Black Liberation and Black Freedom

Black Liberation and Black Freedom: The Civil Rights and Black Power Movements

Struggling for equal rights and opportunities since the creation of the American nation, Black Americans created various Black Nationalist and separatist organizations to promote “self-determination, self-respect, and self-defense for black America by calling for broad political and social experimentation with black liberation and political autonomy.” Typically, 20th-century iterations of these movements are encapsulated under the following umbrella terms: the Black Liberation Movement and the Black Freedom Movement. Regardless of their ideologies and practices, embedded within these movements MLK and Malcolm X after King’s press conference at the U.S. Capitol about the Senate debate on the Civil Rights Act of 1964. were philosophies of Black consciousness that advocated Black collective pride, (Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division, Photo by Marion S. Trikosko) uplift, and social change. Recognizing Black global oppression, several of the movements crossed international borders, such as the Republic of New Afrika (founded in 1968) and the Congress of African People (founded in 1970). Nonetheless, the Civil Rights Movement and the Black Power Movement were perhaps the most formidable movements.

It can be argued that the following In 1963, people marched for equal rights, integrated schools, events were catalyzing moments for the Civil Rights Movement: Brown vs . decent housing, and an end to bias. (U.S. News & World Report Magazine Photograph Collection) Board of Education (1954), the slaying of Emmet Till (1955), the arrest of Rosa Parks and the commencing of the Montgomery Bus Boycott (1955), the founding of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (1957), the Little Rock Nine (1957), the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing (1963), and the Selma to Montgomery Voting Rights March (1965). Led by the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., the Civil Rights Movement ushered in a series of

Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. at a press conference in Gracie Mansion in July 1964. (New York World-Telegram and The Sun, Photo by Dick DeMarsico) critical legislative victories through non-violent protests and judicial challenges. These include the Civil Rights of 1964, which outlawed discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin, and the Civil Rights of 1965, also known as the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which prohibits racial discrimination in voting. However, the Civil Rights Movement of the late 1950s and 1960s was not monolithic. By 1968 Black populations throughout the United States, particularly in the urban U.S. North and West, were disillusioned by the slow pace of social change and economic opportunities. Thus, the manifestations of urban rebellion gave rise to a variety of

sub-Black Liberation Movements, such as the Black Panther Party, the Black Liberation Army, and the Black Arts Movement. As a result, young Black Americans shifted the methodologies of Dr. King and the Civil Rights Movement from nonviolent boycotts into direct action civil obedience.

Although the term “Black Power” had entered the Black conscious lexicon during the early stages of the Civil Rights Movement, the mantra, which carried connotations of self-defense and Black nationalist separatism, did not appear until the mid-to the late 1960s. The Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) and the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) eventually rejected the non-violent tactics of the Civil Rights Movement, adopting the ideologies of Black militancy. Malcolm X was one of the leaders promoting Black Power across the country. Extending the fight for civil and human rights, Malcolm X and other members of the Black Power Movement announced a radical, cultural nationalist creed that attempted to eradicate outmoded laws and policies that affected Black social uplift. According to historian Peniel Joseph, “Black Power activists fought for community control of schools, Black Studies programs at colleges and universities, welfare rights, prison reform, and jobs and racial justice for the poor.” Considered a cultural and political revolutionary movement for the Black underclass, some of the visual imagery most associated with the Black Power Movement includes clenched fists, dashikis, and afros. Moreover, famous Black artists, such as singers James Brown and Aretha Franklin, coined anthems and phrases such as “Say it loud, I’m Black, and I’m proud” and “R.E.S.P.E.C.T.,” respectively, promoting selfreliance and spreading the message that “Black is Beautiful.” In sum, the historical record demonstrates throughout the mid20th century that Black Americans executed various approaches and philosophies – all equally integral – toward the common goal of Black liberation.

Malcolm X at Queens Court in 1964. (New York WorldTelegram and The Sun, Photo by Herman Hiller)