This column finds Bayard Rustin criticizing President Richard Nixon’s veto of a federal minimum wage increase, arguing that it placed an even greater burden on low-income working families. Rustin contends that raising wages was essential to reducing poverty and strengthening economic opportunity, while urging Black voters and organized labor to build the political power needed to advance policies that support working people.
Coming of Age Politically: The Shift from Protest to Electoral Power
In this piece, Bayard Rustin argues that by the early 1970s the civil rights movement had entered a new phase, shifting from protest to “political self-expression” through voting, organizing, and coalition-building. He urges a move toward professional, interracial politics focused on winning power in Congress and securing broad economic reforms rather than retreating into race-based isolation.
"Busing and Integration" Newspaper Column: Defending Desegregation Against Political Backlash
This column examines Bayard Rustin's response to the national debate over court-ordered school desegregation busing, arguing that efforts to restrict busing threatened decades of civil rights progress. While recognizing the controversy surrounding the issue, Rustin warns that weakening federal desegregation efforts could embolden broader attacks on equal rights and urges continued support for integrated education.
The Professionalization of the Movement: Lessons from 1972
"The Rationalization of Neglect" Newspaper Column
This 1970 column finds Bayard Rustin critiquing the Nixon administration’s civil rights policies, arguing that the concept of “benign neglect” masked a retreat from meaningful commitments to racial equality. Focusing especially on education, Rustin contends that cuts to social programs and resistance to school integration undermined opportunities for Black communities. He ultimately defends desegregation and stronger federal investment as essential tools for achieving educational and economic progress.
"Nixon's Proposals: Fancy Rhetoric, Hollow Ring" Newspaper Column: Critiquing Welfare Reform and "New Federalism"
This column examines Bayard Rustin's critique of President Richard Nixon's domestic policy agenda, arguing that proposed reforms to welfare and federal funding offered the appearance of progress without addressing the root causes of poverty. Rustin warns that shifting power to the states and failing to create meaningful economic opportunity would deepen inequality, particularly for poor and Black communities.
"A Nixon Is An Agnew Is A Wallace" Newspaper Column: Exposing the Politics of Racial Backlash
In this column published in The St. Louis American, Bayard Rustin critiques Richard Nixon and Spiro Agnew’s 1968 “law and order” campaign, arguing that repression could not address the deeper problems of poverty, racism, and urban inequality. Rustin calls for federal investment in jobs, housing, education, healthcare, and transportation, while urging Black voters to mobilize against a political backlash threatening civil rights gains.
