Saturday,
Feb.23, 3-5pm -- Special event on Robert F. Williams and the Deacons
for Self-Defense with James Smethurst, African-American Studies,
UMass-Amherst
Massive
racist violence challenged the Civil Rights Movement in the 1950s and
1960s. Robert F. Williams, leader of the NAACP in Monroe, NC, and a WWII
and Korean War veteran, organized and advocated armed defense of the
Movement against this racist violence, which emanated not only from the
Klan but from police and sheriff departments (often closely connected to
the Klan). Williams placed a special emphasis on recruiting veterans.
The NAACP removed him from his position, and the federal government
persecuted him, forcing him into exile, first in Cuba then in China.
From Cuba and China, he edited the radical black newspaper, The
Crusader, and broadcast the radio show, Radio Free Dixie. He had a
profound influence on the Black Liberation movement.
Jim
Smethurst teaches African-American Studies at the University of
Massachusetts-Amherst and has authored many articles and books on the
African American struggle and culture. Excerpts from a recent
documentary on Robert F. Williams will also be shown. Don't miss this
one!
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