Martin Luther King, Jr., Malcolm X, and the Civil Rights Struggle of the 1950s and 1960s A Brief History with Documents

by Howard-Pitney, David

• ISBN13: 9780312395056
• ISBN10: 0312395051
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2004-02-20
• Publisher: Bedford/St. Martin's

Summary

The civil rights movement's most prominent leaders, Martin Luther King, Jr. (19291968) and Malcolm X (19251965), represent two wings of the revolt against racism: nonviolent resistance and revolution "by any means necessary." This volume presents the two leaders' relationship to the civil rights movement beyond a simplified dualism. A rich selection of speeches, essays, and excerpts from Malcolm X's autobiography and King's sermons shows the breadth and range of each man's philosophy, demonstrating their differences, similarities, and evolution over time. Organized into six topical groups, the documents allow students to compare the leaders' views on subjects including integration, the American dream, means of struggle, and opposing racial philosophies. An interpretive introductory essay, chronology, selected bibliography, document headnotes, and questions for consideration provide further pedagogical support.

Author Biography

DAVID HOWARD-PITNEY has taught American history and American studies at San Jose State University and the University of Wisconsin-River Falls. He is now professor and history department chair of De Anza College. He worked at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Papers Project at Stanford University in 1986 and from 2000 to 2002 was a commissioned scholar for the Public Influences of African American Churches Project of the Leadership Center at Morehouse College. A specialist on American civil religion and African-American leaders' thought and rhetoric, Howard-Pitney's publications include The African-American Jeremiad: Appeals for Justice in America.

Table of Contents

Foreword	v
Preface	vii
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS	xv
PART ONE Introduction: Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X in the African American Freedom Struggle of the 1950's and 1960's	1	(30)
PART TWO The Documents: Words and Themes of Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X	31	(149)
1. Formative Influences and Ideas	33	(24)
Martin Luther King Jr.	34	(12)
An Autobiography of Religious Development, 1950	34	(6)
Pilgrimage to Nonviolence, 1960	40	(6)
Malcolm X	46	(11)
From Nightmare to Salvation, 1965	47	(10)
2. Social Ends: Racial Integration versus Separation	57	(16)
Martin Luther King Jr.	58	(9)
The Ethical Demands for Integration, 1963	58	(9)
Malcolm X	67	(6)
From The Black Revolution, 1963	67	(3)
Independence, Not Separation, 1964	70	(3)
3. Means of Struggle: Nonviolent Resistance versus "By Any Means Necessary"	73	(29)
Martin Luther King Jr.	74	(22)
Letter from Birmingham Jail, 1963	74	(16)
From Nonviolence: The Only Road to Freedom, 1966	90	(6)
Malcolm X	96	(6)
From The Afro Americans Right to Self-Defense, 1964	96	(3)
From On Revolution, 1963	99	(3)
4. On America: Dream or Nightmare?	102	(15)
Martin Luther King Jr.	103	(4)
I Have a Dream, 1963	103	(4)
Malcolm X	107	(10)
The White Man Is a Devil: Statements on Whites, 1965	108	(5)
From God's Judgment of White America, 1963	113	(4)
5. Critiques of Rival Racial Programs and Philosophies	117	(19)
Martin Luther King Jr.	118	(9)
Three Responses of Oppressed Groups, 1958	118	(3)
On Black Nationalists and Malcolm X, 1965	121	(3)
The Nightmare of Violence: Regarding the Death of Malcolm X, 1965	124	(3)
Malcolm X	127	(9)
Black Bodies with White Heads! 1965	127	(1)
From Message to the Grassroots, 1963	128	(6)
King Is the White Man's Best Weapon, 1963	134	(2)
6. Eras of Convergence	136	(44)
Martin Luther King Jr.	137	(19)
From Beyond Vietnam, 1967	138	(9)
From Where Do We Go from Here? 1967	147	(9)
Malcolm X	156
Press Conference on Return from Africa, 1964	157	(3)
Sincere Whites (That Coed Again), 1964	160	(2)
I'm Not a Racist, 1964	162	(2)
America Can Have a Bloodless Revolution, 1964	164	(1)
From The Ballot or the Bullet, 1964	165	(11)
All of Us Should Be Critics of Each Other, 1964	176	(2)
My Voice Helped Save America, 1965	178
APPENDIXES
A Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X Chronology (1925-1968)	180	(12)
Questions for Consideration	192	(2)
Selected Bibliography	194	(7)
Index	201