I found this chapter in Zinn’s reading to be one of the most interesting so far. I was surprised by the things Zinn focused on in the Civil Rights Movement, as well as the amount of similarities between the things happening in the 60s and right now during the BLM movement. The first sentence of the chapter describing how the black revolt came as a surprise to many is something interesting to think about. The idea that people, specifically whites, at this time were not focused on the racism that was so apparent, and many just lived in a bubble believing things were okay is something that I think is important to think about today as well. While many people after WWII were not focused on anti-racism movements, now, many people are simply ignorant of the fact that there are still many problems with racism in the world. While it’s obvious the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s was very different from the BLM movement, I realized there are a lot more parallels between the two than I was expecting. Zinn mentions how “there was rioting in the streets, looting and firebombing of stores” (459), which we saw a lot earlier this year. Like this Civil Rights movement in the 60s, this movement seemed to be a wake up call for many, especially whites who were perhaps unaware of the reality of things in the country.
The other thing I found interesting about this chapter was the way it highlighted Martin Luther King Jr. It’s nearly impossible to talk about the Civil Rights movement without talking about MLK, but Zinn’s focus on him was brief compared to other historical readings I’ve encountered, or been taught. It made me realize that I’ve always associated the Civil Rights movement with MLK, as though one didn’t exist without the other, but in reality the movement was in no way about MLK. In reality, MLK was definitely a major part of the movement, and many could argue made it what it was in the end, but the movement didn’t happen because of him, and there were other people that stepped up as much as he did during the time.
This chapter definitely highlights things I had never thought about in the Civil War movement. The reality about what the government did and the effects it actually had, compared to what I have always learned, doesn’t come as much of a surprise now. I’ve noticed that after reading Zinns chapters I have become a lot more hesitant about believing everything I’ve learned in school about US history, and this chapter just makes it more clear.
I agree with you and found it interesting how Zinn only briefly talked about Martin Luther King Jr. in regards to the Civil Rights Movement. Whenever I learned about the Civil Rights Movement in high school and middle school we always spent the majority of class time talking about MLK. Something from the Carson reading stated that the Civil Rights Movement would have happened whether MLK was involved or not. MLK was a leader who happened to be very influential but I would not say that the movement depended on him.
I really liked your response to the readings. I also found this reading extremely relevant as we can look at the “progress”, of the nation from the Civil Rights movement to the BLM movement. A lot of the same problems have just changed forms and just adapted to not be blatantly racist.
I also was surprised that King was not the main focus of the article. While the podcast told me otherwise, in school I always learned about Dr. King as the majority of the Civil Rights movement.
Do you think that the reason we learn about MLK as the major part of the civil rights movement is that he is someone like Rosa Parks? Someone more “palatable” and acceptable to society?
The similarities between the 1960s and today are striking. Not only are protests and racial injustice at the forefront of our political discussion, but the Republican nominee, Donald Trump, is framing this discussion in the context of a violent revolution that threatens civility and Democracy. This political opportunism bears a similarity to President Nixon’s candidacy in 1968, which was also framed on “law and order.”
*democracy.
I believe the differences between the movement in the 1960s and the BLM movement today can be traced back to the administrations in power at each point. In the 1960s, the Kennedy Administration took the side of the civil rights leaders so they could have control over the movement and keep it from getting too violent and radical. As Zinn pointed out, the March on Washington was organized with the guide of the Government and kept in order, which inherently weakened the message it was trying to portray. The current administration has condemned the protests and has not tried to work alongside them, which has led to a strong divide between being in support of the administration or the movement.