Discussion Questions – Civil Rights Movement

History Questions:
1. How did the Cold War both help and hinder the civil rights movement? (Especially pertinent is the discussion in “Robert F. Williams”, “Brown as a Cold War Case” and “Who’s the Real Ambassador?” articles) Did the NAACP benefit from disassociating itself from communism? How did black power groups fare? Also, how did the U.S. government use Cold War ideology to its advantage?

2.In the “Who’s the Real Ambassador?” article, it becomes apparent that the U.S. government wanted to control and reshape its public image abroad, using famous athletes and musicians such as the Harlem Globetrotters and Louis Armstrong. Armstrong plays a central role in the article with his critique of Eisenhower, but I wonder how much agency Armstrong has? Is he “selling out”, actually making a statement, or is his role a bit more ambiguous?

Historiography Questions:
1. What is the benefit of incorporating an international focus within the discussion of civil rights? Again, there are several discussion points that can be brought up in the “Brown as a Cold War Case” and “Who’s the Real Ambassador?” articles.

2.Sources related question: Regarding the “Who’s the Real Ambassador?” article, is there enough of an international voice given to other countries as most of the sources come from the U.S. State Department?

More Random Thoughts:
One of the common themes was it is important to not read the civil rights movement as a homogenized experience. Too often, I think that people are taught the MLK version of the civil rights movement with Malcolm X and the Black Panthers sprinkled in without realizing the intricacies of the movement. (The Tyson article appropriately points out that there are definite similarities, but makes clear that each is unique.)For example, Dan importantly brings attention to the fact that Dr. King’s own guards were armed, despite his penchant for nonviolence. He also makes note of the fact that these civil rights organization played a different role in their communities. This brings up an important issue: Is the fight for civil rights a racial or economic issue? We started talking about it last week, but these four articles might make for another discussion. Within the blog, it was also suggested that the voices of other groups could be added to enhance the history and I agree. (i.e. Mexicans, Puerto Ricans, illegal aliens, etc.)

On a different note, I liked how the authors used the Cold War as a lens to analyze the overall movement – I found this to be a very provocative tool. It also helps to explain in my research why being labeled a communist dramatically affected the status of civil rights organizations. And in case you are wondering the man in the picture is Meadowlark Lemon…