smash-pacifism-zine

do very much, unless we keep the support of the white
community throughout the country.'”
(The Bystander, p. 443)
Following the bombings, King and the SCLC
returned to Birmingham to launch another campaign
focused on hiring Black cops. The rationale for this was the
failure by police, or perhaps their unwillingness, to arrest
the bombers, or to solve any of the scores of bombings that
had occurred since 1956.
Unable to actually launch a mass campaign,
however, King attempted to bluff the city into enacting the
reform. He set a 2-week ultimatum, which was extended by
five days, and then finally dropped. King stated he believed
the city would hire Black officers in the near future (not
until 1967 did Birmingham hire its first Black cop). The
failure of the Birmingham campaign left people feeling
defeated and demoralized. And many remained armed, a
sure sign of their lack of faith in King's Gandhian pacifism.
1964: Civil Rights, Riots, and the War on
Poverty
Following the 1963
assassination of John F. Kennedy,
Lyndon Johnson became President of
the US. He continued the
administration's efforts to contain and
co-opt Black rebellion. In January
1964, he introduced the Economic
Opportunity Act as part of a broader
“War on Poverty.” An office of
Economic Opportunity was
established to administer millions of
dollars in government funds, leading
to the creation of employment,
housing, and anti-poverty programs.
Many of the main civil rights groups
would be the primary recipients of this
money.
On July 2, 1964, the Civil Rights Act was passed,
which had become the main objective of the reformist civil
rights groups. By this time however, not even the state's
reforms, or its official sanction of King's nonviolent
movement, could turn back the rising tide of Black
rebellion.
From July 18-26, 1964, rioting broke out in the
Harlem & Brooklyn districts of New York City after a
Black youth was shot and killed by police. In the days
following the rioting, from July 27-28, King was in New
York at the invitation of the city mayor for discussions on
how to prevent future rebellions.
In August, 1964, the bodies of three civil rights
workers were found in Mississippi. While many other
killings had occurred in the South over the years, this case
received substantial publicity because they were from the
Northern US (two whites, one black).
In December, 1964, King received the Nobel Peace
Prize in Oslo, Norway. By this time, the SCLC had a
budget of several hundred thousand dollars, much of it from
the federal government and corporate foundations (see
below).
Selma, Alabama 1965
Rioting in Harlem, New York City, 1964.
53
In January 1965, the SCLC, along with SNCC,
began a campaign for voter registration in Selma, Alabama.
Selma was chosen due to the high percentage of Blacks and
the low level of registered voters among them. January 18
was declared “Freedom Day,” and 400 voter applicants
marched with King to the Selma court house. None were
registered, although there were no arrests.
The next day, 62 people were arrested. After this,
near daily protests resulted in 2,600 being arrested by
February 3. Protests and mass arrests spread to
neighbouring counties and towns. On February 15, nearly
3,000 people participated in marches in three different
towns.
Then, on the evening of February
18, after the arrest of a SCLC worker
and a march to the Selma court
house in solidarity, police launched a
violent assault. Dimming the street
lights and targeting media cameras,
the police attacked the protesters and
shot one person, who died several
days later.
On March 5, King met with
President Johnson to discuss the
growing crisis. Two days later, on
March 7, a planned march from
Selma to Montgomery was held. As
it proceeded to cross the Pettus
Bridge, however, state troopers
attacked with tear gas and baton
charges. As the crowd withdrew, people from a nearby
housing project began throwing bricks at the police and
picking up weapons. Altogether, 78 people were injured.
The day was dubbed “Bloody Sunday.”
That night, people met and were determined to
carry out another march in two days. On the day of the
protest, however, King made a deal, negotiated by a
government official, to make a symbolic gesture and only
march to the bridge, then turn back at the point where the
march two days prior had been attacked. In exchange, the
police did not attack.
Meanwhile, solidarity protests after Bloody Sunday
spread to other cities and regions; 15,000 marched in
Harlem, with some 10,000 in Detroit. On March 11,
President Johnson announced measures to pass a voting
rights bill, and on March 17 it was rushed to the Senate for