Bayard Rustin:
Civil Rights Activist, Bayard Rustin, Died From A Heart Attack, On August 24, 1987.
Born In West Chester, Pennsylvania, March 17, 1912, Rustin Was Raised By His Grandmother, A Quaker And NAACP Member. As A Young Man, Excelled In Academics And Sports. It Was Also In His Youth That He Became Influenced By Black Leaders Like James Weldon Johnson And W.E.B. DuBoise, Who Were Frequent Guests In His Grandparents' Home.
Rustin Attended Wilberforce University, Chaney State, And City College, In New York. In 1936, He Joined The Young Communist League. His Involvement With That Group Would Be Used Against Him In Later Years.
While At City College, He Got Involved With Efforts To Free The Scottsboro Boys, A Case In Which Nine Young Black Men In Alabama, Ages 13 To 19, Were Falsely Accused Of Raping Two White Women.
By The 1940's Bayard Rustin Was Organizing Nonviolent, Direct-Action Groups And Assisted With The Formation Of The Congress Of Racial Equality (CORE).
A Devout Pacifist, Bayard Rustin And Members Of CORE Were Arrested For Violating The Selective Service Act. Rustin Served Time In A Federal Prison, From 1944 - 1946. While Incarcerated He Organized Protests Against Segregated Dining Facilities.
Once Out Of Prison, Continued His Organized Protests. In 1947 Organized The "Journey Of Reconciliation," An Initiative That Involved An Integrated Group Of People Who Defied The Local Laws, Banning Them From Public Transit In The South. This Was The Model For The Freedom Rides Of The 1960's.
Throughout The 1950's And 1960's Rustin Worked Closely With Civil Rights Leaders, Martin Luther King, Jr. And A. Phillip Randolph, In Laying The Foundation For The Civil Rights Movement.
He Was One Of Dr. King's Closest And Most-n Trusted Advisors. Rustin Was Instrumental In Helping King Establish The Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC).
Bayard Rustin Was Also The Chief Organizer And Logistics Person For The Historic 1963, March On Washington For Jobs And Freedom. It Was At Rustin's Urging That A. Phillip Randolph Called For The March That Culminated Into The Famous, I Have A Dream Speech Delivered By Dr. Martin Luther King, jr. Both He And King Referred To Rustin As "Mr. March."
The Fact That Bayard Rustin Was A "Known Homosexual" Never Stopped Him From Pursuing Causes He Believed In. It Did, However, Keep Him From Gaining The Notariety Of Some Other Black Leaders Of His Era.
Nevertheless, His Work Behind The Scenes And His Ability To Build Coalitions Has Left A Legacy That All African Americans Can Be Proud Of And Benefit From.
"In Order For Black History To Live, we Must Continue To Breathe Life Into It." -- Hubert Gaddy, Jr.
