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BLACK POWER, CIVIL RIGHTS, PRO-LIFE MOVEMENTS.
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Compares ideologies, approaches to political action, membership, leadership, strategies & goals of three social movements.... More...
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Paper Abstract: Compares ideologies, approaches to political action, membership, leadership, strategies & goals of three social movements.
Paper Introduction: INTRODUCTION
American society produces numerous social movements to address perceived problems affecting segments of the population or the population as a whole. An examination of the general development of social movements and of the leadership and membership of three current social movements--the Black Power movement, the Civil Rights movement, and the Pro-life movement--will serve to show the nature, development, and perhaps future of these movements. For a social movement to occur, the following must take place:
1) some members of society must share a grievance they want to correct;
2) they must have hope and think there is a possibility of success;
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Hatchett, & J.S. Fineman, H. Theintent of the pro-life side is to present arguments supporting the right-to-life position and countering arguments seen as pro-abortion. Thisinfluenced thinking in the private sector as well, and Blacks wanted toaccelerate the process and extend it through all of society. References Brower, M. Congress. Farrakhan'sinflamed rhetoric caused Jackson to distance himself publicly from theNation leader (Reed, 1991, 39-4 ). Fayer (199 ). They use the news media to get their message across, and this isone of the prime reasons for the "rescue" operations at abortion clinics--to get publicity (Trenholm, 1989, 6-14). Black nationalism has its conservative andits liberal side. New York: BantamBooks. INTRODUCTION American society produces numerous social movements to addressperceived problems affecting segments of the population or the populationas a whole. Awareness of Farrakhan as a public figure outside the black communityhas been increasing since his involvement in Jesse Jackson's first campaignfor the Democratic presidential nomination in 1984. A separate but related tactic, noted above with reference to theMontgomery boycott, was that of the NAACP--bringing suit in court. The leadership of Operation Rescue is represented by Randall Terry, aborn-again Christian who notes that he was himself an illegitimate childwho might be aborted today. He was a minister forthe Nation of Islam and preached a message of black nationhood thatappealed to a far broader audience. Henry, W.A., III (1994, February 28). One issue was money, for all the leadersin the Civil Rights Movement needed donations to support the cause. Thesect has long been riven by factionalism, and the most celebrated split wasthe 1964 departure of Malcolm X, who turned to orthodox Islam and wasmurdered by three of Elijah Muhammad's followers in 1965. Martin Luther King Jr. Indeed, NAACP leaders noted that the issue in Montgomery wassettled not by the demonstrations of Dr. King and his followers but by acourt case brought by the NAACP. Reed, A., Jr. Farrakhan was a driving force behind the Million Man March in 1995,though the importance of his role has been a subject of controversy.Fineman and Smith (1995) reported that the black community was divided overFarrakhan, meaning that 41 percent of blacks viewed him favorably and 41percent unfavorably (Fineman & Smith, 1995, 33). He became a soldier inthe Fruit of Islam, the Nation's security force and training vehicle foryoung men. It was less clear if the March could beturned into a political movement, as many believed Farrakhan wanted to do: Transforming a one-day march into an ongoing, effective, ecumenical movement would be a daunting mission under the best of circumstances, even if all of the movement's leaders were above reproach. The organization also suffered from a total$3.8 million budget shortfall and an increasing sense in the African-American community that the 86-year-old organization is no longer relevant. The year 1954 is akey one in the Civil Rights Movement that would follow because that was theyear of the Supreme Court decision in Brown v. Skolnik, & D. THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT There had been civil rights organizations in America for some time,groups such as the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement ofColored People) that worked for the legal rights of blacks, but civilrights as a major social movement started in the 195 s. Persuasion and social influence. Louis Farrakhan has tried to hold a certain distance fromcertain of these views without actually repudiating them or the messengers,and yet many see him as the true hate-monger in the Nation of Islam today. Zinn, H. Topeka). Previously, most were active in theirprofessional communities and were doctors, lawyers, and other professionalsless willing to take a public stand because of the pressures they faced.After 1973, members faced fewer cross-pressures: "Because they hadrelatively few social or political ties to a larger social or professionalcommunity, they could be fearlessly 'single issue' activists" (Luker, 1984,146). "The rise of Louis Farrakhan."The Nation, 37-42. Smith (1995, October 3 ). . (1984). New York: Arbor House. Such delays fueled the frustration felt in the black community andcontributed to the development of the Civil Rights Movement (Zinn, 198 ,435-44 ). Stewart, C.J., C.A. The emphasis given to Farrakhan by the whitecommunity, though, colored the coverage of the March and made it seem as ifit were a referendum on Farrakhan. The quest for the dream. Because Farrakhan and the Nation had had along association with anti-Semitic rhetoric, his closeness to Jackson wasthrown into relief in the wake of the "Hymietown" controversy. The March itself was moreimportant than Farrakhan. "Pride and prejudice." TimeMagazine, 2 -27. By executive order, the armed forces were in the process ofintegrating beginning in 1948, a process expected to take 1 years. Mason (1989, November 2 ). To many whites, the Civil Rights Movement thereafter would seem to bea united front driving toward a specific goal, though in fact the movementwas not united at all and involved the rivalries of a number of factions.The NAACP was already a well-established organization and saw Dr. King andhis group as something new that had to be addressed but that was not asimportant. Many of the tactics of the pro-life movement today cross the boundarybetween persuasion and coercion, at least from the point of view of thosetargeted and often from an objective point of view as well. Trenholm, S. New York: Macmillan. Mfume had grown up in a neighborhood where he joined a gang,but he left the gang, returned to school, and undertook a political careerthat began in 1979 with a seat on the Baltimore City Council and peakedwith five terms in the U.S. The separatist strand hopes for an American society madeup of semi- or fully-independent racial enclaves, each based on its owncultural definitions (Bush, 1984, 2 9). This was an era of increasing racialconsciousness resulting from the Civil Rights movement and the BlackNationalist movement (Gurin, Hatchett, and Jackson, 1989, 46). Among the pro-life groups are the National Right to Life Committee,Inc. The Civil Rights movement seeksequality of opportunity, treatment, and respect, while the Black Powermovement has developed into a separatist movement with different factionsviewing the meaning of separation in different ways. An examination of the general development of social movementsand of the leadership and membership of three current social movements--theBlack Power movement, the Civil Rights movement, and the Pro-life movement--will serve to show the nature, development, and perhaps future of thesemovements. Trenholm(1989) states that persuasion is rational and noncoercive. Fard founded it in Detroitin 193 , allegedly upon arriving from Mecca. Persuasion involves a perception of choice(Trenholm, 1989, 6). "The key to Farrakhan's middle-classappeal." Newsweek, 42. Pro-life membersalso use pictures of aborted fetuses as placards, waving them in front ofwomen trying to enter clinics. Persuasion andsocial movements. Board of Education in 1954. He was prominent in the urban black community beginning in the196 s, but white Americans did not notice him until two decades later(Henry, 1994, 23-24). The NAACPwould continue to pursue much the same goals as King and others, but moreoften this group would appeal to the court rather than taking the issue tothe streets. He disappeared a few yearslater and was replaced by Elijah Poole, renamed Elijah Muhammad, who ruleduntil 1975 over a black nationalist business and religious empire. The leadership of the Black Powermovement and the Civil Rights movement is varied and has changed over thehistory of the organizations considered. One of the most important movements of the time was the Nation ofIslam. This majordecision was supposed to be implemented "with all deliberate speed,"according to the decision itself, but even ten years later little had beendone. Roche, J.P. He left Congress to become presidentof the beleaguered NAACP, then still reeling from a sex harassment scandalthat dogged director Chavis. BLACK POWER MOVEMENT The Black Power movement differs from the Civil Rights movement interms of tactics and the ultimate goal. who are unwilling to recognize that the ability to give voice to--and sometimes cause--pain is far different form the ability to alleviate it (Cose, 1995, 42). He has built a religion-based coalitionthat is 6 percent evangelical Christian and 3 percent Catholic (Brower &Mason, 1989, 1 9). It has been described as "theconglomeration of efforts of blacks to resolve problems of culturalidentity and sociopolitical weakness as blacks" (Bush, 1984, 2 9). This tendency to organize was a new political phenomenon forblacks, at least at this level, and the new organizations were moresuccessful than the older ones in providing sustained input into thefederal policymaking process. New York: Russell SageFoundation. Black nationalism had a majorresurgence in the 196 s when a large number of black organizations wereformed. He saw separatism as self-determination and criticized reliance on whites to achieve black progress(Hampton & Fayer, 199 , 163). Mfume said he was energized by the challenge: "Given the polarization inthe country, the levels of crime and hatred, given the despair that I seein the eyes of young people, I thought that I could do more at the NAACP"(Howe, Skolnik & Hamilton, 1996, 55). & M. Unlike ElijahMuhammad, Farrakhan did not remain publicly aloof from electoral politicsbut openly supported Jesse Jackson's candidacy and even provided him with aFruit of Islam security force. The segment of the Nation of Islam under the leadershipof Louis Farrakhan has more recently become a major social and politicalissue because of the perception that the message has become one of hate.Malcolm X started as a black separatist and changed his views, but theseparatist message is being offered once more by some members of the Nationof Islam. During the earlier period, Farrakhan was part of the movement as theNation of Islam, tried to become more visible in public life and toestablish a greater presence. Lay bare the heart: An autobiography of the CivilRights Movement. It may well be impossible for leaders . At the sametime, the Supreme Court offered further hope by striking down the "separatebut equal" doctrine in Brown v. (1989). "Thebootstrap method." People, 55-57. (1963). New York:Harper Perennial.----------------------- 13 When Elijah died, he was succeeded by his son Wallace, whoshifted the movement away from antiwhite anger and toward orthodox Islam.Farrakhan was one of several leaders in the group who resisted Wallace'schange in direction and sought to reconstitute Elijah Muhammad's faith andthe antiwhite anger that supported it. He was attracted to the issue of abortionbeginning in 1983 when a woman came into his prayer group and brought thetopic to the fore, making him think, "If we believe this is murder, we'dbetter act like it's murder." He then began picketing abortion clinics,and in 1985 he entered a clinic, locked himself in, and was arrested. Persuasion is defined as symbolic,noncoercive influence. EnglewoodCliffs, New Jersey. (1995, October 3 ). Smith, & R.E. & S. Denton, Jr. The new black vote. Voices of freedom. PRO-LIFE MOVEMENT Luker (1984) identifies sufficient leadership, membership, andorganizations in the pro-life camp to constitute a movement, and she seesthis movement as having coalesced largely since the Roe v. "From prison, antiabortionleader Randall Terry says that God, not the law, is his judge." People,1 9. Louis Farrakhanjoined in 1955 and seems to have played no role in the killing, but he didgive a speech beforehand implying that Malcolm X deserved to die (Henry,1994, 23). Bush, R. (1985). Howe R., S. The pro-life movement has aleadership that is also varied, though Operation Rescue in particular hashad the same leadership since its inception more than a decade ago. The two tactics together made great changes, but in differentways--the NAACP managed to get old ideas thrown out, while the nonviolentmovement got new ideas adopted. Jackson (1989). Thisas the beginning of his mission. Wade decision of1973, though there were small pro-life groups prior to that decision.Since 1973, the membership has felt fewer constraints about expressingtheir concerns "in vivid, public, and emotional ways" (Luker, 1984, 145).The membership changed after 1973. TheNAACP had worked to bring the issue of the constitutionality of "separatebut equal" to the Supreme Court again and again, and the doctrine wasthrown out in the Brown decision in 1954 (Roche, 1963, 244-245). This decision was one of several forces at workin the early 195 s and into the 196 s that caused the Civil Rights Movementto develop. (1989). . Black nationalism emerged as a response to the desire to escape fromthe confines of a racist society. Dr.King was siphoning away money that might otherwise go to other groups likethe NAACP (Farmer, 1985, 189-19 ). Farrakhan was Muhammad's representative andparticipated in national black political forums. Hope & independence:Blacks' response to electoral and party politics. Gurin, P., S. Farmer, J. Hampton, H. "An angry 'charmer.'"Newsweek, 32-35, 38. San Francisco: SynthesisPublications. For a social movement to occur, the following must take place: 1) some members of society must share a grievance they want tocorrect; 2) they must have hope and think there is a possibility of success; 3) there is often a precipitating event that ignites these grievancesand convinces the people that the time for action has arrived; 4) people are recruited through a network of attachments.For a social movement to succeed, the following must occur: 1) it must achieve an effective mobilization of people and resources; 2) it must withstand or overcome external opposition; 3) the fate of the movement depends on enlisting external allies fromother major groups; 4) the movement will tend to be embodied in several separateorganizations which may cooperate but which often compete vigorously.Stewart, Smith, and Denton (1989) further identify a social movement ashaving at least minimal organization, meaning we can identify leaders,membership, and one or more organizations. (1991, January 21). A people's history of the United States. Eachmovement has its particular strategy--Operation Rescue uses directconfrontation, often in a most challenging and even abusive manner; theBlack Power movement develops an image of strength in the black communitythat some in the white community find frightening; and the Civil Rightsmovement has adopted the tactics of non-violence and civil disobedience togood effect. The movement also uses more persuasivetechniques with spokespeople for news programs and for lobbying efforts inCongress. and Baptists for Life (Stewart, Smith, & Denton, 1989, 178). Farrakhan heard Elijah Muhammadspeak in 1955 and changed his direction in life. Prospect Heights, Illinois: Waveland Press. Hamilton (1996, February 26). Board of Education (alsoknown as Brown v. It relies onargumentation rather than force, and it should not place individuals underphysical or severe mental duress. Blacknationalism has a long history as a political movement, with varying impactat different points in American history. They often proselytize at the same time,screaming at the women that they are about to commit a murder and trying totalk them out of entering. CONCLUSION These three movements differ in their ideology, their approach topolitical action, and their membership. Cose, E. (198 ). The leadership of the NAACP recently changed with the removal ofBenjamin Chavis and the nomination of Kweisi Mfume to head theorganization. was the leader of the Civil Rights Movement,and Malcolm X would become the leader and icon of the Black Nationalistmovement as spokesperson for the Nation of Islam. The Nation of Islamdeveloped in the 196 s and became an important force in the evolving CivilRights movement. The Nation now unveiled aset of ambitious goals, including the establishment of agribusiness in theSouth, a medical complex in Chicago and large-scale international commerceanchored by fish imports from Peru (Reed, 1991, 38-39). Asmembers are removed, other members try to move in to take their place.This is coercion against those women and medical professionals who want togo into the clinic or avail themselves of its services. OperationRescue uses a form of the Civil Rights tactic of the sit-in by surroundingabortion clinics with members so that no one can go in or out, with themembers letting themselves be arrested without any physical resistanceexcept to let themselves go limp so that they have to be carried. There is some dispute about the early history of the Nation of Islam,but the official version holds that Wallace D. & V.E.
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