25 March 2009

State’s Michael Jay Friedman Discusses U.S. Civil Rights Movement

CO.NX webchat transcript, March 25

Michael Jay Friedman, division chief for print publications in the State Department’s Bureau of International Information Programs and principal author of the State Department publication Free At Last: The U.S. Civil Rights Movement, discussed civil rights in America in a March 25 webchat.

Following is the transcript:

(begin transcript)

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
Bureau of International Information Programs
Webchat Transcript

U.S. Civil Rights

Guest:     Michael Jay Friedman
Date:       March 25, 2009
Time:      8 a.m. EDT

Webchat Moderator (Tim): Join Dr. Michael Jay Friedman at 1200GMT today for a live chat on the topic of Civil Rights.

Michael Jay Friedman: Hi! Thank you for joining us. I am the Print Publications Division Chief at the Bureau of International Information Programs and the principal author of Free At Last: The U.S. Civil Rights Movement. I am glad for the opportunity to answer your questions about the book or related topics.

Question [Justina]: How does racism compare now in US compared with 1960s?

Answer [Michael Jay Friedman]: Hi Justina, and thank you for your question. I believe there still is racism in the U.S. today, but definitely it is much less prevalent than in Dr. King's day. Most importantly, younger Americans are far less likely to hold racist beliefs. Accepting people perceived as somehow ''different'' is a challenge, I think, in every society. But I do believe that Americans are in the process of transcending their racial prejudice. Also, the rate of intermarriage is increasing. Eventually, the entire problem may simply become irrelevant.

You can read and download (free!) Free At Last at http://www.america.gov/publications/books.html#civilrights

Q [Sammy]: Where would you rate President Obama's election in Civil Rights moments?

A [Michael Jay Friedman]: Barack Obama’s election to the Presidency is a real yardstick of our progress. A generation or two ago, Obama’s race would have been used overtly against him. In 2008, it was widely understood that such an effort only would make those employing it appear racist, backward-looking, and unfit to govern.

In the rough-and-tumble of a presidential campaign, I do not doubt that each side employed the occasional unsavory tactic. But the fact that overt appeals to race were deemed ineffective I think says much about our progress.

Q [Maggie]: What are some names from the Civil Rights movement that have been forgotten?

A [Michael Jay Friedman]: Dr. King was a giant and one of the greatest men our nation ever produced. But as time passes, there is a tendency to forget a number of other leaders – often older than King – who provided the organizational sinew that allowed the movement to thrive. The Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth is one. There are many others.

If you look in Free At Last, we have a number of sidebar articles profiling important figures like Marcus Garvey, Ralph Bunche, Medgar Evers and others.

Q [Justina]: Is the Civil Rights movement over?

A [Michael Jay Friedman]: Not at all. But the issues are different, and in many ways “smaller.” We cover much of this in the last couple pages of the book. No one challenges voting rights, for instance. Today's issues are instead around the edges – how do we draw the boundaries between congressional districts? Important, but nothing like beating people senseless for seeking the right to cast a ballot!

Wendy: Does President Obama still face racism in American's reaction to his policies and administration, or are most Americans beyond that now?

A [Michael Jay Friedman]: It is of course impossible to give a 100 percent answer to this but truthfully I see little of this. Americans who agree with the President tend to like him; those who disagree are I suppose more likely to like him less – but policy, not race, is the driving factor.

Q [Demetri]: Is there still places in U.S. with civil rights problems?

A [Michael Jay Friedman]: The simple answer is yes. But the entire country is growing more diverse and more tolerant, just possibly at different paces.

Q [Sammy]: What is your ranking of Civil Rights events?

A [Michael Jay Friedman]: The emergence of Dr. King is one key event. For me, his greatness lies in his ability simultaneously to inspire millions of followers and to nip in the bud any tendency toward violence. Americans would have turned irrevocably against the movement had it been perceived as violent. A lesser man than Dr. King could not have achieved this.

But one also must point to the quiet progress scored by Charles Hamilton Houston, Thurgood Marshall, and the NAACP attorneys who shipped away at the legal basis of segregation. Because of them, Dr. King and his followers had the law on their side. In the U.S., having the law on your side is a hugely powerful legitimating factor.

Q [Demetri]: How would you fix human rights problems?

A [Michael Jay Friedman]: Not that the world is waiting on my views, but my understanding is that all the world's major faiths embrace a version of the 'Golden Rule' – do unto others as you would have done unto you. That's a good start!

Q [James]: What is best thing for you on from Civil Rights movement?

A [Michael Jay Friedman]: Before the civil rights movement, our nation was not drawing upon the talents of all its citizens. For all we know, the person who might have gone on to find a cure for cancer was rotting away in a segregated school, without voting rights and the other privileges enjoyed by all Americans. We are stronger when we can draw on all our talents.

Q [Luanda]: What moment started civil right movement in US?

A [Michael Jay Friedman]: I would argue that the slaves who in the 18th century and even earlier sought there freedom were the original civil rights activists. In terms of the 20th century movement, however, there are two key stands: first, the legal movement that arguably began with the appointment of Charles Hamilton Houston to head the Howard University Law School in, I think, 1929. This movement culminated with the Brown v. Board of Education decision in 1954.

There also was the political activism aspect to the movement. The triggering event here arguably was Rosa Parks' refusal to give up her seat on the segregated Montgomery, Alabama bus and the emergence of Dr. King as the head of the boycott movement there. We cover many other key moments in the book.

Webchat Moderator (Tim): Please visit http://co-nx.state.gov for a list of upcoming chats or to request a topic.

Comment [Will Benson (Kenya)]: The march is not complete but it’s riding on a high right now after brave Americans thought change through Barack Obama comes to America. I salute all of you for making this happen. For those who have fought for this cause, please don’t waver but consolidate those gains.

A [Michael Jay Friedman]: I don't think wavering is possible. The key is that once African Americans achieved their voting rights, they essentially were on the same legal footing as other immigrant groups. The situation was not precisely the same of course, as African Americans faced more prejudice than other groups. But the key is that in this country voting means power, and power commands respect. African Americans are a real part of American politics now, and there's no way that will change.

Q [Ricky]: How are other Presidents with hiring minorities in their administrations?

A [Michael Jay Friedman]: This raises an interesting chicken/egg question. Since about the 1960s, African Americans began overwhelmingly to vote for the Democratic Party (previously they typically voted Republican – the book explains this). As a result, Democratic presidents tend to have more African American supporters, and more political debts to African American leaders. On the other hand President George W. Bush appointed the first two African American Secretaries of State. I think the appointment and election of black Americans to high office is becoming much less remarkable, especially now that an African American has been elected to the presidency.

Q [Ricky]: Is Obama working on furthering the Civil Rights movement in the U.S? Or is he busy with economic problems?

A [Michael Jay Friedman]: One can argue that the two are related. A stronger economy means more jobs. We see greater progress when people feel economically secure.

Q [James]: How do you see Civil Rights in the long term? What can Egypt take away from Civil Rights in U.S.A.?

A [Michael Jay Friedman]: Every nation is different. I can tell you that the key to the movement's success here was that when Americans saw the violent suppression of peaceful protestors, they turned against the racists with disgust. There is a political slogan – “'Not in my name” – that I think captures much of the reaction.

Q [Luanda]: Did it end with Obama as US president?

A [Michael Jay Friedman]: No. The end, in my opinion, comes when through social progress, intermarriage, and the like, the concept of race becomes irrelevant. I truly believe that my great-grandchildren will not understand the racial distinctions that were so important in Dr. King's day.

Q [Maggie]: Who are the current leaders of Civil Rights movement in US?

A [Michael Jay Friedman]: I believe the movement is much more diffuse than in Dr. King's day, or Thurgood Marshall's. This is a necessary consequence of African Americans being part of the political mainstream. It was necessary to have special organizations, movements, and the like when blacks couldn't vote. Today there are still groups like the NAACP, and regional leaders. But today also the elected and appointed government officials -- African Americans, and others who depend on African American votes -- carry out Dr. King's work every day. This ''normalcy'' is a true yardstick of the movement's success.

Q [Demetri]: How many people died trying to promote Civil Rights?

A [Michael Jay Friedman]: Another hard question. I can't give a specific figure, but the real answer depends on how one interprets the question. I choose to believe that we should count those who died in failed slave rebellions, on the battlefields of the Civil War, etc. But if you are referring to the King-led Civil Rights Movement, the answer is remarkably few. Once Americans saw the dignified, non-violent nature of the movement, it became increasingly clear that they would turn against those who murdered civil rights workers. Do look though, in Free At Last, at the sidebar article about the three civil rights workers (black and white) murdered in Mississippi. Also, of course, Dr. King was assassinated...

Thank you to everyone for participating. Please consider downloading Free At Last. I think it tells a great and important story!

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