Montgomery Improvement Association and the Rise of Dr Martin Luther King, Jr.
By
John C Abercrombie
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As we approach the celebration of the birth of Dr Martin Luther King, Jr we will look at the movement that gave him his start as a national and international leader in the world of civil rights. There is little doubt that he was respected around the world for his study, thought and outspokenness on matters of importance to all citizens of the world.
We will look not only at the movement that started it all, the Montgomery Improvement Association (MIA) but we will look at what made him a great leader and how that translates to your role in the future.
A statement that appears as a duh is the fact that a leader has to have ideals and people to lead. A spokesperson is not necessarily a leader. The press often anoints a spokesperson who is not a leader.
The Montgomery Improvement Association was formed by Black ministers and community leaders and focused on the disgraceful segregation in America. This developed into a successful campaign that garnered the nation and international spotlight. Many people could claim ignorance on the plight of Blacks beforehand, but the unfolding in the media, on television, newspapers and other media blew it up. It became difficult if not impossible to ignore what was taken as status quo in the South.
While this incident centered on Rosa Parks, it is by no means the only incident to be involved, it was not only common place in the South but all of America. There were others,
Take the case of Elizabeth Jennings, whose father Thomas Jennings invented dry cleaning. On her way to church as the organist and in her church finery, she was physically thrown off of a streetcar in New York City in the 1850s. She sued, using Chester A Arthur (later president 21st of the United States) and won her case.
In 1865 Harriet Tubman was physically thrown off of a train by the conductor and 3 male assistants, suffering a broken arm.
Sara Mae Fleming was assaulted by a bus driver in Columbia, South Carolina June 22, 1954 seventeen months before Rosa Parks. She required hospital treatment for her injuries. The verdict of her case played a large role in the Parks case.
Claudette Colvin a teenager was arrested in Montgomery, Alabama months before Rosa Parks, but knowing the justice system and the propensity to challenge the victim her case was not chosen to challenge the status quo of Montgomery. Incidentally, she was placed on probation for her actions and it was only 2022 at the age of 83, while confined to a wheelchair that she was allowed off of probation and reporting on a regular basis.
Racism permeates all of America.
Rosa Parks was arrested on December 2, 1955, for failing to vacate her seat for a White passenger. Keep in mind that no Black could even be on the same row as a White person, so it was necessary for 4 Blacks to stand for this one White passenger. The fare was the same for all passengers and there was no discount, no refund for second class treatment.
This arrest was therefore nothing new and there were people working in the background that came to the fore. People such as Joe Ann Robinson, Mary Fair Burks, Irene West, Thelma Glass and Uretta Adair.
The Women’s Political Council, Edgar (E.D.) Nixon with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) launched a one-day boycott of the Montgomery bussed on the day of Parks trial.
Volunteers worked all night to complete the program, arrange a pickup system, print and distribute posters and other actions necessary to insure success of the boycott.
The one missing ingredient at this point was a person to lead the movement. There were discussions the first night, but no selection was made. Edgar N French the corresponding secretary nominated Dr King. I knew French from his years of working at Livingstone College, Salisbury, North Carolina. This shows that you too can play a role in great accomplishments.
One of the problems preventing more achievement is represented by the large number of people looking for a leader to lead them when what they should is look in the mirror. Many people spend way too much time looking to fit in, rather than stand out. Don’t let this be your life story.
Dr King was new to the community, having taken the pastorship of the Dexter Ave Baptist Church and as a new person in the community did not have long standing detractors as others in the long-term fight. The important thing is that King accepted, did not falter behind a bunch of excuses like ‘I am new here’, ‘I don’t have experience’. No he stepped up realizing that he would be given all the support he needed based on his faith. This should be a lesson to the many too timid to step out on faith. Take heed.
Dr Martin Luther King, Jr built a world wide reputation as a leader in the field of civil rights. He began his career as a pastor, new to the community and without previous experience. Two factors that many people “hide” behind when called to consider leadership. King used his strong faith to believe that he was the right person for the right time.
While Dr Martin Luther King, Jr is called the drum major for justice. Read the entire statement below:
Yes, if you want to say that I was a drum major, say that I was a drum major for justice. Say that I was a drum major for peace. I was a drum major for righteousness … Yes, Jesus, I want to be on your right or your left side, not for any selfish reason. I want to be on your right or your left side, not in terms of some political kingdom or ambition. But I just want to be there in love and in justice and in truth and in commitment to others, so that we can make of this old world a new world.
As an example of the deep seated racial hatred expressed in America, J Edgar Hoover used the resources of the FBI to do extensive inquiries into anything that could be used to degregate the reputation and therfore effectiveness of Dr King.
Dr King believed in the need and ability to work wit h others and was effective in his leadership because of this. He never rested on his laurels but kept focus on the prize. He worked on the necessary skills and the concept that when the student is ready, the teacher will appear. A motto all of us should adapt.
Keep in mind that Martin Luther King, Jr did not start with the skill and reputation he died at the age of 39 from a bullet fired by James Earl Ray. Yes, you can develop like he did.
Much of this story is included in the book “The Memoir of Jo Ann Gibson Robinson” a link to that book is included in the books and video section below. Check it out.
Since no one knew what to expect, the empty buses were a complete surprise. The success of the boycott on December 5, and the excitement on the mass meeting on the evening of that day, removed any doubt about the strong motivation to continue the boycott. As King put it, “the question of calling off the protest was now academic. The enthusiasm of these thousands of people swept everything along like an onrushing tidal wave.” On the afternoon of December 5, the Black leadership, consisting of civic and religious leaders of Montgomery, established the Montgomery Improvement Association. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was chosen to lead the MIA at the age of 26, with Ralph Abernathy, Jo Ann Robinson, E. D. Nixon, Rufus Lewis, and other prominent figures at his side.
Among the demands of the MIA were courteous treatment by the drivers who were all-White, first-served treatment and the employment of Black drivers. Imagine having to demand courteous treatment and how bad it had to be for this to be the first demand. Afterall, this is America. How can anyone allow others to be treated like this?
King had a guest at Dexter Ave Baptist Church, incidentally on a few days before Parks arrest and he spoke how they had to boycott service stations in Mississippi to allow Blacks to use the restrooms. It is almost impossible to imagine these events today, but they were commonplace in many places.
Over the next year, the MIA organized carpools and held weekly gatherings with sermons and music to keep the Black community mobilized. Also, during this time period, officers of the organization negotiated with Montgomery city leaders, coordinated legal challenges with the NAACP to the city’s bus segregation ordinance, and supported the boycott financially, raising money by passing the plate at meetings and soliciting support from northern and southern civil rights organizations.
King was an outstanding leader because he heeded the call, he studied, he thought the problems and solutions through and was outspoken. Below are also some of the skills that he honed throughout his life and which you too can do.
What are the 7 core skills of a leader?
7 Essential Qualities of a Leader
- Clear Communication. …
- Strong Ethics and Standards. …
- Organization. …
- Expresses Expectations. …
- Nurtures Growth. …
- Flexible to Change. …
- Creates Feeling of Togetherness.
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In addition to the lack of information, there seems to be a campaign to promote the disenfranchisement of groups by eliminating the contributions, mistreatment and inclusion. Instead promoting negative depictions which in the absence of other information paints a highly unfavorable picture.
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To those ends, the books can be purchased from our partner Amazon. It is possible to not only read about the book, but to sample them as well, read a section or listen before deciding if it is one that you like. Click on the link. Note: many of these books are available in several forms, such as hard cover or soft cover, Kindle – eBooks that can be read on your smartphone or other device free with a free download, or Audible where the books are read to you. Again, they can be delivered instantly and enjoyed on phones or other devices with a free download.
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Montgomery Bus Boycott
The Montgomery Bus Boycott: Crash Course Black American History #35
For 381 days in 1955 and 1956, the Black citizens of Montgomery, Alabama boycotted the city bus system. Black riders had been mistreated on public transit all over the country for decades, and the national coverage of the Montgomery Bus Boycott intensified the public conversation about Civil Rights. By the time the Supreme Court decided that discrimination on buses was a violation of the 14th amendment, boycott leaders like Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King Jr were household names and the Civil Rights movements were on the national stage.
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Book
Crusader Without Violence: The First Biography of Martin Luther King, Jr.
Published to critical acclaim in 1959 and long out of print, Crusader Without Violence was the first biography of the dynamic leader who emerged from the 1955–56 Montgomery Bus Boycott as the spokesman of the twentieth-century American civil rights movement. NewSouth’s 60th Anniversary Edition, with a new introduction containing new biographical details about its author, returns to general circulation a valuable, rare, and engaging account of Martin Luther King Jr. before he became an American phenomenon.
The author, L. D. Reddick, had known the young King in Atlanta. They became reacquainted when Reddick moved to Montgomery in 1956, where King pastored the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church. Reddick became a congregant and King’s friend and was active with him during the bus protest. He was thus able to report firsthand and at length on King within the setting of the young minister’s early career and family life.
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African Men’s Attire
Show pride in your heritage. This link allows you to shop Amazon
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Riding a Movement (The Story of The Montgomery Bus Boycott)
The Montgomery Bus Boycott was a civil rights protest during which African Americans refused to ride city buses in Montgomery, Alabama in protest of bus segregation laws. The boycott is regarded as the first large-scale demonstration against segregation in the united states.
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Book
What Manner of Man: A Biography of Martin Luther King, Jr.
A Biography of Martin Luther King Jr. 1929-1968 “An eloquent account:”— Newsday.” (Bennett) has succeeded in giving his readers an intimate look into the physical, mental, and spiritual growth of Dr. King.” — Boston Globe.
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Hidden women of the Montgomery Bus Boycott
Multiple women played vital roles in the Montgomery Bus Boycott more than a year before Rosa Parks was arrested for refusing to forfeit her seat to a white person.
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Book
Montgomery Bus Boycott and the Women Who Started It: The Memoir of Jo Ann Gibson Robinson
The Montgomery Bus Boycott, which ignited the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s, has always been vitally important in American history. This is the autobiographical account of the creation of the boycott by one of its principal organizers. With the publication of this book, the boycott becomes a milestone in the history of American women as well.
The book is published by The University of Tennessee Press.
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Grills
Show your stuff with these great grills
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The Power of the Black Experience in the Classroom | Keith Mayes | TEDxMinneapolis
Keith Mayes makes a compelling case for how the black experience in the classroom could have remarkable impact.
Dr. Keith Mayes is an Associate Professor of African American & African Studies at the University of Minnesota and the College of Liberal Arts’ Arthur “Red” Motley Exemplary Teacher. Holding a Ph.D. in History from Princeton University, his professional interests include the Civil Rights and Black Power Movement; education policy and history; black holiday traditions; and racial equity and critical ethnic studies pedagogy. Dr. Mayes authored the book
Kwanzaa: Black Power and the Making of the African American Holiday Tradition and is currently working on The Unteachables: Civil Rights, Disability Rights and the Origins of Black Special Education. Dr. Mayes also established the Mayes Educational Group and Black Curriculum and Cultural Innovations, LLC.
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Book
The Unlikely World of the Montgomery Bus Boycott: Solidarity Across Alabama, the United Kingdom, and South Africa
In The Unlikely World of the Montgomery Bus Boycott, ?Cole Manley analyzes the global influences and impact of the boycott of 1955–1956. Manley moves beyond the borders of Alabama, and even beyond the United States, to interrogate how Black Montgomery boycotters thought about their movement in relationship to global freedom struggles, from the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa to the anti-color bar battles in the United Kingdom.
With each day the boycott continued, news of the movement traveled farther, reaching White pacifists in New York, Black internationalists in London, and, not long thereafter, anti-apartheid leaders in South Africa. Black Montgomery citizens, such as Jo Ann Robinson, recognized that their boycott was connected to, and in conversation with, freedom movements around the world.
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President Obama Delivers Remarks at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Dedication
In his remarks at The National Mall President Obama said, “For this day, we celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s return to the National Mall. In this place, he will stand for all time, among monuments to those who fathered this nation and those who defended it; a black preacher with no official rank or title who somehow gave voice to our deepest dreams and our most lasting ideals, a man who stirred our conscience and thereby helped make our union more perfect.” October 16, 2011.
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The following book is a great addition to the above and can be used to answer and further your search for ancestors that can bring pride to you. We come from strong roots, discover and take pride!
Black Roots: A Beginners Guide To Tracing The African American Family Tree
Trace, document, record, and write your family’s history with this easy-to-read, step-by-step authoritative guide.
Finally, here is the fun, easy-to-use guide that African Americans have been waiting for since Alex Haley published Roots more than twenty-five years ago. Written by the leading African American professional genealogist in the United States who teaches and lectures widely, Black Roots highlights some of the special problems, solutions, and sources unique to African Americans. Based on solid genealogical principles and designed for those who have little or no experience researching their family’s past, but valuable to any genealogist, this book explains everything you need to get started, including: where to search close to home, where to write for records, how to make the best use of libraries and the Internet, and how to organize research, analyze historical documents, and write the family history.
This guide also includes:
-real case histories that illustrate the unique challenges posed to African Americans and how they were solved
-more than 100 illustrations and photographs of actual documents and records you’re likely to encounter when tracing your family tree
-samples of all the worksheets and forms you’ll need to keep your research in order
-a list of the traps even experienced researchers often fall into that hamper their research
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For Black History Month 2020, we posted daily. These posts focus on the reality of Black life in America after the Civil War culminating in the landmark Brown v Board of Education that changed so many of the earlier practices. To see the posts, click here
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We also posted a 5 part mini-series on the 100th anniversary of one of the most horrific massacres in the history of America. Hundreds of Blacks were slaughtered and 10,000 left homeless in this largely unknown event. To see the posts, click here.
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The Schomburg Center
A world class collection of Black History inspired by a 5th grade teacher who told Arturo Schomburg that there was NO African history. Nothing of value. Schomburg dedicated his life to proving that teacher wrong and Schomburg did an amazing job with his collection.
Schomburg – The man who built a library
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