George Smathers
American politician, U.S. Representative, U.S. Senator (1913-2007)
Bayard Rustin
American civil rights activist (1912-1987)
Bayard Rustin was a prominent American civil rights activist who played a key role in the March on Washington and advocated for a variety of social causes, including civil rights, socialism, nonviolence, and gay rights. He was a trusted advisor to Martin Luther King Jr. and other civil rights leaders, and later became a public advocate for gay rights.
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About the Bayard Rustin
Bayard Rustinwas an American political activist, a prominent leader in social movements for civil rights, socialism, nonviolence, and gay rights. Rustin was the principal organizer of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom in 1963.
Rustin worked in 1941 with A. Philip Randolph on the March on Washington Movement to press for an end to racial discrimination in the military and defense employment. Rustin later organized Freedom Rides, and helped to organize the Southern Christian Leadership Conference to strengthen Martin Luther King Jr.’s leadership; he taught King about non-violence. Rustin worked alongside Ella Baker, a co-director of the Crusade for Citizenship, in 1954; and before the Montgomery bus boycott, he helped organize a group called “In Friendship” to provide material and legal assistance to people threatened with eviction from their tenant farms and homes. Rustin became the head of the AFL-CIO’s A. Philip Randolph Institute, which promoted the integration of formerly all-white unions and promoted the unionization of African Americans. During the 1970s and 1980s, Rustin served on many humanitarian missions, such as aiding refugees from Vietnam and Cambodia.
Rustin was a gay man and, due to criticism over his sexuality, usually advised other civil rights leaders from behind the scenes. During the 1980s, he became a public advocate on behalf of gay causes, speaking at events as an activist and supporter of human rights.
Later in life, while still devoted to securing workers’ rights, Rustin joined other union leaders in aligning with ideological neoconservatism, earning posthumous praise from President Ronald Reagan. On November 20, 2013, President Barack Obama posthumously awarded Rustin the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
Frequently Asked Questions
Bayard Rustin was an American political activist who was a prominent leader in social movements for civil rights, socialism, nonviolence, and gay rights. He was the principal organizer of the March on Washington in 1963.
Bayard Rustin worked with A. Philip Randolph on the March on Washington Movement, organized Freedom Rides, helped to organize the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, and taught Martin Luther King Jr. about non-violence.
In addition to civil rights, Bayard Rustin was also an advocate for socialism, nonviolence, and gay rights. He became a public advocate for gay causes later in his life.
Bayard Rustin was a gay man, and due to criticism over his sexuality, he usually advised other civil rights leaders from behind the scenes. However, he became a public advocate for gay rights during the 1970s and 1980s.
Later in life, Bayard Rustin joined other union leaders in aligning with ideological neoconservatism, and in 2013, President Barack Obama posthumously awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
2 Quotes by Bayard Rustin
- 1.
When an individual is protesting society’s refusal to acknowledge his dignity as a human being, his very act of protest confers dignity on him.
Bayard RustinAmerican civil rights activist (1912-1987)
- 2.
To be afraid is to behave as if the truth were not true.
Bayard RustinAmerican civil rights activist (1912-1987)