Although as a member of one of the government-recognized peace churches--he had been a member of the Fifteenth Street Meeting since shortly after moving to New York--he was entitled to do alternative service rather than serve in the armed services, Rustin found himself unable to accept this easy way out, given the fact that many young men who were not members of the recognized peace churches were receiving harsh prison sentences for refusing to serve. In 1944, Rustin was found guilty of violating the Selective Service Act and was sentenced to three years in a federal prison. In March 1944 Rustin was sent to the federal penitentiary in Ashland, Kentucky. He then set about to resist the pervasive segregation then the norm in prisons in the United States. Although faced with vicious racism from some of the prison guards and white prisoners, Rustin faced frequent cruelty with courage and completely nonviolent resistance.
The Post-World War II Period
On release from prison, Rustin got involved again with the Fellowship of Reconciliation, which staged a journey of reconciliation through four Southern and border states in 1947 to test the application of the Supreme Court's recent ruling that discrimination in seating in interstate transportation was illegal. Rustin's resistance to North Carolina's Jim Crow law against integration in transportation earned him twenty-eight days' hard labor on a chain gang, where he met with the usual racist taunts and tortures on the part of his imprisoners.
Between 1947 and 1952, Rustin traveled first to India and then to Africa under the aegis of the Fellowship of Reconciliation, exploring the nonviolent dimensions of the Indian and Ghanaian independence movements.
In 1953 Rustin was arrested for public indecency in Pasadena, California, while lecturing under the auspices of the American Association of University Women. It was the first time that Rustin's homosexuality had come into public attention, and at that time homosexual behavior in all states was a criminal offense. Although the gay rights movement in the United States was still many years in the future, Rustin's conviction and his relatively open attitude about his homosexuality set the stage for him to become an elder gay icon in the decades to come. As the years went on, gay rights became of a piece with his belief in the inherent dignity of Afro-Americans and other oppressed people. As a consequence of his arrest, Rustin was released from his position on the staff of the Fellowship of Reconciliation.
The copyright of the article Bayard Rustin - Civil Rights Leader - Page 2 in Quakerism is owned by Buzz Haughton. Permission to republish Bayard Rustin - Civil Rights Leader - Page 2 in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
Very nice job. I learn of him last year Black History Month celebration at the company I worked for.
Your presentation is excellent what a great job!
Thank you so much for submittin ...
-- posted by Nichel
5.
Jul 14, 2001 4:31 PM
In response to message posted by Eric_Longley:
I do not know the person posting, but it's not uncommon in Web-based forums for people ...
-- posted by Bill_Samuel
4.
Jul 14, 2001 2:02 PM
imgeorg gives me the courtesy title of "Mr." I wish I could return the courtesy. imgeorg, are you a Mr., a Ms, a Mrs., or something else entirely? It is difficult to take a Quaker very seriously if (s ...
-- posted by Eric_Longley
3.
Jul 8, 2001 8:35 PM
In response to message posted by Eric_Longley:
I would like to know what Mr. Longley believes "we" should do about these private vice ...
-- posted by imgeorg
2.
May 25, 2001 4:23 PM
Leaders like Rustin, King, Gandhi, etc., who stood up for the rights of the oppressed while eschewing violence, ought to be celebrated for their courage and their persistence, and for their unwillingn ...
-- posted by Eric_Longley
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