304 pp., 6.125 x 9.25, 16 illus., notes, bibl., index John Hope
Franklin Series in African American History and Culture Between
World War I and World War II, African Americans' quest for civil
rights took on a more aggressive character as a new group of
black activists challenged the politics of civility
traditionally embraced by old-guard leaders in favor of a more
forceful protest strategy. Beth Tompkins Bates traces the rise
of this new protest politics--which was grounded in making
demands and backing them up with collective action--by focusing
on the struggle of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters
(BSCP) to form a union in Chicago, headquarters of the Pullman
Company. Bates shows how the BSCP overcame initial opposition
from most of Chicago's black leaders by linking its union
message with the broader social movement for racial equality. As
members of BSCP protest networks mobilized the black community
around the quest for manhood rights and economic freedom, they
broke down resistance to organized l