NAME: Megan Albania

DATE: 4/28/17
HR: 226
You will construct an evidenced-based argument responding to the essential question What
made nonviolent protest effective during the civil rights movement? At this point you have
examined multiple studies of nonviolent protests during the civil rights movement (i.e.
Greensboro, Montgomery, Birmingham, Selma) and have completed an independent research
on individuals and organizations involved in other major events that used nonviolent protest
during the movement. You are expected to use the breadth of your understandings as well as
your abilities to use evidence from multiple sources to support your claims.

Nonviolent direct action was effective because the protesters created crisis situations that
led to violent responses from white onlookers. By fostering a situation where whites reacted
violently to black nonviolent protesters, it forced the federal government to take legislative and
executive action. First of all, the federal government would not have taken action if white
onlookers had not reacted so violently. Second of all, the absence of white onlookers had
caused some demonstrations to be failures in obtaining civil rights. Third of all, the retaliations
of white onlookers had caused the protesters to take action to prevent them from intervening.
First of all, it had only appeared that the federal government had gotten involved when
retaliations by whites were made. The protesters were told to stop protesting instead of the
government taking action to stop the retaliations of the violent whites. At the Montgomery city
line, as agreed, the state troopers left the buses, but the local police that had been ordered to
meet the freedom riders in Montgomery never appeared. Unprotected when they entered the
terminal, riders were beaten so severely by a white mob that some sustained permanent
injuries. When the police nally arrived, they served the riders with an injunction barring them
from continuing the Freedom Ride in Alabama. 1. As said in the Freedom Rides
encyclopedia entries, it says, white southern violence through nonviolent confrontations could
attract national attention and force federal action2. This quote means that the retaliations of
southern whites had brought federal attention and action to the nonviolent protests. Although
most of the federal actions had consisted of suggestions that the protests and marches come
to an end, some had in turn allowed progress to pass in the civil rights movement. When
threatening white mobs who had opposed the Freedom Rides in Alabama had gathered
around a church, then the Attorney General, Kennedy protected those in the church. As King
spoke, a threatening white mob gathered outside. From inside the church, King called
Attorney General Kennedy, who assured him that the federal government would protect those
inside the church. Kennedy swiftly mobilized federal marshals who used tear gas to keep the

1
Freedom Rides encyclopedia entry, Martin Luther King and the Global Freedom Struggle,
The Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute, Stanford University:
http://mlk-kpp01.stanford.edu/index.php/encyclopedia/encyclopedia/enc_freedom_rides/. I had
learned from this site that Kennedy had made an attempt to maintain the safety and escort of freedom
riders.
2
Freedom Rides encyclopedia entry, Martin Luther King and the Global Freedom Struggle,
The Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute, Stanford University:
http://mlk-kpp01.stanford.edu/index.php/encyclopedia/encyclopedia/enc_freedom_rides/. I had
learned that the actions of Kennedy had led to the discovery for nonviolent protests that white southern
violence on nonviolent protest then leads to federal intervention.
NAME: Megan Albania
DATE: 4/28/17
HR: 226

mob at bay. Federal marshals were later replaced by the Alabama National Guard, who
escorted people out of the church at dawn. 3. Then, the Kennedy Administration directed the
ICC to ban segregation in all facilities. The violent retaliations of racist whites had only then
led to the action and attention of the federal government. It is ironic how the whites who had
opposed people of color obtaining their rightfully deserved civil rights, had used their
privileges and helped them gain the federal attention and action that they needed to obtain
them. In the Chicago Freedom Movement of 1966, The campaigns had gained momentum
through demonstrations and marches, when race riots erupted on Chicagos West Side in July
1966. During a march through an all-white neighborhood on 5 August, black demonstrators
were met with racially fueled hostility. Bottles and bricks were thrown at them, and King was
struck by a rock. Afterward he noted: I have seen many demonstrations in the south but I
have never seen anything so hostile and so hateful as Ive seen here today (Dr. King Is
Felled by Rock). 4. The violence of hateful whites had led to Mayor Daley wanting to take
action as said in the quote, By late August, Mayor Daley was eager to nd a way to end the
demonstrations. After negotiating with King and various housing boards, a summit agreement
was announced in which the Chicago Housing Authority promised to build public housing with
limited height requirements, and the Mortgage Bankers Association agreed to make
mortgages available regardless of race. Although King called the agreement the most
signicant program ever conceived to make open housing a reality, he recognized that it was
only the rst step in a 1,000-mile journey (King, 26 August 1966 Halvorsen, Cancel Rights
Marches). 5. With the Chicago Freedom Movement being the most hostile demonstration
which had become hostile due to the disruptive whites, Mayor Daley had been eager to take
action, leading to the agreement that mortgages would be available regardless of race. The
privileges of racist whites had made nonviolent protesting effective in the civil rights
movement.
Second of all, the absence of white onlookers had caused some demonstrations to be
failures in obtaining civil rights. In the March on Washington of 1963, the most successful and
peaceful demonstration in U.S. history, had not had much of a response from the federal
government in terms of obtaining civil rights. The March on Washington had not been ruined
by racist whites and their violence, therefore the demonstration did not have much of an

3
Freedom Rides encyclopedia entry, Martin Luther King and the Global Freedom Struggle,
The Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute, Stanford University:
http://mlk-kpp01.stanford.edu/index.php/encyclopedia/encyclopedia/enc_freedom_rides/. I had
learned from this site that Kennedy had tried to wade off the white mobs to ensure the safety of the
freedom riders inside the church.
4
Chicago Campaign (1966) encyclopedia entry, Martin Luther King and the Global Freedom
Struggle, The Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute, Stanford University:
http://mlk-kpp01.stanford.edu/index.php/encyclopedia/encyclopedia/enc_chicago_campaign
I had learned from this site that Jesse Jackson led the Operation Breadbasket and had aimed to abolish
racist hiring practices.
5
Chicago Campaign (1966) encyclopedia entry, Martin Luther King and the Global Freedom
Struggle, The Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute, Stanford University:
http://mlk-kpp01.stanford.edu/index.php/encyclopedia/encyclopedia/enc_chicago_campaign
I had learned from this site that Jesse Jacksons leadership had led to Mayor Daley wanting to put an end
to these demonstrations and their retaliations by negotiating a summit agreement with Dr. King which had
led to mortgages being available to anyone regardless of race.
NAME: Megan Albania
DATE: 4/28/17
HR: 226

impact for the civil rights movement. He and his core staff of 200 volunteers quickly put
together the largest peaceful demonstration in U.S. history.6. The March on Washington had
mainly helped the movement to obtain more allies. The civil rights movement relied on their
white onlookers in order for the government to take action.
Third of all, the retaliations of white onlookers had caused the protesters to take action to
prevent them from intervening. This means that white onlookers had some success in
intervening with the civil rights movement. White onlookers who happen to be in the
government had gone so far as to make attempts to end the movement altogether. The
actions of white onlookers in the government had led to the civil rights movement taking it to
court, leading to the movement being protected by the law and untouchable to abusers of
power in the government. Hosea Williams had spoken through a court brief on behalf of the
protesters to allow the protesters to be able to march and proposed the plan for the march to
Montgomery. Action against the governor of the state of Alabama and other officials to restrain
their interference with plaintiffs proposed march, wherein the United States by leave of court
filed its complaint in intervention. The District Court, Johnson, J., held, inter alia, that evidence
warranted issuance of injunction restraining defendants from interfering with proposed march
by Negro citizens and other members of their class along U.S. Highway 80 from Selma to
Montgomery for purpose of petitioning their government for redress of their grievances in being
deprived of right to vote.7. This Court finds the plaintiffs proposed plan to the extent that it
relates to a march along U.S. Highway 80 from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama, to be a reasonable
one to be used and followed in the exercise of a constitutional right of assembly and free
movement within the State of Alabama for the purpose of petitioning their State government for
redress of their grievances.This is particularly true when the usual, basic and
constitutionally-provided means of protesting in our American wayvotinghave been
deprived.8. The actions of white onlookers in the government had in a way, led to the the civil
rights movement becoming stronger.
One might say that nonviolent protests were effective because of the attention and
bystander empathy that had been drawn through protesters peaceful actions because Dr.
Kings famous speech, I Have A Dream had been televised and many other demonstrations
had been attended by several white allies. The demonstrations might have gotten through to
some people, enough to make them allies. But although there are violent reactions to these
demonstrations, violence is shown in the media more often than peace. The actions of white
onlookers had drawn attention to these demonstrations. On February 1, 1965, King himself
was purposefully arrested and jailed as part of the SCLCs strategy for drawing national
attention to the Selma situation. Even before he was incarcerated, the SCLC had prepared a
fund solicitation advertisement for publication in The New York Times that was designed to
remind readers of Kings already famous 1963 Letter from a Birmingham Jail.9. The SCLC

6
Official Program for the March on Washington (1963), Our Documents website:
http://ourdocuments.gov/doc.php?flash-true&doc=96 I had learned from this site that Randolph had
proposed the idea of the largest peaceful demonstration in U.S. History, the march on Washington.
7
Source D: United States District Court, excerpt from the court brief seeking to lift Governor George Wallaces
injunction against the march (excerpts), Williams v. Wallace, March 1965
8
Source D: United States District Court, excerpt from the court brief seeking to lift Governor George Wallaces
injunction against the march (excerpts), Williams v. Wallace, March 1965
9
Martin Luther King, Jr., letter included in a New York Times advertisement soliciting funds for the SCLC, Letter
from a Selma, Alabama, Jail February 1, 1965
NAME: Megan Albania
DATE: 4/28/17
HR: 226

knew that their nonviolent protests would be effective if they had allowed the prejudiced police
to work into their strategy by arresting them, which would have occurred even without the
intent of the SCLC. The arrests of black protesters for the mere reason of marching is
unreasonably hostile and the SCLC was fully aware of it and used it to their
advantage.Therefore, the violent retaliations of white onlookers had made the nonviolent
protests effective.
Nonviolent direct action was effective because the protesters created crisis situations that
led to violent responses from white onlookers. By fostering a situation where whites reacted
violently to black nonviolent protesters, it forced the federal government to take legislative and
executive action. The privileges of citizens who already have civil rights and the absence of
white onlookers had caused some demonstrations to be failures in obtaining civil rights, and
the retaliations of white onlookers had caused the protesters to take action to prevent them
from intervening all of which had made nonviolent protest effective in the civil rights
movement.