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The Civil Rights Movement Was Filled to the Brim With Leftists

Matthew F. Nichter interviewed by Shawn Gude Jacobin
August 28th was the 60th anniversary of the March on Washington. Ignore the lies and distortions — the reality, as the latest research shows, is that scores of socialists influenced or were themselves key figures in the civil rights movement.

Friday Nite Videos | October 30, 2020

Portside
AOC/Sunrise Movement | 'Let This Moment Radicalize You'. Jack Black | "Time Warp". Yes We Care. The Love | Black Eyed Peas and Jennifer Hudson. "This Joy" | The Resistance Revival Chorus.

Remembering Ella Baker on Martin Luther King Day

Barbara Ransby The New York Times
Ella Baker Baker was a strategist, organizer and mother to the movement whose political acumen, humble leadership style and razor sharp political insights were legendary.

Dr. King and Ms. Baker

Ted Glick Future Hope
Dr. King and Ella Baker were the two primary leaders of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference in its first couple of years of existence, between 1958 and 1960. King was the heart, soul and speaking voice of SCLC; Baker was the Executive Secretary. Baker was a public speaker too, but she was primarily the behind-the-scenes, get-things-done, relationship-building person.

Tidbits - June 18, 2015 - Bernie Sanders, Tamir Rice, Kalief Browder, Ella Baker, BDS, Low-Income Schools, Paul Robeson, and more...

Portside
Reader Comments: Bernie Sanders; Tamir Rice; Kalief Browder; Ella Baker; BDS; Low-Income Schools; Rachel Dolezal; TPP; Edward Snowden; Greece; Bessie; Okinawa; Puerto Rico; Jazz; Watts Rebellion; Immigration; Announcements: March to Shut Down Rikers; Detroit Tribute to Paul Robeson and His Work for Peace; Solidarity Delegation of 20 US Activists to Visit Venezuela

Ella Taught Me: Shattering the Myth of the Leaderless Movement

Barbara Ransby ColorLines
Leadership and organizing cannot be simply tweeted into existence. Movement-building is forged in struggle, through people building relationships within organizations and collectives. Social media is only one part of a much larger effort . . . Group-centered leaders are at the center of many concentric circles. They strengthen the group, forge consensus and negotiate a way forward. That kind of leadership is impactful, democratic, and more radical and sustainable.

What We Can Learn From Ella Baker In A Post-Ferguson Era

Peter Dreier TPM
In 1964 . . . Ella Baker said: "Until the killing of black men, black mothers' sons, becomes as important to the rest of the country as the killing of a white mother's sons, we who believe in freedom cannot rest. Baker's words continue to resonate today . . . sparked by the police killings of young black men, but rooted in the underlying grievances of racial injustice around jobs, housing, schools, and the criminal justice system.

The Other America - A Riot is the Language of the Unheard

Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr Grosse Pointe Historical Society
"...it is not enough for me to stand before you tonight and condemn riots. It would be morally irresponsible for me to do that without, at the same time, condemning the contingent, intolerable conditions that exist in our society. These conditions are the things that cause individuals to feel that they have no other alternative than to engage in violent rebellions to get attention. And I must say tonight that a riot is the language of the unheard." [March 14, 1968]

The Acquittal of a Murderer - Protests, Responses from Artists, from Portside Readers

Portside
"Until the killing of black men, black mothers' sons, becomes as important to the rest of the country as the killing of a white mother's son, we who believe in freedom cannot rest until this happens," Ella Baker(1964). Responses to trial of George Zimmerman; NAACP petition has over one million signers; "Justice for Trayvon" vigils in 100 cities; Stevie Wonder won't play in Stand Your Ground states; Bruce Springsteen dedicates song to Trayvon; Portside readers responses
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