depths of your compassion and courage. It’s how you will
grow – and how you grow closer to the people you serve. And once you’ve
formed those connections, you’ll find that it’s a little harder to numb yourself to
other people’s suffering. It’s a little harder to convince yourself that their
struggles aren’t your problem. It’s a little harder to just stand by as a bystander.
Once you’ve tutored young people in a struggling neighborhood, it’s hard not
to care about that ballot measure to fund their school. Once you’ve volunteered
at a food bank, it’s hard not to care about poverty and unemployment. Over
time, the needs of the people you serve become your stake in the challenges of
our time. In the end, service binds us to each other – and to our communities
and our country – in a way that nothing else can. That’s how we become more
fully American. That’s what it means to be American. It’s always been the case
in this country — that notion that we invest ourselves, our time, our energy, our
vision, our purpose into the very fabric of this nation. That’s the essence of our
liberty — that we give back, freely.”
REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT AT THE POINTS OF LIGHT 20TH ANNIVERSARY
STEP 3: ACTION PLAN
We want to help our volunteers find how they will continue to serve.
President Obama signed a landmark bill on April 22nd, 2009 that created the
largest expansion of national volunteer service since the 1993 inception of
AmeriCorps. As Obama reflected on his own career trajectory, he stated: “I
would not be standing here today were it not for the service to others and for
the purpose that service gave my own life.” Global Citizen/Martin Luther King
Day of Service also expanded its initiatives with MLK 365 and Service Clubs.
MLK365 seeks to ensure that Dr. King’s principles are embraced throughout the
entire year with ongoing volunteerism in the Greater Philadelphia region.
As we consider these initiatives and the service we have done today, we must
reflect on the service that we would like to do in the future.
Finding our Circle of Service
Each of us can identify social concerns that we have that we would like to
address. We want our volunteers to think of any social issue or volunteer
opportunity or civic engagement opportunity that they feel passionate about.
This is our volunteer’s circle of concern. This should be a large list of issues that
our volunteers would love to be able to help with under any circumstance. At
this point we would ask our volunteers to silently reflect for a few minutes and
identify what their personal Circle of Concern is. After a few minutes ask
volunteers to share back their personal Circle of Concern.
1. _____________________
4. _____________________
2. _____________________
5. _____________________
3. _____________________
6. _____________________
Narrowing your circle
Now that we have reflected on all of the ways that we would like to give back
we need to make a more realistic plan for what we can do. We need to define
the tangible ways that we can have influence over these social issues. This is our
Circle of Influence. We may not have the capacity to give back to every social
issue that is in our Circle of Concern but if we focus our philanthropic efforts in
areas where we have influence, we can maximize our impact. Allow each of
your volunteers to reflect silently to define their Circle of Influence. Once
everyone has defined their Circle of Influence have them report back on how
they plan to positively affect change in their Circle of Concern in the following
year.
1. __________________________
3. __________________________
2. __________________________
4. __________________________
VI. Service Project Wrap Up
SERVICE PROJECT WRAP UP
Objective:
Completing these wrap up activities will allow student volunteers to formally
thank community partners and other individuals that made the project a
success. In addition, these wrap up activities will not only enable students to
further reflect on the impact of their service, but will also present an
opportunity for the club leader to introduce the community building process.
Materials:
To create thank you letters students will need:
 Pens (if writing by hand)
 White Paper
 Access to a computer (if printing thank you letters)
To create thank you cards students will need:
 Construction paper
 Pencils
 Scissors
 Glue
 Markers or Crayons
 Glitter and/or stickers
Instructions:
Below is the suggested timeline for completing wrap up activities; you may
further tailor this breakdown for your group as necessary.
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Sessions 45 through 48
 Have students create and send personalized thank you letters or
cards for community partners, additional volunteers and
anyone else who helped make their project a success.
 Hold a small, celebration with club members during regular
meeting hours to celebrate the success of their project.
 Send project photos and outcomes to Global Citizen staff.
 Schedule a debriefing with Global Citizen staff to share
feedback, comments and insights. Student leaders or other club
members are welcome to attend this debriefing to share their
feedback.
VII. Appendix
Glossary of Nonviolence
Here you will find a list of key concepts and vocabulary words pertinent to the life of Dr. King
and the American Civil Rights Movement.
AGAPE - Overflowing unconditional love for all, including adversaries, needed for nonviolent
conflict-resolution. Dr. King called it “love in action…love seeking to preserve and create
community…love which is purely spontaneous, unmotivated, groundless and creative.”
AHIMSA - The Hindi word for non-injury, or nonviolence made popular by Gandhi as the
central value of his beliefs and leadership.
ARBITRATION - Hearing of a dispute and determining its outcome by a mutually-agreedupon third party. Can be binding or non-binding.
BELOVED COMMUNITY - Term coined by philosopher Josiah Royce to denote an ideal
community, used frequently by Dr. King to describe a society of justice, peace and harmony
which can be achieved through nonviolence. In his sermon at Dexter Avenue Baptis t Church
in Montgomery, Alabama, on April 2, 1957, Dr. King said , “The aftermath of nonviolence is
the creation of the beloved community.”
BOYCOTT – A campaign of withdrawal of support from a company, government or
institution which is committing an injustice, such as racial discrimination. As Dr. King said,
“There is nothing quite so effective as the refusal to cooperate with the forces and institutions
which perpetuate evil in our communities.”
CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE – The act of openly disobeying an unjust, immoral or
unconstitutional law as a matter of conscience, and accepting the consequences, including
submitting to imprisonment if necessary, to protest an injustice.
CONFLICT RESOLUTION - Ending of conflict, disputes or disagreements by nonviolent
means with intent to achieve a “win-win” outcome for all parties.
CONSCIENTIOUS OBJECTION - A refusal to participate in military service because of moral
beliefs.
CREATIVE TENSION – In his Letter from A Birmingham Jail, Dr. King said, “Nonviolent
direct action seeks to create such a crisis and establish such creative tension that a community
that has constantly refused to negotiate is forced to confront the issue…I must confess that I
am not afraid of the word, tension. I have earnestly worked and preached against violent
tension, but there is a type of constructive tension that is necessary for growth… the purpose
of direct action is to create a situation so crisis-packed that it will inevitably open the door to
negotiation.”
DEMONSTRATIONS - Gatherings and protest activities organized to build support for
peace, justice or social reform.
Glossary of Nonviolence (continued)
DIRECT ACTION - Nonviolent resistance to injustice. More than 250 forms of nonviolent
direct action have been identified, including marches, boycotts, picketing, sit-ins and prayer
vigils, to name a few.
FASTING - Refusing to eat as a method of self-purification to be spiritually strengthened for
nonviolent action, or as a protest.
FREEDOM RIDERS - Civil rights activists who rode on interstate buses into the segregated
southern United States to test the Supreme Court decision Boynton v. Virginia. The decision
outlawed racial discrimination in restaurants and waiting rooms in terminals that crossed state
lines.
GANDHI, MOHANDAS K. - (1869—1948) Leader of India’s nonviolent independence
movement, who forced the British to quit India. Dr. King studied Gandhi’s successful
campaigns and adapted some of Gandhi’s strategies in the American Civil Rights Movement.
As Dr. King said of the role of Gandhi’s teachings in the Civil Rights Movement, “Christ
furnished the spirit and motivation, while Gandhi furnished the method.” Dr. King said
“Gandhi was the guiding light of our technique for nonviolent social change.”
LAWS, JUST VS. UNJUST - A distinction made in deciding to engage in civil disobedience. A
just law is created by both a majority and minority, and is binding on both. An unjust law is
created by a majority that is binding on the minority, when the minority has no voice in
creating the law. Dr. King said, “A just law is a man-made code that squares with moral law or
the law of God. An unjust law is a code that is out of harmony with moral law…One who
breaks an unjust law must do so openly, lovingly and with a willingness to accept the
penalty.”
MASS MARCH - A large number of people walking in a group to a place of symbolic
significance to protest an injustice.
MEDIATION - Intervention in a dispute by a neutral third party with expertise on a particular
issue for the purpose of securing a compromise, agreement or reconciliation. A mediator can
not impose a binding agreement.
MORAL SUASION - Appealing to the moral beliefs of an adversary or the public to convince
the adversary to change their behavior or attitudes.
NEGOTIATION - Process of discussing, compromising and bargaining with adversaries in
good faith to secure a resolution to a conflict and reconciliation of adversaries. For example,
the six steps of nonviolence are a means of negotiation.
NONCOOPERATION - Refusal to participate in activities of or cooperate with individuals,
governments, institutions, policies or laws that result in violence or injustice.
PACIFISM - A philosophy based on an absolute refusal to engage in violence because it is
morally wrong.
PASSIVE RESISTANCE - Challenging an injustice by refusing to support or cooperate with
an unjust law, action or policy. The term “passive” is misleading because passive resistance
includes pro-active nonviolence, such as marches, boycotts and other forms of active protest.
PERSONAL COMMITMENT - The spiritual and psychological decision to participate in
nonviolent action to eliminate an injustice. Prayer, meditation and sometimes fasting are used
to deepen one’s spiritual understanding.
PETITION CAMPAIGNS - The gathering of massive numbers of signatures in support of or
in opposition to a policy, proposal or law.
PICKETING - A group of individuals walking with signs bearing protest messages in front of
a site where an injustice has been committed.
PURIFICATION - The cleansing of anger, selfishness and violent attitudes from the heart and
soul in preparation for a nonviolent struggle. The six steps of nonviolence may be considered a
means of personal purification.
RECONCILIATION - The end goal of nonviolence. Bringing together of adversaries in a spirit
of community after a conflict has been resolved. The six steps of nonviolence may also be
viewed as a means of reconciliation.
REDEMPTIVE SUFFERING – A willingness to accept suffering without seeking revenge or
retribution. When an individual or group experiences injustice and abuse for a good cause, it
will help produce a greater good.
SATYAGRAHA - Hindi for “soul force,” a term coined by Gandhi to emphasize the power of
unadorned truth and love in a social struggle.
SAVING FACE - Offering an adversary an alternative course of action which spares him or
her embarrassment.
SELECTIVE PATRONAGE - The flip side of a boycott. Making a point of purchasing a
product or service from a company that supports justice.
SIT-INS - A tactic of nonviolence in which protesters sit down at the site of an injustice and
refuse to move for a specified period of time or until goals are achieved. Examples include the
Flint (Mich.) sit-down strike of 1936-37 in which auto workers sat down on the job for 44 days
in protest for union recognition and the student sit-ins that took place in Greensboro, N.C. in
1960 to desegregate lunch counters.
SIX PRINCIPLES OF NONVIOLENCE - Fundamental tenets of Dr. King’s philosophy of
nonviolence described in his first book, Stride Toward Freedom. The six principles include the
following notions:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Nonviolence is not passive, but requires courage
Nonviolence seeks reconciliation, not defeat of an adversary
Nonviolent action is directed at eliminating evil, not destroying an evil-doer
A willingness to accept suffering for the cause, if necessary, but never to inflict it
A rejection of hatred, animosity or violence of the spirit, as well as refusal to commit
physical violence
6. Faith that justice will prevail
SIX STEPS OF NONVIOLENT SOCIAL CHANGE - A sequential process of nonviolent
conflict-resolution and social change based on Dr. King’s teachings. The Six Steps of
Nonviolence developed by The King Center include:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Information gathering and research to get the facts straight
Education of adversaries and the public about the facts of the dispute
Personal Commitment to nonviolent attitudes and action
Negotiation with adversary in a spirit of goodwill to correct injustice
Nonviolent direct action, such as marches, boycotts, mass demonstrations, picketing, sit-ins
etc., to help persuade or compel adversaries to work towards dispute-resolution
6. Reconciliation of adversaries in a “win-win” outcome to establish a sense of community
STOCKHOLDER’S CAMPAIGN - Individuals or groups purchase a small amount of stock so
they can introduce resolutions at stockholder meetings, vote as stockholders and lobby
corporations to correct an injustice.
STRIKES - An organized withholding of labor to correct injustice.
TEACH-INS - An organized event or series of events, including public hearings, lectures,
panel discussions, theatrical presentations, showing of films, role-playing and scenario
exercises and other educational techniques, to inform public about a particular issue.
TRADE SANCTIONS - The imposing of import taxes on products from another nation, or the
banning of the importation of a nation’s products altogether.
TRIPLE EVILS - Dr. King considered POVERTY, RACISM and WAR forms of violence that
exist in a vicious cycle. Dr. King believed these three concepts to be interrelated barriers to our
living in the Beloved Community, hence the name “Triple Evils.” Dr. King believed that when
we work to remedy one evil, we affect all evils. Each of these issues change in accordance with
the political and social climate of our nation and world.
Glossary of Nonviolence (continued)\
Below you will find examples of each evil as well as Dr. King’s words and thoughts regarding
each.
POVERTY - materialism, unemployment, homelessness, hunger, malnutrition, illiteracy,
infant mortality, slums…
"There is nothing new about poverty. What is new, however, is that we now have the
resources to get rid of it. The time has come for an all-out world war against poverty ... The
well off and the secure have too often become indifferent and oblivious to the poverty and
deprivation in their midst. Ultimately a great nation is a compassionate nation. No individual
or nation can be great if it does not have a concern for 'the least of these."
RACISM - prejudice, apartheid, anti-Semitism, sexism, colonialism, homophobia, ageism,
discrimination against differently abled, stereotypes...
"Racism is a philosophy based on a contempt for life. It is the arrogant assertion that one race is
the center of value and object of devotion, before which other races must kneel in submission.
It is the absurd dogma that one race is responsible for all the progress of history and alone can
assure the progress of the future. Racism is total estrangement. It separates not only bodies,
but minds and spirits. Inevitably it descends to inflicting spiritual and physical homicide upon
the out-group."
WAR - militarism, imperialism, domestic violence, rape, terrorism, media violence, drugs,
child abuse...
"A true revolution of values will lay hands on the world order and say of war- 'This way of
settling differences is not just.' This way of burning human beings with napalm, of filling our
nation's homes with orphans and widows, of injecting poisonous drugs of hate into the veins
of peoples normally humane, of sending men home from dark and bloody battlefields
physically handicapped psychologically deranged, cannot be reconciled with wisdom, justice
and love. A nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military defense
than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual death."
To work against the Triple Evils, you need to: develop a nonviolent frame of mind as
described in the "Six Principles of Nonviolence" and use the Kingian model for social action as
outlined in the "Six Steps for Nonviolent Social Change.”
UNEARNED SUFFERING - See “REDEMPTIVE SUFFERING.”
UNCONDITIONAL LOVE - See “AGAPE.”
VIGILS - A form of protest in which individuals and groups will stand, sit, walk, or pray at a
site linked to an injustice or symbolically associated with the principles of freedom, justice or
peace.
Non-Violence Resources
www.peacemakers.ca/index.html
U.S. links to resources for education and training in Conflict Resolution and peace building from
Peacemakers Trust.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------www.womenwagingpeace.net
Women Waging Peace, multiyear collaborative venture of Harvard University's John F. Kenedy School
of Government, connects women addressing conflicts worldwide. The initiative breaks new ground by
recognizing the essential role and contribution of women in preventing violent conflict, stopping war,
and sustaining peace in fragile areas around the world.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------www.aicpr.org - The Alliance for International Conflict Prevention & Resolution (AICPR)
AICPR is a not-for-profit network of private and public organizations dedicated to increasing the
effectiveness of the conflict management field and maximizing its impact on international peace
building.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------www.cartercenter.org - The Carter Center
The Carter Center, in partnership with Emory University is guided by a fundamental commitment to
human rights and the alleviation of human suffering; it seeks to prevent and resolve conflicts, enhance
freedom and democracy, and improve health.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------www.colorado.edu/conflict/ - University of Colorado
This site is a collection of web resources on conflict management live BeyondIntractability.org, CRInfo,
the International Online Training Programme on Intractable Conflicts, the Civil Rights Mediator Oral
History Project, the Transformative Approaches to Conflict etc.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------www.crinfo.org - CRInfo
CRInfo is a free service funded by the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. Many powerful tools are
available to help users find information, which addresses their specific needs.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------www.forusa.org - The Fellowship of Reconciliation (FOR)
FOR seeks to replace violence, war, racism, and economic injustice with nonviolence, peace and justice.
They are an interfaith organization committed to active nonviolence as a transforming way of life and as
a means of radical change.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------www.stimson.org/?SN=SA20020116303 - The Henry L. Stimson Center
The Henry L. Stimson Center has been working to promote confidence-building measures
(CBMs) in regions of tension. CBM are diverse arrangements - such as hotlines, people-topeople exchanges, and prior notification of military exercises - that can help reduce tensions
and promote good neighborly relations.
Non-Violence Resources
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------www.nccre.org - Ilinois Institute for Dispute Resolution (IIDR)
IIDR via a co-operative agreement with the US Department of Justice and Education created
the National Center for Conflict Resolution Education. They promote the development of
conflict resolution education programme in schools by offering quality conflict resolution
education professional development programmes.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------www.iimcr.org - The Institute for International Mediation and Conflict Resolution (IIMCR)
The mission of IIMCR is to promote the use of peaceful conflict resolution techniques among a
generation of future leaders through the design and implementation of unique programme
and services.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------www.ipacademy.org - International Peace Academy (IPA)
IPA is an independent, international institution dedicated to promoting the prevention and
settlement of armed conflicts between and within states through policy research and
development.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------www.karunacenter.org - Karuna Center for Peace Building
The Karuna Center for Peace building is a U.S.- based non-profit organization that offers
international training programs in conflict transformation, inter-communal dialogue, and
reconciliation. The core of Karuna Center's work takes place in post-conflict regions of the
world at the request of local partners.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------www.trinstitute.org - The Tabula Rasa Institute
The Institute promotes peace, understanding, and co-operation between people, groups and
nations by providing the resources, education and leadership necessary to improve our world.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------www.usip.org - The United States Institute of Peace (USIP)
USIP is an independent, nonpartisan federal institution created and funded by Congress to
strengthen the nation's capacity to promote the peaceful resolution of international conflict.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------www.international-alert.org/women/ - The Women Building Peace Campaign
The Women Building Peace Campaign is working to raise global awareness of women's
experiences and perspectives of peace and conflict, help women better realise their potential as
peace builders from the village to the national level, get more women included in all levels of
peace processes, and gain a greater commitment by the international community to gender
considerations in peace building and conflict transformation.
The Beloved Community of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
The following essay explores Dr. King’s vision of the Beloved Community.
“The Beloved Community” is a term that was first coined in the early days of the 20th Century
by the philosopher-theologian Josiah Royce, who founded the Fellowship of Reconciliation.
However, it was Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., also a member of the Fellowship of
Reconciliation, who popularized the term and invested it with a deeper meaning which has
captured the imagination of people of good will all over the world.
For Dr. King, The Beloved Community was not a lofty utopian goal to be confused with the
rapturous image of the Peaceable Kingdom, in which lions and lambs coexist in idyllic
harmony. Rather, The Beloved Community was for him a realistic, achievable goal that could
be attained by a critical mass of people committed to and trained in the philosophy and
methods of nonviolence.
Dr. King’s Beloved Community is a global vision, in which all people can share in the wealth
of the earth. In the Beloved Community, poverty, hunger and homelessness will not be
tolerated because international standards of human decency will not allow it. Racism and all
forms of discrimination, bigotry and prejudice will be replaced by an all-inclusive spirit of
sisterhood and brotherhood. In the Beloved Community, international disputes will be
resolved by peaceful conflict-resolution and reconciliation of adversaries, instead of military
power. Love and trust will triumph over fear and hatred. Peace with justice will prevail over
war and military conflict.
Dr. King’s Beloved Community was not devoid of interpersonal, group or international
conflict. Instead he recognized that conflict was an inevitable part of the human experience.
But he believed that conflicts could be resolved peacefully and adversaries could be reconciled
through a mutual, determined commitment to nonviolence. No conflict, he believed, need
erupt in violence. And all conflicts in The Beloved Community should end with the
reconciliation of adversaries cooperating together in a spirit of friendship and goodwill.
As early as 1956, Dr. King spoke of The Beloved Community as the end goal of nonviolent
boycotts. As he said in a speech at a victory rally following the announcement of a favorable
U.S. Supreme Court Decision desegregating the seats on Montgomery’s busses, “the end is
reconciliation; the end is redemption; the end is the creation of the Beloved Community. It is
this type of spirit and this type of love that can transform opponents into friends. It is this type
of understanding goodwill that will transform the deep gloom of the old age into the
exuberant gladness of the new age. It is this love which will bring about miracles in the hearts
of men.”
An ardent student of the teachings of Mohandas K. Gandhi, Dr. King was much impressed
with the Mahatma’s befriending of his adversaries, most of whom professed profound
admiration for Gandhi’s courage and intellect. Dr. King believed that the age-old tradition of
hating one’s opponents was not only immoral, but bad strategy which perpetuated the cycle of
revenge and retaliation. Only nonviolence, he believed, had the power to break the cycle of
retributive violence and create lasting peace through reconciliation.
In a 1957 speech, Birth of A New Nation, Dr. King said, “The aftermath of nonviolence is the
creation of the beloved community. The aftermath of nonviolence is redemption. The
aftermath of nonviolence is reconciliation. The aftermath of violence is emptiness and
bitterness.” A year later, in his first book Stride Toward Freedom, Dr. King reiterated the
importance of nonviolence in attaining The Beloved Community, “In other words, our
ultimate goal is integration, which is genuine inter-group and inter-personal living. Only
through nonviolence can this goal be attained, for the aftermath of nonviolence is
reconciliation and the creation of the beloved community.”
In his 1959 Sermon on Gandhi, Dr. King elaborated on the after-effects of choosing
nonviolence over violence: “The aftermath of nonviolence is the creation of the beloved
community, so that when the battle’s over, a new relationship comes into being between the
oppressed and the oppressor.” In the same sermon, he contrasted violent versus nonviolent
resistance to oppression. “The way of acquiescence leads to moral and spiritual suicide. The
way of violence leads to bitterness in the survivors and brutality in the destroyers. But, the
way of non-violence leads to redemption and the creation of the beloved community.”
The core value of the quest for Dr. King’s Beloved Community was agape love. Dr. King
distinguished between three kinds of love: eros, “a sort of aesthetic or romantic love”; philia,
“affection between friends” and agape, which he described as “understanding, redeeming
goodwill for all,” an “overflowing love which is purely spontaneous, unmotivated, groundless
and creative…the love of God operating in the human heart.” He said that “Agape does not
begin by discriminating between worthy and unworthy people…It begins by loving others for
their sakes” and “makes no distinction between a friend and enemy; it is directed toward
both…Agape is love seeking to preserve and create community.”
In his 1963 sermon, Loving Your Enemies, published in his book, Strength to Love, Dr. King
addressed the role of unconditional love in struggling for the beloved Community. ‘With
every ounce of our energy we must continue to rid this nation of the incubus of segregation.
But we shall not in the process relinquish our privilege and our obligation to love. While
abhorring segregation, we shall love the segregationist. This is the only way to create the
beloved community.”
One expression of agape love in Dr. King’s Beloved Community is justice, not for any one
oppressed group, but for all people. As Dr. King often said, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to
justice everywhere.” He felt that justice could not be parceled out to individuals or groups, but
was the birthright of every human being in the Beloved Community. I have fought too long
hard against segregated public accommodations to end up segregating my moral concerns,”
he said. “Justice is indivisible."
In a July 13, 1966 article in Christian Century Magazine, Dr. King affirmed the ultimate goal
inherent in the quest for the Beloved Community: "I do not think of political power as an end.
Neither do I think of economic power as an end. They are ingredients in the objective that we
seek in life. And I think that end or that objective is a truly brotherly society, the creation of the
beloved community."
Civil Rights Movement Timeline
The following timeline highlights the key events of the American Civil Rights
Movement.
1954

The Supreme Court declares school segregation unconstitutional in its ruling on Brown v.
Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas.
1955


Rosa Parks is jailed for refusing to move to the back of a Montgomery, Alabama bus. A
boycott follows, and last for a year resulting in the bus segregation ordinance being
declared unconstitutional.
The Federal Interstate Commerce Commission bans segregation on interstate trains and
buses.
1957

Arkansas Gov. Orval Faubus uses the National Guard to block nine black students from
attending Little Rock High School. Following a court order, President Eisenhower sends in
federal troops to allow the black students to enter the school.
1960

Four black college students begin sit-ins at the lunch counter of a Greensboro, North
Carolina restaurant where black patrons are not served.
1961

Freedom Rides begin from Washington, D.C. into Southern states. Student volunteers are
bused in to test new laws prohibiting segregation.
1962



President Kennedy sends federal troops to the University of Mississippi to end riots so that
James Meredith, the school's first black student, can attend.
The Supreme Court rules that segregation is unconstitutional in all transportation facilities.
The Department of Defense orders complete integration of military reserve units,
excluding the National Guard.
1963

Civil rights leader Medgar Evers is killed by a sniper's bullet.
Civil Rights Movement Timeline (continued)


Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivers his "I Have a Dream" speech to hundreds of thousands
at the March on Washington, D.C.
A church bombing in Birmingham, Alabama, leaves four young black girls dead.
1964



Congress passes the Civil Rights Act, declaring discrimination based on race illegal.
The 24th Amendment abolishes the poll tax, which originally had been established in the
South after Reconstruction to make it difficult for poor blacks to vote.
Three civil rights workers, two white men and one black man, disappear in Mississippi.
They were found buried six weeks later.
1965



A march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama, is organized to demand protection for
voting rights.
Malcolm X is assassinated. Malcolm X, a longtime minister of the Nation of Islam, had
rejected Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s policies of non-violence. He preached black pride and
economic self-reliance for blacks. He eventually became a Muslim and broke with Nation
of Islam leader Elijah Muhammad.
A new Voting Rights Act, which made it illegal to force would-be voters to pass literacy
tests in order to vote, is signed.
1967

Thurgood Marshall becomes the first black to be named to the Supreme Court.
1968


Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee. James Earl Ray pleaded
guilty of the crime in March 1969 and was sentenced to 99 years in prison.
President Lyndon B. Johnson signs the Civil Rights Act of 1968, which prohibits
discrimination in the sale, rental, and financing of housing.
I Have A Dream Speech
I Have a Dream - Address at March on Washington
Source: MLK Online. Web Address: http://www.mlkonline.net/dream.html
August 28, 1963. Washington, D.C.
I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation. [Applause]
Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand signed the Emancipation Proclamation. This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions
of Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice. It came as a joyous
daybreak to end the long night of captivity.
But one hundred years later, we must face the tragic fact that the Negro is still not free. One
hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation
and the chains of discrimination. One hundred years later, the Negro lives on a lonely island of
poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity. One hundred years later, the Negro
is still languishing in the corners of American society and finds himself an exile in his own
land. So we have come here today to dramatize an appalling condition.
In a sense we have come to our nation's capital to cash a check. When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the declaration of Independence,
they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir. This note was a
promise that all men would be guaranteed the inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit
of happiness.
It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note insofar as her citizens
of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check which has come back marked "insufficient funds." But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt. We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds
in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation. So we have come to cash this check -- a check
that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice. We have also
come to this hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of now. This is no time to
engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. Now is the
time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice.
Now is the time to open the doors of opportunity to all of God's children. Now is the time to
lift our nation from the quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood.
It would be fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of the moment and to underestimate
the determination of the Negro. This sweltering summer of the Negro's legitimate discontent
will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn of freedom and equality. Nineteen sixtythree is not an end, but a beginning. Those who hope that the Negro needed to blow off steam
and will now be content will have a rude awakening if the nation returns to business as usual.
There will be neither rest nor tranquility in America until the Negro is granted his citizenship
rights. The whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the foundations of our nation until the
bright day of justice emerges.
But there is something that I must say to my people who stand on the warm threshold which
leads into the palace of justice. In the process of gaining our rightful place we must not be
guilty of wrongful deeds. Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the
cup of bitterness and hatred.
We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must
not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence. Again and again we must
rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force. The marvelous new militancy which has engulfed the Negro community must not lead us to distrust of all white people, for many of our white brothers, as evidenced by their presence here today, have come to
realize that their destiny is tied up with our destiny and their freedom is inextricably bound to
our freedom. We cannot walk alone.
And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall march ahead. We cannot turn back.
There are those who are asking the devotees of civil rights, "When will you be satisfied?" We
can never be satisfied as long as our bodies, heavy with the fatigue of travel, cannot gain lodging in the motels of the highways and the hotels of the cities. We cannot be satisfied as long as
the Negro's basic mobility is from a smaller ghetto to a larger one. We can never be satisfied as
long as a Negro in Mississippi cannot vote and a Negro in New York believes he has nothing
for which to vote. No, no, we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until justice rolls
down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream.
I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of great trials and tribulations. Some
of you have come fresh from narrow cells. Some of you have come from areas where your
quest for freedom left you battered by the storms of persecution and staggered by the winds of
police brutality. You have been the veterans of creative suffering. Continue to work with the
faith that unearned suffering is redemptive.
Go back to Mississippi, go back to Alabama, go back to Georgia, go back to Louisiana, go back
to the slums and ghettos of our northern cities, knowing that somehow this situation can and
will be changed. Let us not wallow in the valley of despair.
I say to you today, my friends, that in spite of the difficulties and frustrations of the moment, I
still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.
I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed:
"We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal."
I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons
of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at a table of brotherhood.
I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a desert state, sweltering with the
heat of injustice and oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.
I have a dream that my four children will one day live in a nation where they will not be
judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.
I have a dream today.
I have a dream that one day the state of Alabama, whose governor's lips are presently dripping
with the words of interposition and nullification, will be transformed into a situation where
little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls
and walk together as sisters and brothers.
I have a dream today.
I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, every hill and mountain shall be
made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight,
and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together.
This is our hope. This is the faith with which I return to the South. With this faith we will be
able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith we will be able to
transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With
this faith we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail
together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.
This will be the day when all of God's children will be able to sing with a new meaning, "My
country, 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing. Land where my fathers died, land of
the pilgrim's pride, from every mountainside, let freedom ring."
And if America is to be a great nation this must become true. So let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire. Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New
York. Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania!
Let freedom ring from the snowcapped Rockies of Colorado!
Let freedom ring from the curvaceous peaks of California!
But not only that; let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia!
Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee!
Let freedom ring from every hill and every molehill of Mississippi. From every mountainside,
let freedom ring.
When we let freedom ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black
men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands
and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual, "Free at last! free at last! thank God Almighty,
we are free at last!"
Letter from a Birmingham Jail
The following is one of Dr. King’s most famous writings, his “Letter from a Birmingham Jail.”
While imprisoned, Dr. King wrote this letter to eight white Alabama clergymen that believed
the war on racial segregation should be fought solely in the courts and not on the streets.
16 April 1963
My Dear Fellow Clergymen:
While confined here in the Birmingham city jail, I came across your recent statement calling
my present activities "unwise and untimely." Seldom do I pause to answer criticism of my
work and ideas. If I sought to answer all the criticisms that cross my desk, my secretaries
would have little time for anything other than such correspondence in the course of the day,
and I would have no time for constructive work. But since I feel that you are men of genuine
good will and that your criticisms are sincerely set forth, I want to try to answer your statement in what I hope will be patient and reasonable terms.
I think I should indicate why I am here in Birmingham, since you have been influenced by the
view which argues against "outsiders coming in." I have the honor of serving as president of
the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, an organization operating in every southern
state, with headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia. We have some eighty five affiliated organizations
across the South, and one of them is the Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights. Frequently we share staff, educational and financial resources with our affiliates. Several months
ago the affiliate here in Birmingham asked us to be on call to engage in a nonviolent direct action program if such were deemed necessary. We readily consented, and when the hour came
we lived up to our promise. So I, along with several members of my staff, am here because I
was invited here. I am here because I have organizational ties here.
But more basically, I am in Birmingham because injustice is here. Just as the prophets of the
eighth century B.C. left their villages and carried their "thus saith the Lord" far beyond the
boundaries of their home towns, and just as the Apostle Paul left his village of Tarsus and carried the gospel of Jesus Christ to the far corners of the Greco Roman world, so am I compelled
to carry the gospel of freedom beyond my own home town. Like Paul, I must constantly respond to the Macedonian call for aid.
Moreover, I am cognizant of the interrelatedness of all communities and states. I cannot sit idly
by in Atlanta and not be concerned about what happens in Birmingham. Injustice anywhere is
a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a
single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly. Never again can
we afford to live with the narrow, provincial "outside agitator" idea. Anyone who lives inside
the United States can never be considered an outsider anywhere within its bounds.
You deplore the demonstrations taking place in Birmingham. But your statement, I am sorry to
say, fails to express a similar concern for the conditions that brought about the demonstrations.
I am sure that none of you would want to rest content with the superficial kind of social analysis that deals merely with effects and does not grapple with underlying causes.
It is unfortunate that demonstrations are taking place in Birmingham, but it is even more unfortunate that the city's white power structure left the Negro community with no alternative.
In any nonviolent campaign there are four basic steps: collection of the facts to determine
whether injustices exist; negotiation; self purification; and direct action. We have gone through
all these steps in Birmingham. There can be no gainsaying the fact that racial injustice engulfs
this community. Birmingham is probably the most thoroughly segregated city in the United
States. Its ugly record of brutality is widely known. Negroes have experienced grossly unjust
treatment in the courts. There have been more unsolved bombings of Negro homes and
churches in Birmingham than in any other city in the nation. These are the hard, brutal facts of
the case. On the basis of these conditions, Negro leaders sought to negotiate with the city fathers. But the latter consistently refused to engage in good faith negotiation.
Then, last September, came the opportunity to talk with leaders of Birmingham's economic
community. In the course of the negotiations, certain promises were made by the merchants-for example, to remove the stores' humiliating racial signs. On the basis of these promises, the
Reverend Fred Shuttlesworth and the leaders of the Alabama Christian Movement for Human
Rights agreed to a moratorium on all demonstrations. As the weeks and months went by, we
realized that we were the victims of a broken promise. A few signs, briefly removed, returned;
the others remained. As in so many past experiences, our hopes had been blasted, and the
shadow of deep disappointment settled upon us. We had no alternative except to prepare for
direct action, whereby we would present our very bodies as a means of laying our case before
the conscience of the local and the national community. Mindful of the difficulties involved,
we decided to undertake a process of self purification. We began a series of workshops on nonviolence, and we repeatedly asked ourselves: "Are you able to accept blows without retaliating?" "Are you able to endure the ordeal of jail?" We decided to schedule our direct action program for the Easter season, realizing that except for Christmas, this is the main shopping period of the year. Knowing that a strong economic withdrawal program would be the byproduct
of direct action, we felt that this would be the best time to bring pressure to bear on the merchants for the needed change.
Then it occurred to us that Birmingham's mayoral election was coming up in March, and we
speedily decided to postpone action until after election day. When we discovered that the
Commissioner of Public Safety, Eugene "Bull" Connor, had piled up enough votes to be in
the run off, we decided again to postpone action until the day after the run off so that the
demonstrations could not be used to cloud the issues. Like many others, we waited to see Mr.
Connor defeated, and to this end we endured postponement after postponement. Having aided in this community need, we felt that our direct action program could be delayed no longer.
You may well ask: "Why direct action? Why sit ins, marches and so forth? Isn't negotiation a
better path?" You are quite right in calling for negotiation. Indeed, this is the very purpose of
direct action.
Nonviolent direct action seeks to create such a crisis and foster such a tension that a communi-
ty which has constantly refused to negotiate is forced to confront the issue. It seeks so to dramatize the issue that it can no longer be ignored. My citing the creation of tension as part of the
work of the nonviolent resister may sound rather shocking. But I must confess that I am not
afraid of the word "tension." I have earnestly opposed violent tension, but there is a type of
constructive, nonviolent tension which is necessary for growth. Just as Socrates felt that it was
necessary to create a tension in the mind so that individuals could rise from the bondage of
myths and half truths to the unfettered realm of creative analysis and objective appraisal, so
must we see the need for nonviolent gadflies to create the kind of tension in society that will
help men rise from the dark depths of prejudice and racism to the majestic heights of understanding and brotherhood. The purpose of our direct action program is to create a situation so
crisis packed that it will inevitably open the door to negotiation. I therefore concur with you in
your call for negotiation. Too long has our beloved Southland been bogged down in a tragic
effort to live in monologue rather than dialogue.
One of the basic points in your statement is that the action that I and my associates have taken
in Birmingham is untimely. Some have asked: "Why didn't you give the new city administration time to act?" The only answer that I can give to this query is that the new Birmingham administration must be prodded about as much as the outgoing one, before it will act. We are
sadly mistaken if we feel that the election of Albert Boutwell as mayor will bring the millennium to Birmingham. While Mr. Boutwell is a much more gentle person than Mr. Connor, they
are both segregationists, dedicated to maintenance of the status quo. I have hope that Mr.
Boutwell will be reasonable enough to see the futility of massive resistance to desegregation.
But he will not see this without pressure from devotees of civil rights. My friends, I must say to
you that we have not made a single gain in civil rights without determined legal and nonviolent pressure. Lamentably, it is an historical fact that privileged groups seldom give up their
privileges voluntarily. Individuals may see the moral light and voluntarily give up their unjust
posture; but, as Reinhold Niebuhr has reminded us, groups tend to be more immoral than individuals.
We know through painful experience that freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed. Frankly, I have yet to engage in a direct action
campaign that was "well timed" in the view of those who have not suffered unduly from the
disease of segregation. For years now I have heard the word "Wait!" It rings in the ear of every
Negro with piercing familiarity. This "Wait" has almost always meant "Never." We must come
to see, with one of our distinguished jurists, that "justice too long delayed is justice denied."
We have waited for more than 340 years for our constitutional and God given rights. The nations of Asia and Africa are moving with jetlike speed toward gaining political independence,
but we still creep at horse and buggy pace toward gaining a cup of coffee at a lunch counter.
Perhaps it is easy for those who have never felt the stinging darts of segregation to say, "Wait."
But when you have seen vicious mobs lynch your mothers and fathers at will and drown your
sisters and brothers at whim; when you have seen hate filled policemen curse, kick and even
kill your black brothers and sisters; when you see the vast majority of your twenty million Ne-
gro brothers smothering in an airtight cage of poverty in the midst of an affluent society; when
you suddenly find your tongue twisted and your speech stammering as you seek to explain to
your six year old daughter why she can't go to the public amusement park that has just been
advertised on television, and see tears welling up in her eyes when she is told that Funtown is
closed to colored children, and see ominous clouds of inferiority beginning to form in her little
mental sky, and see her beginning to distort her personality by developing an unconscious bitterness toward white people; when you have to concoct an answer for a five year old son who
is asking: "Daddy, why do white people treat colored people so mean?"; when you take a cross
county drive and find it necessary to sleep night after night in the uncomfortable corners of
your automobile because no motel will accept you; when you are humiliated day in and day
out by nagging signs reading "white" and "colored"; when your first name becomes "nigger,"
your middle name becomes "boy" (however old you are) and your last name becomes "John,"
and your wife and mother are never given the respected title "Mrs."; when you are harried by
day and haunted by night by the fact that you are a Negro, living constantly at tiptoe stance,
never quite knowing what to expect next, and are plagued with inner fears and outer resentments; when you are forever fighting a degenerating sense of "nobodiness"--then you will understand why we find it difficult to wait.
There comes a time when the cup of endurance runs over, and men are no longer willing to be
plunged into the abyss of despair. I hope, sirs, you can understand our legitimate and unavoidable impatience. You express a great deal of anxiety over our willingness to break laws.
This is certainly a legitimate concern. Since we so diligently urge people to obey the Supreme
Court's decision of 1954 outlawing segregation in the public schools, at first glance it may seem
rather paradoxical for us consciously to break laws. One may well ask: "How can you advocate
breaking some laws and obeying others?" The answer lies in the fact that there are two types of
laws: just and unjust. I would be the first to advocate obeying just laws. One has not only a legal but a moral responsibility to obey just laws. Conversely, one has a moral responsibility to
disobey unjust laws. I would agree with St. Augustine that "an unjust law is no law at all."
Now, what is the difference between the two? How does one determine whether a law is just
or unjust? A just law is a manmade code that squares with the moral law or the law of God. An
unjust law is a code that is out of harmony with the moral law. To put it in the terms of St.
Thomas Aquinas: An unjust law is a human law that is not rooted in eternal law and natural
law. Any law that uplifts human personality is just. Any law that degrades human personality
is unjust. All segregation statutes are unjust because segregation distorts the soul and damages
the personality. It gives the segregator a false sense of superiority and the segregated a false
sense of inferiority. Segregation, to use the terminology of the Jewish philosopher Martin Buber, substitutes an "I-it" relationship for an "I-thou" relationship and ends up relegating persons to the status of things.
Hence segregation is not only politically, economically and sociologically unsound, it is morally wrong and sinful. Paul Tillich has said that sin is separation. Is not segregation an existential
expression of man's tragic separation, his awful estrangement, his terrible sinfulness? Thus it is
that I can urge men to obey the 1954 decision of the Supreme Court, for it is morally right; and
I can urge them to disobey segregation ordinances, for they are morally wrong.
Let us consider a more concrete example of just and unjust laws. An unjust law is a code that a
numerical or power majority group compels a minority group to obey but does not make binding on itself. This is difference made legal. By the same token, a just law is a code that a majority compels a minority to follow and that it is willing to follow itself. This is sameness made
legal. Let me give another explanation. A law is unjust if it is inflicted on a minority that, as a
result of being denied the right to vote, had no part in enacting or devising the law. Who can
say that the legislature of Alabama which set up that state's segregation laws was democratically elected? Throughout Alabama all sorts of devious methods are used to prevent Negroes
from becoming registered voters, and there are some counties in which, even though Negroes
constitute a majority of the population, not a single Negro is registered. Can any law enacted
under such circumstances be considered democratically structured?
Sometimes a law is just on its face and unjust in its application. For instance, I have been arrested on a charge of parading without a permit. Now, there is nothing wrong in having an
ordinance which requires a permit for a parade. But such an ordinance becomes unjust when it
is used to maintain segregation and to deny citizens the First-Amendment privilege of peaceful assembly and protest.
I hope you are able to see the distinction I am trying to point out. In no sense do I advocate
evading or defying the law, as would the rabid segregationist. That would lead to anarchy.
One who breaks an unjust law must do so openly, lovingly, and with a willingness to accept
the penalty. I submit that an individual who breaks a law that conscience tells him is unjust,
and who willingly accepts the penalty of imprisonment in order to arouse the conscience of the
community over its injustice, is in reality expressing the highest respect for law.
Of course, there is nothing new about this kind of civil disobedience. It was evidenced sublimely in the refusal of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego to obey the laws of Nebuchadnezzar, on the ground that a higher moral law was at stake. It was practiced superbly by the early
Christians, who were willing to face hungry lions and the excruciating pain of chopping blocks
rather than submit to certain unjust laws of the Roman Empire. To a degree, academic freedom
is a reality today because Socrates practiced civil disobedience. In our own nation, the Boston
Tea Party represented a massive act of civil disobedience.
We should never forget that everything Adolf Hitler did in Germany was "legal" and everything the Hungarian freedom fighters did in Hungary was "illegal." It was "illegal" to aid and
comfort a Jew in Hitler's Germany. Even so, I am sure that, had I lived in Germany at the time,
I would have aided and comforted my Jewish brothers.
If today I lived in a Communist country where certain principles dear to the Christian faith are
suppressed, I would openly advocate disobeying that country's antireligious laws.
I must make two honest confessions to you, my Christian and Jewish brothers. First, I must
confess that over the past few years I have been gravely disappointed with the white moderate. I have almost reached the regrettable conclusion that the Negro's great stumbling block in
his stride toward freedom is not the White Citizen's Counciler or the Ku Klux Klanner, but the
white moderate, who is more devoted to "order" than to justice; who prefers a negative peace
which is the absence of tension to a positive peace which is the presence of justice; who constantly says: "I agree with you in the goal you seek, but I cannot agree with your methods of
direct action"; who paternalistically believes he can set the timetable for another man's freedom; who lives by a mythical concept of time and who constantly advises the Negro to wait
for a "more convenient season." Shallow understanding from people of good will is more frustrating than absolute misunderstanding from people of ill will. Lukewarm acceptance is much
more bewildering than outright rejection.
I had hoped that the white moderate would understand that law and order exist for the purpose of establishing justice and that when they fail in this purpose they become the dangerously structured dams that block the flow of social progress. I had hoped that the white moderate
would understand that the present tension in the South is a necessary phase of the transition
from an obnoxious negative peace, in which the Negro passively accepted his unjust plight, to
a substantive and positive peace, in which all men will respect the dignity and worth of human personality. Actually, we who engage in nonviolent direct action are not the creators of
tension. We merely bring to the surface the hidden tension that is already alive. We bring it out
in the open, where it can be seen and dealt with. Like a boil that can never be cured so long as
it is covered up but must be opened with all its ugliness to the natural medicines of air and
light, injustice must be exposed, with all the tension its exposure creates, to the light of human
conscience and the air of national opinion before it can be cured.
In your statement you assert that our actions, even though peaceful, must be condemned because they precipitate violence. But is this a logical assertion? Isn't this like condemning a
robbed man because his possession of money precipitated the evil act of robbery? Isn't this like
condemning Socrates because his unswerving commitment to truth and his philosophical inquiries precipitated the act by the misguided populace in which they made him drink hemlock? Isn't this like condemning Jesus because his unique God consciousness and never ceasing
devotion to God's will precipitated the evil act of crucifixion? We must come to see that, as the
federal courts have consistently affirmed, it is wrong to urge an individual to cease his efforts
to gain his basic consciousness and never ceasing devotion to God's will precipitated the evil
act of crucifixion? We must come to see that, as the federal courts have consistently affirmed, it
is wrong to urge an individual to cease his efforts to gain his basic constitutional rights because the quest may precipitate violence. Society must protect the robbed and punish the robber. I had also hoped that the white moderate would reject the myth concerning time in relation to the struggle for freedom. I have just received a letter from a white brother in Texas.
He writes:
"All Christians know that the colored people will receive equal rights eventually, but it
is possible that you are in too great a religious hurry? It has taken Christianity almost
two thousand years to accomplish what it has. The teachings of Christ take time to
come to earth."
Such an attitude stems from a tragic misconception of time, from the strangely irrational notion that there is something in the very flow of time that will inevitably cure all ills. Actually,
time itself is neutral; it can be used either destructively or constructively. More and more I feel
that the people of ill will have used time much more effectively than have the people of good
will. We will have to repent in this generation not merely for the hateful words and actions of
the bad people but for the appalling silence of the good people. Human progress never rolls in
on wheels of inevitability; it comes through the tireless efforts of men willing to be coworkers
with God, and without this hard work, time itself becomes an ally of the forces of social stagnation. We must use time creatively, in the knowledge that the time is always ripe to do right.
Now is the time to make real the promise of democracy and transform our pending national
elegy into a creative psalm of brotherhood. Now is the time to lift our national policy from the
quicksand of racial injustice to the solid rock of human dignity.
You speak of our activity in Birmingham as extreme. At first I was rather disappointed that
fellow clergymen would see my nonviolent efforts as those of an extremist. I began thinking
about the fact that I stand in the middle of two opposing forces in the Negro community. One
is a force of complacency, made up in part of Negroes who, as a result of long years of oppression, are so drained of self respect and a sense of "somebodiness" that they have adjusted to
segregation; and in part of a few middle-class Negroes who, because of a degree of academic
and economic security and because in some ways they profit by segregation, have become insensitive to the problems of the masses. The other force is one of bitterness and hatred, and it
comes perilously close to advocating violence. It is expressed in the various black nationalist
groups that are springing up across the nation, the largest and best known being Elijah Muhammad's Muslim movement. Nourished by the Negro's frustration over the continued existence of racial discrimination, this movement is made up of people who have lost faith in
America, who have absolutely repudiated Christianity, and who have concluded that the
white man is an incorrigible "devil." I have tried to stand between these two forces, saying that
we need emulate neither the "do nothingism" of the complacent nor the hatred and despair of
the black nationalist. For there is the more excellent way of love and nonviolent protest. I am
grateful to God that, through the influence of the Negro church, the way of nonviolence became an integral part of our struggle. If this philosophy had not emerged, by now many streets
of the South would, I am convinced, be flowing with blood. And I am further convinced that if
our white brothers dismiss as "rabble rousers" and "outside agitators" those of us who employ
nonviolent direct action, and if they refuse to support our nonviolent efforts, millions of Negroes will, out of frustration and despair, seek solace and security in black nationalist ideologies--a development that would inevitably lead to a frightening racial nightmare.
Oppressed people cannot remain oppressed forever. The yearning for freedom eventually
manifests itself, and that is what has happened to the American Negro. Something within has
reminded him of his birthright of freedom, and something without has reminded him that it
can be gained. Consciously or unconsciously, he has been caught up by the zeitgeist, and with
his black brothers of Africa and his brown and yellow brothers of Asia, South America and the
Caribbean, the United States Negro is moving with a sense of great urgency toward the promised land of racial justice. If one recognizes this vital urge that has engulfed the Negro community, one should readily understand why public demonstrations are taking place. The Negro
has many pent up resentments and latent frustrations, and he must release them. So let him
march; let him make prayer pilgrimages to the city hall; let him go on freedom rides and try to
understand why he must do so. If his repressed emotions are not released in nonviolent ways,
they will seek expression through violence; this is not a threat but a fact of history. So I have
not said to my people: "Get rid of your discontent." Rather, I have tried to say that this normal
and healthy discontent can be channeled into the creative outlet of nonviolent direct action.
And now this approach is being termed extremist. But though I was initially disappointed at
being categorized as an extremist, as I continued to think about the matter I gradually gained a
measure of satisfaction from the label. Was not Jesus an extremist for love: "Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you." Was not Amos an extremist for justice: "Let justice roll
down like waters and righteousness like an ever flowing stream." Was not Paul an extremist
for the Christian gospel: "I bear in my body the marks of the Lord Jesus." Was not Martin Luther an extremist: "Here I stand; I cannot do otherwise, so help me God." And John Bunyan: "I
will stay in jail to the end of my days before I make a butchery of my conscience." And Abraham Lincoln: "This nation cannot survive half slave and half free." And Thomas Jefferson: "We
hold these truths to be self evident, that all men are created equal . . ." So the question is not
whether we will be extremists, but what kind of extremists we will be. Will we be extremists
for hate or for love? Will we be extremists for the preservation of injustice or for the extension
of justice? In that dramatic scene on Calvary's hill three men were crucified. We must never
forget that all three were crucified for the same crime--the crime of extremism. Two were extremists for immorality, and thus fell below their environment. The other, Jesus Christ, was an
extremist for love, truth and goodness, and thereby rose above his environment. Perhaps the
South, the nation and the world are in dire need of creative extremists.
I had hoped that the white moderate would see this need. Perhaps I was too optimistic; perhaps I expected too much. I suppose I should have realized that few members of the oppressor
race can understand the deep groans and passionate yearnings of the oppressed race, and still
fewer have the vision to see that injustice must be rooted out by strong, persistent and determined action. I am thankful, however, that some of our white brothers in the South have
grasped the meaning of this social revolution and committed themselves to it. They are still all
too few in quantity, but they are big in quality.
Some -such as Ralph McGill, Lillian Smith, Harry Golden, James McBride Dabbs, Ann Braden
and Sarah Patton Boyle--have written about our struggle in eloquent and prophetic terms. Others have marched with us down nameless streets of the South. They have languished in filthy,
roach infested jails, suffering the abuse and brutality of policemen who view them as "dirty
nigger-lovers." Unlike so many of their moderate brothers and sisters, they have recognized
the urgency of the moment and sensed the need for powerful "action" antidotes to combat the
disease of segregation. Let me take note of my other major disappointment. I have been so
greatly disappointed with the white church and its leadership. Of course, there are some notable exceptions. I am not unmindful of the fact that each of you has taken some significant
stands on this issue. I commend you, Reverend Stallings, for your Christian stand on this past
Sunday, in welcoming Negroes to your worship service on a nonsegregated basis. I commend
the Catholic leaders of this state for integrating Spring Hill College several years ago.
But despite these notable exceptions, I must honestly reiterate that I have been disappointed
with the church. I do not say this as one of those negative critics who can always find something wrong with the church. I say this as a minister of the gospel, who loves the church; who
was nurtured in its bosom; who has been sustained by its spiritual blessings and who will remain true to it as long as the cord of life shall lengthen.
When I was suddenly catapulted into the leadership of the bus protest in Montgomery, Alabama, a few years ago, I felt we would be supported by the white church. I felt that the white
ministers, priests and rabbis of the South would be among our strongest allies. Instead, some
have been outright opponents, refusing to understand the freedom movement and misrepresenting its leaders; all too many others have been more cautious than courageous and have
remained silent behind the anesthetizing security of stained glass windows.
In spite of my shattered dreams, I came to Birmingham with the hope that the white religious
leadership of this community would see the justice of our cause and, with deep moral concern,
would serve as the channel through which our just grievances could reach the power structure. I had hoped that each of you would understand. But again I have been disappointed.
I have heard numerous southern religious leaders admonish their worshipers to comply with a
desegregation decision because it is the law, but I have longed to hear white ministers declare:
"Follow this decree because integration is morally right and because the Negro is your brother." In the midst of blatant injustices inflicted upon the Negro, I have watched white churchmen stand on the sideline and mouth pious irrelevancies and sanctimonious trivialities. In the
midst of a mighty struggle to rid our nation of racial and economic injustice, I have heard
many ministers say: "Those are social issues, with which the gospel has no real concern." And I
have watched many churches commit themselves to a completely other worldly religion which
makes a strange, un-Biblical distinction between body and soul, between the sacred and the
secular.
I have traveled the length and breadth of Alabama, Mississippi and all the other southern
states. On sweltering summer days and crisp autumn mornings I have looked at the South's
beautiful churches with their lofty spires pointing heavenward. I have beheld the impressive
outlines of her massive religious education buildings. Over and over I have found myself asking: "What kind of people worship here? Who is their God? Where were their voices when the
lips of Governor Barnett dripped with words of interposition and nullification? Where were
they when Governor Wallace gave a clarion call for defiance and hatred? Where were their
voices of support when bruised and weary Negro men and women decided to rise from the
dark dungeons of complacency to the bright hills of creative protest?"
Yes, these questions are still in my mind. In deep disappointment I have wept over the laxity
of the church. But be assured that my tears have been tears of love. There can be no deep disappointment where there is not deep love. Yes, I love the church. How could I do otherwise? I
am in the rather unique position of being the son, the grandson and the great grandson of
preachers. Yes, I see the church as the body of Christ. But, oh! How we have blemished and
scarred that body through social neglect and through fear of being nonconformists.
There was a time when the church was very powerful--in the time when the early Christians
rejoiced at being deemed worthy to suffer for what they believed. In those days the church was
not merely a thermometer that recorded the ideas and principles of popular opinion; it was a
thermostat that transformed the mores of society. Whenever the early Christians entered a
town, the people in power became disturbed and immediately sought to convict the Christians
for being "disturbers of the peace" and "outside agitators."' But the Christians pressed on, in
the conviction that they were "a colony of heaven," called to obey God rather than man. Small
in number, they were big in commitment. They were too God-intoxicated to be "astronomically
intimidated." By their effort and example they brought an end to such ancient evils as infanticide and gladiatorial contests. Things are different now. So often the contemporary church is a
weak, ineffectual voice with an uncertain sound. So often it is an archdefender of the status
quo. Far from being disturbed by the presence of the church, the power structure of the average community is consoled by the church's silent--and often even vocal--sanction of things as
they are.
But the judgment of God is upon the church as never before. If today's church does not recapture the sacrificial spirit of the early church, it will lose its authenticity, forfeit the loyalty of
millions, and be dismissed as an irrelevant social club with no meaning for the twentieth century. Every day I meet young people whose disappointment with the church has turned into
outright disgust.
Perhaps I have once again been too optimistic. Is organized religion too inextricably bound to
the status quo to save our nation and the world? Perhaps I must turn my faith to the inner
spiritual church, the church within the church, as the true ekklesia and the hope of the world.
But again I am thankful to God that some noble souls from the ranks of organized religion
have broken loose from the paralyzing chains of conformity and joined us as active partners in
the struggle for freedom. They have left their secure congregations and walked the streets of
Albany, Georgia, with us. They have gone down the highways of the South on tortuous rides
for freedom. Yes, they have gone to jail with us. Some have been dismissed from their churches, have lost the support of their bishops and fellow ministers. But they have acted in the faith
that right defeated is stronger than evil triumphant. Their witness has been the spiritual salt
that has preserved the true meaning of the gospel in these troubled times. They have carved a
tunnel of hope through the dark mountain of disappointment. I hope the church as a whole
will meet the challenge of this decisive hour. But even if the church does not come to the aid of
justice, I have no despair about the future. I have no fear about the outcome of our struggle in
Birmingham, even if our motives are at present misunderstood. We will reach the goal of freedom in Birmingham and all over the nation, because the goal of America is freedom. Abused
and scorned though we may be, our destiny is tied up with America's destiny. Before the pilgrims landed at Plymouth, we were here. Before the pen of Jefferson etched the majestic words
of the Declaration of Independence across the pages of history, we were here. For more than
two centuries our forebears labored in this country without wages; they made cotton king;
they built the homes of their masters while suffering gross injustice and shameful humiliation and yet out of a bottomless vitality they continued to thrive and develop. If the inexpressible
cruelties of slavery could not stop us, the opposition we now face will surely fail. We will win
our freedom because the sacred heritage of our nation and the eternal will of God are embodied in our echoing demands. Before closing I feel impelled to mention one other point in your
statement that has troubled me profoundly. You warmly commended the Birmingham police
force for keeping "order" and "preventing violence." I doubt that you would have so warmly
commended the police force if you had seen its dogs sinking their teeth into unarmed, nonviolent Negroes. I doubt that you would so quickly commend the policemen if you were to observe their ugly and inhumane treatment of Negroes here in the city jail; if you were to watch
them push and curse old Negro women and young Negro girls; if you were to see them slap
and kick old Negro men and young boys; if you were to observe them, as they did on two occasions, refuse to give us food because we wanted to sing our grace together. I cannot join you
in your praise of the Birmingham police department.
It is true that the police have exercised a degree of discipline in handling the demonstrators. In
this sense they have conducted themselves rather "nonviolently" in public. But for what purpose? To preserve the evil system of segregation. Over the past few years I have consistently
preached that nonviolence demands that the means we use must be as pure as the ends we
seek. I have tried to make clear that it is wrong to use immoral means to attain moral ends. But
now I must affirm that it is just as wrong, or perhaps even more so, to use moral means to preserve immoral ends. Perhaps Mr. Connor and his policemen have been rather nonviolent in
public, as was Chief Pritchett in Albany, Georgia, but they have used the moral means of nonviolence to maintain the immoral end of racial injustice. As T. S. Eliot has said: "The last temptation is the greatest treason: To do the right deed for the wrong reason."
I wish you had commended the Negro sit-inners and demonstrators of Birmingham for their
sublime courage, their willingness to suffer and their amazing discipline in the midst of great
provocation. One day the South will recognize its real heroes. They will be the James Merediths, with the noble sense of purpose that enables them to face jeering and hostile mobs, and
with the agonizing loneliness that characterizes the life of the pioneer. They will be old, oppressed, battered Negro women, symbolized in a seventy two year old woman in Montgomery, Alabama, who rose up with a sense of dignity and with her people decided not to ride
segregated buses, and who responded with ungrammatical profundity to one who inquired
about her weariness: "My feets is tired, but my soul is at rest." They will be the young high
school and college students, the young ministers of the gospel and a host of their elders, courageously and nonviolently sitting in at lunch counters and willingly going to jail for conscience'
sake. One day the South will know that when these disinherited children of God sat down at
lunch counters, they were in reality standing up for what is best in the American dream and
for the most sacred values in our Judaeo Christian heritage, thereby bringing our nation back
to those great wells of democracy which were dug deep by the founding fathers in their formulation of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence.
Never before have I written so long a letter. I'm afraid it is much too long to take your precious
time. I can assure you that it would have been much shorter if I had been writing from a comfortable desk, but what else can one do when he is alone in a narrow jail cell, other than write
long letters, think long thoughts and pray long prayers?
If I have said anything in this letter that overstates the truth and indicates an unreasonable impatience, I beg you to forgive me. If I have said anything that understates the truth and indicates my having a patience that allows me to settle for anything less than brotherhood, I beg
God to forgive me.
I hope this letter finds you strong in the faith. I also hope that circumstances will soon make it
possible for me to meet each of you, not as an integrationist or a civil rights leader but as a fellow clergyman and a Christian brother. Let us all hope that the dark clouds of racial prejudice
will soon pass away and the deep fog of misunderstanding will be lifted from our fear
drenched communities, and in some not too distant tomorrow the radiant stars of love and
brotherhood will shine over our great nation with all their scintillating beauty.
Yours for the cause of Peace and Brotherhood,
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Source: African Studies Center, University of Pennsylvania
Web Address:
http://www.africa.upenn.edu/Articles_GenLetter_Birmingham.html
Gandhi: The Secret of Satyagraha (1908)
There appears to have been a good deal of misunderstanding following the Transvaal Indians'
failure to comprehend the secret of satyagraha. It is therefore necessary to give a little more
thought to satyagraha in the context of our victory against the obnoxious law. Those who
know the real meaning of satyagraha should not have the slightest doubt as to what the
victory means.
A Satyagrahi enjoys a degree of freedom not possible for others, for he becomes a truly fearless
person. Once his mind is rid of fear, he will never agree to be another's slave. Having achieved
this state of mind, he will never submit to any arbitrary action.
Such satyagraha can be, ought to be, practised not only against a Government but against
society as well, if need be. It can often happen that a society is as wrong as a Government. It
becomes one's duty then to use satyagraha against society. The late Mr. Thoreau thought that
his countrymen did wrong in carrying on slave-trade. He therefore ranged himself against his
people. The great Luther defied his people single-banded and it is thanks to him that Germany
enjoys freedom today. And there was Galileo who told them that they could kill him if they
wanted to, but that it was nevertheless true that the earth revolved round the sun. Today, we
all know that the earth is round and that it rotates round its axis once every 24 hours.
Columbus acted like a true satyagrahi when facing his sailors. Exhausted by the long voyage,
they declared, "We will never get to America. Let us turn back, else we will kill you."
Unperturbed, Columbus answered, "I am not afraid of being killed, but I. think we ought to go
on for a few days more." They did discover America, and Columbus won everlasting fame.
Such a wonderful remedy is this satyagraha. When we ask in fear what will happen if the
Government does not repeal the Act, we only betray the deficiency of our satyagraha or talk as
if we had been unmanned, having lost the weapon of satyagraha. But our satyagraha prompts
us to become free and feel independent. We have therefore nothing to fear. "All this is idle talk.
Whatever you do, you cannot start the campaign again. Once has been quite enough." There
are persons who talk thus. If it is true that we cannot resume the struggle, it will have been in
vain that we started it at all.
Let us justify this view of ours. It is a matter of common observation that what we have won
can be retained only by the same means through which it was got. What is Won by force can.
be retained by force alone. A tiger seizes - its prey by force, arid retains it through force. Those
who are forcibly locked up in jail are kept there by force. The territories acquired by emperors
by use of force are retained by force. In the same manner, what is gained by love can be
retained only by love. The mother feels great love for the child in her womb and rears it with
the same love afterwards. Its punishment while yet a child should not be interpreted as use of
force. There are also' instances where a mother has lost a child altogether because she stopped
loving it for some reason. Similarly, what we have gained by satyagraha can be retained only
through satyagraha. When satyagraha is given up, we may be sure that the gains will also be
lost. Moreover, it is unlikely that one will succeed in retaining through physical force what one
gained by satyagraha. Suppose Indians wish to retain by force the fruits of victory won
through satyagraha. Even a child can see that, if Indians resort to force, they can be crushed
within the minute.
Gandhi: The Secret of Satyagraha (1908)
Likewise. if we abandon satyagraha and go on as we did before, what we have gained may be
lost.
These examples serve to show that satyagraha is really an attitude of mind. He who has
attained to the satyagrahic state of mind will remain ever victorious, at all times and places
and under all conditions irrespective of whether it is a government or a people that he
opposes, whether they be strangers, friends or relatives.
It is only because we do not appreciate the marvel of satyagraha that we live in India as a poor
and cowardly race, not only in our relations with the Government but in our personal relations
as well. Certain customs which are palpably evil are kept alive in our country mainly~ because
we lack in the spirit of satyagraha. Though well aware that certain customs are bad. we do
very little to end them either because of fear, laziness or undue regard for others.
Before concluding, let me refer to the latest instance. When the whites held an anti-Indian
meeting in Pretoria Town Hall, there were only four whites to speak in our favour. They were
thus four against a thousand. But the four were brave enough to express their views in the face
of a chorus of abuse from the crowd. In the event, their satyagraha considerably detracted
from the importance of the meeting and turned it into a menagerie.
We urge every Indian to follow these ideas carefully.' Those who do will learn the true nature
of our success and find themselves equal to the tasks which the Indian community has to face.
Source: http://www.gandhi-manibhavan.org/eduresources/article12.htm
Gandhi: Satyagraha vs Passive Resistance (1924)
I have no idea when the phrase "passive resistance", was first used in English and by whom.
But among the English people, whenever a small minority did not approve of some obnoxious
piece of legislation, instead of rising in rebellion they took the passive or milder step of not
submitting to the law and inviting the penalties of such non-submission upon . their heads.
When the British Parliament passed the Education Act some years ago, the Non-conformists
offered passive resistance under the leadership of Dr. Clifford. The great movement of the
English women for the vote was also known as passive resistance. It was in view of these two
cases that Mr. Hosken described passive resistance as a weapon of the weak or the voteless.
Dr. Clifford and his friends had the vote, but as they were in a minority in the Parliament, they
could not prevent the passage of the Education Act. That is to say, they were weak in numbers.
Not that they were averse to the use of arms for the attainment of their aims, but they had no
hope of succeeding by force of arms. And in a well. regulated state, recourse to arms every
now and then in order to secure popular rights would defeat its own purpose. Again some of
tile Non-conformists would generally object to taking up arms even if it was a practical
proposition. The suffragists had no franchise rights. They were weak in numbers as well as in
physical force. Thus their case lent colour to Mr. Hosken's observations. The suffragist
movement did not eschew the use of physical force. Some suffragists fired buildings and even
assaulted men. I do not think they ever intended to kill anyone. But they did intend to thrash
people when an opportunity occurred, and even thus to make things hot for them.
But brute force had absolutely no place in the Indian movement in any circumstance, and the
reader will see, as we proceed, that no matter how badly they suffered, the satyagrahis never
used physical force, and that too although there were occasions when they were in a position
to use it effectively. Again, although the Indians had no franchise and were weak, these
considerations had nothing to do with the organization of satyagraha. This is not to say that
the Indians would have taken to satyagraha even if they had possessed arms or the franchise:
Probably there would not have been any scope for satyagraha if they had the franchise. If they
had arms, the opposite party would have thought twice before antagonizing them. One can
therefore understand, that people who possess arms would have fewer occasions for offering
satyagraha. My point is that I can definitely assert that in planning the Indian movement there
never was the slightest thought given to the possibility or otherwise of offering armed
resistance. Satyagraha is soul- force pure and simple, and whenever and to whatever extent
there is room for the use of arms or physical force or brute force, there and to that extent is
there so much less possibility for soul-force. These are purely antagonistic forces in my view,
and I had full realization of this antagonism even at the time of the advent of satyagraha.
We will not stop here to consider whether these views are right or wrong. We are only
concerned to note the distinction between passive resistance and satyagraha, and we have seen
that there is a great and fundamental difference between the two. If without understanding
this, those who call themselves either passive resisters or satyagrahis believe both to be one
and the same thing, there would be injustice to both, leading to untoward consequences.
Gandhi: Satyagraha vs Passive Resistance (1924)
The result of our using the phrase "passive resistance" in South .Africa was, not that people
admired us by ascribing to us the bravery and the self- sacrifice of the suffragists but we were
mistaken to be a danger to person and property which the suffragists were, and even a
generous friend like Mr. Hosken imagined us to be weak. The power of suggestion is such
that. a man at last becomes what he believes himself to be. If we continue to believe that we are
weak and helpless' and therefore offer passive resistance, our resistance would never make us
strong, and at the earliest opportunity we would give up passive resistance as a weapon of the
weak. On the other hand if we are satyagrahis and offer satyagraha believing ourselves to be
strong, two clear consequences result from it. Fostering the idea of strength, we grow stronger
and stronger every day. With the increase in our strength, our satyagraha too becomes more
effective and we would never be casting about for an opportunity to give it up. Again, while
there is no scope for love in passive resistance, on the other hand not only has hatred no place
in satyagraha but it is a positive breach of its ruling principle.. While in passive resistance there
is a scope for the use of arms when a suitable occasion arrives, in satyagraha . physical force is
forbidden even in the most favourable circumstances. Passive resistance is often looked upon
as a preparation for the use of '-once while satyagraha can never be utilized as such. Passive
resistance may be offered side by side with the use of arms. Satyagraha and brute force, being
each a negation of the other, can never go together. Satyagraha may be offered to one's nearest
and dearest; passive resistance can never be offered to them unless of course they have ceased
to be dear and become an object of hatred to us. In passive resistance there is always present
an idea of harassing the other party and there is a simultaneous readiness to undergo any
hardships entailed upon us by such activity; while in satyagraha there is not the remotest idea
of injuring the opponent. Satyagraha postulates the conquest of the adversary by suffering in
one's own person.
These are the distinctions between the two forces. But I do not wish to suggest that the merits,
or if you like, the defects of passive resistance thus enumerated are to be seen in 'every
movement which passes by that name. But it can be shown that these defects have been
noticed in many' cases of passive resistance. Jesus Christ indeed has been acclaimed as the
prince of passive resisters but I submit in that case passive resistance must mean satyagraha
and satyagraha alone. There are not many cases in history of passive resistance in that sense.
One of these is that of the Doukhobors of Russia cited by Tolstoy. The phrase passive
resistance was not employed to denote the patient suffering of oppression by thousands of
devout Christians in the early days of Christianty. I would therefore class them as satyagrahis.
And if their conduct be described as passive resistance, passive resistance becomes
synonymous with satyagraha. It has been my object to show that satyagraha, is essentially
different ,from what people generally mean in English by the phrase "passive resistance".
Source: http://www.gandhi-manibhavan.org/eduresources/article12.htm
MLK365 Service Club Activity Sheets
Grade level: Adjustable
NONVIOLENCE (continued)
Extending the Lesson (if time allows):
As a companion to Gandhi and King, investigate the career of Nelson Mandela,
who led the fight against apartheid in South Africa and finally emerged from
more than a quarter century in prison to become the president of his country.
Excerpts from Mandela's autobiography, Long Walk to Freedom (http://
www.obs-us.com:80/obs/english/books/Mandela/ Mandela.html) are
accessible through the African Studies WWW website on EDSITEment, which
also provides a link to the African National Conference Home Page (http://
www.anc.org.za/) where you can access an Archive of historical documents on
the struggle against apartheid and a Mandela Page (http://www.anc.org.za/
people/mandela/) which offers further background and a selection of his
writings. Nonviolence was at the foundation of Mandela's political philosophy,
but in the course of his career he came to accept the necessity of armed
resistance. You might explore the interaction between these tendencies in
Mandela's thinking, and consider what his eventual triumph, through a
nonviolent transformation of government, suggests about the power of ideas.
Additional Resources:
Recommended Films
Middle School Aged Appropriate Films
Black American History Series IV: Civil Rights
The fourth volume of the series takes an in-depth look at the Civil Rights Movement. See the
struggle for equality as famous figures from our past fought for their rights and the rights of
others. 1998, MIDDLE SCHOOL.
Crisis in the Classroom: Little Rock and Boston
In Little Rock, Arkansas in 1957, Governor Faubus did everything in his power to prevent nine
black children from entering a formerly all-white school. The Eisenhower administration
insured that the Supreme Court's order mandating school desegregation was enforced. Learn
about a similar segregation incident that happened in Boston. A&E examines these two
famous examples of the long battle over school desegregation through extensive footage and
interviews. 50 min, 1994, 20th Century Mike Wallace Series. MIDDLE SCHOOL/HIGH
SCHOOL.
Four Little Girls
Spike Lee takes an up-close look at a bombing that killed four young girls and considers the
impact this act had on the Civil Rights Movement. Features film footage, home photographs,
comments, and interviews with family members, friends, and Movement activists. All or part
of this film can be shown as a follow-up to students’ reading The Watsons Go to Birmingham.
102 min., 1997, HBO Studies. MIDDLE SCHOOL/HIGH SCHOOL.
Freedom Song
Danny Glover, Vicellous Reon Shannon, Vondie Curtis Hall, and Loretta Devine star in this
dramatic account about the impact the Civil Rights Movement had on a small Mississippi
town in 1961. The program presents the story of an African-American teenager (Shannon) who
joins a grassroots student crusade to desegregate his hometown of Quinlan, Mississippi, even
though his involvement with the group threatens his relationship with his father (Glover).
Teaching Guide and background information at Turner Learning. 117 min., 2000. MIDDLE
SCHOOL/HIGH SCHOOL
Viva La Causa
The people united will never be defeated!. ¡Viva la Causa! 500 Years of Chicano History, a twopart educational video in English, offers a compelling introduction to the history of MexicanAmerican people. Based on the book 500 Years of Chicano History in Pictures, edited by
Elizabeth Martinez, this video is suitable for youth in grades five-12 and up, as well as
community gatherings. Part One of the video depicts Mexican Americans from their preColumbian origins through Spanish colonization, the U.S. takeover of today's Southwest in
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1848, the people's resistance, workers creating great wealth, and their massive strikes, up to
World War II. Part Two includes the 1943 "Zoot Suit Riots," early efforts to fight
discrimination, the farmworkers' struggle, student protests, the Chicano Moratorium against
the U.S. war in Vietnam, and new Chicano art. Two 30 min. tapes, 1995, Elizabeth Martinez/
South West Organizing Project. MIDDLE SCHOOL/HIGH SCHOOL
High School Aged Appropriate Films
A. Philip Randolph; For Jobs & Freedom
Ask most people who led the 1963 march on Washington and they’ll probably tell you Martin Luther
King Jr. But the real force behind this event was the man many call the preeminent Black labor leader of
the century and father of the modern Civil Rights Movement, A. Philip Randolph. Randolph’s career
began during the Harlem Renaissance as a radical soapbox orator and journalist, who was brought to
help organize the Brotherhood of the Sleeping Car Porters. After a bitter 12-year battle, the porters won
the first labor contract with a Black union. During World War II, Randolph’s threat of a march on
Washington forced President Roosevelt to ban discrimination in defense industries. After the war, he
called for Blacks to resist the first peace-time draft until President Truman signed his 1948 executive
order desegregating the military. In 1963, Randolph called again for a march on Washington. 86 min.,
1996, WETA, California Newsreel. HIGH SCHOOL.
All Power to the People
Award-winning documentary on government repression of activist groups in the 1960s and 1970s, with
a focus on the Black Panther Party. Uses government documents, rare news clips, and interviews with
both activists and former FBI/CIA officers. Excerpts useful for high school class. 115 min., 1997. HIGH
SCHOOL.
Amandla! A Revolution in Four-Part Harmony
Amandla! tells the story of black South African freedom music and reveals the central role it played in
the long battle against apartheid. Amandla!'s focus is on the struggle's spiritual dimension, as articulated
and embodied in song. The film brings dozens of freedom songs to the screen, drawing upon original
recordings and thrilling, sometimes impromptu live performances by celebrated South African
musicians and nonprofessionals alike. 2002. HIGH SCHOOL.
At the River I Stand
Stirring historical footage shows the community mobilizing behind the strikers, organizing mass
demonstrations, and an Easter boycott of downtown businesses. The film recreates the controversies
between King's advisors, local leaders, and younger militants, which led to open conflict. The film
recaptures the driving sense of foreboding as King delivered his final "I Have Been to the Mountaintop"
speech. 56 min., 1993, DVD, California Newsreel. HIGH SCHOOL.
Recommended Films
High School Aged Appropriate Films
Autobiography of Miss Jane Pitman
The story of the life of a black Louisiana woman, from the time of her childhood when she was
enslaved in the pre-Civil War South to 1962, when she witnesses the birth of the Civil Rights
Movement at the age of 110. Based on the book by Ernest J. Gaines and starring Cecily Tyson
and Barbara Chaney. 120 min, 1973. HIGH SCHOOL.
Battle of Algiers
Crisp compelling drama about the guerilla revolt against the French, waged by Algerians
starting in 1954. Shot on location with a mixture of actors and real-life participants in the
conflict. Provides viewers a picture of colonialism in Algeria and resistance. 122 min., 1965.
HIGH SCHOOL.
Blood in the Face
Allowed access to national gatherings of U.S. radical right groups including the Ku Klux Klan
and the Posse Comitatus, Blood in the Face straightforwardly presents the views of people
whose avowed goal is to forge a political union which will transform North America into one
Aryan nation. Blatantly and without flinching, members of these groups describe their agenda
of anti-Semitism, racism, and extreme nationalism. 78 min., 1991, First Run/Icarus. HIGH
SCHOOL.
Blue-Eyed
Jane Elliot leads a group of 40 teachers, police, school administrators, and social workers in
Kansas City—Blacks, Latinos, whites, women, and men. The blue-eyed members are subjected
to pseudo-scientific explanations of their inferiority, culturally biased IQ tests, and blatant
discrimination. In just a few hours under Elliot’s withering regime, grown professionals
become despondent and distracted, stumbling over the simplest commands. This video
includes a reflection by Elliot upon how the simple classroom exercise she devised for her
rural Iowa elementary school children the day after Dr. Martin Luther King Jr’s assassination
has transformed her life. Facilitator’s guide included. 86 min (30 min version available), 1995,
California Newsreel. HIGH SCHOOL.
Brother Outsider: The Life of Bayard Rustin
This hour-long portrait unfolds both chronologically and thematically, using interviews and
traditional documentary techniques, as well as experimental approaches. Though Bayard
Rustin did not keep a journal, the film uses his first-person voice wherever possible, gleaned
from his extensive writings, papers and personal correspondence, and numerous recorded
interviews. Brother Outsider creates an aesthetic that reflects Rustin’s position as an outsider, a
troublemaker, and an eloquent speaker who refused to be silenced. “Brother Outsider
illuminates as never before Rustin’s fascinating public career and his equally intriguing private
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life. It is a film worthy of his valuable legacy.”—Clayborne Carson, Stanford University. 83
min., 2003, Sam Pollard. HIGH SCHOOL.
Chicano! History of the Mexican American Civil Rights Movement
Ground-breaking for the material it covers, the series is one of the few to address the history of
Mexican Americans in general and that of the Chicano Movement in particular. It begins in
New Mexico with Reies López Tijerina and the land grant movement, is picked up by Rodolfo
"Corky" Gonzales in Denver who defines the meaning of Chicano through his epic poem I am
Joaquin, embraces César Chávez and the farm workers, turns to the struggles of the urban
youth, and culminates in growing political awareness and participation with La Raza Unida
Party. 4 tapes, 60 minute tape, 1996, NLCC Educational Media. HIGH SCHOOL.
El Norte
Tells the story of a brother and sister forced to flee their country of Guatemala where their
father has dared to challenge the repressive landowners. Provides insights into the challenges
faced by many Central American immigrants as they travel north and try to survive in the
United States. 140 min. HIGH SCHOOL.
Ethnic Notions
This classic documentary traces the evolution of deeply rooted stereotypes about AfricanAmerican women and men that have fueled anti-Black prejudice and hatred. The history of the
development of the major figures—faithful Mammy, loyal Toms, carefree Sambo, male
dominating Saphire, leering Coon, and wide-eyed Pickaninny—that have permeated U.S.
popular culture from the antebellum period to the Civil Rights era is presented, with a sharp
economic and political analysis and commentary about the far reaching consequences of such
stereotyping. 56 min., 1987, California Newsreel. HIGH SCHOOL.
February One
In one remarkable day, four college freshmen changed the course of American history.
February One tells the inspiring story surrounding the 1960 Greensboro lunch counter sit-ins
that revitalized the Civil Rights Movement and set an example of student militancy for the
coming decade. This moving film shows how a small group of determined individuals can
galvanize a mass movement and focus a nation’s attention on injustice. HIGH SCHOOL.
Finally Got the News
Offers black workers' views of working conditions inside Detroit's auto factories, focusing on
the League of Revolutionary Black Workers and their efforts to build an independent black
labor organization. Beginning with a historical montage, from the early days of slavery
through the subsequent growth and organization of the working class, the film examines the
crucial role of the black worker in the American economy. 55 min., 1970, First Run/Icarus.
HIGH SCHOOL.
Recommended Films
Free at Last Civil Rights Heroes Series
Emmet Till/Medgar Evers: Part 1
This program documents the stories of two of the Civil Rights Movement's unsung heroes,
individuals who were catalysts for the Movement's progress and success. This segment
presents the story of Emmett Till, a 14-year-old black youth who was brutally beaten and shot
in 1955 for allegedly whistling at a white woman. His murder and the subsequent murder trial
brought national attention to the horrors of racism. The program also focuses on the dramatic
story of Medgar Evers, a field secretary for the NAACP who was assassinated in June 1963 in
the front of his home in Jackson, Mississippi. 45 min., 1999, School Library Journal. HIGH
SCHOOL.
The Birmingham Four/Schwerner, Chaney, and Goodman: Part 2
Documents the stories of several of the Civil Rights Movement's martyrs, individuals who
were catalysts for the Movement's progress and success. The program presents the dramatic
story of the four young girls who were killed when a bomb exploded during their Sunday
school classes in Birmingham, Alabama, on September 15, 1963. The program also looks at the
details of the murders of civil rights activists Michael Schwerner, James Chaney and Andrew
Goodman and of the subsequent federal trial of their killers. 45 min., 1999, School Library
Journal. HIGH SCHOOL.
Viola Liuzzo/Rev. James Reeb/Jimmy Lee Jackson/Vernon Dahmer: Part 3
The story of Jimmy Lee Jackson, whose death at the hands of an Alabama State trooper
spurred the march from Selma to Montgomery. The program also looks at the details
surrounding the murder of Rev. James Reeb, a Unitarian minister from Boston who traveled to
Selma, Alabama, in March of 1965 for a protest march. His death at the hands of four locals
received national attention from Washington's political establishment. The program also
documents the story of Viola Luizzo, a Michigan housewife who was killed by Ku Klux Klan
members while driving home from the Freedom March from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama.
The final segment of the program looks at the murder of Vernon Dahmer, president of a local
chapter of the NAACP, who died in 1966 after the Ku Klux Klan set fire to his home. The
ringleader of the attack was convicted of the crime 30 years later and sentenced to life in
prison. 45 min., 1999, School Library Journal. HIGH SCHOOL.
Fundi, 1981
Highlighting the turbulent 1960s, this film adds to our understanding of the U.S. Civil Rights
Movement by looking at its history from the perspective of Ella Baker, the dynamic activist
affectionately known as the Fundi, a Swahili word for a person who passes skills from one
generation to another. Fundi reveals the instrumental role that Ella Baker played in shaping
the American Civil Rights Movement. Fundi fills a gap for those who know little of the history
of the black struggle. It is a compelling portrait of an extraordinary woman who has devoted
her life to struggle and to the people who take part in it." —Harry Belafonte. Joanne Grant.
Recommended Films
The Global Assembly Line
Inside look at the lives and working conditions of women and men employed in the “free
trade zones” of North America and Asia, as U.S. companies close their factories searching the
globe for a cheaper labor force. Provides a close-up of the people who make the clothes worn
and electronic goods used in the U.S. 32 and 58 min. versions, New Day Films. HIGH
SCHOOL
Hearts and Minds
Academy Award-winning, controversial documentary on the war in Vietnam, made while the
war was still in progress. It is an agonizing appraisal of U.S. involvement in Vietnam, and a
must for every thinking American. The urgency and power of its message hits where it hurts,
and its logic and fairness are impressive. 58 min., 1975, Norma McLain Stoop, Peter Davis.
HIGH SCHOOL
Incident at Oglala
Documentary of the events at the Oglala Reservation which led to the shooting of two FBI
agents and the imprisonment of Native-American activist Leonard Peltier. People on all sides
of the issue are interviewed, allowing students to draw their own conclusion as to who was
responsible. This video serves not only as a documentary on the Peltier case, but also provides
a rare picture of conditions on Native-American reservations today. Narrated by Robert
Redford. 93 min., 1992, Miramax Films. HIGH SCHOOL
Intolerable Burden
In the autumn of 1965, sharecroppers Mae Bertha and Matthew Carter enrolled the youngest
eight of their 13 children in the public schools of Drew, Mississippi. The Intolerable Burden
places the Carter's commitment to obtaining a quality education in context, by examining the
conditions of segregation prior to 1965, the hardships the family faced during desegregation,
and the massive white resistance, which led to resegregation. While the town of Drew is
geographically isolated, the patterns of segregation, desegregation, and resegregation are
increasingly apparent throughout public education systems in the United States. 56 min., 2003,
First Run/Icarus Films. HIGH SCHOOL
The Killing Floor
Two African-American men migrate from the country to Chicago during World War I and
land jobs in a packing house. They respond very differently to the challenges presented. The
film deals forthrightly and effectively with racism in the workplace and the union. It ends with
1919 riots and their aftermath. 118 min., 1985, Columbia Tri-Star Home Video. HIGH SCHOOL
Lumumba
This video is a unique opportunity to reconsider the life and legacy of one of the legendary
figures of modern African history. Like Malcolm X, Patrice Lumumba is remembered less for
his lasting achievements than as an enduring symbol of the struggle for self-determination.
Lumumba's vision of a united Africa gained him powerful enemies: the Belgian authorities,
Recommended Films
who wanted a much more paternal role in their former colony's affairs, and the CIA, who
supported Lumumba's former friend Joseph Mobutu in order to protect U.S. business interests
in Congo's vast resources and their upper hand in the Cold War power balance. The architects
behind Lumumba's brutal death in 1961, a mere nine months after becoming the country's first
Prime Minister, recently became known and are dramatized for the first time in "Lumumba.”
Extensive background information and primary documents for classroom use available at
Zeitgeist Films. 115 min., 2000, Zeitgeist Films. HIGH SCHOOL
Out of the Past
A documentary about the history of gay rights movements in America. Told through the eyes
of Kelli Peterson, a 17-year-old high school student in Salt Lake City, Utah, the film explores
Kelli's history-making experience of forming a Gay Straight Alliance in her public school. It
also profiles past movements and their activists, providing a comprehensive account of the gay
and lesbian struggles throughout America's history. For more information about the film visit
PBS. 70 min., 1997. HIGH SCHOOL
The Rise and Fall of Jim Crow
A landmark four-part series, The Rise and Fall of Jim Crow explores segregation from the end
of the civil war to the dawn of the modern Civil Rights Movement. Lynchings and beatings by
night. Demeaning treatment by day. And a life of crushing subordination for Southern blacks
that was maintained by white supremacist laws and customs known as "Jim Crow." It was a
brutal and oppressive era in American history, but during this time, large numbers of African
Americans and a corps of influential black leaders bravely fought against the status quo,
amazingly acquiring for African Americans the opportunities of education, business, land
ownership, and a true spirit of community. Informational website and ordering information at
PBS.org. 4 cassettes 56 min. each, California Newsreel, 2002. HIGH SCHOOL
The Road to Brown: The Man Who Killed Jim Crow
The Road to Brown is the story of segregation and the brilliant legal assault on it, which
launched the Civil Rights Movement. It is also a moving and long overdue tribute to a
visionary but little known black lawyer, Charles Hamilton Houston, "the man who killed Jim
Crow." Moving from slavery to civil rights, The Road to Brown provides a concise history of
how African Americans finally won full legal equality under the Constitution from the
precedent-setting cases Houston waged during the 1930s, to the final posthumous 1954
triumph of Brown v. Board of Education. It depicts the interplay between race, law, and
history. The example of Charles Houston's determination will inspire today's students to take
America further down the long road to social justice. 56 min., 1990, California Newsreel. HIGH
SCHOOL
Salt of the Earth
Social drama detailing the struggle for equality of Mexican-American miners and their wives.
The men must fight for the rights enjoyed by their White co-workers, the women for equality
with the men. Based on an actual strike in Silver City, New Mexico in 1951-52. Most of the
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roles are played by strikers and their families. The film was financed by a miner’s union. Many
of the film professionals involved with the direction, writing, and acting were prevented from
working in Hollywood at the time due to the McCarthy hearing accusations against them. Visit
the film website. 94 min. HIGH SCHOOL
The Untold Story of Emmet Louis Till
People who knew Mamie Till Mobley called her the mother of the Civil Rights Movement, yet
she died in relative obscurity in Chicago in the spring of 2003. The brutal murder of her 14year-old son, Emmett Till, in Mississippi in August 1955 for allegedly whistling at a white
woman did as much as anything to spark the fight for civil rights. The crime touched the
nerves of sex and race. It was straight-up dynamite. Under the threat of death, two
sharecroppers—Willie Reed and Moses Wright, Emmett's great uncle—gave testimony that
should have put away Roy Bryant and J. W. Milam. Instead, an all-white jury acquitted the
two men, who practically confessed to the murder in a Look magazine article four months
later. In a place where a black man could die for eyeballing a white person, think of the guts it
took to walk into a hostile courtroom and testify against two white men. Then there was
Emmett's mother, whose gracious grit made her son's murder an international story. 2002,
Keith Beauchamp. HIGH SCHOOL
Zoot Suit
This musical chronicles the life of Henry Reyna, leader of a group of Mexican Americans who
are set to do time in San Quentin for their part in the Zoot Suit Riots in 1942 Los Angeles. 104
min., Luis Valdez, HIGH SCHOOL
Films With Unspecific Age Categories
Apartheid Revisited: Confronting History
This video follows a group of American students on a trip through South Africa as they explore the
history of this fascinating nation. The students learn about political struggles that shaped South Africa,
and important roles played by young people in the evolution of this country. The journey begins at the
National Youth Day Celebration on the 20th anniversary of the Student Uprising against apartheid. The
students then travel from Johannesburg south to Durban and down the Garden Route to Capetown,
visiting key landmarks and talking with veterans of the movement about the political and social causes
of apartheid. The students also visit a traditional Zulu village, explore museums, and meet with student
leaders of today to exchange ideas and experiences. With beautiful location footage and interviews,
viewers share in this journey as the participants compare the Civil Rights movement in the U.S. to the
Freedom Fight in South Africa. Teaching guide available. 38 min, 1997, Cambridge Education
Production
Eyes on the Prize : Series I—America’s Civil Rights Years 1954-1965
Documents the Movement from the Montgomery Bus Boycott to the Voting Rights Act
Recommended Films
Awakenings 1954-1956: The murder of 14-year-old Emmett Till in Money, Mississippi and Moses
Wright's courageous testimony identifying his nephew's killers, and the 12-month-long Montgomery bus
boycott.
Fighting Back 1957-1962: The 1957 battle to integrate Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas,
and James Meredith's 1962 challenge to the white-only enrollment policy of the University of
Mississippi.
Ain't Scared of Your Jails 1960-1961: College students begin to take a leadership role in the Civil Rights
Movement. Lunch counter sit-ins; the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC); the
Freedom rides initiated by the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE).
No Easy Walk 1961-1963: The new strategy of the mass demonstration, as tried out in Albany, Georgia,
and Birmingham, Alabama. The emergence of Martin Luther King Jr. and the March on Washington,
D.C.
Mississippi: Is This America? 1962-1964: Both white resistance to the Civil Rights Movement in
Mississippi and the equally strong determination of white and black organizers to bring Mississippi
blacks into the political process.
Bridge to Freedom 1965: The march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama. Total time 6 hours, 1987,
PBS, Blackside Inc.
Eyes on the Prize II - Eyes on the Prize II: America at the Racial Crossroads 1965-mid 1980s
The Time Has Come (1964-1966) reveals a new ideology within the Civil Rights Movement, the
insistent call for power, as it gains popularity among black Americans. Malcolm X and the Nation of
Islam strike a resonant chord in New York. Its echoes can be heard in the South, where the Student
Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) turns the call for "Freedom Now!" into one for "Black
Power!"
Two Societies (1965-1968): The Movement comes north. Martin Luther King and the Chicago Freedom
Movement confront the Daley machine. Riots in Detroit.
Power! (1966-1968): This section explores three paths taken to power. In Cleveland, the ballot box lifts
Carl Stokes to the office of mayor. The Black Panthers take up law books, breakfast programs, and guns
in Oakland. For a time, parents win educational control of their public school district in Brooklyn.
The Promised Land (1967-1968): This charts Martin Luther King's often overlooked final year, from his
declaration of opposition to the war in Vietnam, through the beginning of his Poor People's Campaign,
to his 1968 assassination in Memphis.
Recommended Films
Ain't Gonna Shuffle No More (1964-1972): A new sense of black pride and black consciousness is
evidenced by a prizefighter named Cassius Clay (a.k.a. Muhammad Ali), on the campus of Howard
University in Washington, D.C., and at the National Black Political Convention in Gary, Indiana.
A Nation of Law? (1968-71): The killing of two Black Panther leaders in Chicago and the rebellion at
New York's Attica state prison that left 43 dead.
The Keys to the Kingdom (1974-80): Anti-discrimination laws are put to the test. Boston's schools are
ordered to desegregate, but some whites resist violently. Affirmative action scores a victory in Atlanta
but is challenged with the Bakke Supreme Court case.
Back to the Movement (1979-mid 80s): The powerlessness of Miami's black community results in
rioting in the Liberty City section. But in Chicago, an unprecedented grassroots crusade empowers the
black community and takes Harold Washington to victory as the city's first black mayor. The series ends
with a look back at the people who made this movement a force for change in America.
Total time 8 hours, 1990, PBS. Blackside.
Freedom on My Mind
Nominated for an Academy Award, winner of both the American Historical Association and the
Organization of American Historians awards for best documentary, this landmark film tells the story of
the Mississippi freedom movement in the early 1960s when a handful of young activists changed
history. We witness the growing confidence and courage of poverty-stricken sharecroppers, maids, and
day laborers as they confront jail, beatings, and even murder for the simple right to vote. One who joined
the campaign, Endesha Ida Mae Holland, a former prostitute, today a Ph.D., recalls, "White people
looked me in the face for the first time. I couldn't turn back." 110 min., 1994, California Newsreel.
Ida B. Wells: Passion for Justice
Ida B. Wells, teacher, journalist, and life-long crusader against racism and sexism in America, is profiled
in William Greaves’ documentary. Having herself been born into slavery in a small Mississippi town,
Wells called upon people of conscience to bring moral, political, and economic pressures to bear against
the evils she identified. 58 min., 1989, The American Experience Series.
Living the Story: The Civil Rights Movement in Kentucky: Personal Stories of the Fight for Racial
Equality
This documentary, part of a multimedia project of the Kentucky Oral History Commission, features
Kentuckians who took part in the Civil Rights Movement sharing their own stories of the struggle for
justice and equal treatment. It is designed to give a feel for the times, to explain some of the issues that
were particularly important in Kentucky, and to inspire young people by showing how people their age
have made a difference in society. To facilitate classroom use, the hour-long video is divided into
segments that may be viewed separately. Related biographies, a historical timeline, and lesson plans
Recommended Films
written by Kentucky teachers for various grade levels can be found at www.ket.org. 60 min., 2001,
Kentucky Oral History Commission of the Kentucky Historical Society.
Resurgence: The Movement for Equality vs. the Ku Klux Klan
Focusing on a bitter two-year strike led by black women against a chicken processing plant in Laurel,
Mississippi, Resurgence contrasts two sides of a political battle in the United States: efforts of union and
civil rights activists to achieve social and economic reform, and an upsurge of activity in the Ku Klux
Klan and the American Nazi Party. 54 min., 1981, First Run/Icarus.
Standing on my Sisters Shoulders: One of the best films on the Civil Rights Movement, this awardwinning documentary reveals the movement in Mississippi in the 1950s and 60s from the point of view
of the courageous women who lived it- and emerged as its grassroots leaders. The film is full of riveting
historical footage and original interviews with Fannie Lou Hammer, Annie Devine, Unita Blackwell,
Mae Bertha Carter, Victoria Gray Adams and more. Voter registration, the fight for equal education,
desegregation, and of course the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party's challenge at the Convention
are featured. Order from Teaching for Change.
61 min., 2002, DVD
Strange Fruit
In 1937, after seeing a photo depicting the lynching of a black man in the South, Bronx-born high school
teacher Abel Meeropol wrote a poem entitled "Strange Fruit" that begins with the words: "Southern trees
bear a strange fruit. Blood on the leaves and blood at the root." He set the poem to music and a few years
later Billy Holiday recorded it in a legendary heartbreaking performance. The film intertwines jazz
genealogy, biography, performance footage, and the history of lynching. 57 min., 2002, California
Newsreel.
We Shall Overcome
An inspiring film that follows the development of the song that became the anthem of the Civil Rights
Movement. It combines archival footage with music and interviews, and invites students to feel
themselves part of the “We” in “We Shall Overcome.” A good resource for teaching the Civil Rights
Movement and the role of song in social change. 58 min., 1989, California Newsreel.
Source: http://civilrightsteaching.org
Recommended Sites in Philadelphia to
Enhance Further Learning
African American Museum in Philadelphia - 7th and Arch, Philadelphia
Audacious Americans: African Americans 1776-1876 is the newest exhibit at the AAMP. It
focuses on the lives of the African Americans who had made major contributions to the city of
Philadelphia.
National Constitution Center - Independence Mall, Philadelphia
The National Constitution Center features exhibits about historic figures such as Abraham
Lincoln and Benjamin Franklin.
Kennett Square Underground Railroad Center – South Chester County, Pennsylvania
The Kennett Square Underground Tour highlights several of the 2 dozen documented
underground railroad stations within a 8 square mile radius, the largest concentrations of
underground stations in the United States and explains the trials faced by many of its hosts
and passengers supported by authentic artifacts.
American Civil War Museum - Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
Learn about the conflicts that led up to and occurred during the American Civil War. From
April through November, watch reenactments of the battle of Gettysburg, the turning point of
the Civil War.
Atwater Kent Museum – 15 S 7th Street, Philadelphia
Museum of 300 years of Philadelphia History. The museum is closed for renovations until
2011.
The Blacks in Wax Museum - Baltimore, Maryland
The Black in Wax Museum features the history of African Americans told through life size wax
figures. The museum’s exhibits include the Middle Passage, the Civil War and Reconstruction,
the Civil Rights Movement, and today.
Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History and Culture - Baltimore,
Maryland
The Reginald F. Lewis Museum is the largest African American Museum on the East Coast.
http://www.africanamericanculture.org/PDFS/SchoolProgramGuide_2009_2010_web.pdf
Afro-American Historical and Cultural Society Museum – 1841 Kennedy Boulevard at the
corner of Stevens Avenue. Second floor of the Greenville Branch of the Jersey City Free Public
Library
The Museum has galleries for lectures, special exhibits, and a permanent collection of material
culture of New Jersey’s African Americans as well as African artifacts. The collection includes
books, newspapers, documents, photographs, and memorabilia regarding African American
history.
Recommended Sites in Philadelphia to
Enhance Further Learning
Civil Rights Garden – Pacific Avenue & Dr. Martin Luther King Blvd. Atlantic City, NJ 08401
The Civil Rights Garden is a tranquil public sculpture garden comprised of 11 granite
columns, winding pathways, plants, flowers, Gingko trees, and sculptures with inscriptions
related to the history, events, and people of the Civil Rights Movement.
The President’s House in Philadelphia, Independence National Historic Park
It served as the “White House” from 1790 to 1800 while Philadelphia was the capital of the US.
It stood on Market Street, one block north of Independence Hall. The entrance to the New
Liberty Bell Center is at the site where Washington ordered slave quarters build to house some
of the nine enslaved Africans he bought to Philadelphia.
Civil War Museum of Philadelphia – 2301 Market St. Philadelphia, PA 19103
Anticipated building of a new facility in 2014; in the mean time, the Civil War Museum will
partner with the Gettysburg Foundation, AAMP, and National Constitution Center to ensure
parts of the collection will be seen by the public during the commemoration of the 150th
anniversary of the Civil War.
Johnson House – 6306 Germantown Avenue
Built between 1765 -1768 by Dirck Jansen. The house was a stop on the Underground Railroad.
The Lawnside Historical Society, Inc.
A non-profit dedicated to protect, preserve, and maintain the Peter Mott House as part of the
Underground Railroad and to restore the legacy of the historically African-American
municipality of Lawnside, NJ
The Legacy Museum of African American History – 403 Monroe Street. Lynchburg, VA 24505
http://www.legacymuseum.org/
Dedicated to collecting, preserving, and storing historic artifacts, documents, and memorabilia
relating to significant contributions of the African American community in Lynchburg and its
environs.
Afro-American Historical Association of Fauquier County – 4249 Loudoun Avenue. The
Plains, VA 20198 http://www.aahafauquier.org
The goal of the organization is to document, preserve, and educate the public about the often
neglected history of Fauquier County region. Through the museum, genealogy resource
center, monthly public programs, and community outreach, AAHA seek to serve the citizens
of Virginia.
Alexandria Black History Museum – 638 N. Alfred St.; entrance on Wythe St, Alexandria, VA
22314-1823 http://oha.alexandriava.gov/bhrc/
Founded in 1983 to showcase local African-American history. Hosts historical exhibits and
educational programs and houses a growing collection of artifacts.
Recommended Books
Grades 5 – 7, Middle School Readings
Yours for Justice, Ida B. Wells: The Daring Life of a Crusading Journalist
Author: Philip Dray
Illustrator: Stephen Alcorn
Reading Level: Ages 9-12 – middle grade readers
ISBN-10: 1561454176
ISBN-13: 978-1561454174
Historian Dray introduces Ida B. Wells, a civil rights crusader and journalist who campaigned
tirelessly to end the practice of lynching. Born into slavery in Mississippi, Wells became a
teacher at the age of 16 in order to support her orphaned siblings. Later, she began writing and
speaking out against Jim Crow laws.
Freedom’s Children: Young Civil Rights Activists Tell Their Own Stories
Author: Ellen S. Levine
Reading Level: Ages 9-12
ISBN-10: 0698118707
ISBN-13: 978-0698118706
Filled with inspiring accounts of faith and courage, this book rescues and preserves the stories
of children and teenagers who contributed to the civil rights movement. They were among the
participants and some cases the leaders, of numerous civil rights demonstrations in the 1960s.
For example, all of us know of Rosa Parks, whose refusal in 1955 to give up her seat to a white
man on a city bus sparked the Montgomery, Alabama, bus boycott. Most of us don’t know,
however, that just months earlier high school junior Claudette Colvin had been arrested for
doing the same thing.
Witness to Freedom: Young People Who Fought for Civil Rights
Author: Belinda Rochelle
Reading Level: Ages 9-12, Grades 4-7
ISBN-10: 0140384324
ISBN-13: 978-0140384321
Rochelle relates the pivotal roles played by young African Americans in nine major events.
Each chapter starts with and immediate dramatic focus on one young person’s experience and
then moves out to the wider issues and the politic struggle.
Through My Eyes
Author: Ruby Bridges
Reading Level: Ages 8 - 12
ISBN-10: 0590189239
ISBN-13: 978-0590189231
Surrounded by federal marshals, 6 year old Ruby Bridges became the first black student ever
at the all-white William Frantz Public School in New Orleans, Louisiana on November 14,
1960. A personal and deeply moving historical documentary about a staggeringly courageous
little girl at the center of events that already seem unbelievable – Richard Farr.
Recommended Books
Grades 5 – 7, Middle School Readings
Freedom Riders: John Lewis and Jim Zwerg on the Front Lines of the Civil Rights Movement
Author: Ann Bausum
Reading Level: 9-12, Grades 5-9
ISBN-10: 0792241738
ISBN-13: 978-0792241737
The incredible courage and determination of young people, black, white, male, and female,
who risked great personal danger and even death as they participated in the freedom rides
during the Civil Rights Movement are the focus of this remarkable book. History is told
through the experiences of two young men of disparate backgrounds, one black John Lewis,
the other white Jim Zwerg. Bausum brings the story of the turbulent and often violent
dismantling of segregated travel alive in vivid detail.
A Dream of Freedom: The Civil Rights Movement from 1954 to 1968, Author: Diane Mcwhorter
Reading Level: Ages 9-12, Grades 6-8
ISBN-10: 0439576784
ISBN-13: 978-0439576789
In this compelling but challenging children’s book, McWhorter tackles the national civil rights
movement from Brown V. Board of Education to the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. in
1963 was a sixth grader at a segregated Birmingham school, and throughout this account is
both factual and fictional. She discusses her feelings as a white child in the South and she
focuses in on the many ways in which both white and black children were involved in this
movement.
Freedom Cannot Rest: Ella Baker And The Civil Rights Movement
Author: Lisa Frederiksen Bohannon
Reading Level: Grades 7 and Up, Young Adult
ISBN-10: 1931798710
ISBN-13: 978-1931798716
Ella Baker was a major player in the Civil Rights movement of the 1960s. She was the principal
organizer of the SNCC, the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee. A selfless fighter for
the rights of Black Americans, her achievements have often been overlooked.
Black Women Leaders of the Civil Rights Movement, Author: Zita Allen
Reading Level: Grades 6-9
ISBN-10: 0531112713
ISBN-13: 978-0531112717
A well-written overview focuses on the entire movement, from 1900-1964. Allen includes
lawyers, teachers, college professors, sharecroppers, students, and domestics who participated
in the desegregation of high schools and universities, buses, lunch counters, and other public
facilities, and whose stories have been overshadowed by the contributions of men. Allen cites
examples of women playing larger roles. This book is as much about the struggle for gender
equality as it is about civil rights.
Recommended Books
Grades 9 and Up Readings
Extraordinary People of the Civil Rights Movement
Author: Sheila Jackson Hardy, P. Stephen Hardy
Reading Level: Grade 9 and up, Young Adult
ISBN-10: 051629847X
ISBN-13: 978-0516298474
This book looks at the achievements of seldom-mentioned leaders of the Civil Rights
Movement, filling a gap in the literature of the period. In addition to biographical sketches of
61 key individuals and organizations of the era, most of which are accompanied by a blackand-white photograph, the text provides an overview of the events leading up to the
movement.
The Civil Rights Movement
Author: Charles Patterson
Reading Level: Grades 9 and up, Young Adult
ISBN-10: 0816029687
ISBN-13: 978-0816029686
Patterson concisely traces major events of the Civil Rights Movement, from the desegregation
of Southern schools, businesses, and transportation systems to the days following the
assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. Patterson also examines the shift in civil-rights groups’
methods, goals, and leadership from nonviolent integration to black power, from
desegregation and voters’ rights to jobs, housing, and poverty, and from the NAACP to the
Black Panters.
At Issue in History – The Civil Rights Act of 1964
Author: Robert H. Mayer
Reading Level: Grades 9 and up, Young Adult
ISBN-10: 073772305X
ISBN-13: 978-0737723052
This book reviews the history of the landmark legislation, the debate that surrounded it, and
its legacy through essays at the time and more recent pieces that examine the progress made
and outlook for the future. The anthology brings together selections by such noted participants
such as John F. Kennedy, Barry Goldwater, Roy Wilkins, and Martin Luther King Jr., as well as
later commentators such as Robert Novak and Nicholas Lemann.
Current Controversies – Civil Rights
Author: Karen F. Balkin
Reading Level: Grades 10 and up, Young Adult, Advanced placement
ISBN-10: 0737711779
ISBN-13: 978-0737711776
Recommended Books
(Continued) Divided into four basic areas, this book covers the problems faced by lessdeveloped nations, the impact of globalizations, foreign aid, and the question of whether or
not democracy can succeed in these locations.
A Different Mirror: A History of Multicultural America
Author: Ronald Takaki
Reading Level: Grade 11, Advanced Placement
ISBN-10: 0316022365
ISBN-13: 978-0316022361
Takaki traces the economic and political history of Indians, African Americans, Mexicans,
Japanese, Chinese, Irish, and Jewish people in America with considerable attention given to
instances and consequences of racism.
VIII. Bibliography
Bibliography
“What is Service?”
Barfield, Charmaine. A High School Student Speaks about Cultural Diversity & Service. Global Citizen/ Girard College Internship. Summer, 2010.
.
“Reflection”
Brown, Pam & Kime, Patricia. Make A Difference Day Award from Newman's Own
goes to Community Care Services. Taunton, Mass.: 2009. http://
www.usaweekend.com/diffday/honorees/2008/080427diffday-nationalawards.html
Brown, Pam & Kime, Patricia. Make A Difference Day Award from Newman's Own
goes to Community Care Services: “God's Child Project North Central.”
http://www.usaweekend.com/diffday/honorees/2008/080427diffdaynational-awards.html
DAVIS, DERMORAL. MISSISSIPPI HISTORY NOW ONLINE MAGAZINE: “WHEN
YOUTH PROTEST: THE MISSISSIPPI CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT”, 1955-1970.
Laurent, Elizabeth. Girard College History. Girard College: 2009.
http://www.girardcollege.com/43986038161111/blank/browse.asp?
a=383&BMDRN=2000&BCOB=0&c=51291
Obama, Barack. “Remarks on Service.” Points of Light Ceremony, 2009.
http://www.theeagle.com/local/Text-of-President-Obama-s-speech
Search for Common Ground, “Understanding Differences, Acting on Commonalities.”
http://www.sfcg.org/sfcg/common-ground-awards/20009-awardee-johnlewis-elwin-wilson.html
“Glossary of Nonviolent Resources”
King, Martin Luther. Where Do We Go From Here: Chaos or Community? Boston:
Beacon Press, 1967.
The King Center Online. Kingian Principles of Nonviolence: “Glossary of
Nonviolence.” http://www.thekingcenter.org/ProgServices/Default.aspx
“The Beloved Community”
The King Center Online. Beloved Community Network, “Beloved Community of
Martin Luther King, Jr.”
Website: http://www.thekingcenter.org/ProgServices/Default.aspx
“Civil Rights Timeline”
CNN Student News. Extra! Civil Rights Timeline. February 21, 2006.
http://www.cnn.com/2006/EDUCATION/01/31/extra.civil.rights.timeline/
index.html
“Birmingham Jail”
African Studies Center, University of Pennsylvania.
http://www.africa.upenn.edu/Articles_GenLetter_Birmingham.html
For more information on Service Clubs, MLK365 programs, or
the Martin Luther King Day of Service, please contact Global
Citizen staff:
Global Citizen
1207 Chestnut Street
6th Floor
Philadelphia, PA 19107
Phone: 215-851-1811
[email protected]
“Human progress is neither automatic nor inevitable... Every
step toward the goal of justice requires sacrifice, suffering, and
struggle; the tireless exertions and passionate concern of
dedicated individuals. “
—Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

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