Ministers' Manifesto
The Ministers' Manifesto refers to a series of manifestos written and endorsed by religious leaders in
The New Georgia Encyclopedia calls the first manifesto "the first document of its kind: a clear, if cautious, challenge to the rhetoric of massive resistance by an established southern moral authority", a sentiment echoed by others, such as historian Rebecca Burns and Bishop Lewis Bevel Jones III, who had helped draft the initial manifesto.
Background
In the
First manifesto
- FREEDOM of speech must at all costs be preserved.
- AS AMERICANS and as Christians we have an obligation to obey the law.
- THE PUBLIC school system must not be destroyed.
- HATRED and scorn for those of another race, or for those who hold a position different from our own, can never be justified.
- COMMUNICATION between responsible leaders of the races must be maintained.
- OUR DIFFICULTIES cannot be solved in our own strength or in human wisdom.
Second manifesto
On October 12, 1958, the
Aftermath
In February 1960, the city of Atlanta was ordered to desegregate their schools by a federal court.[1] In response, Georgia Governor Ernest Vandiver established the General Assembly Committee on Schools, informally known as the Sibley Commission after its chairman John Sibley, to hold hearings and gather information on public sentiment regarding school integration throughout the state.[1] The majority report issued by the commission endorsed a "local option" that would give local communities the option of either closing down schools or accepting measures for token integration.[1] Following the report, the General Assembly passed a law codifying the local option policy, which was later used by Atlanta when it began to desegregate its schools in August 1961.[1] Despite the small scale of the integration (only nine African American students became enrolled in previously all-white schools), Atlanta's approach to integration was widely praised in news media, such as in stories in Good Housekeeping, Life, Look, Newsweek, and The New York Times.[1] Additionally, President John F. Kennedy recognized the city's integration efforts in a press conference.[1]
Legacy
The first manifesto was, according to the
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u Hatfield, Edward A. (August 12, 2020) [October 12, 2007]. "Ministers' Manifesto". New Georgia Encyclopedia. Archived from the original on November 3, 2021. Retrieved June 29, 2022.
- ^ a b c d e "In Manifesto, Ministers United Against Intolerance". NPR. October 26, 2007. Archived from the original on June 29, 2022. Retrieved June 29, 2022.
- ^ a b Berg, Peter S. (January 4, 2017). "Interfaith Manifesto". Atlanta Interfaith Manifesto. Archived from the original on June 29, 2022. Retrieved June 29, 2022 – via Auburn Theological Seminary.
- ^ a b c Berg, Peter (January 12, 2017). "Why We Need the Interfaith Manifesto". The Atlanta Jewish Times. Archived from the original on June 29, 2022. Retrieved June 29, 2022.
- ^ a b Martin 2011, p. 289.
- United States Government Printing Office: 5298–5299.
- from the original on June 29, 2022. Retrieved June 29, 2022.
- ^ Burns 2011, p. 107.
Sources
- ISBN 978-1-4391-4309-4.
- Martin, Harold H. (2011). Atlanta and Environs: A Chronicle of Its People and Events, 1940s–1970s. Vol. III (Paperback ed.). Athens, Georgia: ISBN 978-0-8203-3907-8.
Further reading
- "50th Anniversary Commemorating the Ministers' Manifesto". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Cox Enterprises. Archived from the original on June 29, 2022. Retrieved June 29, 2022.
- ISBN 978-1-4008-4897-3.