How does
Memphis fit into the Civil Rights Movement?
Memphis is a different city than most in the 1960s. To some degree Memphis is like a northern
city. Unlike many of the bigger southern
cities, there were no major racial confrontations or riots. Blacks had the right to vote and had some
political power. However, in in 1968 all
of a sudden there is a strike by sanitation workers that brings in major
figures of the Civil Rights movement including Bayard Rustin, Roy Wilkins, and
Martin Luther King Jr. They came to
Memphis and fixed all of the problems... Well this is how the King-centric
master narrative would like us to understand the situation.
The Memphis
African American community has had the right to vote much longer than most
African Americans in the South. Their
political power came with some drawbacks, however. Mayor E.H. Crump who first came into power in
the early 1900s established a system that allowed blacks to vote in Memphis as
long as they voted for him. This created
a de facto sense of paternalism between whites and blacks. At this time the NAACP also had the biggest
control over the struggle for civil rights in Memphis. Unfortunately, they lacked the organizational
capacities of other civil rights groups.
The church
in Memphis became the place to organize against inequalities. James Lawson happened to be a minister in
Memphis at the time of the Sanitation Workers Strike in 1968. Because of his connections to Martin Luther
King Jr. through the organization of the workshops he created in Nashville to
teach nonviolence, he was able to ask King, Bayard Rustin, a labor organizer,
and Roy Wilkins to come to Memphis and bring their national attention with
them. Meanwhile in Memphis, he organizes
the Community on the Move to Equality, which was a group of over 100 African
American churches in Memphis that came together during the Sanitation Strike to
help organize their congregations.
King did
come to Memphis to give a speech and lead a nonviolent march. Unfortunately the march turned violent soon
after it began. Many critics decided
that this meant the King was losing his control over people and that his
message was not being heard. However,
the reason for the violence may actually stem from the Black Power group in
Memphis the Invaders. The Invaders
espoused black power, self-defense, and direct violent acts. They came to the march looking to start
something and they did not appreciate that Martin Luther King Jr. came to
Memphis as an outsider.
Although
Dr. King was assassinated in Memphis, this does not mean that the King-centric
dominated Civil Rights Movement should rush to place the Sanitation Workers
Strike along the same lines. There are
many unique features about Memphis in the 1960s and the Strike has many
different aspects to it. Just like all
moments in the history and figures of the Civil Rights Movement, the history
should not be limited just to make it fit into the master narrative.
I agree with that Memphis is very interesting situation compared to other cities in the South. I read "Memphis and The Paradox of Place" by Wanda Rushing. Memphis during the yellow fever epidemic was basically operated by the African American community because the whites (who had the money to do so) fled from the sickness. They were self-sufficient due to the city being abandoned by the state government (the city even lost its name temporarily). This changed though once the epidemic ended, whites returned and reclaimed political power. However, the African American community understandably felt disgruntled that whites who ran away could just come back and "take the reigns" from the blacks who led the city. Boss Crump took advantage of the sense of independence in the black community and ensured them the ability to vote as long as what for him. While this was still racial oppression, blacks felt that it was progressive nonetheless.
ReplyDeleteMemphis was a racist city, but the racism was not as confrontational. We saw clips from the Cotton Carnival in class and it demonstrated the white culture's relationship with blacks. They had them dancing in traditional Negro costumes, reinforcing the stereotypes that blacks were limited to working in the field and were happy as the white man's subservient. Not until the civil rights movement during the Sanitation Strike do we see violent protest against white supremacy. I think the discontent in the black community concerning race relations in Memphis has always been present, but that the situation was peaceful enough that no one wanted to ruin the harmony. The students who grew up in Memphis during the rise of the SNCC and other groups I am sure were inspired to challenge the system. Groups like the SNCC became increasingly more in favor of black self-defense and black power. I'm suspicious that this affected the students of Memphis who were to create the group, the Invaders.