Origins Of The Civil Rights Movement Summary

In Origins of the Civil Rights Movement, Dr. Aldon Morris’s examines the geneses of the Civil Rights Movement and how it blossomed under the enigmatic leadership of Dr. Martin Luther King. Morris explores how this social movement was formed to address racial injustices that were made so abundantly clear with Rosa Parks’ heroic actions. To address segregation and other inequities, organizers established the Montgomery Improvement Association (MIA) (Morris 56). The MIA was the first organization dedicated to a black movement, consequently, this group and its leaders, were revered (CITE). Essentially, it was the first time that the oppressed black community from Montgomery were given a voice and the respect they deserved. The MIA employed a wide array of organizations and outside groups to create a network which would disseminate its messages and support its causes. This network was based on the black churches which were essentially “a nation within a nation” (Morris 60). These religious institutions played a pivotal role in the community, as well as the Civil Rights movement.
Martin Luther King and the Civil Rights movement also exemplify the effectiveness of the mobilization theory of sociology. This model employs a network, such as the black churches and NAACP, and garners the resources necessary to support a social movement. Moreover, the black population worked as a collective whole to boycott the busses for over a year. This was an entire demographic taking actions based solely on race, not class; hence, every black person participating in the boycott was sharing the burden of oppression equally (cite). Consequently, even those who wanted to ride the bus wouldn’t because they didn’t want to let their community down (cite). This cohesive action creates accountability and demonstrates the effectiveness of the “Collective Power of the Masses” (Morris 62). However, would this collective action had been as successful without the leadership of Dr.