The man black history erased

[AmyStrange]

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The man black history erased
By LZ Granderson, CNN Contributor
updated 9:18 PM EDT, Wed August 21, 2013

http://www.cnn.com/2013/08/21/opinion/granderson-rustin-erased/index.html

&quot CNN) -- On August 13, 1963, in a last ditch effort to derail the pending March on Washington, Strom Thurmond took the Senate floor and hurled a series of vicious, personal attacks against the man organizing the largest protest in U.S. history.

"Thurmond called him a Communist and a draft dodger.

(...)

"Rustin was imprisoned for challenging racial segregation in the South before the phrase 'Freedom Rider' was ever said. He taught a 25-year-old King the true meaning of nonviolent civil disobedience while the great dreamer was still being flanked by armed bodyguards. And before addressing the crowd of 250,000 that gathered at the National Mall nearly five decades ago, famed actor and activist Ossie Davis introduced him 'as the man who organized this whole thing.'

"No, the reason why you probably have not heard of Bayard Rustin has nothing to do with the significance of his contributions to the March on Washington or the civil rights movement in general. His absence is epitomized by the sentiment woven between the lines of that joke between Jones and Rustin's protege. You see, the organizer of the great march, the man who held a fundraiser at Madison Square Garden to help fund the bus boycott in Montgomery, the intellectual behind the founding of the Southern Christian Leadership Council was also unabashedly gay. And it was the discomfort some had with his sexuality that led to his disappearance in our history books... "

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[NYC_SKP]

1. Recommended. (nt)

[roody]

2. Knr

[Tuesday Afternoon]

3. DU Rec

[BillyRibs]

4. Fuck Strom Thurmond!

he was Child Molesting Bastard, to Him Black Women Were good enough to toy with but Black folks were never good enough to look upon as equals.

[LearningCurve]

13. Preaching to the choir

And yet, can't be said often enough.

[AmyStrange]

17. Isn't he dead?

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I can't remember and I'm just too damn lazy to google it to see.

Now, THAT's lazy,

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[LearningCurve]

18. Yup

eom

[AmyStrange]

19. too bad

(hehehe)

[LearningCurve]

20. Strom Thurmond was a Poohead

Hard to find redeeming qualities there. Robert Byrd was a klansman at one time, but he had the decency to reform.

[AmyStrange]

21. Poohead

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haven't heard that word in a while.

Wonder how that works, having your head filled with poo I mean.

ha ha

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[BillyRibs]

22. Sorry, Venting!

[AmyStrange]

24. Understandable...

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I have no problem with your sharing Billy,

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[AmyStrange]

5. THANK YOU EVERYONE for the recs...

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and sincere thoughts.

This guy's name needs to get out there!!!

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edited to change "guys" to "guy's" in the second sentence

[AnotherDreamWeaver]

8. KPFA has done a special show on him. Thanks for the reminder. nt

[AmyStrange]

11. Good for them...

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and thanx for sharing

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[vaberella]

6. False. I don't know where they got their information but it's wrong.

I teach about him and he's well known in the Black community. Shoot, he has a high school named after him in NYC. Who wrote this?

Further more, Blacks don't have the power to erase anyone from history. Maybe you should say the history White people erased from Black history since it is White people who right our history books.

I don't think Blacks also erase those who have lived and died for our rights. He is our ancestor. We don't erase people. Further more, Strom Thurmond who is mentioned here is White, not Black.

I am confused by the message and the article title.

[AmyStrange]

7. read the article...

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to see it ain't written by no ignorant white guy:

"LZ Granderson is a CNN contributor who writes a weekly column for CNN.com. The former Hechinger Institute Fellow has had his commentary recognized by the Online News Association, the National Association of Black Journalists and the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association. He is also a senior writer for ESPN."

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added quote

[vaberella]

9. Did I say it was? I didn't.

I disagree with the title overall.

[AmyStrange]

10. Your disagreement is noted...

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and we still love you here in AmyStrange land,

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[RainDog]

12. Henry Louis Gates posted this on The Root

http://www.theroot.com/views/who-designed-march-washington

as in... Henry Louis Gates Jr. is the Alphonse Fletcher University Professor and the director of the W.E.B. Du Bois Institute for African and African-American Research at Harvard University. He is also the editor-in-chief of The Root.

[AmyStrange]

15. Thank you...

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remembering his name as an important part of Black History (as part of American History too) should be encouraged, not discouraged,

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[Supersedeas]

49. thanks for that link

[ProSense]

31. Agree, and the

piece doesn't make it clear why it's titled as such. It's mostly about Strom Thurmond, and it goes on to make statements like this:

We betray King's dream each time a white elected official is allowed to say things about the gay community in ways that would never be tolerated if directed at the black community.

[AmyStrange]

35. So, it's mostly the title for both of you...

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and not that Bayard Rustin is worth discussing and learning more about.

Yeah, I can see what you mean about the title, but shamelessly I admit I sometimes read stories because of the title, and this title did catch my attention, and I really did learn a lot from watching the documentary, so that's why I like the title.

Maybe I should have retitled the subject?

Anyway, I'm glad that's out there and thank you for bringing it up about the title.

Truth in titling (I'm serious) sounds like an interesting subject,

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[vaberella]

37. Yes, the title is an issue.

As I stated I am a teacher. I teach about Bayard Rustin...considering I'm a New Yorker, it's important. On a personal level, although I didn't go to his school. I was accepted there because I believed in the cause.

I am discussing the inappropriate title which doesn't attract, but detracted me from the entire essay and it's a slap at Black Americans and their history in actuality. You may not see that, but it's in the wording. That being said...That has nothing at all to do with supporting and and discussing Bayard Rustin the man.

Again, as I stated. Black History never forgot him. Maybe there are people who are not familiar with Black History who have forgotten or ignored him. But he is not. I now get the feeling the title was probably hyperbole, but fell flat for me.

[AmyStrange]

38. I'm glad you posted...

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both sides should always be heard. Especially, if it's civil.

Did you see the "Brother Outsider"? Good doc I thought.

Personally, I think that history hasn't forgotten him so much as he's not remembered as well as Dr. King is, which can be vigorously argued that he had a lot to do with getting King's name out there.

And the whole doing Rosa Park before she did it.

Just amazing stuff worth knowing,

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[Spitfire of ATJ]

14. The Black Panthers hate him because he was gay....

But then, they had macho issues.

[AmyStrange]

16. Nail meet hammer...

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... and not to mention being a minority within a minority... and he still had the courage to do all the things he did anyway!

WOW!!!

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[Spitfire of ATJ]

33. I know. It's almost like corn flakes on chicken around here.

[AmyStrange]

36. I know a recipe for that...

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but it cost more than a TV,

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[JI7]

40. are you talking about today's black panthers ? almost nobody including any black person takes them

seriously. they are mostly seen as a joke.

i wouldn't be surprised if they are funded by the right wing either.

[Spitfire of ATJ]

44. The "New Black Panthers" aren't recognized by the actual Black Panthers.

[Bluenorthwest]

23. There is a good documentary film called 'Brother Outsider' about Rustin which will stream free on

Aug 28 and 29 as well as airing on some PBS outlets. Information about this and other ways to see the film are available at this link:
http://rustin.org/

A taste of the film:

[AmyStrange]

25. Nice...

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Thank you for the info Blue,

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[Bluenorthwest]

26. The film is very good and easier to see this month than in most months!

Thanks for the thread in which to post about the film and Mr Rustin.

[AmyStrange]

27. thank you for helping...

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with getting his name out there. I am most definitely going to see this film when it comes out.

I can never thank YOU enough for that Blue,

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[AmyStrange]

29. NETFLIX has it streaming...

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I'm actually going to watch it right now,

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[AmyStrange]

32. I'm a couple minutes into it right now...

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very very informative and the cinematography is both soothing and jarring. Be back, when it's done...

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[AmyStrange]

34. Very interesting documentary

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I've got to say, I love his voice.

One thing I also learned was about A.J. Muste.

Favorite line was at the end, "We are all one. And if we don't know it, we'll learn it the hard way."

And this one too, "Enemies should get together regularly, in order to create more friends."

What a guy!

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[ProSense]

28. Obama Awards Bayard Rustin the Presidential Medal of Freedom

Obama Awards Bayard Rustin the Presidential Medal of Freedom
http://billmoyers.com/2013/08/10/obama-awards-bayard-rustin-the-presidential-medal-of-freedom/

Excellent profile.

[AmyStrange]

30. Obama does some good stuff sometimes...

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I don't agree with him on everything, but he definitely does some good stuff sometimes

Thanx for posting Pro,

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[kelliekat44]

39. It was and still is the white media that has "ereased" Mr. Rustin. All of my family (all races)

know who his is.

[AmyStrange]

45. Although I do agree with some of that...

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and thank you for bring it up kelliekat, but also remember that many of the black leaders at the time encouraged that he keep in the background.

Imagine what this man could have accomplished if he had free reign?

Just my opinion,

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[struggle4progress]

41. WWII CO:

RUSTIN: In August of 1945 I left Lewisburg Penitentiary, where I had been in jail as a conscientious objector. I had gone in to prison in 1942 for three years' term. Given good time, I was able to come out in August of 1945, at which time I went back to work for the Fellowship of Reconciliation, with which I had been associated since 1941. At this time I also was beginning to give a great deal of my time as director of the Civil Rights Department of the Fellowship of Reconciliation — FOR — to CORE [Committee on Racial Equality]. Now, CORE had been founded within the Fellowship of Reconciliation, and great numbers of blacks had cooperated with the CORE direct action. But when war came, the many blacks who were working in CORE and who were not pacifists did not want CORE to remain within the FOR, because the FOR was a pacifist organization and they did not want to be associated with a pacifist organization in war time. So there was a decision made that CORE should become independent. Even though CORE was independent of the FOR, the FOR paid my salary to do a great deal of the work organizing CORE, and a good bit of the years from 1945 to 1955 were spent as field director of CORE — which meant that I traveled all over the country creating all kinds of demonstrations, sit-ins in restaurants, theaters, hotels, barber shops, and the like. This became a very crucial period, and particularly in 1946 something very important occurred, that was to have a very profound effect on the whole civil rights movement.

In 1946 the Supreme Court of the United States delivered what became known as the Irene Morgan Decision. Irene Morgan was a black woman who had an interstate ticket on a bus. The Supreme Court ruled that she had been incorrectly arrested and punished, because if a person was moving between the states on a bus or train it was a burden on interstate commerce to stop the bus or train and waste time and energy separating people. You will also remember that 1946 is a crucial period, because many blacks who had been in the army were returning home from Europe. There were many incidents in which these black soldiers — having been abroad and exposed to fighting for freedom — were not going to come back to the United States on their way home and be segregated in transportation.

Therefore the combination of these blacks who were already resisting, and the Irene Morgan Decision, which gave blacks the right to resist segregation, particularly in interstate travel, we in CORE decided immediately following the Morgan decision that the next year, 1947, we were going to create a nationwide protest with nine blacks and nine whites who would go into buses all over the upper south with blacks sitting in the front and the whites sitting in the back to challenge this. This was known generally as the first Freedom Ride. It was called “The Journey of Reconciliation.” As a result of the Journey of Reconciliation a number of black and whites were jailed. That was my first experience on a chain gang. In late 1947, early 1948 I spent thirty days on a chain gang, as well as did a number of whites and other blacks ...

http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/6909/

[struggle4progress]

42. The Freedom Rides: From Project to Mass Movement

By George Houser
Tuesday, May 24, 2011, 8:26am

... I am the only survivor of the first Freedom Ride in 1947, which we called the Journey of Reconciliation ... At the time I was co-secretary, along with Bayard Rustin, of the Racial-Industrial Department of FOR and executive secretary of CORE ...

In an executive committee meeting in Cleveland in September 1946, CORE decided to test the Supreme Court decision to see if it was being obeyed in states in the South with Jim Crow laws. Bayard Rustin and I were given the responsibility of organizing the project – raising funds, recruiting volunteers for the mission, planning legal defense in case of arrests, and organizing meetings in each place we stopped along the way. Our Journey of Reconciliation was limited to the upper South (Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Kentucky) on the advice of our southern advisors. “Make this a test case,” they said. The original plan was Washington, D.C., to New Orleans.

For two weeks, 16 of us – eight white and eight black – challenged Jim Crow seating. There were 26 tests of bus and train policy, with 12 arrests. There was only one case of violence: in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, where taxi drivers attacked [us]. Three of our group later served 21 days on the road gang in North Carolina for violating Jim Crow laws – Bayard Rustin, Joe Felmet, and Igal Roodenko. The story of the 1947 Journey is told in the PBS documentary You Don’t Have To Ride Jim Crow, which was aired in 1995 over some 90 stations around the country ...

http://forusa.org/blogs/george-houser/freedom-rides-project-mass-movement/8744

[struggle4progress]

43. A Closer Look at Bayard Rustin (by Walter Naegle)

For more than 50 years, Bayard Rustin was a strategist and activist in the struggle for human rights and economic justice. Born in 1912, he grew up in West Chester, Pennsylvania, where he excelled as a student, athlete and musician. While he never received his B.A., Rustin attended Wilberforce University, Cheyney State College, and the City College of New York. He earned money for tuition by working at odd jobs and singing with Josh White’s Carolinians.Raised as a Quaker, Rustin began his lifelong career as a social and political activist in 1937, when he moved to New York after completing an activist training program of the American Friends Service Committee. At City College, he became an organizer for the Young Communist League, which hired him as a youth organizer to work on the problem of racial segregation and to advocate an anti-war position. Rustin quit the League in 1941, after the Communist Party changed its organizing focus due to the war in Europe.

He began to work with A. Philip Randolph, president of The Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, the premier black trade union. Simultaneously, he began a long association with the Fellowship of Reconciliation (FOR). Serving as its Race Relations Secretary, he toured the country conducting Race Relations Institutes designed to facilitate communication and understanding among racial groups. He was active in Randolph’s March on Washington Movement, and became the first field secretary of the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE). In 1942 he was dispatched to California by the FOR and the American Friends Service Committee to help protect the property of Japanese-Americans imprisoned in internment camps. During this time he also became acquainted with Norman Thomas, a leader in the democratic socialist movement in America. Rustin remained a democratic socialist throughout his life, and became staunchly anti-Communist after his disillusionment with the party.

As a committed pacifist, Rustin refused to register for the draft, and also declined to perform alternative service in one of the Civilian Public Service camps set up for Quakers and other religious pacifists. He served three years in federal penitentiary, beginning in 1943, as a way of protesting the war. In 1947, under the auspices of the FOR and CORE, Bayard Rustin helped plan the first “freedom ride” in the South, challenging Jim Crow practices that had been made illegal by a 1946 Supreme Court decision outlawing discrimination in interstate travel. Known as the Journey of Reconciliation, riders engaged in direct protest by intentionally violating the segregated seating patterns on Southern buses and trains. Along the way, they were beaten, arrested and fined. Arrested in North Carolina, Rustin served 22 days on a chain gang. His account of that experience, serialized in The New York Post, spurred an investigation that contributed to the abolition of chain gangs in North Carolina. The Journey was the prototype for the Freedom Rides of the early 1960s. In the late 1940s, Mr. Rustin was instrumental in securing President Truman’s order eliminating segregation in the armed forces ...

http://rustin.org/?page_id=11

[AmyStrange]

46. Thank you Struggle 4Pro

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thanks for taking the time to add to the info here about Rustin,

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[struggle4progress]

47. gutsy man: gay black who broke with the communists in order to take

a pacifist CO stance in WWII

[malaise]

48. Rev Al spoke about him on his program last Friday

I hadn't heard of him before