Handbill for Historic 1963 March on Washington

CIVIL RIGHTS

Published by New York, NY, 1963

Printed Handbill, August 1963, New York, NY. 1 p., 5 1/2 x 8 1/4 in. This handbill from the National Office of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom appealed to Americans to march on Washington on August 28, 1963. It includes the names of prominent Civil Rights activists Mathew Ahmann, Eugene Carson Blake, James Farmer, Martin Luther King Jr., John Lewis, Joachim Prinz, A. Philip Randolph, Walter Reuther, Roy Wilkins, Whitney Young, Cleveland Robinson, and Bayard Rustin. Excerpts"An Appeal to You.to MARCH on WASHINGTON / WEDNESDAY AUGUST 28, 1963"America faces a crisis."Millions of Negroes are denied freedom."Millions of citizens, black and white, are unemployed."We demand: Meaningful Civil Rights Laws / Massive Federal Works Program / Full and Fair Employment / Decent Housing / The Right to Vote / Adequate Integrated Education"Historical BackgroundA. Philip Randolph (1889-1979), the leader of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters and a civil rights activist, and Bayard Rustin (1912-1987), a leader in several social movements, organized the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom in August 1963. They built an alliance of civil rights, labor, and religious organizations. Other organizers of the event included Mathew H. Ahmann (1931-2001), the executive director of the National Catholic Conference for Interracial Justice; Eugene Carson Blake (1906-1985), former president of the National Council of Churches and future General Secretary of the World Council of Churches; James Farmer (1920-1999), co-founder and president of the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE); Martin Luther King Jr. (1929-1968), president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC); John Lewis (1940-2020), chairman of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC); Joachim Prinz (1902-1988), president of the American Jewish Congress; Walter Reuther (1907-1970), president of the United Automobile Workers (UAW); Roy Wilkins (1901-1981), president of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP); and Whitney Young (1921-1971), president of the National Urban League.In June 1963, leaders of several different organizations formed the Council for United Civil Rights Leadership. These African-American leaders-Randolph, Farmer, Lewis, King, Wilkins, and Young-became known as the "Big Six." A few months before the march, they brought four white men on board-Reuther, Blake, Ahmann, and Prinz-and collectively, they became known as the "Big Ten." John Lewis later recalled, "Somehow, some way, we worked well together. The six of us, plus the four. We became like brothers." Cleveland Robinson (1914-1995), another American labor organizer and civil rights activist, served as chair of the Administrative Committee, and Rustin served as Deputy Director.Although Randolph, Blake, Lewis, Reuther, Young, Wilkins, Prinz, and Rustin all spoke from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington during the March, it was Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech that captured the imagination of the nation. In his dramatic, fifteen-minute speech, King called for civil and economic rights as well as an end to racism in the United States. It was a defining moment in the American Civil Rights movement.Singer Mahalia Jackson, who had performed just minutes earlier, prompted King to depart from his prepared text by shouting, "Tell them about the dream, Martin!" King uttered his partially improvised peroration on the theme "I have a dream." This portion of the speech elevated it to perhaps the greatest speech of the twentieth century.Condition: Light wear including folds; some creasing; short tear to right edge; with inked stamp of "BAY AREA HEADQUARTERS / 1958 Golden Gate / San Francisco 15, Calif. Fl 6-9082.". Seller Inventory # 28173

Bibliographic Details

Title: Handbill for Historic 1963 March on ...
Publisher: New York, NY
Publication Date: 1963
Binding: No binding
Condition: Very Good
Book Type: Printed Handbill